Timber Hollow, page 11
"Are you sure? We can carry it-"
"I've got it, you two kids run along." The lady replies, a soft smile pulling her lips up.
"Thank you, we really appreciate it," Jay says to the lady, and she walks away, pumpkin under an arm. I pretend I don't notice when Jay slips another ten into the check slot on the cash register.
"So now what?" I ask him as we walk away. "We've eaten, we've picked out pumpkins, what's next?"
"Ice cream."
"Ice cream?"
"Yea, you got a problem with that Gorgeous?" Jay asks, his face split by a wide smile, and that twinkle of mischief is back in his eye.
"Absolutely not. You'll have to tell me what I owe you for food and stuff when we get home though, since you took me out of the house without any time to get my wallet or anything." I say, following his lead down the main walkway of the Hunters Moon festival.
In the earliest years of the Pack's founding, the festival was a way to celebrate the coming of winter. They'd have a glorious party, then a wild run through the trees, hunting deer, elk, moose. You name it. Now, the festival is more for tourists, scheduled the day before the actual full Moon, and Pack run.
"Yea, that's not gonna happen, Gorgeous," Jay replies easily, turning to the sounds of Saint and Dante barreling up the asphalt to where we stand in line for ice cream.
"How dare you guys. Getting ice cream without us? The audacity!" Saint taunts, not even a little out of breath from the sprint.
"What's your favorite flavor, Artemis?" Dante asks, surveying the menu.
"Pistachio in a waffle cone, yours?" I answer, making sure that the option was on the board.
"Fireball, they don't always have it either."
"Yea, and when they don't he pouts about it for days." Saint chirps, stepping forward as the line moves.
"Well then what's your favorite Saint?" I ask.
"I've never met an ice cream I didn't like, Tiny," Saint replies with a wide grin, waving to someone across the park.
"Fair enough. Jay?"
"Rocky Road." His answer is short, and sweet.
"I'll give you a rocky road bro." Saint says, waggling his eyebrows with a little shimmy shake. Laugher explodes out of me, Jay and Dante's chuckles quickly following my own.
"I'll pass on your quick ride and sloppy finish," Jay says, full mouth pulled into a smile.
Saint orders for us all, happily passing bills over to the cashier and handing out ice creams as they are given to him. Once everyone is armed with a cone, the four of us meander through the vendors, pointing out cool looking nicknacks or art pieces that catch our attention.
Saint may point at everything his eye catches, cooing over details but it's Dante with the mindset of a magpie. He starts off slow, only buying a few things here and there but by the time his ice cream is gone, he has several bags clutched in one hand.
There's a new addition to the festival—well, at least new to me— set up around the hayride and corn maze booth. Two metal bathtubs are set up, full to the brim with icy water.
"What is that for?" I ask, not directing my question to anyone in particular.
"Fundraising. Profit goes to the senior class." Dante answers, adding "You going in?"
"Absolutely not." I quickly answer.
"What's the matter, are you too chicken, Artemis?" Jay teases that lazy smirk on his face once more.
"No. I'm just smart enough to not go in an ice bath in the middle of October, Jay." I snark back, watching as a pair of guys lower themselves in the freezing water, teeth chattering instantly.
"I bet I could stay longer than you." He says, giving me a sideways glance as he also watches the guys hoot and holler about the cold.
"Pft. You wish." I immediately reply, even if it was all bravado. There is no way I am going to get in that ice bath.
"Nope. I know it."
"How, could you possibly know that?"
"I just do." He replies, that self assured smirk on his face. And I just want to wipe it off.
"Prove it."
Jay raises an eyebrow at me. "Prove it?"
"Yep," I reply. "Prove it big guy."
"Well, if you insist, Princess." Jay holds a hand out for me to approach the worker stationed at the ice baths.
"Don't ever fucking call me that again," I say to Jay as I walk up to the booth.
"Hi-ya folks. Feel like taking an ice plunge?"
"Yep. Both of us, please." Jay replies, handing cash over to the man.
