Caleb Danvers stood in front of her, Pogue Parry, Tyler Simms, and Reid Garwin standing behind him. Brooke's face must have shown her shock, because Caleb gave her a tight smile. "Mind if we come in?"
Brooke stepped back, unsure of what to do. Could she refuse four… whatever they were? The boys filed in, and Reid closed the door behind them. Their eyes scanned the room briefly before turning to the girl before them. Brooke's legs shook slightly, so she dropped onto her bed and folded her hands in her lap, unable to meet their penetrating gazes.
"I don't think we've been introduced. I'm Caleb Danvers. This is Pogue Parry, Reid Garwin, and Tyler Simms," Caleb began, breaking the awkward silence.
"I'm Brooke Adams."
"You're a hard girl to talk to," Caleb commented.
"I'm a busy person," Brooke replied, staring at the floor.
"You climbed through the bathroom window," Reid stated. From the tone of his voice, it sounded as though he was smiling.
"Yeah," Brooke said slowly, glancing up to meet the four pairs of eyes.
"What did you see Friday night?" Caleb asked, watching her closely.
"Nothing," Brooke answered quickly.
Caleb raised an eyebrow. "Really? So you climb through windows and race out of parking lots all the time?"
Brooke swallowed. How the hell had she found herself in this position? "Okay. I saw the fight," she admitted.
They glanced at each other and then their eyes returned to her. Caleb cleared his throat, but looked at a loss for words. "How much of the fight?"
"Well, I saw you arguing with Aaron Abbott," Brooke began, and watched their bodies relax. "And then I saw you and… Reid…." Him and Reid what? Shove each other around like rag dolls flying through the air? The boys tensed again, and she knew that she had witnessed something that wasn't meant to be seen. "Look, I haven't told anyone, and I won't tell anyone. I swear. Just… please don't hurt me."
"Hurt you?" Pogue asked. He looked at the other three, and his lips pulled up into a small smile. "We're not going to hurt you."
"Why would you think that?" Tyler asked, trying to hold back his own smile.
"Well obviously I saw something I wasn't supposed to, otherwise you wouldn't be here. And the way you two," she gestured to the tall brunette and the blonde, "were throwing each other around, I just… I don't know," Brooke babbled. She rested her elbows on her legs and let her head fall into her hands. "I sound like a complete idiot."
"You sound like someone who doesn't know what to think," Caleb corrected gently. "What you saw," he sighed. "What you saw was something that scared you."
Brooke's head snapped up. "I wasn't scared."
"We all saw the look on your face Friday night," Reid said, his arms folded loosely in front of him. "And the look on your face when you saw us outside your door."
Brooke opened her mouth, closed it, opened it again, and closed it, unable to find words. He was right. She was scared, terrified. Damn it.
"Why won't you tell anyone?" Reid asked, receiving an elbow in the ribs from Pogue. "What? It's just a question."
Brooke couldn't help but smile. "Because people would think I was crazy."
"Yeah, probably," Tyler chuckled.
"So… you're not… mad?" Brooke asked hesitantly.
"Mad? No. We were the careless ones," Caleb said, running a hand through his hair. "But you have to keep this a secret."
Brooke nodded, but couldn't stop the next question. "What are you guys?"
They looked at each other again, searching for words. Brooke watched their silent communication, wondering why all of a sudden she felt more at ease with them. Was it because they weren't going to hurt her? Or because they seemed completely normal, despite what she'd seen on Friday.
"I guess the best way to describe us is male witches," Caleb finally answered.
Brooke nodded. "That explains… whatever I saw. Guess you guys aren't druggies."
"Is that what you thought?" Pogue chuckled.
"At first, yeah. You were talking about using, and I assumed you meant drugs." She shrugged and bit her bottom lip. "If you weren't using drugs, what were you using?"
"Our Power," Caleb answered after a brief pause.
Brooke mentally replayed the fight scene, question after question running through her mind. "Your eyes were black."
Caleb cleared his throat. "Yeah. That normally happens when we use."
"Use?"
"Use our Power," Pogue added.
"I know this is a lot to take in," Caleb said.
"Yes…no. It's… it's fine." Her eyes flitted to Reid and away.
"Look, we just wanted to make sure you didn't and wouldn't tell anyone," Caleb said, turning to look at his friends. "It's extremely important that this stays a secret."
"Like I said, if I told anyone, they'd think I was crazy. So no worries."
Brooke's cell phone went off. She flipped it open. "Hello?"
"Hey, B. The movie's sold out. Can you come pick me up? Bobby's being an ass and doesn't want to bring me back," Ashley explained.
"Yeah, I'm leaving now," Brooke laughed. "Leave it to Bobby to be a horrible date." She closed the phone and looked up at the Sons. "I have to pick up my roommate."
"Okay. Then I guess we'll see you around." They filed out of the room and headed toward the boys' dorms.
Brooke grabbed her keys and went to her jeep.
* * * * *
The next morning, Brooke returned to her dorm after a shower and pulled on the uniform. She combed her hair, letting it air dry around her shoulders, applied a little eye make up, and added her silver hoop earrings. She shoved her books into her bag and slung it over her shoulder. "Ready for another day of hell?"
"You really hate school, don't you?" Ashley laughed, grabbing her own bag.
Brooke smiled. "I think I'd like it better if the teachers were hot and the subjects were more interesting."
"I agree," Ashley said. "But let's go."
The first two classes seemed to drag on forever. Brooke found herself dozing off every now and then. Halfway through her English class, Ashley nudged her arm, startling her. "What?"
"Stop dozing off. I think the teacher's starting to notice," Ashley whispered.
"Miss Adams."
Brooke looked down at the teacher. "Yes sir?"
"Do you know the answer?"
