First Moon (The Ternion Order Book 1) Read online

  As frustrating as it was to have Sherry show up while he was dealing with so many other issues, it was nice to not be alone. He had talked himself into thinking that he was enjoying his bachelor lifestyle, but an empty house could be a lonely place. Maybe he could trade Sherry in for a dog.

  Chortling at his own joke, he decided he’d try to enjoy the evening. It had been a great day at work, and Sherry’s job would give her the money she needed to get back on her feet and out of his life for good. There was no point in worrying about things he couldn’t fix right now. Besides, maybe things were finally changing for the better.

  Chapter 9

  Ultimatum

  The phone rang at Kyle’s desk, interrupting his concentration. He growled as he reached for the handset, hating to lose his train of thought while he was in the middle of a detailed data analysis. After a bit more tweaking, the script he was working on would handle the few anomalies that had cropped up in testing.

  “Hello. This is Kyle.”

  “Hey Kyle, this is Bob Daily.”

  Kyle’s next-door neighbor and landlord had never called him at work before. The old guy and his wife kept to themselves, but he always smiled and waved when Kyle saw him puttering around in his front yard.

  “Hi, Bob. What can I do for you?”

  “I’m afraid I have bad news. I saw smoke coming out of your upstairs window a little bit ago and called the fire department. The firemen put it out, but the bathroom is in pretty bad shape. You should probably come home and have a look.”

  Kyle closed his eyes and put his forehead in his hand. Just what I need. “Okay, Bob. I’ll head over as soon as I can. Did they say what started it?”

  “Yep. It looks like an electrical fire. Some appliance was left on. The firemen think it was probably a curling iron.”

  Kyle flushed with embarrassment. “Oh my God, Bob. I’m so sorry. Sherry came back over the weekend and she started a job today. She must have been so excited that she forgot to turn it off.”

  “Don’t worry about it, Kyle. I’m just glad no one was hurt. I’m sure the insurance will pay for the repairs, but you’ll probably want to stay somewhere else during the remodeling.”

  Damn. Talk about bad timing.

  The small old house had only one bathroom, so if the damage was severe enough to make it unusable, he’d have no choice but to stay somewhere else. And for the short term, he had to deal with Sherry as well.

  Kyle ended the conversation with Bob and made a few notes so he’d remember what he was working on when he’d received the call. He told Vanya about the emergency, and since it was nearly three o’clock, explained that he’d probably be gone for the rest of the day.

  During the drive home, his anger at Sherry grew. How could she be so stupid? She wasn’t that excited about returning to her old job as a legal secretary. She’d gone back for the money and not much else.

  Pulling into his driveway, Kyle looked up at the front of the house and shook his head in disgust. The tiny bathroom window was broken out and soot stained the siding above it. He didn’t have much hope for what the inside would look like. Thank goodness Bob had seen the smoke, or the whole place might have gone up.

  Bob tottered around the hedge between their houses and stood next to Kyle, looking up at the bathroom window. “I talked with the insurance company. They should have someone out to take a look tomorrow. Even putting a rush on things, it could be a couple of weeks, maybe a month, before it’ll be fixed up again.”

  Kyle shook his head and sighed. “I don’t know what to say, Bob.”

  Bob patted him on the back. “You’ve been a good tenant, Kyle. Accidents happen. I’m happy that you and your girl are okay, and that I caught it before it went too far.”

  “Thanks, Bob. I appreciate your being so cool about this. If there’s anything I can do to help, please let me know.”

  Kyle went inside to assess the damage. It was pretty bad. Everything was coated with fire-extinguisher powder and the entire exterior wall was singed and peeling. The wooden sink base was charred and the rug that had been on the floor was a powdery mess. The shower curtain had melted onto the bathtub. Sitting on the counter was the culprit responsible for this disaster. The soot-covered metal parts of a curling iron were stuck to the countertop by a blob of plastic, which was all that remained of the handle. The blob had trapped a few crispy strands of fabric that came from the soggy, charred towel that was in the sink.

