I woke to a light tapping noise at my window, and a thrill of fear coursed through me. I stared at the ceiling for a moment, waiting to hear the sound again, but all I could hear was the television downstairs. Dad had some action movie playing entirely too loud.
The clock told me it was just after midnight, so I hadn't been asleep long. Sleep pulled at my eyelids as the last of the adrenaline ebbed, and I started to succumb once more. Just as I drifted back to sleep, I heard the noise again.
I walked blearily to the window and lifted the sash, too tired to get scared again. Edward was standing about twenty feet from the house, his arm raised and ready to toss another pebble.
"What are you doing?" I didn't bother to keep my voice low. Even if I was worried about being caught, I knew my dad's movie was too loud for him to hear me anyway.
"Come for a walk with me," Edward whispered back.
He glanced around furtively, as if expecting to be tackled and arrested at any moment.
"You're crazy. It's after midnight." I started to shut the window, but he stopped me.
"Please? This is the best time for a walk; you'll see."
He looked so sincere that I had to agree. Who could have said no to that face, anyway?
"Just a sec," I muttered.
I dragged some jeans over my sleep shorts and grabbed a sweatshirt. I should have worried what I looked like, since I was heading out to hang with the hottest guy in school, but I still hadn't shaken away the sleep. The late October air was chilly enough that my hoodie would cover anything that shouldn't be seen by the opposite sex, even if I kind of wanted that opposite sex to see everything…maybe…at some point.
Without bothering to stay quiet, I bounced down the steps. Dad looked up from his television with a quizzical expression.
"Edward wants me to go for a walk. Is that okay?"
Dad looked torn for a moment before nodding. "Just be back before two, please. And, you know… Be smart."
I rolled my eyes. "Please. Even if I was stupid, he doesn't like me that way. I'll be back before two. Scout's honor."
Edward was waiting behind a bush by the front porch when I emerged.
"What took so long?" he whispered.
"Uh, I had to get dressed and tell my dad where I'm going. You don't have to whisper."
His eyes widened comically and he whipped his head around, like he was looking for my dad to burst through the door and arrest him.
"You asked for permission? What's wrong with you?"
I laughed and set off toward the field, and he trailed behind me. "Of course I asked permission."
"Where's the fun in that? Now there's no danger of being caught." He'd stopped whispering and spoke in his normal voice.
"I'm just starting to have fun with friends for the first time in my life," I informed him. "I'm not going to mess that up by spending my junior year grounded. We have two hours to hang out, and then I'll go back to bed like a good little girl."
He giggled—freaking giggled—and took my hand. I told myself it meant nothing, but the warmth of his palm against mine was just too much. I swooned. He was holding my hand, and the moon was full overhead, and a mist filled the spaces between lush green hills, and the smell of colored leaves filled my senses, and it was the most magical moment ever.
"Where are we going?" My voice was little more than a whisper, all silly and sweet and under his spell.
"Did you know my house is on the other side of those woods?" he asked, pointing to a tree break ahead.
I shook my head, biting down on the excitement that threatened to escape my lips. He was so close all the time, and I didn't even know it. Across the field, past the barn, into the woods, and…he was there.
"There's a creek that separates the properties. I go swimming there all the time in the summer. I wanted to come get you a few times after you moved here, but…" He shrugged and let the statement die.
"We're not going swimming tonight, are we?" I shivered in the brisk fall air.
If he thought I was going to dip even my smallest toe into a mountain creek, he was crazier than I thought.
He laughed and pulled me closer, putting his arm around my shoulder to still my trembling. That only made it worse.
"Nah, no swimming. I won't even splash you. But I thought we might do a little fishing, if you want."
I laughed. "You've got the wrong Swan if you want to go fishing. That's my dad's thing. But I'll give it a shot. Will you make me bait my own hook?"
He waggled his eyebrows at me and shook his head. "Squeamish? Don't want to touch a little, slimy worm?"
I nudged him with my hip, and he had to let go of me for a moment to catch his balance. His low laugh at my show of strength sent flutters through my belly and chest. Why did he have to be so perfect?
"I don't care to touch a worm. I just don't like the idea of killing it."
Edward's laughter faded, and he squeezed my hand gently. "If you don't wanna kill it, I'll take care of it for you."
Moonlight. Magic. Murdering worms. What more could a girl ask for?