"Excellent. You can strip in the stall behind me, we have a bunch of big white tees for you to put on to cover up with." Jay nods, going over to pull the curtain back, ducking inside the small changing stall. He emerges moments later, now only wearing boxers slung low on his hips.
Mother of god, Jay looks fucking amazing. The rat bastard.
He holds the curtain open for me to duck under as well. I don't say anything, not trusting myself that something absolutely asinine won’t come out as I move under his arm. Like the employee said, there are stacks of shirts in various sizes on a table, Jay's discarded clothes to the side of a bench.
I quickly change into one of the white tees that still has the starch from the manufacture on it, leaving the little stall, thankful that it’s not colder than it is tonight, or this experience would be positively miserable. Jay is already next to a tub, waiting for me. Still looking entirely too good for my health.
The worker goes over some safety things, like what to expect when you first go in and how your body will react. I can't pay attention. I catch a few things the instructor says, but not much in between drinking down the sight of Jay Temple, wearing nothing but boxers in the middle of town.
Gray sweatpants have nothing on what those boxers are doing for his…well him.
"Fifteen minutes is the max time we can allow you to stay in, though most people don't last beyond the one-minute mark. Any questions?" The instructor's voice interrupts my insane thoughts.
"Nope." Jay and I answer in unison. When I glance at him, he’s already staring at me, smirking.
"Alright then. When you folks are ready." The guy says, motioning us towards the tubs. Jay steps towards the one closer to him, muscles rippling. Then, without warning Saint jumps over the edge of the other, leaving me standing here with my mouth flapping open.
Saint, while he's complaining about the cold fishes money out of his wallet, teeth clattering the entire time, handing a couple of bills over to the instructor now by his side. Water splashes out of the tub, condensation running down the metal sides.
"Hah, looks like I don't have to get in, after all. You can compete with Saint." I sass to Jay, crossing my arms over my chest, shifting my weight to one leg.
"Nope my bet is with you, Darlin. Get in the water." Jay orders, motioning towards the tub he stands in front of.
"And what? Share it?" I ask, motioning to the tub.
"Yup," Jay says, smirking.
"No. Just wait until Saint gets out."
"I want in on the action. Whoever lasts longest gets to pick what the punishment is?" Saint chatters, trying to smile.
"You mean if I last longer than you two you will do whatever I say?" I ask, admittedly very interested in the prospect.
"Yea, how 'bout it, Tiny?"
"Feelin froggy, Jay?" I ask, waggling my eyebrows at him.
"For you? Always." He says, stepping into the water. And until that exact moment I hadn't actually thought about what this would mean, that I will have to share the admittedly small metal tub with him, clad only in a big shirt and my underwear.
Well shit. I don't let myself think about it, stepping into the tub after him. This is no big deal.
Jay sits at the back, knees resting on the sides of the metal. As I sink beneath the icy, burning cold water my mind snaps into hyperdrive, even as a sense of calm descends over me.
Immediately, Jay tugs me back against him, arms draping across the top of my chest. "Are you okay?" He asks in my ear, shivering, hugging me tight. My hands grip his forearms, my fingertips turning white in the icy water. All of Jay’s usual warmth has been stolen by the cold.
"Y-yeah," I say, stuttering. Honestly, the water isn’t horrible, now that I'm almost fully under. It definitely fucking sucks but the biting cold of the metal against my bare ass is worse. I shift, trying to find a way to settle without my skin resting on the metal.
"Talk to me, what's wrong?" Jay asks, and I hate how thick his voice is in my ear, how it sends a thrill down my spine.
"The fucking metal is cold, Jay." I snark, wondering how long we've been in for.
"At least you guys have each other. I'm suffering over here." Saint says, teeth chattering even worse now.
"No one told you to join them, idiot," Dante says, rolling his eyes, standing next to Saint's tank. "Let alone told you to go in fully clothed." A bag of kettle korn is in his hand, a fistful halfway to his mouth.
"There was a bet. I had to." Saint whines, Dante just rolls his eyes again, munching on his snack.
