Wickford High 2 - Furiously Tempted by Karen Fuller Read Free Book Online

Sara.” Rachael’s head snapped up, her expression horrified.
    Vicky shook her head. “He needs to know,” she remarked softly. “Believe me; I don’t think he’ll care.”
    “What did Sara do to make Rachael run from everyone?” Chuck asked impatiently.
    “Sara was jealous of Rachael, so she cursed her,” Vicky remarked bluntly.
    The muscle in Chuck’s jaw twitched. “What kind of curse?”
    Rachael’s eyes reverted to the table again; she winced shying away at his tone.
    Vicky explained, “Well, from what Rachael’s told me, she lost most of her hair, and it took a really long time for it to grow back. I understand everyone avoided her after that.
    I guess they might have been afraid Sara would curse them too.”
    “You’re wrong, Vicky,” Chuck challenged. “I do care.” Rachael closed her eyes, the color draining from her face. “I’m going to make sure that Sara pays for her witchery,” Chuck said. “She has been terrorizing this school with her black magic for far too long.”
    Rachael’s head snapped up, her mouth dropping open in surprise. “You’re not afraid of Sara?” Relief rang clear in her voice.
    “I’m not afraid of a witch,” he replied in a deep tone, looking pointedly at Vicky.
    Luke locked eyes with him, pulling Vicky’s chair protectively closer to him.
    “Chuck, don’t.”
    Rachael shook her head frantically. “Vicky’s not like Sara.”
    “She’s a witch!”
    Rachael looked back and forth between Vicky and Chuck. “Yes, but . . . you can’t.” She shook her head, gathering her courage. “You can’t, Chuck! She’s my friend.”
    She stood at the table, placing herself between Vicky and Chuck and raised her chin defiantly, her eyes dilating, the outer edges tinged in gold. “I won’t allow you to hurt her!”
    Chuck sat back in his chair, chuckling softly. He pointed at Rachael as he spoke to Luke. “She’s a shifter.” He tilted his head, catching Rachael’s eyes. “You’re mighty protective of your friend.” He laughed harder. “I like that.” He leaned forward in his seat, glancing around Rachael to look at Vicky. “You’ve earned her loyalty. I guess you can’t be all bad . . .”
    Vicky felt Luke relax and then she relaxed too.
    “What’s your affinity, honey?” Chuck said to Rachael.
    She sat back down hard in the chair. “My what?”
    He raised an eyebrow. “I can tell that you’re a shifter by your eyes. What do you shift into?”
    “Oh!” She quickly looked away. “I’m not supposed to . . .”
    He laughed. “I’m a wolf,” he whispered to her.
    Her gaze scouted the room nervously, then locked with his. “Panther,” she whispered back.
    Vicky reached for her hamburger, taking a bite. I would have never matched those two together.
    Luke picked up his own hamburger. Me neither.

Chapter Ten
    Vicky gazed into the mirror, putting the finishing touches to her hair, when she heard a knock at the front door. She glanced at the clock. It was a few minutes before six.
    “I’ll get it, Pumpkin,” her father called .
    She left her room to stand at the top of the stairs. “Okay, Dad.”
    Mr. Phillips opened the door. “Phoebe,” he remarked, sounding somewhat shocked, “what are you doing here?”
    Vicky frowned, backing up against the wall out of sight. “Phoebe,” she repeated under her breath. “What’s she doing here?” Her eyes grew wide. “How does Dad know her?” She crouched down, spying between the spindles of the railing. She drew in a sharp breath as her mouth dropped open. “She’s in street clothes. Where’s her habit?”
    Phoebe smiled coyly from the open doorway. “Why, Ryan, aren’t you going to invite me in?”
    He looked over his shoulder but did not seem to see her hiding at the top of the stairs. He let out a slow, resigned breath. “Sure, why not.”
    I’ll tell you why not. Vicky clutched the railing, trying to keep her breaths slow and even—and quiet.
    “Come on back to my study, and