Hello everyone! Here is Chapter 14 of Moonlit Shadows TAKEN. I hope you like it!

Moonlit Shadows TAKEN Copyright © 2016 by Shawna Gautier. All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express permission of the author except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

This book is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or to actual places, events, or locations is purely coincidental. The characters are all products of the author’s imagination.

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

Not wanting to get out of bed and face the day, Sami slept in the next morning. She did however, want to see Billy. So she eventually dragged herself out of bed, choosing to wear her favorite lavender blouse, cutoffs, and a pair of flip-flops. She trudged downstairs to the kitchen. Mom was at the table sipping her coffee, still wearing her bathrobe.

“Good morning, Sam.” Mom smiled.

“Morning.” Sami returned the smile without making eye contact while she gathered the items she needed for her cereal. After fixing herself a bowl of fruity rings, she sat at the table. As she ate her cereal, she studied her mother’s features, shocked to see how dark and swollen her eyes were. It looked as if she’d been up crying half the night.

“So do you have any plans for today?” Mom’s tone held only a hint of melancholy.

Sami knew her mom was trying to be strong for her sake. She decided to put off seeing Billy until tomorrow. “I was thinking of maybe just staying home today and spending time with you.”

Mom’s sad eyes filled with warmth. “Aw, sweetheart . . . you don’t have to do that. I’m sure you want to see Billy. I’ll be okay. I need some time to myself anyway.”

Sami frowned. “Are you sure, Mom? I can stay and keep you company. I want to.”

“Thank you, but no. You go and hang out with your friends today. I just need to rest. I was up half the night. I’ll probably sleep most of the day.”

She knew that once her mother’s mind was made up, there was no changing it. Sami sighed. “Okay, I guess I’ll see if Billy’s home.”

“Oh, sorry, I completely forgot—he came by earlier but you were still sleeping. He and Mike had some work to do, but he said it’d only take a few hours.”

“Oh.” Sami was disappointed.

“Jason stopped by to see how you were doing, though. He said to call if you need anything.” Mom took another sip of her coffee. “Maybe you should see what he’s doing today? It’d be good for you to get out and get your mind off of things.”

“Yeah, maybe you’re right. I’ll call him.”

After breakfast Sami put her bowl in the sink and glanced out the window. The patrol car was missing. Her heart skipped a beat. “Where’s the deputy?”

“They stopped coming the day before the funeral. There haven’t been any sightings since you reported it last. No one has seen anything. They think the wolf migrated somewhere else.”

Sami grew upset. Without the deputy out front she felt vulnerable again. “But it looked more like a man, Mom. He was standing.”

“They followed four prints that led away from our house. They think that maybe it’s just some freakishly oversized wolf. It was dark that night. Maybe it wasn’t standing at all.”

“But I know what I saw!” Anger replaced her worry. She was tired of everyone telling her what she thought she’d seen that night instead of believing what she really did see.

“There’s no sign of anything or anyone, Sam. Whatever it was, it’s gone now.” Mom breathed a sigh of relief. “We can finally rest easy. Now maybe things can get back to normal around here.”

Sami was still upset they’d called off the search, but she was glad they hadn’t seen any signs of the man, wolf, whatever it was. She recalled the sounds she’d heard in the forest last night. It wasn’t the usual loud SNAP. The disturbance was lighter, like a deer traveling along, or a raccoon. Maybe what I heard last night was nothing to fear at all. Billy, Mike, and Jason go hunting, so there have to be harmless wild animals out there somewhere.

“Okay. I won’t worry then. I’m going to Jason’s.” She headed for the door, more than ready to put everything behind her.

“Wait, don’t you want to call him first?” Mom scrunched her brows together in worry.

“No, but don’t worry—I’ll drive across the road. Okay?” Sami shook her head. “I thought you said we could finally rest easy. And now you’re gonna turn right around and be worried about me going outside again?”

Mom sighed. “You’re right. Just be careful, Sam.”

“I will.”

Sami closed the door behind her and glanced around. It was a beautiful day out. The sun was shining. Birds were chirping . . . Wait . . . birds are chirping! She grinned. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d heard birds chirping around the house, or if she’d even heard them at all. She’d been so wrapped up in whatever danger might be out there, she’d forgotten to pay attention.

A gentle breeze wafted through her hair. She inhaled the fresh air, exhilarated. She eyed the forest. It was still as dark and creepy as ever. Not wanting to take any chances, she hurried to her car, climbed in, and locked the door. Then she drove across the road and along the wooded driveway.