"That's two minutes! Longest dip of the night so far!" The guy cheers, adding our time to a little whiteboard.
"You're gonna win," Jay says, his hot mouth against my shoulder now, shifting us so that we sink lower into the water, making me lay fully against him, my ass no longer resting against the frigid metal.
"Why do you say that?" I chatter, feeling every muscle in my body contract over and over again with intense shivers.
"Because Saint doesn't like pain. Neither do I." Jay says, his five-o'clock shadow scraping against my neck.
"Are you okay?" I ask, trying very hard to ignore the rush of heat that spools low in my belly with every word that Jay murmurs against my neck, how he feels pressed against me like this.
"I've got you all wet and laying across me. Couldn't be better Darlin."
"FUCK!" Saint suddenly shouts, jumping out of the ice and spraying the ground around the tub with water. "Fuck, fuck, fuck" Saint keeps chanting, dashing into the changing tent in search of a towel at the attendants direction.
"And then there were two," Dante says, turning towards us with his kettle korn. He takes a fistfull of it, stuffing it into his mouth, apparently content to watch and wait.
"Be nice to us, when you win?" Jay asks, his mouth once again against my neck.
"No promises, handsome." I chatter.
Jay chuckles, kissing the side of my head as he shifts us, "That's my girl." Then he stands, showering me with ice and frigid water.
1. Scene is from the book Mazikeen: Queen of Fate.
13
Goodnight, Artemis
Later, after we all leave the festival and get back to the apartment, I go up to my room and change... I can't go to bed yet… There's this empty hole in my middle, yawning open, threatening to swallow me whole. So, I go back downstairs, maybe I will watch TV for a little while. When I enter the living room, I see Jay setting up his makeshift bed on the couch. Immediately, I feel like turning around...instead, I’m frozen in the doorframe for entirely too long. Eventually, I make my way over to the couch though... It's just Jay.
He settles into the cushions, patting the seat next to him. The TV has an anime show on, one I'm not familiar with, but it doesn't matter. It's effective enough to distract me. I settle into the corner of the couch, resting my chin on my knee, arms laced around my leg. The screen drones on and on, characters having a battle and I almost immediately zone out.
"What's wrong?" Jay asks after a minute, not even bothering to pretend to pay attention to the TV.
"What makes you think something is wrong?" I ask, glancing at him through my lashes.
"I know that face," Jay replies, shifting his eyes back to the TV.
"Hmm." Is all I respond. Truth is I don't know what's wrong either. Jay lets the silence stand for a few minutes, the two of us staring at the glowing screen. I have no idea what the plot of the show is, or what is even happening in this episode. I don’t think I could even point out the characters in a line-up.
"Artemis," Jay demands again, making my head turn towards him.
"Hmm?" I hum back in response. I’m still not sleepy, but I do feel settled somehow.
"Come here." Jay orders, opening his arms. I hesitate for all of a second before I crawl across the cushion and curl into his embrace. "Relax, Gorgeous. Everything is okay." Jay says again, squeezing his arm around me.
At first, I have no idea how to manage that. How am I supposed to relax when Jay is wrapped around me, and the world is dark and quiet? How am I supposed to think about anything other than the way he'd held me in my bed, how he'd kissed me at Coyote Bills?
This is all supposed to be fake. So why doesn’t it feel fake? Why does it feel like I’m already in way too deep? Eventually, though, my breathing matches his, slow and steady, muscles loosening one by one. I still couldn’t tell you what the plot of the show is, but I think I might be able to point out a character or two.
I don't fall asleep, but I know Jay has by the end of the second episode. Moving as slowly as possible to rise off the couch, I break Jay’s grip around my middle. Jay keeps snoring softly the whole time. After a quick visit to the bathroom, I come back into the living room and stare at his large form spread across the couch. There's no way he's comfortable sleeping on that thing all night. No way that he’s been comfortable sleeping on it for however long Alex and Helena have been here.
Immediately, my mind is made up. Silently padding over to him, I grab a pillow and toss it onto his face.
