Jen waves me over to a picnic bench she’s staked out under a tree. The look on her face tells me I’m about to enter into the drama zone once again. I sit down and face her. “What’s up?”
“The invisible finger thing you did was quite the little magic trick. How hard did you have to twist Derrick’s arm?”
I casually flip open the claps on my treasure chest lunchbox and pull out a bag of cut up fruit. At the bottom of the box I see my mom snuck in a special treat—a kind of peace offering. Two Eid treats, otherwise known as Egyptian sweet cookies, lay nestled in a sandwich bag. I can’t wait to have a bite of their sugary goodness mixed with cinnamon and a touch of nutmeg. But for now, I toss a banana slice in my mouth and chew. I want to give Jen a chance to calm down a little. “I know you’re ticked, but it was for your own good.”
“Really. Since when do you get to run my life?”
She has so much more to learn about me. “That’s what BFFs do. They help their friends along, especially when they are too shy.”
Her disappointment lingers. “Maybe I wanted to give Ainsley my number in person.”
“Oh, you mean just like you did on the date last night?”
“Well, your little magic trick didn’t work. We still don’t have a date set up.”
I drop my bag of fruit. “What?” I pull my phone out of my bag. “I’m going to call Ainsley right now. Nobody blows off my BFF.”
Jen lunges across the table and grabs my phone. “Ainsley said he had an important commission to finish. He’s going to call me as soon as he’s done.”
I grab my phone out of her hand. “Why didn’t you say so?”
“You didn’t give me a chance. Plus, I was kind of disappointed. I really wanted to see him this week.”
A huge grin crosses my face. “So, you’ve got a thing for the vamp. Can’t say I blame you. He’s smokin hot.”
She leans back and sighs. “I don’t know how to explain it. We click somehow. Are you sure shifters and vampires don’t have some kind of natural bond?”
“Not that I know of. He’s not using his mesmerizing powers on you, is he?”
“No, I don’t think so. He did read my mind, though. He knew I wanted sushi for dinner.”
I laugh. “Could have been just a lucky guess. People in LA are sushi addicts.”
Jen shakes her head. “No, I could feel him inside my brain.”
Interesting. I felt that with my vamp friend too. A sugar fix sounds good right about now. I pull the bag of cookies out of the lunchbox. “That is strange. Normally Ainsley hides his powers. I’ve noticed he’s trying to act more human these days.”
“I don’t know whether to be flattered or scared.”
I pop one of the cookies in my mouth relishing the way the sweetness mingles with the spices. “Actually, I think it shows he trusts you. That he feels comfortable enough to show you who he really is.”
She nods. “Or maybe he’s over me already.”
The class bell rings and I’m actually glad. I don’t have the energy to give her another lesson in self-confidence.
I get up and dust the powdered sugar from the cookie off my fingers. “Relax. He’s into you, trust me.” And if I have to use a bit of magic to speed it along I will.
A perfect end to a school week, I tell myself as Jerome bounds up onto the sidewalk and joins me standing on the steps in front of Jefferson High. There is something exhilarating about the fact I’ve lured a werewolf on campus. As students dart around us, eager to be anywhere but school, not one of them has any idea that I am a witch and my boyfriend is a werewolf. Of course, I’d rather have met Jerome at his apartment, but during my last class I received a 911 text from Jen.
Jerome teases me. “There is something wrong about you leaving school with a werewolf.”
. “You’re complaining?” I stroke his cheek. “Sorry, I have to stick around to see why Jen sent me a 911 text.” I pinch his firm ass. “I promise to make up for lost time.”
Before he can give me a snappy reply, Jen waves in our direction, and then races over to join us. Before she can catch her breath, I say, “Hey, what’s the emergency? Jerome and I were just going to head out for a snack. Want to join us?”
She shakes her head. “I texted you because I had something weird happen to me in my last class. I wanted to see if you had a clue why it happened.” She watches Jerome eyeing me longingly and turns to leave. “But I see you’re busy. Catch you later.”
Jerome looks at me then back to Jen. “Hey, Brook, sounds like your friend needs your help. I’ll see you later.”
