“Did what happen? What am I missing?” Damien asks.
Jackson looks away and runs a hand through his hair. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“Liar,” Kayla snaps, not in anger but understanding.
“What are you guys talking about?” Damien exasperates.
Staring at Kayla, Jackson pauses for a minute and then replies, “I have no idea what she’s going on about.”
“Jackson, don’t do this, don’t lie,” Kayla retorts.
“I’m not lying, but if Damien wants to watch out for you tonight, then so be it.” Jackson escapes from the room before Kayla can question him any more.
Kayla quickly turns to Damien. “Hold on a second.”
“Ookaay,” Damien draws out in hesitation.
“I promise I’ll be back in a minute,” Kayla states. Damien nods but is noticeably displeased. “I promise, right back.” She darts out of the room in time to see Jackson go down the steps. “Jackson, wait!” Jackson pauses, but doesn’t turn around. “Hey, look at me.”
“What do you want?” Jackson asks quietly.
She stops on the step below him. “Swear to me that it didn’t really happen.”
He stares at her and then looks away. “Kayla—”
“So it really did happen. Why lie about it?”
“Because I shouldn’t have done it. It was twenty shades of wrong.”
They pause and look at each other. “I don’t understand what was so wrong about it. Why does everything between us have to be wrong?”
Jackson sighs. “It’s not wrong in how you’re thinking. It’s wrong because you were sleeping.”
“Did I shift?”
“No, just wandering. I'm sorry. I shouldn’t have kissed you, but I couldn’t help myself. I never should have done it. It was wrong.”
Kayla studies him. “Why do you push me away so much?”
“I don’t mean to push you away. I just…it doesn’t matter. You should get back to Damien and your date.”
Kayla frowns at his response. “Yeah, how stupid of me. Why do I even bother having these conversations with you? Have a good night!” She walks past him, going back up the steps.
He reaches out and grabs her, turning toward him. “Listen, it’s not that I don’t want to kiss you, I do, but you and I will never be more than friends. Ever.”
“Thanks for setting the record straight,” Kayla states. She pulls away from him and returns to Damien’s room. When Kayla gets to his door, she turns and looks down the steps. Jackson is still there, staring at her. She shakes her head and walks into Damien’s room. Kayla finds him pulling on a pair of pants. “Geez, Damien!” she yells, covering her eyes. “Shut your door next time!”
“I’m not shy like you. Anyways, I figured you’d be arguing with Jackson for a while.” He pauses. “You have me worried, though.”
Kayla sits on his bed. “What do you mean?”
“You and Jackson seem to clash a lot, and I wonder if there’s a deeper reason behind it.”
She shakes her head and mumbles, “Trust me; you have nothing to worry about.”
“Don’t get me wrong. I’m not trying to be possessive. If you wanted Jackson, whatever, more power to you. I'll just do my best to get your mind off of him.”
A smile spreads across Kayla’s face. “I like the sound of that.”
Damien pulls on a shirt and grins. “Well then, we can start now. What do you want to do?”
“I have no idea.”
“I know,” Damien says. He walks over to his TV and turns it on. “Close your eyes.”
Laughing, Kayla asks, “Why?”
“Just do it,” Damien instructs with excitement. “I have to hook something up.” Kayla shuts her eyes and waits. A few minutes go by and when she is about to say something, Damien says, “All right, you can open your eyes.”
When Kayla does, she sees the opening credits of The Lion King playing on the TV. She squeals and claps her hands. “Do you own this?”
“Nope, it’s one of those membership movie sites.” He walks over and hops onto his bed, patting the pillow next to him. “Come here.”
Kayla giggles. She crawls across the bed to where he is sitting. She leans against the headboard next to him, listening to the opening music of The Lion King. “This may sound hokey, but I love this song.”
“Didn’t we both confess knowledge of the entire Grease soundtrack? I think The Lion King is all right too.”
Kayla looks up at him. “I think I like you.”
“I think I like you too,” Damien whispers.
Leaning over, Kayla kisses him. Damien returns the affection, but then pushes her away. “Not while we’re in bed, okay? I don’t want anyone to get the wrong impression.”