Jay wakes with a jolt, his eyes flying open, arm reaching out to the space I'd vacated. When his blue-green eyes focus on me, I say "Come on handsome, you're not sleeping on the couch." It takes him a minute, neurons and synapses firing before he silently rises from the couch and follows me up the stairs.
"Where am I going?" He asks sleepily, his feet shuffling on the carpet.
"My room."
"Why?"
"Because I'm not letting you sleep on that tiny couch anymore," I answer simply. If I'm already in too deep, I might as well drown myself.
"It's not that bad. Where are you sleeping?"
"In my bed."
"Where am I sleeping?" Jay asks suspiciously.
"My bed. Unless, you…?" I haven’t even considered that he might not want to. Might not want to share a bed with me.
Jay's blue eyes sear straight through me, the edge of sleepiness still visible, but something sharper and more predatory has come forward too. His wolf.
"Unless I what?"
"Unless you don't want to." I squeak.
"Are you going to be able to sleep?" He asks, searching my face.
"Yes. We're adults, are we not? You're going to wreck your back sleeping on that couch." I sass back, with much more confidence than I feel.
"Sure we are," Jay replies easily, And I feel like I've made a big mistake–a big, dumb one, but there is no backing down now.
"Then come on handsome. Let's go to bed." I order, opening my door. He groans softly as he follows me in. I don't bother with the lights, just walks in and climbs into the bed and under the covers. Jay comes and lays on top of the blankets, settling on the far edge. "Jay. What are you doing?" I ask exasperated.
"Laying down?"
"What are you doing on top of the blankets?" I almost add you should be on top of me. It’s a tiny blessing that I barely manage to keep that particular thought locked behind my teeth.
"I didn't want to assume." He answers, voice rising at the end.
"Oh for fucks sake. Get under the blankets and go to sleep, Jay." I order, and he listens, grumbling to himself about bossy women. I barely restrain a laugh, letting the quiet settle back over us.
"Goodnight Artemis." Jay eventually whispers into the dark.
"Goodnight, Jay," I whisper back, and listening to Jay's steady breathing beside me, I fall into a deep, dreamless sleep.
14
Rattlesnakes
full moon
Waking up by myself has put me in a foul mood. I try not to think too hard about the reason for that as I get dressed in a sage green cropped long-sleeve and jeans. But, even being in a shitty mood won’t be a good enough excuse to get out of what I have to do today.
Unfortunately, since Magnus decided to order me to go see my Mother in front of the entire pack, I should probably do that. Go see her today before she joins the Pack for the Full Moon. Sounds about as fun as going to bed in a sleeping bag full of rattlesnakes right now.
I've been home for almost a week already and haven’t managed the few miles to her house. My mom will be pleasant I know, at least on the surface. There are always thinly veiled insults and jibes in her words. In how she says things. It’s all passive-aggressive bullshit, or playing the victim. That’s all she knows. More than that though, I know Mom is going to ask about Ethan. And, his car that I currently walk towards, trying to find music for the drive over on my phone. The engine rumbles when I turn the key over, vibrating the car.
I’m really going to miss this beast when Ethan takes it back.
This morning had been cold, frost glazing the windshield until the Sun melted it off. I’d watched the ice disappear through the window while I sipped on coffee. I wish, for one single moment, that Athena and I have a better relationship as I pull away from my apartment. Once upon a time, we'd been close, thick as thieves even. I don't know what changed, but suddenly we stopped talking every day, then every week, and then just all together. At this point it's been… years since I've spoken to either of my siblings.
Either way, I suppose it's time to go home. No matter how much I wish things were different. Driving over there barely takes any time at all.
My childhood home sits near the middle of town, a one-story house painted a horrifying pale yellow. My mom always liked the color, going so far as to paint the inside of the house a similar shade at one point. When I'd left home, the lot on the end of the street had been empty. Now, a new robin's egg blue house sits there. I have almost no doubt that it is Athena's house. I don't see anyone moving about inside, so I have to assume she's at Mom's.