  The smell was the worst thing of all. The odor had spread throughout the house, but the bathroom and the hallway absolutely reeked of smoke and burned chemicals. The hallway ceiling showed smoke damage as well, but luckily it didn’t extend far enough to reach the bedroom. His clothes might still be salvageable.

  Kyle was still staring in dismay at the wreckage when he heard Sherry’s car pull into the driveway. A few seconds later, the door banged open and Sherry pounded up the steps.

  “Oh my God! What happened?”

  Kyle waved at the curling iron. “You happened. Apparently you left the curling iron on this morning, sitting on top of a towel, no less.”

  Sherry looked at the curling iron with confusion and shook her head. “No, I didn’t.”

  Kyle snorted. “Well, somebody did.”

  When she met Kyle’s eyes, her expression was confused, not guilty.

  “Kyle, I swear to you that I distinctly remember unplugging it before I left the bathroom. And I have never set a curling iron on a towel or anything else made of fabric. I’ve read too many horror stories about that sort of thing.”

  Sherry seemed sincere. Whatever faults she might have, being careless wasn’t normally one of them. But still ….

  “Okay, so how do you explain this?”

  She made a face of dismay and said, “I can’t. It’s like someone came in here after I left and used my curling iron. But who would do that?”

  No one. Unless it was someone trying to send a message.

  Kyle’s hands clenched into fists and his eyes grew wide. His breathing became rapid and shallow.

  Sherry misread his fright and stepped back with a wary expression. “I swear I didn’t do this, Kyle.”

  Kyle focused on her again and made his hands relax, realizing how threatening he must look. “Sorry. I believe you. This is just too much on top of everything else that’s going on.”

  Sherry stared at him for a minute. “What else? Did you hook up with someone while I was gone? Some girlfriend who’s jealous that I’m staying here? Tell me the truth, Kyle.”

  Kyle shook his head with a sardonic twist to his mouth. “I have no jealous girlfriends.” Yes, he had hooked up with someone while Sherry was gone, but Clarissa was dead. Sort of.

  For a moment, Kyle wondered if the demon inside him had made him do this without his conscious knowledge. But the timing didn’t work. He had showered first and left for work before Sherry brought her things up to the bathroom.

  The more he thought about it, the more solid his suspicions became. If Sherry hadn’t done it accidentally, someone else must have done it intentionally and with the goal of making it appear to be her fault. Because of the fire, he needed some other place to stay. Would the Pack actually burn his house down to force him to stay with them? The flesh of his neck tingled when the distinct impression of mocking smugness floated across his awareness, as if the demon were indirectly answering his question. Whoa. That was creepy.

  The house was no longer safe. He would be vulnerable if he stayed, and he was putting Sherry in danger as well.

  “Grab your stuff. We’re going to check into a hotel while they work on the house. We can’t stay here without a bathroom.”

  Sherry was initially surprised by his declaration, but nodded as she thought about it. “I guess we don’t have a choice. It might be a while before I can pay you back for my share though.”

  “Don’t worry about that now. Let’s get out of here. This place is giving me the creeps.”

  Kyle packed up a week’s w
orth of clothes and underwear, relieved that they smelled only faintly of smoke. He guessed that most of his toiletries had been destroyed by the fire, and he had no intention of digging through the wreckage for whatever might have survived.

  Sherry had been living out of her suitcase, so she was ready to go when he came downstairs. As he closed the door behind them and locked it, he wondered if he’d ever see the place again.

  A slow burn of anger began to grow in the pit of his stomach. He was tired of being manipulated. As soon as he found a room, he needed to let Amanda know how to get in touch with him and ask her what kind of progress she was making. His time was running out. Somehow, he had to get his life back under his own control.

  With the prospect of a long stay, Kyle chose the least-expensive hotel he could find that had a vacancy and wasn’t a dive. Sherry followed him around from place to place in her Subaru, letting him handle the negotiations. They also dropped by a grocery store so they could get replacement toiletries. By the time he opened the door to their hotel room, they were tired and ready to settle in.