Crap, this is totally going to mess with our big night. “I doubt you’ll have the time. It’s a super moon tonight, remember?”
He gives me a wink and walks away. I’m going to do my best to handle this crisis with Jen as quickly as possible and then get to his apartment before he transforms. My hormones insist on it.
Jen glares at me. “Hey, I thought you said he was a handful during a full moon.”
Of course, I was merely guessing when I said that. Tonight, I want to find out if I was right. “Yeah, but if you remember, I also said he was horny as hell.”
“Sorry, didn’t mean to screw up your booty call.”
I shrug trying to pretend it doesn’t matter even though Jerome has my hormones in hyper drive. “Maybe you did me a favor. With a super moon, everything for him is times ten.”
She bites her lip and looks down at the ground. “Have you ever come across a creature that steals memories?”
Students are continuing to stream off campus, so I need to take this conversation some place safer. I throw my tote over my shoulder. “Let’s not talk here.” I lead her back on to campus, down the main hall, and out into the courtyard. We grab a bench under a jacaranda tree. I toss my bag on the bench and sit down across from Jen. “All right, tell me exactly what happened.”
“I like to daydream in class. I have a favorite memory I use. But when I went back to relive it again, it was gone. Like totally gone.”
Hum…the only person I know that steals memories is Ainsley. Why would he take one of Jen’s? He told me he only took them from dogs because they had so many and wouldn’t miss them. Obviously, he was right, because Jen is freaking out over her missing memory. “That is a bit weird.” I dig through my tote and pull out my phone. There is no way I can tell Jen about the way Ainsley feeds. That news will end things before they even have a chance to start. I have to give her another explanation. Pulling up my witch search screen, I type in, what paranormal creature steals memories. Maybe I’ll get lucky. Sure enough, something pops up. “Let’s see, the search says it might be caused by a succubus. But they usually only go after men.”
Her eyes grow wide. “You got that from a standard search engine?”
I laugh knowing she has so much to learn. “No, it’s a special witch database.”
She chuckles. “Of course you guys would have one.” She kicks at the bench, frustrated I couldn’t give her a satisfying answer. “Can you do me a favor and ask around? I want to make sure I’m not getting some form of early memory loss.”
I can’t have her thinking being paranormal is sending her into early senility. Reaching across the table, I squeeze her hand. “It’s probably just some brain hiccup. You’ll have it back tomorrow.”
She seems unconvinced. “Yeah, okay. Hey, you want to hang out after school? I could use a distraction.”
“I can’t.” The wind kicks up a bit and the scent of Jerome’s woodsy cologne sends my hormones into high gear again. I look down at the ground fighting the urge to be with him when I should be focusing on Jen. She wanted me to distract her from her memory scare, but the scent of Jerome’s cologne takes over my brain. My desire to be with him is far stronger. I stand up and face her with just a touch of guilt. “I’m sorry, but I’m going to Jerome’s.”
My phone rings causing my head to throb as my eyes flutter open. Why did I tell Jerome I wanted to watch him transform last night?
I had nothing but nightmares about it all evening, even though Jerome didn’t allow me to see him in wolf form. Especially after we spent a lovely late afternoon together at his place. Yet, my imagination still ran wild all night long picturing Jerome’s wolf form racing through the forest on the hunt for his prey. In my dream he killed a jackrabbit—quite brutally.
My voicemail buzzes and I reach over and pick up my phone. Who would call me so early in the morning? I listen to the playback.
“Hey, it’s me, Jen. You’re never going to guess what I transformed into. Something living!”
Normally I’d be thrilled. Ainsley must be doing well with his shifter lessons, but all I want to do is roll over and go back to sleep.
A knock on the bedroom door foils my attempt. “Brook, I’m heading out to meet Tara. We have to restock our supplies. You might think about getting out of bed. It’s eleven o’clock. It’s not like you turned into a werewolf last night.”
My mother’s humor always takes me by surprise. “Ha, very funny.” I prop myself up on my pillows so I can see her better. “Have fun with Tara.”
