“We’ll meet you there.” Jael waggled her fingers in Lyle’s direction and followed Brianna to the car.
“Are you sure about this?”
“Did Lyle look hot in his basketball shorts?”
Brianna unlocked the door of her car. “That doesn’t mean you have to get burned.” She climbed in and started the engine.
Jael hesitated in the open passenger door, staring across the lot at Lyle’s red Mustang. Lyle had already climbed in and was revving the engine, but Shadow stood outside waiting for Toby and Jack to climb in the backseat. He stared right back at her, hands jammed in the front pockets of his jeans. It was too dark to tell if he was smiling but she felt a chill crawl up her arms and settle in her gut. What was it about that guy?
“Are you getting in?” Brianna called out, leaning over the seat to look up at her.
She slid in and slammed the door. “Do you feel sort of queasy? Like maybe that popcorn had some bad butter topping or something?”
“You hardly ate any. You’re probably just hungry.”
The Mustang’s headlights swept over them as Lyle turned out of the school parking lot. Brianna followed, keeping her hand on the knob of the radio as always. She flipped the dial until she came to a song she liked and started singing along. “and the games you play…”
“Is Aiden coming too?” asked Jael. Her friend had a thing for nerds and smart kids. Sometimes she wondered why Bree hung out with her.
“I don’t think so. He sent me a text a while ago. Said he needed to get home.”
They pulled into the burger joint. A few kids from school were already there. Lyle had parked at the far end of the lot, away from the other cars. Brianna didn’t follow but parked under a bright lamppost.
Jael looked up at the moon as they climbed out. It was nearly full. She’d always thought a full moon was good luck. Falling stars were nothing to dream on. They were going to crash and burn. Unlike the sun, the full moon was bright with promise, a cool slice of heaven that men had actually flown to and walked on. She could use some of that luck tonight.
The guys were already seated at a table when they joined them. Lyle narrowed his eyes when he saw Brianna tagging along. Apparently he hadn’t counted on her friend running interference. But he rebounded quickly and smiled.
He patted the back of the empty chair next to him. “Hey Jael. Have a seat.”
Brianna wasn’t put off by the inadequate number of chairs or that none of the guys jumped up to get one for her. She pulled one from a nearby table and squeezed in between Shad and Jack. “Thanks for letting me crash your little party, boys. I’m Jael’s ride home.”
“I can drive her home,” Lyle said a little too quickly.
Jack and Toby smirked and stared at Jael as though she’d grown double D cups overnight. Shadow was the only one looking at the menu instead of her. He cleared his throat and slid his chair back abruptly. “Brianna, can I talk to you a minute?” He moved away from the table and waited for her to follow.
Brianna glanced at Jael, wide-eyed, but got up and followed Shad.
“So what do you want? A burger and fries? A shake? I’ll buy,” Lyle said, leaning in over her shoulder as she read the menu.
She turned and smiled, sucking in a cloud of peppermint. “That’s very sweet of you. Make that a chocolate malt and you’ve got a deal,” she said, seeing Brianna motion for her. “I’ll be right back.”
Lyle patted her butt as she slipped out of the chair. “Take your time.”
She just about turned around to send him flying across the table into the wall, but Shad was suddenly there stepping between them. He brushed her arm in passing and she felt a jolt like electricity shoot through her blood. She gasped, and backed away from him.
Brianna grabbed her arm and pulled her toward the restroom. The door swung shut behind them and Brianna peered under the stalls. “All clear,” she said, straightening. “Now what was that about?” she asked, leaning against the double sink counter, arms crossed.
“What are you talking about?” Jael was still shaking from contact with Shad. She rubbed her arm where he’d touched her. What was going on?
“The thing you’ve got going with Shad! He told me to get you out of here. Said you were in danger.”
Jael stared at her, dumbfounded. Shad sent chills down her spine and set her heart racing, but not necessarily in a good way. There was something strange going on but she didn’t think it had anything to do with attraction. Maybe he was a vampire. Although, she really didn’t think so. Every time she’d been near a vamp, white-hot pain had sliced through the side of her foot where her sixth toe once resided. “I don’t understand.”
Brianna shook her head. “Neither do I. Obviously you have two guys interested in you. But I don’t trust either one. Maybe we should go.”
“You’re right,” Jael said. “We should.” She couldn’t allow her friend to get caught up in something dangerous. Brianna didn’t have a clue what Jael’s life included and would probably run for the other side of town if she did.
They went back to the table. Shadow was gone, but the other three sat there sucking down shakes while they waited for their burgers. “It’s about time. Your malt is melting,” Lyle said. He caught Brianna’s eye. “Sorry, we didn’t get you one. Didn’t know what you wanted.”
Jack nodded toward the empty chair beside him. “Sit down. You can share mine.”
“Thanks Jack, but we’re leaving.”
“What?” Lyle stood up, nearly tipping his shake over. It wobbled and he righted it. “You can’t go yet. I ordered burgers.”