Jason was outside washing his car when she pulled up. She parked the car and climbed out to greet him.

He grinned. “You’re just in time.” He grabbed an oversized soapy sponge from the blue bucket at his feet and tossed it to her.

Sami screamed and jumped back as the sponge splattered at her feet and splashed her bare legs with cold sudsy water. “Not funny, Jason!” She laughed.

“It was very funny, Sami. You should’ve seen the look on your face.”

She picked up the sponge and threw it back at him. “You’re crazy if you think I’m gonna help you now.”

Jason picked up the hose and grinned devilishly. “I beg to differ.”

“You wouldn’t dare!” Her eyes widened as she backed away.

He took a step closer and aimed the spray nozzle at her.

She held her hands above her head in defeat. “Okay okay, I’ll help. Just don’t shoot!”

He laughed and handed her the hose. “Here, you can rinse.”

Once the hose was safely in her clutches she flashed a playful grin. “Oh, you shouldn’t have done that,” she warned as she pointed it straight at him and pulled the trigger, pelting him with a steady stream of water.

“Hey!”he shouted, laughing, trying to shield himself from the icy water with his hands. He gave up and went after her instead.

Sami hadn’t expected him to chase her. She screamed and ran to the other side of his car, throwing the hose as far away from herself as she possibly could before she ducked behind the car.

Jason picked up the hose and sprayed it into the air, releasing a steady shower of water on her and his car.

She screamed as the frigid water shocked her senses. The hose water was just as cold as the lake water. “Okay, okay, I’m sorry!” She laughed, stepping out from behind his car. “Please! I’m sorry! I’ll be good!”

Jason released the trigger and pointed it right at her. “Are you sure?”

“Yes, I’m sure! I promise!” She held her hands up in front of her, waiting for the water to strike again.

“Truce?”

“Truce!” she begged.

“I’m glad you’re feeling better today, Sami.” Jason winked and pointed the hose at his car to rinse it off.

She walked over to the porch steps and sat down to watch him. “Yeah, I do feel better today, Jason. My mom said that there hasn’t been any sign of the wolf or whatever it was for days now. They think it finally migrated somewhere else.”

“Really?” He turned off the water and sat next to her. “That’s good. Now maybe we can go swimming at the lake again. It’s supposed to reach the nineties later this week.”

“That sounds like fun. But this time I think I’ll just sit on the bank and watch. That water is way too cold for me.”

“Mike used to take me and Billy camping up there when we were younger. Maybe we can arrange something like that again this summer?”

“Yeah, that’d be cool. I’ve never been camping before.”

Jason furrowed his brow. “What? You’ve never been camping?”

“Nope—not once.”

“Wow, we’re definitely gonna have to take you camping.” He stood and reached his hand out to help her up. “Come on, I’ll get you a towel and a dry shirt.”

Sami followed him inside. She hadn’t noticed before, but his home was quite formal. She wandered down the short hall to the right of the foyer which opened up to a large living area on her left. It was nicely furnished with a black leather couch and loveseat, and solid mahogany trimmed the doorways and made up the bottom half of the walls. The top half of the walls were painted deep beige and hung with oil paintings of various landscapes—the forest, the grassy meadow sprinkled with wildflowers, and even a large painting of Wolf Lake.

A large picture window and French doors made up the opposite wall of the living room, with an amazing view of the forest and a humongous grassy hill dotted with a few trees in the distance. To the right of the hallway sat a rectangular dining table surrounded by eight black padded chairs. Straight ahead, past the hallway, was a large kitchen island with a black granite countertop lined with four black padded barstools. Beyond the island, along the back wall, was the rest of the kitchen, matching the mahogany and black granite theme with stainless steel appliances.

Sami liked how open the space was. And the recessed lighting, along with the sun shining through the large living room window, brightened and warmed the dark colors. “Nice house.”

“You’ve been here before,” he said as he led the way back down the hall, past the front door, to a stairway along the far wall.

“Yeah, but the first time I was being chased by a wolf. I didn’t notice anything except for the near heart attack that I was having,” she reminded as she followed him upstairs, admiring the same decorative theme along the way.

“Oh, that’s right,” he said glumly. “Good thing that’s over now.” Once upstairs, he grabbed a towel out of the hall closet and handed it to her.