  Kyle handed Sherry the second key and a twenty-dollar bill. “I need to call work and let my boss know what’s going on. Would you mind getting us some take-out for dinner?”

  Sherry took the key and the money, giving him a sidelong glance. “No problem.” She looked around the room and her eyes settled on a refrigerator in the corner. “We have a fridge, so I can get us some sodas or beer too, if you want.”

  “Sure. That sounds good. We’ll probably be here for a while. If I can stomach the idea tomorrow, I might swing by the house and grab a few more things from the kitchen.”

  Kyle went over to the bed and sat down next to the nightstand that held the phone. He looked up to see that Sherry was watching him with an unreadable expression. “Do you think you’ll need more money?” he asked pointedly.

  She picked up her purse and opened the door, seeming reluctant to leave. “No. This should be enough. I’ll be back in a few.”

  After the door had closed, Kyle pulled a slip of paper from his pocket and dialed the number he’d written down under Amanda’s name. He got voicemail.

  “Amanda, this is Kyle. I’m at the Ponderay Hotel, in room 236. There was a fire at my house and I don’t believe it was an accident. I think a mutual acquaintance was trying to send a message. Anyway, I haven’t heard from you, and I need to know how things are going. Please call me here or at work as soon as you can.”

  Kyle hung up and then called work so he could tell Sherry he had done so. It was almost six o’clock by then, but Vanya often worked late. Kyle filled her in on what happened and reassured her that he didn’t need more time off to deal with it.

  In truth, he did want to take the next week off and figure out some way to help Amanda. He couldn’t keep waiting and hoping someone else would save him. Somehow, he had to save himself, or it wouldn’t matter whether or not Vanya took away that great new project opportunity.

  Phone calls handled, Kyle started putting his clothes away. After he’d emptied his suitcase and tucked it into the closet, he lay back on the bed and waited for Sherry’s return.

  The bed was comfortable enough, but there was one big problem: there was only the one bed. Kyle had asked for a room with two, but none were available. He didn’t want to pay for two rooms, and he knew Sherry would object to the additional expense as well.

  When they’d first entered the room, Kyle had seen the brief smirk on Sherry’s face when she spotted the single queen-sized bed. Keeping his distance from her would be a challenge if they had to share it. Unfortunately, the room offered no decent alternatives. The two chairs weren’t big enough to fully relax in, and the floor had thin, industrial carpet.

  Kyle was sitting in one of the chairs reading a book when Sherry returned with the food and drinks. She had gotten take-out from a nearby Thai restaurant, and they shared it at the room’s tiny round table.

  Sherry was suspiciously quiet during the meal. Kyle appreciated her silence because he had a lot on his mind; however, he caught her watching him every time he glanced at her. Kyle had the uncomfortable suspicion that she was plotting something.

  After dinner, they watched television for a while, and then Kyle got ready for bed. He normally slept in the nude, but with Sherry there, he opted for boxers and a t-shirt. He brought his book to the bed and got under the covers while Sherry brushed her teeth.

  When she came out of the bathroom she was still wearing the clothes she’d changed into after work. Kyle had expected her to change into the long nightshirt she preferred to wear in summer. He was even more surprised when she started stripping off her clothes and laying them on one of the chairs. Down to nothing but a pair of panties and a bra, she turned and smiled at his open-mouthed stare. Without a word, she unclasped the bra and pulled it away from her breasts. She dropped the bra behind her on the chair and then slowly pulled her panties down, stepping out of them and adding them to the pile. Her eyes never left his face, and his eyes didn’t miss a second of her performance. He blinked away a distressing moment of déjà vu from Clarissa’s similar striptease.

  When she was finally standing there wearing nothing but a smile, she cocked her hips to the side and cupped her breasts in her hands. “Remember these?” she said in a teasing tone.

  He remembered, although the refresher was certainly appreciated. Back when they were together, he’d felt fortunate to be engaged to such an attractive woman and when she left him, he knew that their compatibility in bed would be hard to replace.