“Sorry, Lyle. I really need to get home. But thanks. It was fun watching you play tonight. My first game and all.” Jael forced a smile and turned to go.
Lyle reached out and grabbed her by the arm, stopping her. “I said you can’t go.”
She whipped her body around, snapping his grip loose, and planted her elbow in the side of his neck. Then yanked his arm through hers and brought him to his knees, their cheeks an inch apart. Her Doublemint breath mingled with the cloud of peppermint Altoid air streaming from his open mouth as he yelled in pain.
Jael didn’t realize the entire restaurant was staring at her in shock until Brianna touched her arm. “Jael, I think we better leave now,” she whispered.
Lyle whimpered when she released him and pushed him away. He landed on his backside, arms and legs splayed. He stared up at her like a frightened, beaten dog, then his face hardened and anger sparked from his eyes when he realized everyone had witnessed his humiliation.
“Jael…” Brianna was pulling her toward the door, hurrying now.
The restaurant came alive with voices, laughter, and scraping chairs as everyone started talking at once. The manager hurried out from behind the counter to see if Lyle was all right. Brianna and Jael flew out the door and ran to the Cadillac. She had forgotten to lock the doors so they jumped right in, and before Jael had her seatbelt on, they were already driving out of the parking lot. She glanced back and saw the guys rush out of the restaurant and stare after them. Lyle’s face was a mask of anger. His hands clenched into fists at his sides. The other guys looked like they were trying to calm him down or tease him about it, because he suddenly grabbed Jack and slugged him in the stomach.
They turned at the next corner, and the guys outside the restaurant disappeared from sight. Jael blew out a relieved breath and leaned her head against the side window. Looking up, she decided that full moons were not quite as lucky as she once believed.
“What the heck…?” Brianna asked, both hands gripped the steering wheel like a life preserver. For once she wasn’t fiddling with the radio. “How did you…? I know you said…” She couldn’t seem to finish a sentence.
“I told you I know a lot of martial arts.”
“Yeah, I know but…”
She tried an apology. “Sorry?”
Brianna glanced over and shook her head, a slow smile lighting her eyes. “For what? That was awesome! L
yle is such a jerk. I’m glad you didn’t hurt him but he deserved what he got. When he grabbed you…” She stared at the road ahead, words tumbling from her lips.
Jael slowly relaxed. She still felt queasy but she never did eat so that was probably the cause. An empty stomach and all the excitement would make anyone feel a little sick. The night had definitely not gone as planned, and now she might be worse than an outcast at school, but at least Brianna thought she was awesome.
“So,” Brianna began tentatively, “if you can have those kind of reflexes, how could you possibly get beat up by a garbage can?”
The question didn’t register at first, but slowly Jael became aware of the pause in Brianna’s one-sided conversation. “What?”
“You want to rescind your earlier explanation for those cuts and bruises?”
The dark road suddenly grew bright as a car approached from behind, gaining on them at an alarming rate. Brianna glanced in the rearview. “They could at least turn off their brights.” She adjusted her mirrors but the interior of the car remained lit up. “That car is right on our tail. What are they trying to prove?”
Jael turned around. Headlights glared back at her. The car was sticking closer than cat hair on an old lady. “Pull over,” she said. “Let them go by.”
Brianna slowed and pulled onto the shoulder of the road, but rather than racing by, the car followed, matching their speed to a stop. “Oh crap,” she said, her eyes still on the rearview, “it’s Lyle’s Mustang.
“Just the Mustang or did Lyle come along?” she joked, trying to lighten the situation. What had she gotten them into? She couldn’t let her friend get hurt because of her own rash actions.
Car doors slammed behind them as the guys climbed out of the Mustang. Brianna looked terrified, still gripping the wheel, her eyes glued to the side mirror. Jael watched the mirrors as well, waiting…
“Go!” she said, her voice soft but commanding.
Brianna hit the gas and tore away with a squeal of rubber on pavement. One of the guys yelled and banged on the side of the car as they took off, but they were soon out of reach and flying along the highway at 70mph.
“They’re following us!”
Jael twisted around and gazed back at the approaching headlights. The muscle car was slowly but irrevocably gaining. “Go faster.”
“I can’t! I promised my dad I wouldn’t ever go above seventy.”
“Really? You’re going to stick to that now?! ’Cause tonight I lied to my parents about being sick, climbed out the bedroom window, drove into town with you, got into a fight with a creepy guy, and am now in a slightly high speed chase that feels like a scene from a bad B movie.”
Brianna put on her blinker and began to brake. “Well, call me a saint, but I don’t want to die like this. I prefer to die in bed, making love with my husband at the ripe old age of fifty.”
There was movement behind Brianna’s seat and a familiar head popped up. “Mind if I make a suggestion?”
They both screamed and Shadow covered his ears, his face screwed up in a grimace.
Brianna nearly drove off the road, swerving this way and that, trying to control the huge old car like a sailboat on a rough sea. Jael pushed her feet against the floorboards, hanging on for dear life to the handle on the door with a white-knuckle grip.
Chapter 14
Fight club