Sami took the towel and followed him down the hallway to his bedroom. A queen-sized bed draped in black and gray bedding lay under the oversized window. She turned around, surprised to see the biggest flat-screen TV she’d ever seen mounted to the wall.

“Are you sure you can see the screen all the way from your bed?” she teased.

He grinned. “The bigger the better. As soon as they come out with a bigger screen this one’s coming down.”

She laughed under her breath and shook her head. Over his desk hung another painting of Wolf Lake. She pointed to the painting. “That looks just like the one downstairs.”

“Yeah, my mom likes to paint.” Jason went to the closet door next to his desk. “Here, I think this’ll work.” He held up a gray T-shirt, waiting for her approval.

“I really don’t need it,” Sami said hesitantly. “I’m sure I’ll dry soon.”

“Trust me, Sami, you need it.” He grinned and handed her the shirt. “I’ll be downstairs.” He left and shut the door behind him.

Sami didn’t understand what he had meant. She walked over to his dresser and looked at herself in the mirror. Her lavender shirt was completely see-through now, as if it weren’t even there. All that could be seen was the paleness of her skin, her belly button, and every detail of her lacy lavender bra.

She felt the heat rise in her cheeks as her face turned beet red, wondering how she was going to be able to go back downstairs and face him again. She remembered that he had already seen her in her bikini. Maybe this wasn’t as bad as it seemed. Either way, there wasn’t anything she could do about it now—except to simply change her shirt and hold her head high.

She peeled off her wet blouse, changed into the T-shirt, and went back downstairs.

“I’ll put it in the dryer for you.” Jason took her wet shirt from her and disappeared through a frosted glass door along the back kitchen wall.

He returned with a smug smile. “Feel better?” he asked as they sat on his couch in the middle of the room.

“Um no!” she replied in a snarky tone. “A little humiliated is more like it,” she added with a smile.

Jason laughed. “I’ve already seen your beautiful half-naked body before. And you had less clothes on at the time. It’s no big deal.”

“Right,” she replied warily, not quite sure if that were any better.

“You wanna play some video games?” He went to the corner of the room next to the window where there was a flat-screen TV almost the same size as the one in his bedroom. He turned it on, along with the gaming system, and grabbed two controllers off of the entertainment center.

“Sure, sounds like fun. But I have to warn you—”

“Let me guess . . . you’ve never played video games before?” he teased.

“No, dummy. I was just wanna let you know that I’m gonna kick your ass in racing and you’ll be begging for me to let you win.” She smiled with assurance.

“Oh yeah?” He raised his eyebrows, looking pleasantly surprised. He sat back down and handed her a controller. “We’ll see about that!”

They sat and played video games for a couple of hours. Afterwards they made turkey sandwiches and ate lunch together. Though Sami was having a great time with Jason, she couldn’t wait to see Billy again.

“Well, I should get going, Jason. Thank you for lunch and all.” She gave him a hug.

“It was my pleasure. Hey, maybe I’ll come over later and talk to Mike and Billy about camping . . . or at least swimming.” He walked her out to her car and shut her door for her once she was safely inside.

Sami rolled down her window.

Jason leaned in. “See you later, Sami. Roll your window back up and lock your door.”

She smiled and shook her head at his protectiveness. “Bye, Jason. Thanks for letting me kick your ass in racing.” Before he could reply she rolled up the window and drove away.

* * *

Billy opened the front door, grinning from ear to ear, glad to finally see the one person he’d been thinking about all night and morning. He wrapped his arms around Sami and lifted her off the ground.

Beaming, Sami welcomed his big bear hug with a tight squeeze around his neck. “How long have you been home?”

“We just got back half an hour ago. You gave me just enough time to shower and shave.” Billy couldn’t wait any longer. He set her back on her feet and kissed her.

“Well, are you gonna just stand there and suck her face off all day, or are you gonna invite her in?” Mike said.

“Dude, shut up!” Billy turned around and backhanded his brother in the gut.

Mike grunted. “I’ll let that one slide since your girlfriend’s here.”

Sami grinned. “I wish I had a brother or sister to bicker with.”

“No, you don’t!” they warned in unison.

“But you guys are so cute together,” she teased.

“Whatever!” Billy poked at her sides in an attempt to tickle her.

“Okay okay!” She laughed, trying to dodge each poke. “I take it back! You guys are not cute together.”

