***KATE’S POV***

The last thing I wanted to do was leave Jennifer, I really wanted to stay but I knew I couldn’t. Dean had called me home and I knew this was a big deal so I could do nothing but correspond to him. 

Alpha’s orders. 

I saw the cabin come into view and then I saw 6 figures come into view, which freaked me out because there was only supposed to be five. There was someone else there and it was a  guy, he was tall and built, just like the three boys.

Everyone’s eyes averted to me as I felt the tension shift on top of my shoulders, I spoke, “Sorry for not being here.”

I could sense Dean’s frustration towards me but when my eyes caught the new member something in my gut clenched. I stared at him as I tried to put his face to a name because I knew I had seen this guy before. Sure, I knew a lot of people but now he was important to me and it was killing me that I couldn’t place his name. 

I walked up to him, Dean introducing me, “And this is my niece, Kate Brooks.”

I saw something in his eyes, he recognized me to, but now he knew who I was and it completely shocked him. Dean noticed the weird tension and continued to speak, “Kate, this is Gabe.”

My heart stopped in my chest, I knew who he was. Gabe was Emma boo, the guy that we had met downtown!

And I knew suddenly that keeping this secret life from Emma was about to become ten times harder. 

~ ~ ~ ~

I was laying in the unfamiliar bed at the cabin, wondering why I hadn’t been compelled to go home and sleep but I guessed I liked the company. 

Even though I was alone. 

I couldn’t stop thinking about Gabe, I was worried, and I wanted to call Emma and talk to her. I wanted to be the one to tell her, I didn’t want her to hear it from this new guy. It could possibly ruin our friendship forever, and I couldn’t let that happen. 

Then I heard a light knock on my door, then it opened, revealing a sleepy but worried looking Tess. I smiled, “Hey.”

She sat on the edge of my bed, looking serious all of a sudden, “Where were you tonight, Kate?”

I shrugged, “I told you, a friends?”

She shook her head, “Kate, I know you’re lying.”

I squinted in confusion, I wasn’t revealing the truth, if she wanted it she was going to have to literally pull it out of me. I shrugged once more, “No, I’m not.”

She sighed heavily, “Kate, I know you were with Miss Riley, I smelt her all over you.”

She had some growl in her voice which kind of frightened even me. Was she jealous? She had caught me, but I wasn’t lying, “She’s a friend?”

Tess looked at me, “You know it’s a bad idea Kate, you know it. Don’t let what happened to Emily happen to her too.”

Then she was out the door and I felt something in my heart shift. I knew she was right, she was so right about everything and I hated it. I didn’t want to let her go, I wanted Jennifer, I knew it was bad but it didn’t stop the feelings. 

I would have to see her everyday, pretend like she doesn’t have an affect on me, pretend that we never had anything. I couldn’t do that if I tried, I like her, a lot, and I wasn’t going to let anything bad happen to her. I was going to fight against these evil people.

I am not going to let them come between me and the person I want to be with. 

~ ~ ~ ~

The weekend passed slowly as we all lounged around the house and taught Gabe everything we knew. I knew he hadn’t been talking to Emma but I knew damn well he knew I was her best friend, and he knew that I was involved with something that Emma didn’t know about. 

I just prayed to God he wasn’t going to slip up to Emma, I couldn’t have her in danger too.

Monday soon rolled around and I was anxious to see Emma, I knew I should tell her but that meant putting her in danger. If I didn’t tell her I had to risk Gabe slipping up and making me look bad in front of Emma and jeopardizing our friendship.

I was torn. 

I walked into homeroom, seeing Jennifer at her desk and looking beautiful as usual. I smiled, “I’m ready for tutoring today.”

She looked at me oddly, but smiled, “I bet you are, Kate.”

I smiled, sitting at my desk and completely ignoring the fact that Tess had warned me, just like Collin. I sat in my desk and tried not to worry as Emma walked in and sat next to me, I smiled, “Morning.”

She sighed, “Morning.”

I looked at her hard, wondering why her mood was off today, “You ok?”

She shrugged, “Just thinking.”

“About?”

She looked at me, “Gabe’s been absent the last couple of days and it’s worrying me, I haven’t talked to him and I’m scared.”

I tried to comfort her, “I’m sure he’s fine Emma, he’s probably just been busy.”

She leaned back, staying silent as homeroom continued. I watched Miss Riley get up and walk around, handing out schedules, “These are your midterm schedules, starting this week you will begin taking them and then we have Christmas break.”

I smiled, “Thank God.”

Her eyes averted to me and she smirked slightly, “Yes, thank God.”

I scanned over the paper and realized I only had to test at the end of the week so I would have plenty of time to study. Thursday I would take first hour and Friday I would take second and third, and then it was Christmas break.

The bell rang, dismissing us to first hour as I walked side by side with Emma, just in time for her to receive a text. She checked her phone with joy, speaking, “It’s Gabe, thank gosh, I was worried sick.”