“Okay,” Kayla murmurs. She smiles and then lies down, putting her head on his lap. She hears him chuckle. Damien pulls her hair back and tucks it behind her ear while they watch the movie.
A little while later she hears, “Kayla, hon, wake up.”
She opens her eyes and yawns before bolting upright. “Oh my gosh! How long have I been asleep?”
“Awhile,” Damien replies. “I officially can’t feel my legs, and it takes us a lot longer for our legs to go to sleep than the typical human.”
“I’m so sorry. You should’ve woken me up.”
Damien smiles. “Don’t be silly. You had a crazy day. I’m surprised you made it halfway through the movie.”
“Slightly embarrassing.”
“Oh come on, your snoring was cute,” Damien teases.
“What?” Kayla yells.
Damien laughs. “I was only kidding.”
“Oh, thank God. I should get home.” Kayla sighs.
“Why don’t you stay here?”
Raising her eyebrows, Kayla retorts, “In your room?”
“No, Jackson would hang me. There’s a guest room with an alarm on the door and window.”
“What? Why?” Kayla spits out, confused.
Slightly grimacing, Damien replies, “Jackson's parents prepared a room in case you were brought here.”
“Why! Did you hear something about my parents?”
With a gentle look Damien replies, “Not yet, but they wanted to be prepared if it happened.”
“So I really may have to live with you?” Kayla whispers. “What about my stuff? What about my family?”
“I’ve been communicating with the council, but I only have so much influence,” Damien sighs. “I haven’t heard anything today.”
A tear rolls down Kayla’s face. “I haven’t heard from my parents in forever. What if something’s wrong?”
“Hold on,” Damien says, reaching for his cell phone. He dials a number and waits. Kayla looks at him, not even trying to hide her worry. Finally, he says, “Hey, Dad, I need to ask you something.” He pauses. “Yes, it’s regarding Kayla. What’s going on with her parents? They haven’t contacted her yet.” With a surprised look, Damien returns, “Oh…well that’s new. Can I call over there?” He looks at Kayla and smiles. “All right, because she’s upset and I’d like to fix that. Yes, Dad, I really mean it.” Damien rubs his forehead. “Father, really, I have more respect for her than that. I promise to be a gentleman.” Kayla starts to giggle and quickly covers her mouth with her hand. Damien rolls his eyes. “I’m going now. She’s sitting right next to me. Yes, Father, she is. Okay, bye.” He hangs up the phone and sighs. “My reputation precedes me worse than I thought.”
“If you weren’t such a playboy, you wouldn’t have that problem.” Kayla snickers.
Damien shakes his head. “Your parents are at the guarded housing. They aren’t allowed cell phones or calls. It’s highly secured and guarded, but the prince is at your disposal, and I'll use whatever influence I have.”
“Please call them,” Kayla pleads. “I want to talk to my mom and dad.”
He nods. “Just realize that you won’t be able to ask them anything about what’s going on.”
br /> “Why?” Kayla cries. “I’m worried.”
“Rules are rules; the council hasn’t made a decision yet. Let me call the safe house.” He dials a number and waits. “Hello, who am I speaking to? This is Damien Blakely. Yes, this is really Damien. Sni le fotames al shi te int cospa.”
With a bewildered look, Kayla says, “Wwwhhhhaaat?”
“Enc shi fosmal entuletic.” Damien sighs into the phone. “Just put one of the Hendrickson’s on the phone, or so help me, I will call my father.” He smiles. “Hold on. They’re getting your parents.” A few minutes go by and then Damien says, “Mrs. Hendrickson, yes, I have Kayla, hold on.”
Damien hands her the phone. “Mom,” Kayla practically yells.
“Hi, honey. I’m sorry we couldn’t call, and don’t ask anything, because we won’t be able to answer any questions. Are you all right?”
“Yeah, I want you home.”
Her mom releases a heavy sigh. “Hopefully they will make a decision tomorrow, and then we’ll be home. Are you sure you're all right? No accidental shifting?”