Billy grabbed her hand and led her to the couch.

“How’s your mom doing?” Mike dropped into the recliner.

“She’s still sad, but seemed to be in good spirits this morning. She’s looking forward to things getting back to normal around here.”

“She’ll feel better with time,” he replied. “What about you?”

She shrugged her shoulders and sighed heavily. Tears glistened in her eyes.

Billy put his arm around her and gave her a gentle reassuring squeeze. “Us too,” he said softly. “It’ll get a little easier each day.”

She nodded, her face showing her effort not to cry.

Billy knew that she was trying to be strong. He and Mike handled loss in a similar manner—they kept their minds focused on something else to dull the pain, rather than taking the time to dwell and suffer further. He looked at Mike meaningfully, silently warning him to stop with the personal questions.

Mike cleared his throat. “We were thinking about barbecuing tonight. Are you up for it?”

Sami smiled. “Sure, that sounds really good. I am sooo tired of casseroles and lasagnas.”

“Yeah, me too,” Billy agreed.

Mike got up and grabbed his wallet from the coffee table. “I guess I’ll go into town and pick up some steaks. Keys, little bro.” He held out his hand.

Billy reluctantly handed his brother the keys, remembering the way Mike ripped out of the driveway and squealed down the road the last time he took his car. “Be easy on her,” he warned.

Mike winked and grinned devilishly. “Any other requests?” he asked Sami in particular.

“No, anything’s fine,” she said politely.

“See you in a bit.” He headed out the front door.

Billy turned his attention back to Sami, wondering if Carol dealt with loss the same way that they all did. “Do you think maybe your mom would like to come over?”

“I’m pretty sure she won’t. She likes to be alone when she’s sad. But I’ll ask her. I need to go home and change my shirt anyway.” She scrunched her face, as if silently kicking herself in the ass for saying the wrong thing.

Billy looked down and noticed that her shirt was three sizes too big for her. He gave her a puzzled look.

“Um, I went to Jason’s today and he was washing his car. Then I sort of got wet. So he lent me a dry shirt.”

Though he and Jason were friends again, he still didn’t like the idea of Sami being alone with him, and he didn’t like that she was wearing his shirt. Flashes of Jason trying to kiss her at the lake filled his thoughts. He forced a half-smile and nodded calmly. “Oh? So what’d you two do?”

“We just hung out and played some video games, ate lunch.” She shrugged. “But I couldn’t stop thinking about you so I came home to see if you were back yet.”

Billy felt like a jackass for being jealous. He trusted Sami. And though it seemed weird to admit it, he trusted Jason. “I missed you,” he said huskily.

The corners of her mouth curled into a subtle smile. “You did?” she whispered.

“Very much,” he whispered back. He leaned over and kissed her tenderly. Her soft lips under his sent a buzzing through chest and straight to his groin.

Sami wrapped her arms around his neck, welcoming his kiss.

“You missed me too, didn’t you?” he asked, his lips hovering above hers.

“Very much,” she whispered through a heavy breath.

Pleased with the effect he had on her, Billy crushed his lips to hers, deepening their kiss. She kissed him back eagerly and pressed her body closer to his. The softness of her body against his instantly aroused him. He gently laid her back on the couch, his lips never leaving hers. Then he wrapped his arm around her, encircling her waist, covering her body with his.

He pulled away briefly, their heavy breaths mingling into one, before he molded his lips to hers again, kissing her passionately. He left the sweetness of her mouth to taste more of her, letting his lips trail down the front of her neck. Then he slowly kissed his way back to her lips, sliding his tongue into her mouth to find hers. She gave him what he was seeking, reaching her sweet tongue out to play with his.

Slowly, he slid his hand from her waist down to her plush buttocks to softly caress them, while he left a trail of wet hot kisses down the side of her neck, to her nape. There, he gently caressed the sensitive area with his tongue, leaving her writhing and moaning with pleasure.

Sami reached up under his shirt and caressed his back with her fingertips, sending goose bumps down his limbs. He shuddered and slid his hand back to her waist, and his lips found their way back to hers. They kissed each other hungrily, until slowly, he pulled away to gaze into her passion-filled eyes.

“Sami . . .” he whispered raggedly, his voice husky. He was erect with desire and ready to fill her body with pleasure, but he knew now wasn’t the right time. And because of that, it was dangerous to keep going. He wanted their first time together to not only mean more, but to be more private and not rushed. More importantly, he wanted to wait for the perfect moment to tell her that he was falling in love with her. Reluctantly, he sat up and pulled her with him.