I peeked over her shoulder but couldn’t read it, I spoke, “What he said?”

I felt her heard speed up, it could be something good or bad, “He said he needs to talk to me.”

My heart stopped in my chest as I looked at her, “About what?”

She shrugged, “He didn’t say, gosh I hope he’s not talking about calling it quits already we just started dating!”

I rolled my eyes, knowing the fighting was coming soon, “I doubt if that’s it.”

First hour began as I worried more and more about Gabe revealing my biggest secret to my best friend. Dean had told him it was a secret to keep, right? I mean he couldn’t just go around and tell people our business without consequences…

I couldn’t concentrate as our teacher went over the midterm study guide, all I could worry about was Gabe ruining me and Emma’s friendship.

Which I was going to try to stop from happening.

~ ~ ~ ~

I was making my way to tutoring, in Math I didn’t catch anything because naturally I was worrying about Gabe and Emma. It was a huge burden on my shoulders and I had enough to deal with, why did he have to be the new member? Out of  everyone in this damn town, he had to be the one. 

I walked into the familiars room, seeing Jennifer sitting at her desk patiently waiting for me. I spoke, “Hey.”

She smiled, “Hey, we have a lot to go over. Midterms are coming up and we have to make sure you pass them!”

I nodded, hoping she wouldn’t realize I had a ton of other shit to worry about but I knew better. She had some weird sense that told her when there was something off with me and I was already caught. 

She touched my arm, “You ok?”

I nodded, “Yea,” I looked over to her, catching her ice blue eyes and instantly making me melt, “ Just seems like every time my life kind of settles, something else pops up.”

She smiled , “Wanna talk to me about it?”

I sighed heavily, feeling like this could either help me or hurt me, but she’s the only one I trusted enough. I spoke, “Dean bit someone last night, meaning we now have another member.”

She nodded, “And why is this bad?”

“Because you know my best friend Emma Bryce?”

She looked at me hard, “Well of course.”

“The new member is her boyfriend, and I haven’t told her about my secret. If Gabe tells her that I’m involved with this stuff before I have  the chance to explain myself, I might lose my best friend.”

She grabbed my hand, sort of comforting me as she whispered slightly, “Kate, if she’s a real best friend, she’s going to understand. I’m not trying to influence your decision but I know, and Emma’s your best friend, how is that fair to her or you?”

She had a point, it wasn’t fair that my Math teacher knew before my best friend, even though she had witnessed it. I just didn’t want to put Emma in danger, but now that she was involved with someone else who was just like me…

She was involved no matter what.

If she knew she would be prepared, she might ignore me or freak out but… she would know the truth. I wanted her to know me, the real me, my past and who I really was…

And Kate Brooks wasn’t who I really was. 

Jennifer spoke, pulling me out of my thoughts, “Friday night, I hope it didn’t freak you out that I invited you over for dinner.”

I smiled, “It didn’t, I enjoyed spending time with you outside of school.”

She tilted her head, the way she always did when she was trying to seduce me, and it always worked. I watched her blue eyes pierce right through my barriers and walls, “It’s like every time we have a moment something interrupts it.”

I shrugged, “You’re telling me.”

She nodded, “I don’t know what it is, Kate, but I’ve never felt something like this before. It’s scary, especially when you’re not even… human.”

“Trust me, I know. I’ve never felt so protective and attached to someone, then you come along and change that. As much as I hate to admit it… I think you’ve changed me.”

She smiled, blushing in the process, making me realize we were extremely close again. We always ended up like this, nose to nose, trying to read the other but never quite knowing what they wanted. I wanted to kiss her, I wanted to feel her against me, and not just her lips, every inch of her skin.

She whispered, “What are you thinking?”

Her heart beat sped, hitching inside her chest as I listened silently, “How bad I want you to kiss me.”

Then her lips met mine and her smell wrapped around me, her perfume gently tickling my nose as my extra sensitive smell came into play. I touched her cheek gently, moving it slowly into her long, dark hair, pulling her into me more. My hand rested on her thigh, feeling the tight fabric of jean separating my flesh from hers, and I heard her heartbeat sky rocket. 

I smiled gently into the kiss, moving slowly to her upper thigh as I listened as her heart continued to speed up. I felt my own body heat up as she kissed me harder, letting me know I was getting to her. I squeezed her thigh, pulling her body into me now, pressing myself against her as I continued to kiss her. 

Then the bell rang loudly, snapping us once again out of the heated moment we were having. I stood, looking down at Jennifer as she fixed her hair and sighed, “Never fails.”

I sighed, smiling in the process, “Maybe if we have alone time outside of school…”

She looked up at me, smiling, “Maybe we wouldn’t be interrupted.”

I laughed slightly, feeling my cheeks heat up, “I’ll see you tomorrow, Miss Riley.”

“Looking forward to it already, Kate.”