Under a Rogue Moon

Chapter 15

Chapter 15She blinked. He hadn’t just said what she thought he said. It wasn’t possible. It was too soon. It was—

“We really have to work on your turnaround time in conversations.” The amused tone of his voice interrupted her racing thoughts. She blinked again, trying to let it process, and this time he laughed out loud, a warm, rumbling sound that vibrated through both of them. “Oh, this is going to be good,” Jason said.

“What is?” she managed to ask. Her heart felt like it was skipping every other beat; she had no idea how she was getting anything resembling coherent speech out at all.

“Whatever explanation you come up with to try to not believe me this time.”

The implication of his words made her eyes widen, but when Flanna began to struggle to step free, Jason merely shifted so that he was pressing her to the wall.

“Don’t deny it,” he said. “It was written all over your face. I can say the words out loud and you still don’t believe me.”

“Well, technically, you didn’t. You said you were…a half step away.”

“Which, if you were paying attention, you’d realize was a euphemism for, ‘I’m scared shitless you’re going to reject me so let’s make this look as little crazy as I can.’” Loosening his hold on her hair, Jason traced his fingertips across her strong jaw as if he could memorize her face through touch. “It’s all right if you don’t believe me right now. But this way, it’s out there. It’s not how I wanted to tell you, but you keep making me have to improvise.”

The speed at which the conversation was tripping along made her dizzy. “I can’t imagine you being scared of anything,” she said. “You’re the most fearless man I’ve ever met.”

“And yet, you still don’t believe me, do you?”

He posed the question with a curious mixture of hope and resignation, his eyes surprisingly dark as he gazed at her through his lashes. The effect tugged at something in Flanna’s chest, making her want to reach out to him and assure him he was wrong. But she couldn’t.

“But like I said,” Jason was saying, filling the uncomfortable silence, “that’s all right. It doesn’t answer the other question, though.”

“Wh-what question is that?”

“If you still want me to come to the pub with you.” He tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear, his fingers lingering to trace the small shell before drifting back to his side. “If I go, I’m probably going to embarrass you by trying to hold your hand or some other public display of affection you find horribly inappropriate.” His tone took on a definitive tease, the sobriety in his aspect fading as his eyes began to twinkle again. “I might even do something as risqué as make you dance with me.”

The lighter treatment of the topic made it easier for her to think, collecting her thoughts just enough to resume the conversation with a modicum of intelligence. “We’re supposed to be going to gather information on Romm,” she reminded.

Jason rolled his eyes. “Yeah, right. And the fact that your father nearly blew a gasket insisting we both go when it’s really not necessary doesn’t mean at all that he wants you to have a little fun in your life. Ever considered investing in bridges, Flanna?”

Her mouth twitched into a small smile in spite of herself. She wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of playing along, though, and held up a warning finger as she spoke. “This is not a date,” she said. “This is work. Important work.”

“Conducted together while we’re dancing and having drinks? Sounds like a date to me.”

Slapping at his chest, Flanna pushed him away and began to head upstairs. This was infinitely more comfortable. She knew how to deal with Jason when he got like this.

“The pub doesn’t even have a dance floor,” she said when she reached the top. She looked down to see him leaning on the banister, his eyes riveted on her. “You’ll have to make do with a snooker table instead.”

“Oh, I like that. Sounds kinky.”

“It’s a game.”

“Even better.”

Though she turned her back on him to go into her room, the imprint of his smiling face stayed on her mind long after she closed the door behind her. Flanna sagged against the wall, all the words and all the declarations of the past few minutes returning to sing through her confused thoughts, creating tumult with every verse. The depth of Jason’s feelings startled her; the full moon was eleven days away, which meant he would be gone in two weeks at the outside. Why would he tell her that he cared for her, knowing it would leave her at such loose ends?

Did it matter?

Did it mean she could stop trying so hard not to fall for him? She wanted to think yes. She wanted to believe it all so desperately because then she wouldn’t be alone any more.

Until he left. In two weeks.

She closed her eyes. There would be no easy answers any time soon.

* * * *

She knew she was taking too long. It had been ten minutes since Jason had called up the stairs that he’d be waiting outside, and still Flanna fussed with her appearance. She knew it was silly, and she wasn’t entirely sure why she was bothering, especially when she’d been the one to insist it wasn’t a date. That didn’t stop her from pulling half her clothes out of the wardrobe, however, searching for something that she thought Jason might like without drawing unnecessary attention from anyone in Birley.

In the end, she settled for a long denim skirt paired with her favorite boots and a simple white blouse, left open at the neckline. It was functional yet feminine, she told herself as she looked over the ensemble in the mirror. Nobody in town could accuse her of trying too hard, either. She left her hair down, hanging in thick red waves around her shoulders, as memories of how many times Jason had tangled his fingers in it flooded her with heat. Shoving the treacherous thoughts aside, she fled the safety of her room, grabbing her leather jacket as soon as she was downstairs.

“Have fun,” her father said from the couch.

