Page 51 of His White Moonlight
He walked down the stairs slowly, staring at me like I was a bomb about to go off.Some of my excitement started to fade.
Bennett, the fun killer.
Was he going to tell me to get a shirt?Or, worse, tell me he’d changed his mind?
My mind started racing with possible ways to negotiate for his willingness.Our neighborhood was large, with each house having at least ten acres of land.The road meandered through properties that all belonged to members of the Wulf pack.I needed him.
I watched him breathe in deeply as he crossed the entry.
“You were happy, and now you’re not,” Bennett said.“Why?”
“I’m waiting for you to kill the fun again.”
He tilted his head, studying me as I frowned.
“Is that how you see what I do?”
“Isn’t it?I got nervous yesterday, and you made me pull over.I found a cool spot to eat lunch, and you told me I needed to get back to the office because I happened to be next to a man.I wanted to go to the arcade, and you treated it like I’d taken you to a street fight.When we’re at the office, you’re giving orders and making people cry.
“But you were a fun killer even before this.
“Every time I started laughing with Aiden and Karter, no matter what we were doing, you’d tell on us, finding a way to spin our fun as something dangerous or against whatever rules you had in your head.”
A flush heated my face.I hadn’t meant to say all of that, but I was so tired of having everything I found just a little bit good taken away from me.
He reached out and trailed his fingers over my hot cheek.
“I didn’t know that was how you saw it.I’m sorry, Wrenly.Do you still want to run with me?”
“Yes.”
I waited, unsure whether he’d actually go through with it, until he dropped his hand to his side and stepped around me to open the door.
Heart surging with happiness, I bounded outside and spread my arms wide to breathe in the fresh air.
“Which way should we run?”he asked, watching me.
“Which way?Don’t we have to stay in the community?”I asked.
He shook his head.“We can leave if we’re together.”
“Then that way,” I said, pointing in the direction of the gate.
We started out with a light jog until I realized he was purposely keeping pace with me.Once we were outside the gate, we picked up the paved trail, and I lengthened my stride, which was considerably shorter than his.
I focused on my breathing and waited for that moment where everything warmed up and the usual euphoria swept through me.Running was something no one could take away from me.It was necessary.
Bennett stayed even with me as I settled into my long-distance pace.It felt so good to run all out.He didn’t attempt to make conversation until we slowed to a walk on the way back.
“I didn’t know you liked running.You weren’t in track.”
Still breathing hard, I glanced at him.“If you show what you like, people will find a way to take it away from you.”
He frowned again, and his pupils dilated.
“Do you know they’re doing studies regarding the correlation between anger, stress, and early-onset dementia?”I asked.
“Pardon?”