"I've got it, you two kids run along." The lady replies, a soft smile pulling her lips up.
"Thank you, we really appreciate it," Jay says to the lady, and she walks away, pumpkin under an arm. I pretend I don't notice when Jay slips another ten into the check slot on the cash register.
"So now what?" I ask him as we walk away. "We've eaten, we've picked out pumpkins, what's next?"
"Ice cream."
"Ice cream?"
"Yea, you got a problem with that Gorgeous?" Jay asks, his face split by a wide smile, and that twinkle of mischief is back in his eye.
"Absolutely not. You'll have to tell me what I owe you for food and stuff when we get home though, since you took me out of the house without any time to get my wallet or anything." I say, following his lead down the main walkway of the Hunters Moon festival.
In the earliest years of the Pack's founding, the festival was a way to celebrate the coming of winter. They'd have a glorious party, then a wild run through the trees, hunting deer, elk, moose. You name it. Now, the festival is more for tourists, scheduled the day before the actual full Moon, and Pack run.
"Yea, that's not gonna happen, Gorgeous," Jay replies easily, turning to the sounds of Saint and Dante barreling up the asphalt to where we stand in line for ice cream.
"How dare you guys. Getting ice cream without us? The audacity!" Saint taunts, not even a little out of breath from the sprint.
"What's your favorite flavor, Artemis?" Dante asks, surveying the menu.
"Pistachio in a waffle cone, yours?" I answer, making sure that the option was on the board.
"Fireball, they don't always have it either."
"Yea, and when they don't he pouts about it for days." Saint chirps, stepping forward as the line moves.
"Well then what's your favorite Saint?" I ask.
"I've never met an ice cream I didn't like, Tiny," Saint replies with a wide grin, waving to someone across the park.
"Fair enough. Jay?"
"Rocky Road." His answer is short, and sweet.
"I'll give you a rocky road bro." Saint says, waggling his eyebrows with a little shimmy shake. Laugher explodes out of me, Jay and Dante's chuckles quickly following my own.
"I'll pass on your quick ride and sloppy finish," Jay says, full mouth pulled into a smile.
Saint orders for us all, happily passing bills over to the cashier and handing out ice creams as they are given to him. Once everyone is armed with a cone, the four of us meander through the vendors, pointing out cool looking nicknacks or art pieces that catch our attention.
Saint may point at everything his eye catches, cooing over details but it's Dante with the mindset of a magpie. He starts off slow, only buying a few things here and there but by the time his ice cream is gone, he has several bags clutched in one hand.
There's a new addition to the festival—well, at least new to me— set up around the hayride and corn maze booth. Two metal bathtubs are set up, full to the brim with icy water.
"What is that for?" I ask, not directing my question to anyone in particular.
"Fundraising. Profit goes to the senior class." Dante answers, adding "You going in?"
"Absolutely not." I quickly answer.
"What's the matter, are you too chicken, Artemis?" Jay teases that lazy smirk on his face once more.
"No. I'm just smart enough to not go in an ice bath in the middle of October, Jay." I snark back, watching as a pair of guys lower themselves in the freezing water, teeth chattering instantly.
"I bet I could stay longer than you." He says, giving me a sideways glance as he also watches the guys hoot and holler about the cold.
"Pft. You wish." I immediately reply, even if it was all bravado. There is no way I am going to get in that ice bath.
"Nope. I know it."
"How, could you possibly know that?"
"I just do." He replies, that self assured smirk on his face. And I just want to wipe it off.
"Prove it."
Jay raises an eyebrow at me. "Prove it?"
"Yep," I reply. "Prove it big guy."
"Well, if you insist, Princess." Jay holds a hand out for me to approach the worker stationed at the ice baths.
"Don't ever fucking call me that again," I say to Jay as I walk up to the booth.
"Hi-ya folks. Feel like taking an ice plunge?"
"Yep. Both of us, please." Jay replies, handing cash over to the man.
