Riley's Redemption (A Moon's Glow Novel) (2 page)

Since going out to join
my friends in my fancy dress was out of the question, I slipped on gray tights
and a long printed top. I didn’t bother with the rest of my appearance: I was
on my honeymoon. If I wanted to wander around with messy hair and no makeup,
that was my prerogative.

When I emerged fully
dressed, I found Lauren and Joe seated at the small table eating breakfast.
They were each dressed and freshly showered. Joe’s auburn hair was getting
longer and flopped over his forehead almost reaching his gray eyes. He was back
to his usual casual attire, wearing a black t-shirt and tan cargo shorts.
Lauren was a little more dressed up. Her long hair was down flowing just below
her shoulders and she was wearing a purple silk blouse and short skirt. Joe was
telling Nate a dirty joke and teasing his girlfriend. And I couldn’t help but
smile at the scene. These were the people I wanted with us to share our joy.
But the fact that their suitcases were by the door told me that they would be
leaving soon. Because of school and work, they weren’t able to stay longer than
a day. Nate and I had taken the week off. That was one of the perks when you
married the big boss, you could get a vacation without a whole lot of notice.

“Hi guys,” I said
softly, feeling suddenly self-conscious. It was the first time I saw anyone I
knew since waking up a married woman.

Everyone in the
spacious room turned to face me. Lauren grinned and jumped up, her hazel eyes
sparkled as she enveloped me in her arms. I breathed in her guava and werewolf
scent, smiling into her sandy colored hair. “Good morning, Mrs. Riley.”

I pulled away and
beamed at her. It was the second time I heard that name in one day and to be
honest, I liked the way it sounded. “When are you guys leaving?”

She sat back down and
cut into a blueberry pancake. “In an hour.” She glanced around our luxurious
surroundings and grinned. “On second thought, maybe I’m starting to come down
with something. I might have to stay with you guys.”

When I only smiled,
feeling so happy and was unable to wipe the expression off of my face, Nate
cleared his throat. “I don’t think the room is big enough for all of us.” He
didn’t say that they would seriously put a cramp in our honeymoon plans, but
his tone of voice hinted at it.

Lauren’s grin remained
as she rolled her eyes and shrugged. “It was worth a try.”

Joe smiled at his
girlfriend and lifted her hand to kiss her knuckle. When she giggled, I looked
away and headed back to my seat.

Joe dropped her hand
with a wink and turned to me. “So, Meg, has Adrian finally come to his senses
and asked for help yet?”

I sighed, frustration
washing over me. “No. And I’ve offered many times. He doesn’t want to cause
anymore turmoil in our lives, so he refuses to take me up on it.” I had met
Adrian after Charlotte kidnapped me and Lauren. He told me that he was just
another werewolf who wanted a friend. I didn’t believe him at first, since my
history with werewolves wasn’t always pleasant. But when he began to teach me
kick boxing to defend myself, I started to trust him. However, I might have
been a little too hasty in accepting his story. Nate and Joe recognized him as
one of the werewolves that had terrorized us on an island after Charlotte had
kidnapped us. He eventually admitted to it, explaining that the only reason he
helped her was because she had his little sister hidden away. And after Joe
killed Charlotte, he began his search.

“I hope he finds her
soon,” Lauren commented. “I’d go crazy if something happened and I couldn’t
find Nathan.” Nathan was her younger brother and although he didn’t know she
was a werewolf they were very close. Her face held a look of sympathy as a hush
fell over the room, each of us trapped in our own thoughts. My mind was on
Adrian, wishing he would let us help, as I’m sure the others were as well. He
might have looked the other way too much when he was with Charlotte, but he was
nothing like her. He reminded me of Nate actually, hating what he was and
living with guilt.

“Well, love, we should
get going. We wouldn’t want to miss our plane,” Joe said to Lauren, his Irish
accented voice sounding loud in the silent room.

Lauren hopped up and we
all said our goodbyes. Again, I found myself locked in her embrace, her scent
flowing over me. I was so glad I had asked her to share this event with us. She
hadn’t always been my friend, but I couldn’t find a better one if I tried. She
had been through everything with me and only wanted me to be happy, which was
exactly what I wanted for her. When she pulled away, Joe took her hand, leading
her out of the room, gripping both of their bags with his other hand.

When Nate closed the
door behind them he turned around to gaze at me, his lips curved up into a
smirk, his eyes dancing with excitement.

The frisky expression
on his face had me spinning around. I squealed as I took off toward the
bedroom. Before I got to the doorway I was wrapped in my favorite strong arms.
I breathed in his leather and pine scent as it wafted around me. It was my
favorite fragrance in the whole world, because it meant that he was near. He
picked me up and stepped inside, tossing me onto the bed.

