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the fact hed been so cold to my emotions when id been upset boggled my mind .
why push me to go out after wed been mugged , as ethan had put it ?
that really didnt sit well with me .
peeking through the blinds , i saw ethan walk by gregs car .
he leaned down , saying something with his face screwed up with anger , then he jabbed a finger toward my house .
i shrunk back , trying not to get spotted , but neither man even looked in my direction .
gregs features were tight and his eyes were narrowed at ethan .
he said a few things , and ethan shot back at a volume i could almost hear , but not quite .
damn it , ethan .
dont start a fight .
instead of that , greg pulled out of the driveway and put the pedal to the metal , absurdly revving his engine .
ethan glanced back at the house and waved , then he walked off toward the direction of his home .
i wiped my hands over my face , feeling the pull of the love potion .
the desire to go to him , tell him how i felt , and ask him to not leave , was almost too much .
however , the potion wasnt strong enough for me to take those actions .
i didnt have to obey it because i was more in control than my feelings at the moment , even if those feelings were pretty darn convincing .
what was i going to do ?
it was one thing for us having this situation in private .
it would be another entirely for me to have to sit through a family dinner while he was there .
i knew id have to face christmas eve dinner with both greg and ethan .
unless ethan learned about gregs presence and decided to skip it .
after the way my parents had treated ethan as one of their own since his own folks had died , i couldnt imagine ethan skipping christmas eve dinner with people he considered as much his family as i did , if not more so .
i slumped on the couch then ran my hands through my hair , brushing the red strands from my face .
none of this even took into account the werewolves , who obviously wanted me dead .
if i didnt boost my magic , and soon , then i might as well plan my funeral , rather than what to wear for christmas eve dinner .
the small christmas tree sitting on the coffee table didnt do much to revitalize my festive spirit .
in fact , it made things worse , because now was the time of year when i felt the most alone .
when id hooked up together with greg , i thought hed make things better , but actually hed only made them worse .
whether on a date or spending time at his house , i felt lonelier with him .
shaking my head , i pulled the blanket down from the back of the couch , wrapping it around myself .
the home phone rang , and i jumped , nearly bouncing off the sofa .
hello ?
mia , why havent you been answering your cell phone ?
whats up with ethan ?
did he arrive on time ?
nolans usually happy-go-lucky voice sounded worried .
damn , i hadnt heard my phone .
maybe i didnt take it off vibrate .
he arrived on time and should be home soon .
why ?
your phone went straight to voice mail .
mom and dad are worried .
why didnt you answer ?
he refused to let up .
another pushy guy was the last thing i needed right now .
i sighed .
my phone mustve run out of juice .
ive had a long day .
call ethan .
im sure he wants to talk to you , especially after what you did .
from what id heard at the airport , i was sure there would be a long discussion between the two .
what ?
im innocent , i swear .
nolan sounded mischievous , not innocent .
bastard !
but i did love my brother .
right , right .
well , we both know thats not true .
why didnt you take time off to pick up ethan ?
i dont get it .
i wanted an answer .
his boss not letting him off work was a lame excusesince his boss had let him off for less .
it just seemed sneaky , as if he was hiding something , and when nolan was like this , it meant trouble .
what can i say ?
anger at his vague response shoved me over the edge .
stop with the bullshit , nolan .
i want to know why .
what came up that you sorry , sis .
im getting a call on the other line .
it might be ethan .
thanks for everything .
ill see you tomorrow .
the dial tone cut off any protests .
i would be seeing him tomorrow night , and when i did , id strangle the jerk .
if he wanted to play hard to get , then he had another thing coming to him .
id find out what he was up to , whether he liked it or not .
uneasiness tightened my chest .
the similarities of nolans reluctance to answer a few simple questions mirrored my own .
however , my answers would reveal earthshaking revelations about the supernatural community existing , as opposed to whatever nolan hid .
ethan deserved the truth .
he was already wrapped up in situation with me .
i could use his help , and it was better for me to keep an eye on him .
if he displayed any lunar tendencies , i needed to act before anyone else found out .
i tossed the phone on the couch , not bothering to put it back on the cradle .
if my purse hadnt been in the entryway , i wouldve gone to check my cell phone to see how many messages had been left for me .
knowing my parents and brother , there would be plenty .
the most memorable event of the day was ethan kissing me .
feeling his lips on my skin had been like a caress from heaven .
errr ... . maybe the love potion had been stronger when mixed with the healing salve than i realized .
chapter seven ethan i walked up the sidewalk to what used to be my parents house .
a sign staked in the yard said welcome home in big letters .
damn .
mia and nolans parents were so nice to me .
sometimes i didnt feel like i deserved all of the affection they gave .
i wasnt their son , even though they were like parents to me after mine died when a drunk driver hit them .
nolan was perched on the porch talking on his cell phone .
when he noticed me walking up , he said a few more words and hung up the phone .
hmm ... im guessing what mia told me wasnt true , that you arrived home and everythings fine ?
getting up to greet me , he cocked an eyebrow .
what happened to your uniform ?