Sami sighed heavily and bit her lower lip. The disappointment in her eyes was evident.

Without another thought, he leaned down and kissed her again in an attempt to make her feel better. He meant to kiss her softly, a kiss they could both pull away from before it got out of hand again, but the desire to feel her silky tongue on his was too intense, dissolving all of his sense. Together, they traveled back down the same road of passion that he had just tried to rescue them from. Kissing . . . caressing . . . knowing that they were dangerously close to finally giving in to their escalating desires, and that neither of them had the will to stop it this time . . .

A loud knock on the door immediately halted their passion.

They both froze, afraid to move. As reality sank back in, they quickly pulled away from one another, taking in deep breaths to slow their breathing and to dilute their euphoria.

Sami sat up and straightened her shirt and ran her fingers through her hair. Then she placed a shaky hand over her heart to slow it.

“You okay?” Billy smiled a half-smile, still seeing the look of passion in her eyes.

She exhaled deeply and nodded.

There was another knock, this time louder.

“I’m coming! I’m coming!” Billy managed to say rather clearly. He went to the door and opened it.

Jason grinned, holding up Sami’s shirt. “Thought I’d come over and see what’s up.” He walked past Billy into the house. “You forgot this.” He handed Sami the shirt over the back of the couch. He made his way around the couch and plopped himself next to her. “So, what’s going on?” He looked back at Billy, then to Sami.

Sami’s cheeks flushed pink. She bit her lower lip. “I think I’ll go put this back on now.” She got up and hurried to the bathroom, keeping her eyes glued to the floor.

“Not much.” Billy sat on the recliner, trying to get his emotions in check.

Jason suddenly looked at him with a disgusted look on his face. “Dude! Did I interrupt something?” He jumped up off of the couch, looking back at it as if it had just bitten him.

Billy laughed under his breath. “No, no. You didn’t interrupt anything. We’re actually having a barbecue tonight—you in?”

“Cool, I’m in,” Jason replied as he eyed the couch again, before cautiously sitting back down.

* * *

Sami shut the door and quickly changed her shirt. Staring into the mirror, she traced her finger over her lips, still swollen and red from Billy’s love. A tingling sensation awakened deep within and an ache filled her heart. Not a bad ache, a good one, which could only mean one thing . . . she was falling in love. Giddiness replaced the ache and she couldn’t help but grin, ear to ear. “Get a hold of yourself, Sami,” she whispered, and bit her lip to contain her excitement.

She folded Jason’s shirt, then replaced her smile with as casual and normal a look she could muster, and went back into the living room. She handed Jason his shirt as she passed by him to sit on the couch. “Thanks for lending it to me.”

“No problem.” He draped the shirt over the arm of the couch.

Billy warily eyed the thin fabric of her lavender blouse. “That’s the shirt you were wearing when you got all wet?”

She smiled sheepishly and bit her lower lip. “Yeah.”

“Yeah, I like that shirt!” Jason grinned, taunting Billy. “I think it’s my favorite now!”

“Dude, I am so gonna kick your ass!” Billy threw a couch pillow at Jason.

“Anyway—” Sami tried desperately to change the subject.

“Yeah, anyway.” Jason grinned knowingly. “Where’s Mike?”

“He went to the store to get food for the barbecue,” Billy replied. “We’re all tired of casserole.”

“You’ve got that right,” Jason agreed. “So, Sami and I were talking today and I found out that she’s never been camping before.” He looked at Billy with a slightly disgusted expression. “Have you ever heard of such a thing?”

Playing along, Billy crinkled his brow. “What? Never been camping? You’ve gotta be kidding me?”

“All right, all right,” she pleaded through her smile. “Enough already! I’m sure there are lots of people who’ve never been camping before.”

Jason raised his eyebrows. “If you can find one person in this town that’s never been camping, I’ll wash that dust-bucket that you call a car every day for two weeks.”

“You’re on.” She flashed a mischievous grin.

“And if you lose,” Jason added, “you have to wash my car every day for two weeks wearing that shirt!”

“No way! I’m not wearing this shirt!” Embarrassed, she crossed her arms over her breasts in an attempt to cover herself from Jason’s thoughts.

“Dude, knock it off.” Billy threw another couch pillow at Jason, aiming for his head.