Her footsteps echo down the hallway, and I force myself to sit up. I better get over to Jen’s house and find out what animal she shifted into. Despite barely being able to keep my eyes open, I toss my legs over the edge of the bed and text Ben to pick me up. Derrick left me a message while I was asleep that he was at the Order today.
Having to Zoomer everywhere is really getting old. In New York I could use public transit to get around town. I never thought about getting a driver’s licenses. In LA it is becoming pretty obvious driving is a must.
Trying to act wide awake, I sit chatting with Jen’s brother Kit about his coloring book while Jen gets some snacks out of the pantry. I texted Jen on the way to her house that I didn’t have time to eat breakfast. Jen places a bowl of M&M’s on the table and hands me a granola bar. I give Kit a smile and grab a handful of M&Ms hoping the combo of sugar and chocolate will wake me up. “So, your brother tells me you promised I’d do some magic for him.”
Jen slumps down in the chair next to me. “Yeah, sorry. I’m kind of in a bind. He’s been cranky ever since he woke up this morning. It was the only thing that cheered him up.”
I normally don’t do magic on command, but I kind of owe Jen. When she needed me most, I instead picked Jerome. I sort through the M&Ms and pull out all the green ones. It’s something I’ve done since I was a kid after my dad told me that the green ones were actually frog eggs. “Okay, I’ll think about it. I do kind of owe you for being MIA all week. But first, let’s hear your big news. What did you transform into? A gorilla?”
Kit lets out a high-pitched giggle. “Yes, yes, yes, turn into a gorilla—now!”
She chuckles. “I had to start a bit smaller.”
I wish Jen would be more ambitious, but at least it was something alive. “How small?”
“A ladybug.”
Her brother and I simultaneously burst out laughing.
Jen throws back her shoulders insulted. “I thought it was awesome. I flew all over Ainsley’s penthouse. My dream of flight came true.”
Kit and I are still laughing, but then I stop. The vision of her as a tiny red and black ladybug fluttering around Ainsley’s penthouse is kind of cool. “Well, I have to say, ladybugs are pretty cute.”
She beams. “Ainsley thought so.”
I give her a wink, thinking how much of a turn on that must have been for Ainsley. He actually taught her how to transform into a living thing. I’m going to have to text him congratulations. “I bet.”
Kit clamors down off his chair and pulls at Jen’s robe. “Can she do the magic trick, now?”
She bends down to her brother’s level. “Little man, Brooklyn hasn’t agreed to do the magic yet.”
He bats his long eyelashes at his sister like a pro. “Please? I’ll love you forever.”
Kit is the cutest kid ever. “How can I resist?” Grabbing his hand, I pull him next to me. “Okay, Kit, what kind of magic do you want me to do?”
“I want to be a German Shepard.”
Jen sucks in a breath. “Little man, just because I can transform, doesn’t mean you should.”
He sticks out his lower lip. “Why not?”
This is one ambitious kid. If only Jen was more like her brother. I take his hand. “I’m so sorry, Kit. You have to be at least sixteen to transform into an animal.”
“Why?” He kicks at the table leg. “It’s not fair.”
This kid is a riot. It’s making me want to conjure up a baby brother for myself. “I know, Kit, but that’s the rules.”
His eyes fill up with tears and his face turns bright red. He looks like he’s seconds away from a complete meltdown. Jen whispers in my ear. “You have to do something.”
He wants magic, I’ll give him the next best thing to transforming into a dog. Grabbing my tote, I pull out my sparkly princess wand. Kit’s eyes brighten as I wave it around in front of him and then tap him on the top of his head. “Abracadabra. May your wish become so!”
Kit’s mouth pops open as he watches a German Shepard materialize right in front of him. The dog barks and bolts for the front door. “Wait a sec, boy!” Jen runs after him. “Come back.”
Kit and I follow right behind her. The dog keeps barking like there’s a cat on the front porch. The sound of footsteps thunders up the steps and then the door flies open. The dog jumps up and licks Jen’s mom’s face. She grabs his collar and pulls him off her.
I have no idea what I should do next. I’ll have to trust Jen to handle this one.