"Excellent. You can strip in the stall behind me, we have a bunch of big white tees for you to put on to cover up with." Jay nods, going over to pull the curtain back, ducking inside the small changing stall. He emerges moments later, now only wearing boxers slung low on his hips.
Mother of god, Jay looks fucking amazing. The rat bastard.
He holds the curtain open for me to duck under as well. I don't say anything, not trusting myself that something absolutely asinine won’t come out as I move under his arm. Like the employee said, there are stacks of shirts in various sizes on a table, Jay's discarded clothes to the side of a bench.
I quickly change into one of the white tees that still has the starch from the manufacture on it, leaving the little stall, thankful that it’s not colder than it is tonight, or this experience would be positively miserable. Jay is already next to a tub, waiting for me. Still looking entirely too good for my health.
The worker goes over some safety things, like what to expect when you first go in and how your body will react. I can't pay attention. I catch a few things the instructor says, but not much in between drinking down the sight of Jay Temple, wearing nothing but boxers in the middle of town.
Gray sweatpants have nothing on what those boxers are doing for his…well him.
"Fifteen minutes is the max time we can allow you to stay in, though most people don't last beyond the one-minute mark. Any questions?" The instructor's voice interrupts my insane thoughts.
"Nope." Jay and I answer in unison. When I glance at him, he’s already staring at me, smirking.
"Alright then. When you folks are ready." The guy says, motioning us towards the tubs. Jay steps towards the one closer to him, muscles rippling. Then, without warning Saint jumps over the edge of the other, leaving me standing here with my mouth flapping open.
Saint, while he's complaining about the cold fishes money out of his wallet, teeth clattering the entire time, handing a couple of bills over to the instructor now by his side. Water splashes out of the tub, condensation running down the metal sides.
"Hah, looks like I don't have to get in, after all. You can compete with Saint." I sass to Jay, crossing my arms over my chest, shifting my weight to one leg.
"Nope my bet is with you, Darlin. Get in the water." Jay orders, motioning towards the tub he stands in front of.
"And what? Share it?" I ask, motioning to the tub.
"Yup," Jay says, smirking.
"No. Just wait until Saint gets out."
"I want in on the action. Whoever lasts longest gets to pick what the punishment is?" Saint chatters, trying to smile.
"You mean if I last longer than you two you will do whatever I say?" I ask, admittedly very interested in the prospect.
"Yea, how 'bout it, Tiny?"
"Feelin froggy, Jay?" I ask, waggling my eyebrows at him.
"For you? Always." He says, stepping into the water. And until that exact moment I hadn't actually thought about what this would mean, that I will have to share the admittedly small metal tub with him, clad only in a big shirt and my underwear.
Well shit. I don't let myself think about it, stepping into the tub after him. This is no big deal.
Jay sits at the back, knees resting on the sides of the metal. As I sink beneath the icy, burning cold water my mind snaps into hyperdrive, even as a sense of calm descends over me.
Immediately, Jay tugs me back against him, arms draping across the top of my chest. "Are you okay?" He asks in my ear, shivering, hugging me tight. My hands grip his forearms, my fingertips turning white in the icy water. All of Jay’s usual warmth has been stolen by the cold.
"Y-yeah," I say, stuttering. Honestly, the water isn’t horrible, now that I'm almost fully under. It definitely fucking sucks but the biting cold of the metal against my bare ass is worse. I shift, trying to find a way to settle without my skin resting on the metal.
"Talk to me, what's wrong?" Jay asks, and I hate how thick his voice is in my ear, how it sends a thrill down my spine.
"The fucking metal is cold, Jay." I snark, wondering how long we've been in for.
"At least you guys have each other. I'm suffering over here." Saint says, teeth chattering even worse now.
"No one told you to join them, idiot," Dante says, rolling his eyes, standing next to Saint's tank. "Let alone told you to go in fully clothed." A bag of kettle korn is in his hand, a fistful halfway to his mouth.
"There was a bet. I had to." Saint whines, Dante just rolls his eyes again, munching on his snack.
