Promised at the Moon Read Online Free Page B

half. It wasn’t enough time to keep her moving forward, so he drove down the coast and stopped at his favorite fish taco place. He ordered her food and then they sat at a corner booth. She stared out the window at the ocean. The swell of her collarbone peeked over the edge of her blouse and then dipped in sharply. He licked his lips at the thought of running his tongue over the beautiful U shape her collarbone made at the base of her throat.
    Her heavy blue gaze traveled back to him, and he cleared his throat.
    “So did you go to college after high school?” he asked.
    “I went for a year before…I had to come home.” She sipped her soda.
    She’d been shut down for too long. He remembered the loneliness that could settle in when you left your family and pack and moved to a new place, even if your dad was a bastard and your pack cowards. No matter what they were, family was family.
    “What did you study?” He picked a piece of cabbage off his taco and munched on it.
    For the first time her eyes lit up. “I wanted to be a nurse. I’d been accepted into the program early because my grades were good and I was one of the few freshmen who was more dedicated to my studies than making friends and partying.”
    He stared at her for a minute. A girl with her looks and obvious means, he’d expected her to be more of a sorority sister than a book nerd.
    “Impressive,” he finally said.
    She shrugged. “Not really. My parents—” she cleared her throat, “—raised me to value education and working hard to get what I want. What are you studying?”
    “This and that. I don’t really have a major this time. I’m just staying in school to watch over everyone. I have my own garage. I work on motorcycles, cars, whatever people need. I might be able to squeeze another year or so out of the school. I already have three associates degrees and at twenty-four I’m already looking too old for a two-year school.”
    “Three degrees? In what?”
    “One in graphic design, another in business and a third in automotive technology.”
    Her eyebrows drew together and a smirk slid past her lips.
    “What?”
    She shook her head. “You don’t look like the business type.”
    “What type do I look like, then?” He needed to keep her talking.
    “A musician, if I had to guess. A guitarist, or possibly a drummer. Drummers are always bad boys.”
    He laughed. “And you would know this how? Is that your type? You like the bad boys?”
    Her smile fell and she gazed out at the water. “What a beautiful view.”
    Her blonde hair was highlighted the way fake starlets in Hollywood envied but couldn’t manage to get their hairdressers to do right. It lay beautifully against her peachy tanned skin. He coughed and looked out over the water. “Yeah, it is.”
    “How long have you lived here?” she asked.
    Memories of the day he’d run from his father hit him. The brute chasing him into the yard spewing slurred curse words like venom.
    “I’ve been here about five years.”
    “Did you run too?”
    He pursed his lips and nodded. “A couple of shifters found me on the streets in Los Angeles, brought me here and set me up. They connected me with Tate and Donovan over at Night Shift, and I’ve been paying it forward ever since.” He spun his soda glass in a circle on the table. “So is there anything you didn’t pick up today that you need to?”
    She snorted and chuckled. “Probably not. I feel like I bought one of everything I saw. Which isn’t really like me. I’m not used to overspending.”
    Her small laugh warmed him and his wolf approved. Knock it off! “Well you sure didn’t need to spend all that money in the makeup store.”
    Her eyebrows knitted together. “What do you mean? You think I’m being unwise with my money?”
    “No. I just meant… You don’t need it, is all.”
    The peach of her cheeks deepened several shades and her gaze dropped to the table. “So that bike you were riding. Is it yours?”
    “Bought