Magic of the Moonlight: A Full Moon Novel by Ellen Schreiber Read Free Book Online

one.”
    “No—it’s cute.”
    “It’s so dumb. I barely had any hair.”
    “Well, you could be like me—and a few nights a month have too much.”
    We both laughed.
    It was weird. I felt so buzzed having Brandon in my house alone with me. And to think that he was also a werewolf—an attractive one—made me feel even more freaked out.
    “Wow—” he said. “This is cool.”
    My room was painted light blue with dark blue curtains. We hadn’t redone my room in years, and now I wasn’t sure if I wished I had. I had a dusty porcelain horse collection, stacks of worn books on shelves, and my laptop computer on my hand-me-down desk.
    I noticed a pink bra resting on my hamper. I raced over to it, hoping he wouldn’t notice it before I retrieved it. I felt embarrassed as I lifted the lid and quickly threw it inside.
    “So, do you want to go back downstairs now?” I asked.
    “No, this is awesome.” He wandered around my room, examining my pictures and figurines.
    His jersey was still on my nightstand. I had shown it to him to prove he had taken it off the first time he’d turned but hadn’t given it back. Since he hadn’t asked for it to be returned, I kept it on my nightstand. I’d never admit it to him, but sometimes I even held it when I slept.
    “You still have my shirt,” he said.
    “I was hoping you wouldn’t see that.”
    He reached out to me and took my hands, then pulled me into him. I felt like he was going to kiss me—right here in my room. Here, where I’d dreamed about him so many nights and written his name a dozen times in every one of my notebooks.
    Brandon wasn’t a star running back, but he might as well have been. He was all muscle; I felt small and dainty in his presence.
    He cupped my face in his warm hands and drew me in and kissed me.
    “Now are you ready to go downstairs?” he asked.
    “Uh . . . not yet.” I leaned in for another kiss when I heard the sound of the garage door opening.
    “My parents are here!” I said. “They weren’t supposed to be back this soon!”
    He laughed at how flustered I’d become. “I guess your dad might get upset if he came home and found me in your bedroom.”
    “Good thing it’s not a full moon—or we’d really be in trouble,” I said.
    My older sister, Juliette, had guys in her room all the time when she lived at home. But I didn’t have the reputation my sister had and was hoping to avoid one.
    Brandon and I raced downstairs. The TV was switched on to QVC—not the sort of show two seventeen-year-olds were usually engrossed in on a Friday night. It screamed, We were making out!
    I quickly turned it to a movie channel when the mudroom door opened.
    “What are you doing home?” my mom asked when she entered the family room. Then she noticed Brandon sitting next to me. “Oh, hi,” she said. “I didn’t know you had company.”
    Brandon rose and extended his hand to my parents.
    “This is Brandon,” I said. “Brandon, these are my parents.”
    My dad gave Brandon a firm handshake. He seemed surprised to see a boy in our house.
    “I thought you were at Abby’s party,” my mom said.
    “We were, but Brandon needed a ride home so we stopped off here to get my car. And we decided to watch TV for a little bit.”
    “The movie we wanted to see was sold out,” my dad said, “so we’re going to have to wait to see it tomorrow.”
    “That’s nice,” I said, not knowing what to say.
    “Well, don’t let us keep you,” my mom said.
    My dad continued to hover.
    “Uh . . . that’s okay. I was just about to take Brandon home,” I said.
    “No—you two can watch TV,” my mom offered.
    “It’s getting late,” I said as we headed for our coats.
    I didn’t feel like letting my parents embarrass me with their get-to-know-you banter, so I whisked Brandon out the front door.
    When we got into the car, I switched on the radio. As I was flipping stations, “Fly Me to the Moon” was playing on an oldies hits