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Lunch had been nice, even if she’d forced herself into Ash’s company. When he wasn’t being a standoffish prick, he actually had a sense of humor, and there was a hint of some personality too. But she’d heard the warnings from her family, and he’d echoed the same sentiment. Too bad the families had to be at war, pointless as she found it to be.
Giselle walked to her locker alone, thankful not to have her overbearing escort yapping in her ear. No doubt as soon as she found out Giselle had taken lunch with Asher, she’d get an earful and a reminder to stay away... as if she cared.
“You want me to pick you up, or are you riding with Taylor and Diana this weekend?” Damien surprised her, appearing almost out of thin air behind her. And that was saying something – with her wolfish hearing, usually nothing got past her.
Giselle took a second to calm herself and then shut her locker and turned to face him. They met almost nose to nose. Definitely not a tall boy, but the perfect height for kissing. She blushed and he smiled, as if in on her little secret thought. “I’ll ride with them and meet you at the lodge.”
For the briefest of moments his smile faltered. “You sure? We’d have plenty of time to talk on the drive.”
As much as she’d love to ride with Mr. Puppy-Dog Eyes, she felt it best to stick with the girls, at least until she got to know him a little better. But damn if she wasn’t tempted! Especially when he was standing there all cute and sweet, eyes begging her to say yes. She needed to change gears. “You act like you’re just itching to tell me something.”
He shrugged, a casual movement, but one that just added to his appeal. He had that perfect combination of sweet and confident down pat. “Just nice to find another kindred spirit. There are so few of us around here. And with you being new and all, we’d have more to learn about each other.”
“Seems quite the opposite to me. I’ve never met so many... special people in such close proximity before.”
“Your family and the Thrace family are special, that’s for sure. My people are not so rare, but there aren’t any others here at school. My coven draws from all across the valley. ”
A hundred questions popped up the minute he said ‘coven.’ She could quiz him for hours on what it was like to be a witch. Her only ideas about magical people came from fiction, and as she’d never seen him raise a wand, she was fairly certain her imagination was probably a bit far from the real thing.
“Well if it’s any consolation, Di gave you the thumbs up. So, you’re on the approved boy list.” It sounded so much better in her head, but when the words left her lips she found herself speaking like a schoolmarm rather than the interested flirt she wanted to be.
“Well, that was kind of her.” Damien looked confused for a moment, but that did not steal the smile from his gorgeous eyes.
Trying to recover from the awkwardness, she giggled and said, “She’s protective...”
“You mean she told you to stay away from Ash, and I’m a better choice by comparison.”
“Mind reader much?” The fact he knew that was off-putting, to say the least. She was really beginning to feel like a newb. All the supernaturals seemed to be in on all the secrets, and she was nowhere near up to speed.
“I’ve lived here a long time. I know the two packs aren’t friendly, and I saw you taking off at lunch with Ash. I know your sisters wouldn’t approve.”
“They’re not my sisters...”
“Yet.”
She thought to correct him, but decided to change the subject instead. “So you’re keeping tabs on me, then?”
“Whoa.” He held out his hands and backed away a step as if waiting for her to strike at him. “Don’t make me sound like a stalker. I was in the parking lot heading to lunch when I saw you hop into his car.”
A likely story, she though. Actually, she was still wondering if all the supernaturals were having secret meetings or at the very least texting one another without her. “And what do you think of him?”
Damien shrugged. “He’s a wolf. Not much else to say.”
“I’m a wolf.” Somehow that sounded more normal than anything else she’d said to him the entire conversation.
“Yes, but you’re a pretty wolf.” Those sweet eyes locked on to her and he winked. “And Ash is not really my type.”
Giselle couldn’t hide the blush rising to her cheeks. She could easily fall for a guy like him. He certainly said all the right things, and with those eyes... well, witch or not, he had her under a spell. So much so that she was tripping over her own tongue trying to find ways to continue the conversation. “I...So...Where did you go for lunch?”
“Home. I live around the corner. Maybe I’ll show you sometime.”
“I wonder how many girls you’ve made that offer to.” She wasn’t sure where she was going with the conversation, but she liked talking to him. He felt easy, like an open book. The complete opposite of everyone else she’d run into. Ash, Taylor, and Di all seemed to have pack-related agendas, but Damien was free of that. And maybe because he was interested in her, he was more willing to chat. Or maybe he was just that kind of guy. Either way, even though she had nothing else to say, she scrambled for something, anything, to keep the conversation going. “Or am I special...because of the full moon?” That totally didn’t come out the way she’d planned. Could she sound like any more of an idiot?
“Yeah.” He laughed. “You’re special. But not like the others.”
The hint of uncertainty in his words made her question his true meaning, and she looked at him quizzically.
“That’s a good thing, Giselle. I like you. Tay and Di are pack animals. I sense something different from you, and I’d like to get to know you better.”
“Not much to know, but you’re welcome to try.”
“I like a challenge.” Those puppy-dog eyes melted through her defenses. God, she could stare at them for hours. She wondered if that was a witchy thing. Asher had animal magnetism, that was for sure; maybe Damien had the same, but a witch version? Damn. Why did Ash have to invade her thoughts when she was standing here with Damien? She gave herself a mental slap and fell back under the spell of Damien’s eyes.
“You’re smooth. I’ll give you that.”
He gave her a lopsided grin, and held out a hand to help her with her bag. “You want smooth? You ain’t seen nothing yet.”
Giselle giggled as Damien grabbed her bag and books and hooked an arm around her to escort her to class.