Flanna stopped, staring at him. He hadn’t moved to look at her when he spoke, instead watching Helen’s program on the telly with just as much attention as she was. Jason had been right. She had even known that, but the knowledge had been overshadowed by Jason’s unexpected declaration.

“I won’t be too late,” she said, continuing on to the door.

There was no response, and she slipped outside, taking a deep breath of the cool night air once she was out of the house. Her reprieve was short-lived, however, when she saw Jason waiting for her a few feet away.

He was leaning against his rental, hands supporting his weight as he bent back to stare up into the night sky. Faded jeans clung to his lean legs, and a blue button-down she’d never seen before accentuated the broad set of his shoulders. Unlike her, he’d foregone a coat, but he seemed oblivious to the chill that hung thickly in the air, too rapt with the stars above. Every angle of his face was highlighted; the shadows cast by both the dim light above and the golden ambience from the curtained windows made him alternately appear both wicked and innocent.

“I’ll drive,” she announced, pulling her keys from her coat pocket.

Jason was startled by her sudden appearance, but when he straightened, his mouth opening for some smart rejoinder, he froze, his gaze sweeping over her body. There was no mistaking the hunger in his eyes, or the way they lingered at her breasts on the way back up. By the time he looked into her face, Flanna’s heart was pounding, her flesh eager for more than just his heated gaze.

“You look absolutely beautiful,” Jason murmured. He took a few steps closer, but stopped just far enough away so that he could look her over again. “Please tell me this is for my benefit.”

She flushed and wondered if he could see that as well. “It’s nothing special,” she protested. “It’s…comfortable.”

“Actually, I was thinking accessible.” A slow grin creased his features. “Planning on accosting me in public again? Because I have to say…I really didn’t mind when you did it last night.”

“When I…?” Oh God, he was referring to their liaison while they were out checking on the neighbors. “That was hardly public,” Flanna spluttered.

Jason shrugged, took another step. “It wasn’t the privacy of your house. Anybody could’ve seen us. It doesn’t get more public than that.”

She held her hand to his chest, preventing him from coming any closer and driving the last of her rational thought from her mind. “This is not a date,” she reminded him.

His grin widened, all boyish charm unleashed. “I’ll remember that when you’re trying to get me to pay for your drinks,” he said. Before she could react, his hand shot out and took hers, entwining their fingers as he tugged her to his side. “Now let’s get out of here.”

Flanna had never been so grateful for a stick shift before. It kept their bodies separate, and though she could still feel the heat of Jason’s leg every time she changed gears, it was easier to think clearly without the added distraction. For his part, Jason acted as he always did, chattering about this and that with no references to his earlier admissions, every other glance in her direction laced with desire. Though it took the extent of the trip into town, all his efforts—intentional or not—served to relax Flanna, making her laugh, making her forget. It made it all seem like it had before anybody had talked about love.

She was laughing at one of his jokes when she pulled into the small car park by the pub, still smiling when she eased into the last spot. There was a healthy crowd tonight; that boded well in several regards. More people inside meant fewer potential victims for Romm. It also meant more people she and Jason could question. Neil Carrey didn’t have to be their only source for information.

Jason was unbuckled and out of the car before she could turn off the engine, coming around the bonnet to her side. Her eyes widened when he opened her door for her, but she didn’t refuse the hand he offered her nor did she fight him when he kept her fingers clasped in his.

“I know it’s not a date,” he said, casually tossing her words from earlier back at her. He gestured toward the rest of the parked cars as he led her to the front of the pub. “I’m just not interested in losing you in the crowd of what’s obviously the Birley hotspot.”

It was impossible not to be smiling when they walked into the pub.

The Green had been the lone pub in Birley for decades. Over the years, there had been attempts by any number of chains to move in and steal some of the local business, but residents were markedly more loyal than corporate businessmen estimated. Franchise after franchise failed, leaving The Green thriving and standing tall. It even expanded, purchasing adjoining properties to accommodate the growing population. Unlike the Crown and Anchor in nearby Kesbury, it was brightly lit and open plan, with several adjoining rooms for private parties and a wing specifically housing a prosperous restaurant. Flanna always enjoyed coming in when she had the opportunity.

This was the first time she’d ever walked in with someone who wasn’t her father, though, and while she’d spent a lot of time trying to convince herself that this wasn’t the date Jason wanted it to be, she knew that walking in holding his hand, dressed as she was, made it look like that to everybody who happened to notice. Which, as it turned out, was pretty much everybody.

Jason was oblivious to the raised eyebrows on the people near the door as he maneuvered Flanna toward the bar. “You like your beer dark, don’t you?” he asked, scanning the taps.

She wasn’t sure how he knew that, but the opportunity to ask fled when Neil suddenly appeared to serve them. He was the same age as her father, though not in nearly the same physical shape, with a silvery beard and round belly that she’d always thought made him look like St. Nick. His smile was warm as he met her gaze, and one of the knots in her stomach began to unwind. This didn’t have to be awkward, she realized. This was her home; these were her friends. Jason might be a newcomer, but the fact that he was there with her meant something.