"That's two minutes! Longest dip of the night so far!" The guy cheers, adding our time to a little whiteboard.
"You're gonna win," Jay says, his hot mouth against my shoulder now, shifting us so that we sink lower into the water, making me lay fully against him, my ass no longer resting against the frigid metal.
"Why do you say that?" I chatter, feeling every muscle in my body contract over and over again with intense shivers.
"Because Saint doesn't like pain. Neither do I." Jay says, his five-o'clock shadow scraping against my neck.
"Are you okay?" I ask, trying very hard to ignore the rush of heat that spools low in my belly with every word that Jay murmurs against my neck, how he feels pressed against me like this.
"I've got you all wet and laying across me. Couldn't be better Darlin."
"FUCK!" Saint suddenly shouts, jumping out of the ice and spraying the ground around the tub with water. "Fuck, fuck, fuck" Saint keeps chanting, dashing into the changing tent in search of a towel at the attendants direction.
"And then there were two," Dante says, turning towards us with his kettle korn. He takes a fistfull of it, stuffing it into his mouth, apparently content to watch and wait.
"Be nice to us, when you win?" Jay asks, his mouth once again against my neck.
"No promises, handsome." I chatter.
Jay chuckles, kissing the side of my head as he shifts us, "That's my girl." Then he stands, showering me with ice and frigid water.
1. Scene is from the book Mazikeen: Queen of Fate.
13
Goodnight, Artemis
Later, after we all leave the festival and get back to the apartment, I go up to my room and change... I can't go to bed yet… There's this empty hole in my middle, yawning open, threatening to swallow me whole. So, I go back downstairs, maybe I will watch TV for a little while. When I enter the living room, I see Jay setting up his makeshift bed on the couch. Immediately, I feel like turning around...instead, I’m frozen in the doorframe for entirely too long. Eventually, I make my way over to the couch though... It's just Jay.
He settles into the cushions, patting the seat next to him. The TV has an anime show on, one I'm not familiar with, but it doesn't matter. It's effective enough to distract me. I settle into the corner of the couch, resting my chin on my knee, arms laced around my leg. The screen drones on and on, characters having a battle and I almost immediately zone out.
"What's wrong?" Jay asks after a minute, not even bothering to pretend to pay attention to the TV.
"What makes you think something is wrong?" I ask, glancing at him through my lashes.
"I know that face," Jay replies, shifting his eyes back to the TV.
"Hmm." Is all I respond. Truth is I don't know what's wrong either. Jay lets the silence stand for a few minutes, the two of us staring at the glowing screen. I have no idea what the plot of the show is, or what is even happening in this episode. I don’t think I could even point out the characters in a line-up.
"Artemis," Jay demands again, making my head turn towards him.
"Hmm?" I hum back in response. I’m still not sleepy, but I do feel settled somehow.
"Come here." Jay orders, opening his arms. I hesitate for all of a second before I crawl across the cushion and curl into his embrace. "Relax, Gorgeous. Everything is okay." Jay says again, squeezing his arm around me.
At first, I have no idea how to manage that. How am I supposed to relax when Jay is wrapped around me, and the world is dark and quiet? How am I supposed to think about anything other than the way he'd held me in my bed, how he'd kissed me at Coyote Bills?
This is all supposed to be fake. So why doesn’t it feel fake? Why does it feel like I’m already in way too deep? Eventually, though, my breathing matches his, slow and steady, muscles loosening one by one. I still couldn’t tell you what the plot of the show is, but I think I might be able to point out a character or two.
I don't fall asleep, but I know Jay has by the end of the second episode. Moving as slowly as possible to rise off the couch, I break Jay’s grip around my middle. Jay keeps snoring softly the whole time. After a quick visit to the bathroom, I come back into the living room and stare at his large form spread across the couch. There's no way he's comfortable sleeping on that thing all night. No way that he’s been comfortable sleeping on it for however long Alex and Helena have been here.
Immediately, my mind is made up. Silently padding over to him, I grab a pillow and toss it onto his face.