Jason smirked and caught the pillow.

They continued with their banter for a while longer, until the front door opened. Mike walked in with his hands full. Jason and Billy jumped up to help. “There’s a case of beer and soda in the car,” Mike said over his shoulder as he entered the kitchen.

Sami followed them outside. “I’m gonna go home and ask my mom if she wants to join us. I’ll be back in a minute.”

“Okay,” Billy replied.

Traipsing across the front yards, a smile crossed Sami’s face as thoughts of the day’s events flashed through her mind—of her bonding with Jason, and her intimacy with Billy. Aside from missing her grandpa dearly, life in Wolf Hill finally seemed to be getting better. She ran up the porch steps and opened the front door.

“Hi, sweetheart,” Mom said almost lifelessly. She was lying on the couch watching TV. On the coffee table an empty bottle of merlot stood next to her full wine glass.

Sami’s heart broke for her. “Hey Mom.” She tried to sound lighthearted. “Billy and Mike are having a barbecue. They were wondering if you wanted come over.”

“Oh? Thanks, but no. I’m not feeling up to it.” She forced a slight smile.

“Are you sure? It’ll be fun. Or I could stay with you.” She couldn’t bear to see her mom so sad.

“I’ll be fine here. You go and have fun. There have been so many people over this week that I haven’t had time to myself. I need time to myself.”

“Okay.” Sami gave her a hug. “I love you, Mom.”

Mom gave her a big squeeze. “I love you too, Sam.” She pulled away and smiled. “Now go have some fun.”

“Okay.” Sami headed toward the door. Standing in the doorway, she paused. “Mom?”

“Hmm?”

“Have you ever been camping before?”

“No. You know I’m not the outdoorsy type. Why do you ask?”

Sami shrugged her shoulders. “Just wondering. I’ll see you later.”

“Bye, sweetheart.”

Sami shut the door and hurried back to Billy’s. When she arrived Billy, Jason, and Mike were in the backyard, just outside the kitchen door, lighting the mound of briquettes stacked in the middle of the barbecue grill. They all took a step back as the flames whooshed high into the air. They seemed to delight in the glory of it, similar to the way cavemen would’ve reacted, she was sure.

She shook her head and smiled. “Can I do anything to help?”

All three of them turned and looked at her, grinning from ear to ear.

“No, just enjoy yourself,” Mike said. “Is Carol coming?”

“No, she’s not feeling up to it. She just wants to be by herself for a while.”

“Maybe next time.” He went back into the house to grab the steaks.

Sami sat down at the picnic bench in the middle of the yard and looked around. There were no trees in their backyard, just grass leading right up to the tree line. It was bright and open. Across the way she had a clear view of her backyard and the back of her house—her bedroom window, the sliding door to her mom’s bedroom, and the walkway leading down to the basement.

Billy and Jason left the grill to keep her company—Billy sat next to her, and Jason sat across from them.

Sami looked at Jason smugly. “Guess what?”

He smiled warmly. “What?”

“My mom . . . has never been camping before!” she taunted with satisfaction.

Jason’s grin faded. “What? What is it with you people? Never skipped rocks before, never been hiking before, never been camping before,” he said in a childish voice.“Is that some California thing or something? Hell, I’m surprised you even know how to play video games.” He shook his head.

Billy laughed. “Dude, quit your bitching and grab your bucket and sponge!”

Mike came out with a plate of raw steaks in one hand and a plate of aluminum foil-wrapped potatoes and corn on the cob in the other. “What’s so funny?”

Billy smirked. “They made a bet about whether Sami was the only person in town who’d never been camping. Jason’s already lost. Carol’s never been camping. Now Jason’s crying like a baby.”

“You should’ve known, Jason,” Mike teased. “Like mother like daughter.”

“Yeah yeah, whatever. It’s a good thing I like washing cars,” he defended himself.

Billy raised his eyebrows. “Good. You can wash mine while you’re at it.”

Jason grinned and looked at Sami. “Only if she helps. But you have to wear that shirt.”

Billy reached over and punched him in the arm.

Jason winced, holding his shoulder. “All right, man, all right. Geesh!”

“Are you sure you don’t need help, Mike?” Sami asked, feeling inadequate that Mike had done all of the shopping and now all of the cooking by himself.

“Nope, I got it.” Mike slapped the steaks on the grill.

“Careful, Sami,” Billy said. “Mike is very possessive over his grill. He might bite you.”