Brooke frantically searched through her thoughts, trying to remember the question, but came up with nothing. "I… I don't know, sir."
"Pay attention." He turned to another student for the answer, and then continued his lecture.
Brooke sighed, letting her head rest in her hand as she gazed down at the board. She tapped her fingers repeatedly on her notebook, her eyes going from the clock to the teacher and back again. Why did time have to move so slowly? Her leg bounced under the desk, keeping the same beat as her drumming fingers. It was only Tuesday. There were three days of school left until the weekend. Three long days.
After what felt like three hours, the bell rang. Brooke jumped up, stuffed her things into her bag, and joined the flow of kids in the hall.
"Okay, what's up?" Ashley asked, catching up to her friend. "First you're falling asleep in class and then you can't sit still."
"Sorry. I couldn't fall asleep last night, and I'm like going back and forth between being exhausted and being hyper." And that was the truth. She had lain awake for hours thinking about everything she had seen and what Caleb had told her. And when she'd close her eyes and try to fall asleep, the blonde Son's face had come to the forefront of her mind, his amazing cobalt blue eyes staring right at her. Then a new round of thoughts would tumble through her mind, the hopes and what-ifs. Brooke shook her head. Reid was the bad boy Son of Ipswich. Off limits.
After lunch, the girls went to their last two classes, and then returned to their dorms.
"Let's go to Nicky's," Brooke suggested as she shut the dorm door.
"Oh, sure. Now you want to go," Ashley said.
"Please?" Brooke put on her best puppy dog face, silently begging through her eyes.
Ashley laughed. "Fine."
* * * * *
Music pounded through her as she entered Nicky's. Brooke looked around at the crowd as she wound her way through the people to the bar. Her sheer navy skirt hung low on her hips, the fabric flowing around her thighs. Her white tank top clung to her body, showing off her curves. She had pulled her hair back into a high ponytail, with a few wisps framing her face. "Hey, Nick! Two Mountain Dews!"
"You got it, girls!" Nicky smiled.
Brooke thanked him as he passed them the drinks and turned to scan the crowd, sipping her soda. Her gaze landed on the pool table, where Reid Garwin and Tyler Simms were racking up the balls. Brooke's eyes slowly traveled the length of Reid's body, taking in his appearance. As usual, he wore a dark hoodie over a shirt, dark baggy jeans, and his fingerless gloves. She licked her lips as the image of those hands exploring her body flashed through her mind. Feeling bold, she glanced at Ashley. "Feel like a game of pool?"
Ashley looked over at the pool table and smiled. "Sure."
They made their way to the pool table and set their drinks on a nearby empty table.
"Hey, boys. Mind if we join?" Ashley asked, her eyes focused on Tyler.
Brooke held back a smile. Of course.
The boys looked up, and Reid flashed her a smile. "Hey, Brooke. Didn't know you played."
Brooke returned the smile. "You can't work at a bar and not be able to play pool."
"You can break." Reid handed her his pool stick and stepped back, his eyes scanning her body.
Brooke felt her cheeks heat up and turned to the table. She bent, aiming the stick at the cue ball, and made the first shot, breaking the triangle of balls. Four balls sank into the pockets. She turned and smiled at him. "We're stripes."
The game ended half an hour later with Reid and Tyler as the winners. After picking up the table, Ashley managed to drag Tyler into the crowd of dancers. Laughing, Brooke took a seat at the empty table with their drinks.
"Oh, Ashley's going to have a story tonight."
"What do you mean?" Reid asked, taking the seat across from her.
"Ashley's not very innocent," Brooke answered. "And if she's dragging a boy away from her friend, it means she doesn't want to be interrupted."
"What about you?"
Brooke let a slow smile pull her lips up. "She hasn't completely corrupted me yet."
"Yet?" Reid raised an eyebrow.
"It's only a matter of time. I do live with the girl." Brooke took a sip of her soda.
"Is that a good thing?"
Brooke shrugged. "Not sure." She glanced away from him, unable to hold his gaze for fear of blushing.
"So you're okay with all of this?" he asked casually.
"All of what?"
"Me and the guys and what you saw."
Brooke looked back at him, considering. "Yeah. At first it freaked me out. But now that the shock has somewhat worn off, and you guys explained it, I guess it's not that bad."
"You're way too calm about this," Reid commented.
"I've always believed that there was magick in the world. The only difference now is that I've seen it firsthand." She took another sip, unable to pull her gaze away from the blonde before her, who continued to stare at her. "What?"
"You're so different from the other girls at Spencer," he said.
Brooke fought to hold back a smile. "Why do you say that?"
"I don't know. It's just something about you."
"Can you be more specific?" Brooke asked, the corners of her mouth tipping up.
"For one, you don't flaunt you money."
"That's because I don't have any," Brooke chuckled.
Reid frowned "Then how are you at the academy?"
"My mom saved up for a few years to make sure I could come here," Brooke answered. "She worked her ass off, but always says it was worth it. And I work here on the weekends to get some cash so I can buy food and pay bills. You right. I'm not like the girls here because I'm not rich."
Reid cocked his head to the side. "There's something else. You're a troublemaker."
"And how would you know that?" Brooke asked, smiling.
"Your eyes. They're full of mischief," Reid replied, leaning back in his seat.
"So people look in my eyes and see a troublemaker?"
"Not everyone. It takes a troublemaker to recognize another troublemaker," Reid smirked.
Brooke gave him a mischievous smile. "Guess my secret's out."
"So when are you going to show me some of your tricks?"
Brooke leaned forward. "Not tonight." She stood and added, "See you around, Reid." With that, she turned and disappeared into the crowd in search of her friend. Someone grabbed her hand and spun her to face them. "Forget something?"
"Just one thing." Reid leaned down and his lips claimed hers.