“Guinness, Flanna?” Neil asked.

He did it for Jason’s sake, she knew. Flanna had been drinking the same thing at The Green ever since it had been legal for her to do so.

“Make that two,” Jason said when she nodded her assent.

She fidgeted with the hem of her coat while they waited for their drinks to come out. The primary purpose of their visit was to talk to Neil, but with the pub so busy, she didn’t see how she could do that without drawing attention to herself. It would likely have to wait until the crowd thinned down, nearer to closing time.

Jason caught her careful scan of the various people scattered throughout the pub. “Anybody you want to talk to?” he asked, leaning in so that only she could hear his query.

Flanna shook her head. “I don’t see anybody else who might be able to help us,” she replied, her voice just as low as his. “They’re all people who stay in town primarily.”

She glanced over when she felt him shift and saw Jason pull his wallet out to pay for the two drinks that now sat on the countertop. Neil caught her eye, but his gaze was inscrutable as it slid back to Jason.

“You must be the young man Colin’s been talking about,” Neil said. He took the outstretched bills but set them aside so that he could extend a fleshy hand across the counter. “Neil Carrey.”

“Jason Randolph.”

The two men shook hands, and while there was nothing adversarial in their postures, Flanna stiffened anyway. What was Neil doing?

“You’re the first young man I’ve seen Flanna bring in here,” he was saying. “Are you the reason she keeps gallivanting around the world?”

She ducked her head to hide the flush creeping across her cheeks. Nobody talked about her monthly departures, at least not to her face. The usual explanation was that she was either visiting family or not feeling well, but she knew that most people saw straight through them. In a town like Birley, though, nobody asked questions. The McRaes were solid citizens, and what they did with their private lives was nobody’s business but their own. That had always worked to their advantage in the past. Now, it looked like her disappearances would be credited to more personal reasons.

“I guess I can stop being jealous of every other guy I see then,” Jason joked, adeptly deflecting the question. He coiled a possessive arm around her waist and drew her toward him. “They can be jealous of me instead.”

She didn’t pull away, but she couldn’t stop her nervous gaze from flickering between the two men. Though she knew Jason would never betray what they were doing or what she really did on her trips away, she wasn’t so sure how much he would reveal under Neil’s cross-examination. Because that’s what it was. Even if she hadn’t consciously acknowledged that it could happen, she wasn’t in the least bit surprised to see it occur in front of her.

“And what is it you do, Mr. Randolph?”

“Acquisitions.” The lie came so easily to him that she knew it was his normal cover story. She wondered what other details he volunteered to hide his more violent lifestyle.

“Must mean you move around a fair bit.”

“I did.” His fingers tightened almost imperceptibly at Flanna’s waist, and the glance he cast her through his lashes was dark with hidden promises. “I’m hoping that Flanna’s going to convince me to take a little break from it all.”

Behind the counter, Neil harrumphed at the answer, but all she could hear was the sudden hammering of her heart as she lifted wide eyes to Jason’s. The promise she saw there had firmed, and when he leaned toward her, there was no way she could deny her response, the ensuing kiss slow and almost chaste. It resolved questions she hadn’t voiced yet, and by the time they parted, a slow burn had started in her chest, spreading through her torso and flooding her body with warmth.

He wouldn’t necessarily be leaving after the full moon. He was just looking for her to ask him to stay. Her relief was almost palpable.

“I guess that means we’d be seeing you around town a bit more,” Neil said. There was something almost accusatory in his tone, and this time, Flanna knew she had to speak up.

“Jason’s been nagging me about getting into town since he got here,” she said. “I’m the one who keeps wanting to hide him away.” She flashed Neil her best smile. “Only child syndrome. I don’t like to share.”

“Well, I’m here now, and I plan on having fun.” Jason scanned the interior of the pub. “Flanna said something about a snooker table?”

“You play?”

“Once Flanna teaches me.”

Some of Neil’s gruff demeanor was softening. “Don’t play her for money,” he warned. “There’s enough blokes around here already that have fallen for her act. She knows her way around a cue, and don’t let her tell you any different.”

“Is the private room available?” Flanna asked. “That way when Jason loses, nobody has to watch him cry.”

“I don’t cry,” he protested good-naturedly.

“But you’re still going to lose,” she shot back.

Chuckling, Neil reached beneath the counter and pulled a key ring attached to a paddle with the word “snooker” burned into the wood. “Just let me know what the final score is,” he said, passing the key over to her. “That’s always good for a laugh.”

She was smiling as Jason picked up their drinks and followed her through the bar. She hadn’t really given much thought to how they’d be spending their time, but playing snooker was as good a distraction as any. The added privacy of being separate from the other patrons also meant that they could talk relatively freely about Romm without fear of being overheard. This was turning into a good decision after all.

Plus, she got to show Jason that demonhunting wasn’t the only thing she was good at. She hid her smile as she slipped the key into the lock of the snooker room. By the time she was done showing him how to play, he wouldn’t know what had hit him.