Jen’s mom wipes the dog slobber off her face and glares at her daughter. “Jennifer, you better start talking. Now!
By the look on Jen’s mother’s face she’s about to be grounded for two more weeks. Time to step into action. I bound over to her mother, grab the dog, and force him to sit. “I’m sorry, Mrs. Anderson, I just got Buddy and he’s still learning how to behave.”
Jen gives her mom an enormous grin. “Brooklyn just stopped by to show me her new dog. He’s a rescue she saved from the kill list.”
Her mother pushes past both of us. “That explains why he’s so excited.” Then her mother heads straight for Kit. She crouches down until she is at his level. “Little man, is that true?”
Kit blinks hard, and then looks his mom straight in the eye. “Jen told her to bring the dog. You know how much I love German Shepherds.”
Her mother ruffles Kit’s hair. “You sure do.” She turns to Jen. “You’re in big trouble. I told you that you were still grounded.”
I snap my fingers and the German Shepherd follows me into the kitchen. I turn to her mother. “It’s all my fault. Jennifer said she couldn’t leave the house, so I thought it was okay to come over for a visit.”
Jennifer’s mother throws her hands on her hips. That’s a sign she’s been pushed too far. “Brooklyn, I know you are trying to be a good friend to my daughter, but you don’t have to cover for her.”
Jen’s father suddenly arrives on the scene. “I think Jennifer has us on a technicality.”
“I don’t know about that.” Her mother gingerly takes her father’s arm. “When did you become such a softy?”
Jen’s dad smiles. “Since I realized her jail time was up an hour ago.”
Her mother shrugs. “Fine. It’s time to watch the Wimbledon finals anyway.”
Jen looks shocked. Her father must not come to the rescue very often. She turns to face me. “I’ve never seen them back down so quickly before. Did you cast a spell?”
I never got a chance. “No. I thought you said your dad was kind of stuffy. I think he’s pretty cool.”
“You caught him on a good day.”
I laugh. “I’ll take your word for it.” Snapping my fingers, I signal the dog to follow me to the door.
Kit pulls on his sister’s sleeve. “Is she taking Buddy home now? I can’t have him?”
“No, little man.” Jen bends down to Kit’s l
evel. “He has to go back to where he came from.”
Kit strokes the dog’s fur one last time. “Nice meeting you, Buddy.”
It makes me sad to have to take the dog away from such a cute kid, but there is no way Jen’s parents will let him keep the dog. I check to make sure no one is looking, and then snap my fingers three times. In a second the German Shepherd vanishes. “I better get going. We have a coven meeting tonight.” A brilliant idea hits me. “Hey, since your curfew is up, do you want to come to the meeting?”
She gives me a smile. “Sure. Are you going to fly off on your broom?”
I laugh. “Actually, that’s not a bad idea.” I pick up my tote, pull out the wand, and whisper an incantation. In seconds a magical straw broom appears next to me. “Looks like my ride home has arrived.”
14
The Tipping Point
Just when I think things have calmed down with Jen, I see her waving me over as I hit the school courtyard. Her face is flushed like she ran around the entire campus ten times. “Ainsley just left me a really strange phone message. Something is wrong.”
“He’s a vampire. I’m sure he can handle most things that get thrown at him.”
She totally ignores my comment. “Do you have some kind of spell so we can see into his penthouse? I want to make sure he’s okay.”
My eyes narrow knowing where this is going. My mom told me Ainsley had been busy lately because a friend had arrived unexpectedly from England. “Is this because of that friend from London that’s visiting? You think it’s a woman, don’t you?”
She looks down at the concrete pathway. “No. I’m just concerned.”
I loop my arm around Jen’s and lead her to a seating area on the far side of campus where we can be alone. For insurance, I whisper an invisibility spell before we sit down on one of the concrete benches. I give her a crooked smile and reach into my tote. “All right. I’ll help you out this time. But only because I know you won’t stop talking about poor Ainsley until I do.”
How to Snag a Shifter-The Book of Brooklyn Book One: A Young Adult Paranormal Romance Witch Series (The Book of Brooklyn Witch Series 1) Page 12