  Kyle put his book down and sat up as she moved toward the bed. Part of him wanted to resist her, but a different part of him was reacting right then. She stopped with her breasts within inches of his nose, her body heat calling out for his touch. He looked up at her, a deer in the headlights, so to speak. She looked down at him with a smug smile that said, Like shooting fish in a barrel.

  Kyle’s objections to rekindling a relationship with the woman who had left him evaporated the moment his hand made contact with her soft, warm skin. She wasn’t aggressive about her victory and didn’t push him, but she didn’t have to. He was a willing participant in all that transpired.

  Later that night, Sherry was snuggled up under his arm with her head on his chest and one leg over his. Her steady breathing and occasional muscle twitches told him she had fallen asleep. Under the sheet, his hand softly caressed her arm and the length of her side down to the swell of her hip. She felt so good.

  And he felt so guilty. He had no right to get Sherry mixed up in this mess he was in. Even if Amanda succeeded in curing him somehow—which was looking less likely with every passing day, could he trust Sherry not to break his heart again? Maybe all she wanted was a physical relationship this time. But one of them would eventually want more, possibly with someone else, and that would lead to more heartache down the road. Never mind what would happen if he turned into a demon-possessed werewolf.

  He had to talk to Amanda as soon as possible.

  Kyle caught himself whistling while he made coffee the next morning at the hotel-room sink. When he realized what he was doing, he stopped abruptly and glanced at Sherry in the reflection of the mirror. She was sitting up in bed watching his progress, with her arms wrapped around her legs and the covers discreetly pulled up around her chest. She burst into laughter at his embarrassment.

  “Someone feeling a little more relaxed and happy today?” she teased.

  Kyle punched the coffee maker’s “on” button and turned around.

  “There’s no denying it, you’re as sexy as ever,” he answered.

  She smiled at him and gave him an air kiss. “Thank you for not denying it. We might even have time for another relaxation exercise this morning before work.”

  “That sounds like fun, but I’ve already showered, and I need to get to work early today. My boss is giving me a new project, and I still have a couple of minor things to wrap up on the old one.”

  She pouted and wiggled s
o the covers fell away. “You weren’t so reluctant last night.”

  Kyle pointed toward her chest. “You cheated by doing that. I never stood a chance.”

  She shrugged and grinned wickedly. “That explains the first time, but the second time you were so energetic I thought we’d wake the neighbors.”

  Kyle’s breath caught. What second time? Tentatively, he said, “I hope you enjoyed yourself too.”

  Sherry sighed wistfully. “Oh, I did. I thought you were having a bad dream and was about to wake you, but I learned you weren’t asleep after all. Some parts of you were very awake,” she added with a giggle.

  Kyle remembered none of this. Was the demon becoming capable of taking over his mind? He would be in big trouble if it contacted the Pack and warned them of Amanda’s efforts to find a cure. What if it knew it was in danger and tried to move to a new body?

  Kyle couldn’t see any marks on Sherry, but he had to ask. “I didn’t … hurt you or anything, did I?”

  “No, it was fine, really. It’s okay to be a little rough once in a while.”

  That was confirmation enough. Kyle didn’t like mixing sex and violence in any way, so “rough” wasn’t in his comfort zone. He knew from personal experience that Clarissa’s demon was far less restrained.

  Sherry kicked the covers off and lay back on the bed. “Sure you aren’t up for another round? I’ll bet I can change your mind.”

  Kyle made a show of blocking his view of her, but then spread his fingers so he could see her through his hands. “I’m sure you could, but please don’t try. This new project could be a career-maker.” Or breaker.

  She slipped out of the bed and padded over to him, mincing in a way that made all the fun parts bounce and sway enticingly. She put her arms around him and gave him a peck on the lips. “Okay, I’ll be good.” She released him and bumped her hip against him. “But I could have been really good.”

  Kyle patted one bare butt cheek as she slipped into the bathroom and closed the door with a giggle.