“No, only purposeful shifting, and the boys taught me how to meditate and go to wherever it is that we go to restore our energy.”
“Shima,” her mom replies. “We call it Shima. What are you doing right now?”
“Trying to stay awake. I fell asleep watching The Lion King with Damien.”
There is an awkward silence and then her mom articulates, “He’s at the house?”
“No, we’re at Jackson’s.”
“Oh good,” her mom sighs. “Is Jackson there with you?”
Snorting, Kayla replies, “He’s off sulking somewhere.”
“Actually,” Damien interjects, “he’s out with Tracy. He came in here while you were sleeping. He looked really pissed off when he saw you draped across my lap and snapped that he was going out with her. He’s so testy sometimes.”
“Oh,” Kayla says to Damien before replying to her mom. “I guess he’s with Tracy.”
“Ummm, I hope he's not on a date.”
Kayla laughs. “I doubt it. Even if he was, it doesn’t matter. Jackson is free to date other people. I’m sure Tracy will flirt her pretty little head off.”
“Yes, she does like to do that,” her mom sighs with a laugh. “All right, please tell me you’re going home tonight.”
“Well, actually, Damien says they set up a bedroom with an alarm. I should probably stay here.”
Her mother clears her throat. “Damien is going to sleep in his room, right?”
“I sure hope so,” Kayla exclaims. “If he goes into anyone’s bed, it sure as hell better be Jackson’s.” Damien gives her a disgusted look and gags. Kayla smiles back at him.
“All right, honey, just be careful, okay? I don’t want you to get in over your head.”
Kayla rolls her eyes. “That seems like the general consensus.”
“We just worry.”
“Whatever, Mom, don’t worry, I’m a good girl, still planning to save myself for marriage.” Damien snaps his fingers in mock disappointment, and Kayla punches him on the shoulder.
Her mom pauses. “We never had that conversation, but that’s good to hear.” Kayla hears another voice on the other end of the phone and then her mom says, “Okay, honey, I have to go. We love you and will call you as soon as we can.”
“I love you too,” Kayla exclaims. “Tell Dad that.”
“I will, honey. I need to hang up. Be safe.”
“I will.”
Her mom says, “Night baby,” and then hangs up.
Setting the phone down, Kayla starts to cry. “Hey,” Damien says, scooting over to her. “It’ll be all right.” He wraps his arms around her and Kayla leans against him.
“I miss them. I’ve never really been away from my parents, like I wasn’t allowed to do sleepovers or go to camp. Kind of makes sense now. I would have freaked out the kids if I had changed into something horrible and tried to eat them.”
Damien bursts out laughing. “You have a conscious mind when you shift, so unless you wanted to eat your friends when you were normal, you wouldn’t have wanted to eat them when you shifted.”
“Good to know.” Kayla giggles through her tears. “Okay, I’m tired, so I’m going to bed.”
“All right, come on,” Damien says, jumping off the bed. Kayla follows him. “Sadly, the room is downstairs next to Jackson’s. Now if you wake up in the middle of the night, I would prefer you crawl into my bed instead of Jackson’s.”
Kayla snorts. “Yeah, but I know Jackson wouldn’t touch me. You on the other hand…”
“Would let you sleep,” Damien finishes. “Geez, Kayla, I do have some redeeming qualities.”
“You have a lot of redeeming qualities.”
With a smile, Damien replies, “Thanks.” He grabs her hand and leads her out of his room.
“The alarm in your room goes off in his room if it’s tripped. Those were the wishes of both sets of parents.”
“I see,” Kayla says. They enter the guest room and Kayla goes, “Wow.” The bed is heavy oak with a canopy top. The remaining furniture is a variety of beautiful antiques. “I feel a little overwhelmed in here.”
“Jackson’s parents wanted you to be as comfortable as possible.”
Kayla flops down on the bed. “It’s a feather mattress.”
“It's a duvet cover that you can take off. We weren’t sure if you would like it,” Damien states, leaning against one of the posts. He turns and points to the white boxes on the window and door. “If you open either of those during the night, the alarm will go off in Jackson’s room. I’ll sit in there until he gets back. You should go to sleep though, I know you’re tired.”
