Whispers at Moonrise (Shadow Falls #4)(25)

Miranda pushed open the door a bit more. "Come on, don't make it hard on me."

Kylie leaned up on her elbow and yawned. "I think he's scared."

Miranda moved in a little more. "I think I got it figured out. I just need to take him outside and into the first morning light."

"Hmm." Kylie rose up, putting her bare feet on the cold wood floor. Too cold? She did another visual sweep to check for ghosts. Nope. She had a ghost-free zone happening.

"Sorry I woke you up. I thought I could just sneak in and grab him." Miranda seemed wide awake and in a good mood as she plopped down and gave the mattress a little bounce.

"No big deal. I was practically awake anyway," Kylie lied. In truth, it had been a pretty sleepless night. After Lucas had left, Della had retired to her room and Miranda hadn't come home, so Kylie had grabbed Socks and gone to bed. Not to sleep. That would have been too easy. She'd tossed and turned for hours, juggling her problems like balls, and not really solving a single one of them.

However, she had to admit, she'd gotten used to thinking of herself as a chameleon. And was thrilled it was one day closer to Thursday, when her real grandfather would visit.

Or at least she prayed he'd visit her.

Remembering her difficulty falling sleep reminded her that the last time she checked the clock, at around three AM, Miranda still hadn't come back.

"So, are you going to fill me in?" Kylie asked.

"Fill you in on what?" Miranda's smile tightened with mischievousness. Kylie studied her friend closer. She wore the same clothes she'd worn to her date last night. Had Miranda woken her to try to transform Socks back into a kitty, or did she need someone to talk with? Not that Kylie minded. She'd woken Della and Miranda up many nights, mostly with dreams or those scary visions-but if she had just needed to talk, she knew they'd be there for her.

"Just what time did you get home, young lady?" Kylie asked in a teasing voice.

"Early. I swear." Miranda giggled. "Early this morning."

"Details. I want details." Kylie rubbed her hands together, mimicking Miranda.

"Don't get too excited," Miranda said. Then she sighed. "We didn't ... you know. But we did ... well, you know."

Kylie let the riddle roll around her sleep-dazed mind and shook her head. "I think I get the first 'you know,' but I'm lost on the second 'you know.'" Still feeling the cold on the bottom of her feet, she pulled her legs up on the mattress. The darkness in the room felt lightened just by Miranda's presence.

"We kissed, we made out." Miranda's grin widened, and then she got that sappy lovestruck look on her face. "We fell asleep in each other's arms down by the swimming hole. He held me all night long, and I think I'm in love for real. It's like I know I belong there. In his arms."

Kylie remembered the times she'd fallen asleep in Lucas's arms. Awesome didn't begin to describe it. But had she woken up knowing for sure that he was the one? She couldn't remember ever feeling that way.

Then, realizing this was Miranda's moment, she pushed her self-indulgence away. "Well, I'm thrilled for you." And Kylie was. Even if she was just a tad envious, too.

"I know you are." Miranda's smile faded. "I don't think Della will feel the same way."

"Of course she will," Kylie said. "She just has a hard time showing it. Remember how she kept encouraging you to make up with Perry when you were mad at him?"

"I guess," Miranda said, not sounding convinced. "I mean, I feel as if I can't say anything about Perry around her now. I get that she's hurt about Lee and I don't want to make her feel bad, but I also want to be able to talk to her about what's going on in my life. And right now what's going on in my life is all about Perry. Seriously, I don't want to have to walk on eggshells around her."

"And I think you're just worrying too much. Believe me, in a day or two things will be back to normal and you guys will be threatening to rip each other's limbs off for a reason that has nothing to do with Perry."

Miranda exhaled. "You make it sound like we argue all the time."

"Not all the time," Kylie said. "Just most of the time."

Miranda shrugged. "Anyway, do you think you can help me snag Socks so I can see if I got the spell right? Perry listened to me practice for an hour. I want to fix this." Miranda frowned. "I feel like a screw-up."

"You're not a screw-up." Kylie looked down at the floor. "Come here, Socks. Come here, baby."

Miranda fell back on the mattress. "I feel like one, especially when my Wiccan sisters tease me about it. I suck at being a witch."

"They tease you about Socks?" Kylie asked.

"Yeah, not that I blame them. I messed up."

"Screw them," Kylie said. "You should figure out how to curse them with a dose of dyslexia and see how they deal with it."

"They're really not being mean," Miranda said.

"But it hurts you." Anger for Miranda burned Kylie's chest. She hated bullies. Hated people who put other people down so they could feel better about themselves.

Miranda popped back up. "But they're just teasing." She knelt and tapped her fingers on the floor. "Here, kitty, kitty."