Filed to story: Tangled in Moonlight Unshifted Novel by Lenaleia
To make me feel like I don’t belong.
Why?
I take a sip of the punch, the sweetness cloying on my tongue. Chloe is still watching me, a smirk playing at the corners of her lips. She knows she’s made me uncomfortable, and she seems to revel in it.
I think of Lucas, of the way he looks at me sometimes like I’m the only person in the world. He’s never made me feel like this, objectified and on display. With him, I fool onfe van cherished
But Lucas isn’t here right now. He’s off dealing with my pack business, so it’s only fair that I navigate these sharkinfested waters on my own. I can’t rely on him to protect me from every unwanted advance or inappropriate comment.
If I ever accept the position of his mate, I need to be stronger. I can’t be his weakness.
Correct, Selene whispers.
I take a deep breath, squaring my shoulders as I meet Chloe’s gaze headon. “Thanks for the drink,” I say, my voice steady despite the nerves fluttering in my stomach. “But I think I’m going to go find Lisa now.”
Chloe’s smirk falters, just for a moment, before she plasters it back on. “Of course,” she says, her tone sickly sweet. “I’m just so glad you made it today.”
“Thanks for the invite,” I mutter, squeezing by her. I’d escaped into the kitchen to find peace, only to find someone even scarier than Mia.
Am I wrong? Is this normal? Because it doesn’t feel very normal at all.
No, Selene says shortly. There will always be those ianlous of
Success? What success? I’m in the bottom tier of our training group’s skills. I can’t shift. I’m not even a proper mate.
There’s no success here. Just a hot mess of a shifter with way too many secrets. Secrets I can’t even share with the man who’s supposed to be my other half.
Don’t let this sour you, Selene murmurs. Just mingle. There will always be jealous wolves, but there are also good ones out there.
Right. The entire party isn’t just about Mia and Chloe. There are plenty of other wolves to get to know.
Of course, I’m not outgoing enough to introduce myself to random shifters, so there’s that.
And Lisa and Bren are…
Hmm.
Missing.
Which probably means they’re doing something behind closed doors.
Or dancing, Selene offers.
Right. Or dancing. I cast an inexperienced eye over all the gyrating, twisting bodies, noticing a quick pattern. Mostly men and woman dancing together, hips plastered against each other.
So, less dancing and more like clothed sex on the dance floor.
That looks fun.
Shocked by Selene’s wistful words, I almost trip over some unsuspecting male’s foot.
“Whoa!” A firm hand grabs my arm, laughing when the pink punch I never wanted spills all over him. Only a quarter inch is left in my cup, and my savior is covered in the pungent smell of juice and alcohol. “You okay, little wolf?”
I’m stunned into silence as I take in the gorgeous face peering down at me, his warm brown eyes crinkling with amusement. He’s not someone I recognize from any of my training sessions, but there’s an instant ease about him, a friendliness that puts me somewhat at ease despite the uncomfortable encounter with Chloe. “I’m fine,” I manage to say, my voice coming out a bit more breathless than I’d like. I try to pull away, to put some distance between us, but someone bumps into me from behind and I’m launched forward, colliding with his solid chest.
Strong arms wrap around me, steadying me, and I can feel the rumble of his laughter. “We’ve got to stop meeting like this,” he jokes, his voice a pleasant baritone. “People will start to talk.”
I feel my cheeks heat, and I apologize profusely. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to-“
But he’s already spinning me around, his hands gentle but firm on my waist as he leads me onto the dance floor. “No worries, little wolf. I’m Todd, by the way.”
The name sends a jolt through me, a sickening lurch in my stomach as my mind flashes to the Todd of Blackwood, the one whose life I’d ended in that bloody, desperate fight in the forest. For a moment, I can’t breathe, can’t think beyond the panic rising in my throat.
But then this Todd, the one holding me close as we sway to the music, leans in close, his breath warm against my ear. “But you can call me Teddy. Especially if you need a teddy bear of your own.”