“Yeah, I am. I’ll see you in the morning?”
Damien smirks. “Of course, I’ll make you a breakfast to die for.”
“I’m looking forward to that.” Kayla giggles and walks over to Damien. “Sleep well.” She stretches up on her toes and kisses him.
“Night, beautiful,” he replies. “I’m going to set the alarm in Jackson’s room.”
“So I don’t do a prison break?” Kayla asks with a laugh.
With a worried look, Damien says, “It’s not a prison.”
“I was joking. I know you guys are only looking out for me.”
“Okay, good. I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Yeah, good night,” Kayla whispers somewhat bashfully. Damien waves his fingers and shuts the door. Kayla walks over to the bed and pulls back the covers. Feeling the sheets, she whispers, “Wow, these are soft.” She crawls into bed, sighing. “Okay, now you need to fall asleep in a strange house. Good luck with that.” She reaches over and turns off the light.
The next thing she knows, someone is gently shaking her. She blinks a few times to clear sleep from her eyes only to see Jackson standing in front of her. “Kayla, babe, wake up.”
Kayla shakes her head. “What...what’s going on?”
“You’re sleepwalking. The alarm went off, but I caught you before you got anywhere.”
Holding her head, Kayla asks, “Does this happen to everyone, or am I a freak?”
“No, it happens to some. I think it’s worse because you’re older. Come on, let’s get you back to bed.” He turns her by her shoulders and gently pushes her down the hallway. They pass his room and she can hear the audible beep from the alarm. “Hold on,” he says, darting into his room. The beeping stops and he comes back out. “Okay, into your room you go.”
She groggily walks to her room. Jackson follows her in. “So tired,” Kayla mumbles, crawling into bed.
“I bet.” Jackson laughs. “It’s like four in the morning.”
“Mmmm, if you had it your way, we would be going out for breakfast.”
“I’ll wake you up in an hour for that,” Jackson replies, pulling the covers over her.
Kayla opens one eye. “When did you sleep?”
With a confused look, Jackson says, “What?”
&n
bsp; She opens both her eyes and looks at him. “When you watched me, when did you sleep?”
“I’ve never needed more than five hours of sleep,” Jackson answers quietly. “So I would sleep in the evening and then come to your house. Are you sure you aren’t mad about that?”
“No,” Kayla murmurs. “I’m not mad at all. I appreciate it.”
He smiles. “I’m glad I’m not in trouble.”
“You should have just come into my room instead of standing outside. The neighbors may have called the cops on you. Oh wait, you were a mastiff, weren’t you?”
“Yup.” Jackson laughs. “I did escort you back inside…that one time.”
Feeling a little more awake, Kayla sits up. “Didn’t my parents wake up?”
“No, it was tricky, though. I had to sit you down outside, scale your house, unlock your door, and carry you upstairs. I was pretty proud of myself that the cops weren’t called.”
Kayla laughs. “That is actually funny.”
“It was,” Jackson replies with a smile. He stares at her for a few seconds. “You’re kind of cute when you’re all groggy.”
“Thanks,” Kayla mumbles. “I’m not cute the rest of the time?”
Rolling his eyes, Jackson says, “Do I really need to answer that?”
“No, I guess not.” Kayla sighs, flopping down on the bed. “How was your date with Tracy?”
“It was not a date!”
Kayla snickers. “I know. Did you have fun anyway?”
“Well…yes. I find her hilarious, and I got some good dirt on you.”
“Wonderful, I’m going to make sure to staple her mouth shut next time.”
Jackson sits down on the edge of the bed and looks at her. “Listen, I am sorry that I've been a douche since we met. Tracy kind of pointed out that you weren’t sure if you wanted to kiss me or deck me.”
“God!” Kayla groans. “She doesn’t know when to shut up.”
“No, it’s fine. I really would deserve it if you popped me in the face sometime.”
Giving him a look, Kayla says, “What would be the point in that? I hit like a girl, remember?”