Jay wakes with a jolt, his eyes flying open, arm reaching out to the space I'd vacated. When his blue-green eyes focus on me, I say "Come on handsome, you're not sleeping on the couch." It takes him a minute, neurons and synapses firing before he silently rises from the couch and follows me up the stairs.
"Where am I going?" He asks sleepily, his feet shuffling on the carpet.
"My room."
"Why?"
"Because I'm not letting you sleep on that tiny couch anymore," I answer simply. If I'm already in too deep, I might as well drown myself.
"It's not that bad. Where are you sleeping?"
"In my bed."
"Where am I sleeping?" Jay asks suspiciously.
"My bed. Unless, you…?" I haven’t even considered that he might not want to. Might not want to share a bed with me.
Jay's blue eyes sear straight through me, the edge of sleepiness still visible, but something sharper and more predatory has come forward too. His wolf.
"Unless I what?"
"Unless you don't want to." I squeak.
"Are you going to be able to sleep?" He asks, searching my face.
"Yes. We're adults, are we not? You're going to wreck your back sleeping on that couch." I sass back, with much more confidence than I feel.
"Sure we are," Jay replies easily, And I feel like I've made a big mistake–a big, dumb one, but there is no backing down now.
"Then come on handsome. Let's go to bed." I order, opening my door. He groans softly as he follows me in. I don't bother with the lights, just walks in and climbs into the bed and under the covers. Jay comes and lays on top of the blankets, settling on the far edge. "Jay. What are you doing?" I ask exasperated.
"Laying down?"
"What are you doing on top of the blankets?" I almost add you should be on top of me. It’s a tiny blessing that I barely manage to keep that particular thought locked behind my teeth.
"I didn't want to assume." He answers, voice rising at the end.
"Oh for fucks sake. Get under the blankets and go to sleep, Jay." I order, and he listens, grumbling to himself about bossy women. I barely restrain a laugh, letting the quiet settle back over us.
"Goodnight Artemis." Jay eventually whispers into the dark.
"Goodnight, Jay," I whisper back, and listening to Jay's steady breathing beside me, I fall into a deep, dreamless sleep.
14
Rattlesnakes
full moon
Waking up by myself has put me in a foul mood. I try not to think too hard about the reason for that as I get dressed in a sage green cropped long-sleeve and jeans. But, even being in a shitty mood won’t be a good enough excuse to get out of what I have to do today.
Unfortunately, since Magnus decided to order me to go see my Mother in front of the entire pack, I should probably do that. Go see her today before she joins the Pack for the Full Moon. Sounds about as fun as going to bed in a sleeping bag full of rattlesnakes right now.
I've been home for almost a week already and haven’t managed the few miles to her house. My mom will be pleasant I know, at least on the surface. There are always thinly veiled insults and jibes in her words. In how she says things. It’s all passive-aggressive bullshit, or playing the victim. That’s all she knows. More than that though, I know Mom is going to ask about Ethan. And, his car that I currently walk towards, trying to find music for the drive over on my phone. The engine rumbles when I turn the key over, vibrating the car.
I’m really going to miss this beast when Ethan takes it back.
This morning had been cold, frost glazing the windshield until the Sun melted it off. I’d watched the ice disappear through the window while I sipped on coffee. I wish, for one single moment, that Athena and I have a better relationship as I pull away from my apartment. Once upon a time, we'd been close, thick as thieves even. I don't know what changed, but suddenly we stopped talking every day, then every week, and then just all together. At this point it's been… years since I've spoken to either of my siblings.
Either way, I suppose it's time to go home. No matter how much I wish things were different. Driving over there barely takes any time at all.
My childhood home sits near the middle of town, a one-story house painted a horrifying pale yellow. My mom always liked the color, going so far as to paint the inside of the house a similar shade at one point. When I'd left home, the lot on the end of the street had been empty. Now, a new robin's egg blue house sits there. I have almost no doubt that it is Athena's house. I don't see anyone moving about inside, so I have to assume she's at Mom's.