It’s so unexpectedly sweet, so at odds with the memories haunting me, that a startled laugh bubbles up from my chest. “Teddy?” I manage to say, looking up at him with a small smile. “Like the bear?”
He grins, the expression transforming his already handsome face into something truly stunning. “Exactly like the bear. Soft, cuddly, always there when you need a hug.”
I can’t help but laugh again, some of the tension easing from my shoulders. This Todd is nothing like the monster from my past. This Todd is warm and funny and so very alive.
We dance for a while, his hands respectful on my waist, his body a comfortable distance from mine. Nothing like the wolves around us.
He keeps up a steady stream of conversation, telling me about his work as a carpenter, his love for his pack, his dreams for the future. I find myself relaxing, even enjoying myself as we move together.
It’s nice, this easy camaraderie with someone who doesn’t know my past, who isn’t judging me for my failures or my secrets. With Teddy, I can just be Ava, a girl at a party, dancing with a handsome man.
He seems nice, Selene says.
Yeah, he does. When we part so I can return to Lisa’s side, he doesn’t cling or say anything, just waves me off and wanders back into the crowd.
Feeling buoyed by my success at dancing with a stranger and managing a conversation with someone. in the pack, I hunt Lisa down. The dance with Teddy has cemented something inside of me; no matter how handsome another man is, he doesn’t bring about the flutters that a single word from Lucas can stir in my belly.
I need girl advice tonight.
Trying to find Lisa in the throng of shifters is impossible. She’s nowhere to be found. My skin prickles with the sensation of being watched, assessed. Whispers hiss through the air, just quiet enough that I can’t make out the words. But I can imagine well enough what they’re saying.
Mia and Chloe are holding court with a group of male shifters. Mia’s dark hair tumbles over her shoulder as she laughs, leaning into the broadshouldered man beside her. Chloe’s green eyes flick to mine, a smirk curling her lips. I quickly look away.
I don’t know what their goal was in bringing me here, but I don’t need to know.
They’re not on my side. That’s enough to know I want nothing to do with them.
Someone jostles me from behind and I stumble, barely keeping my balance. A red plastic cup is shoved into my hand, sloshing stickysweet punch over the side.
“Oops, sorry!” a male voice calls, but when I turn to look, he’s already disappeared back into the crowd.
I stare down at the cup in my hand, the sickly artificial scent of fruit and alcohol wafting up to my nose. My stomach churns. I don’t want to be here anymore, suffocating under the weight of shifter superiority and teenage hormones. I just want to find Lisa and go home.
Clutching the cup, I weave my way through the mass of bodies, heading for the refuge of the kitchen. It’s quieter there, only a few people milling about. I set the cup down on the counter with a shaky hand and pull out my phone.
[AVA: Where are you? I can’t find you anywhere.]
I hit send and lean back against the counter, watching the three dots that indicate Lisa is typing. They disappear. Reappear. Disappear again.
[LISA: sry went 2 get air, u ok?]
I snort. Air. Right. More like she snuck off with
Brendan to make out in a shadowy corner somewhere.
Not that I can blame her.
But then I stare at her text, a sinking feeling in my belly.
Lisa never uses text spea’
[AVA: I’m fine. Think I might head out soon though. Not really feeling the party vibe.]
[LISA: kk where r u?]
[AVA: Kitchen.]
The cup I’d set on the counter draws my gaze, the stickysweet scent of punch mingling with the bowl beside it.
I still don’t understand why someone would just shove it in my hands. Did they think I wanted one? Did someone think I was just picking up trash?
It’s clear that parties aren’t my scene. I feel lost here.
Something’s not right, Selene whispers in my mind, her presence a comforting warmth. Stay alert.
I nod, more to myself than to her. She’s right. Something is off. Between Lisa’s sudden use of text speak and that odd wrong feeling that’s been plaguing me since I got here…