“Kind of the way you are over your girl?” Jason said.

“Kind of the way you are over your car?” Billy retorted.

They all laughed.

“Hey, so is everyone up for a camping trip?” Jason asked.

“I’m in,” Mike said as he situated the potatoes and corn on the grill. He joined them at the picnic table, sitting next to Jason.

“Me too,” Sami said. “But only if Billy goes.”

Billy wrapped an arm around her. “I can’t very well disappoint you now, can I?”

Jason slammed his hands down on the table. “Good, then it’s settled. Let’s say, what—this weekend?”

“That’s not good for us,” Mike said. “We have some work over the next couple of weeks. But we’re free after that.”

Billy’s eyes lit up. “Yeah, that’ll be cool! There’s a full moon then.”

“Good,” Sami replied. “There was no moon last night and I couldn’t see a thing outside when—” She stopped, realizing her mistake.

The excitement of the moment dissipated.

Jason furrowed his brow. “What do you mean? Were you outside last night? Alone?”

“Uhhhh.” Sami bit her lip. “Only for a minute.”

“Why?” Mike asked.

Billy spoke before she could answer. “I thought you weren’t going outside by yourself at night anymore?”

“Well,” she added quickly before another word was said, “my mom said that they called off the search because whatever or whoever I saw hasn’t been seen. There are no traces of him . . . or it. They think it migrated somewhere else.”

“You still need to be careful,” Mike said.

“Yeah, you can’t be out at night by yourself,” Jason scolded.

Sami grew irritated. “Guys, stop. I can’t be accompanied everywhere I go like a child. I just stepped out on the porch to see if Billy was still up—” She looked at him. “—and you weren’t, so I went back inside.”

She decided not to divulge the other details. Particularly hearing something roaming in the forest. Besides, whatever had been out there was a smaller animal, she was sure of it.

Billy rubbed her back soothingly. “I know you can’t have someone with you every second. I’m sorry. But please don’t go outside by yourself at night around here. And call me if you need anything. I’ll come right over.”

“All of what he said.” Mike nodded toward Billy.

Billy glared at him. “You mean that you’re sorry and that she can call you if I’m not around?”

Mike grinned and winked at Sami.

“Ditto from me on all of what he said.” Jason motioned toward Mike and flashed a charming smile. His smile faded. “Now—back to our camping trip.”

Satisfied, Sami smiled. “Thank you, guys. And . . . I’m so excited to go camping!” She beamed merrily as eagerness consumed her. She had been waiting for this moment—for all of them to hang out together as friends, and to not feel caught between a burning hatred that should never have ignited in the first place.

Billy reached under the table to hold her hand.

“Oh, wait a minute.” She remembered that she didn’t know the first thing about camping. “What do I need to bring?”

“Don’t worry about it, Sami. We’ve got it covered,” Mike said, getting up to tend to the grill.

“I have an extra sleeping bag you can borrow. Or you can share mine with me.” Jason smirked as he eyed Billy, waiting for his reaction.

Billy simply grinned.

Jason suddenly tensed and reached under the table to rub his shin. “Ow!” He let out a painful laugh through closed lips. “A little possessive, are we?”

Billy squeezed Sami’s hand gently. “Just bring yourself and some extra clothes.”

They continued to talk about the camping trip, and the three men reminisced about camping at the lake when they were kids. It wasn’t long before the hearty aroma of seasoned steaks filled the air.

Sami inhaled deeply. “Mmm—those smell delicious, Mike!”

“Yes, they do!” Mike agreed. He jumped up to check on them. “And they’ll taste even better! Let’s eat!”

“Wow, potatoes are done already?” Billy asked.

“Microwaved ’em beforehand,” Mike replied.

“Cool. I’ll go get some plates and toppings for the potatoes.” Billy got up and headed to the back door.

Sami followed him to help, and they brought drinks out for everyone. She and Billy had decided to stick with colas, while Mike and Jason enjoyed their beers. They all loaded their plates with the hearty food, and savored every morsel as they continued to talk, laugh, and tease each other throughout the night . . . And for the first time in over two years for Sami, and thirteen years for Billy, Mike, and Jason, life seemed full of purpose and hope again.

. . . Things are starting to get steamy in Wolf Hill! This is my favorite part of the book, and it only gets better! Prepare yourself for some excitement too--A LOT OF IT! See you next week!