My laughter turned to
an intake of breath as he nuzzled my neck.

The Honeymoon

The next day and the
days to follow were filled with exploration and relaxation. We spent our
mornings and afternoons playing the roles of tourists. We saw the Grand Canyon,
the Hoover Dam and Botanical Gardens. Our nights, after a show of course, were
either tucked away in the bedroom or lounging on the sofa watching movies and
enjoying the view of the fountain from our huge picture window. I don’t know
what I did to deserve such bliss, but I could get used to it.

The only dark spot in
our time away was my mother. I had eventually told her that we had eloped and
let’s just say…she wasn’t happy. She yelled, cried and whined that I had made
her a social outcast. When I explained that our wedding was about us and not
her social status, she hung up on me. I was left in a dark mood. Depressing
memories of both her and my father yanked me even further into a cyclone of
gloomy images of my childhood.

Nate wouldn’t allow me
to be upset by her reaction and after some steamy kisses my mood instantly
perked up.

“I don’t want to
leave,” I whined as I watched Nate pack his things. It was the evening before
we were to return home and I was sitting up, wearing a plush white robe
provided by the hotel, my arms wrapped around my knees, my face buried in the
soft, floral scented material.
My
possessions were still stubbornly
hanging in the closet or tucked away in the drawers.

“You do realize that
the room is booked and the new guests might notice you on their bed?”

Lifting my face up to
gaze at him, I huffed out a stubborn breath, my lips in a pout. “Why are you so
happy to go?”

He dropped a couple of
balled up socks into his open suitcase, they rolled between his shaving kit and
a pair of dark wash jeans. He sat down next to me on the bed. “I don’t
want
to.” He traced the tip of his finger along my cheek, my skin burned at his
gentle touch. “This past week has been the happiest in all my life. But, now
that it is over, I can’t deny how excited I am to bring you back to our life as
my wife. I can’t wait to begin our lives together.” He dropped his hand and
reached for mine. “I want to shout it from the rooftops that you are Mrs.
Riley.” The smile that appeared on his face matched the jubilance in his eyes.
His face shone with happiness as the dimples I loved so much came out to play.

He never failed in
making me feel wanted. And after the episode with my mother a few days ago, it
was a welcome feeling. “Don’t you mean Mrs. Green?” Green was the name he had
used when I first met him. He used it instead of Riley to distance himself from
his family. He wanted to protect them from other werewolves that might try to
hurt him by harming someone he loved. It had happened in the past with his
father and then a friend.

He shrugged. “Any name
is fine with me, as long as it matches mine.” He leaned forward and touched his
lips to mine, creating an electric current on my skin. Although I was suddenly
lost in his lips, the feel of his tongue on mine, I noticed his hand slipping
under my robe. “And right now I want to show Mrs. Riley or Green how much her
husband loves her.” He mumbled his words against my lips and I gasped as he
bent down to trail kisses along my now exposed bare shoulder. My head fell back
onto the pillow as he explored, relishing the sensations his kisses were
creating. As we became lost in each other, I thought about what he said. He was
right, we had the rest of our lives together and this was just the beginning.

“Wake up sleepyhead.”
The soft, sexy voice in my ear was as familiar as my own. I sat up and blinked
at the sun glaring in through the window of Nate’s sport car. I breathed in
deeply and ran my hand over my face. I felt groggy and confused.
Where were
we?

I glanced around our
surroundings and smiled. We were home. Our journey was over, but instead of
being disappointed, as I thought I would be, I felt giddy. I didn’t know how
much I missed our small comfy lake cottage until I was looking at it again.

Nate got out of the car
and before I had the chance to open my door he was there doing it for me.
“Thank you, sir.” I curtsied in front of him when I climbed out, loving how
much of a gentleman he was. He grew up in the eighteen hundreds and manners
were engrained in his brain. The smell of fresh lake water welcomed me home.

Nate grinned, taking my
hand to kiss my knuckles. He lingered a few seconds, his hot breath creating
goose bumps along my arm. When he pulled away he pushed my door shut with a
thump
and gripped my hand. Instead of dropping it, so we could grab our suitcases, he
squeezed my fingers in his and led me up the steps. “The bags,” I reminded him,
looking back at the trunk of the car.

He continued to lead me
up the porch. “They can wait,” he said as he unlocked the door and then scooped
me up in his arms, his delectable scent whirled around me. “Welcome home Mrs.
Riley.” His expression was intense as he gazed at me. The adoration in his eyes
warmed my heart and took my breath away. I gulped, reeling from his sudden
change in mood. Gone was the jovial man he had been in the car and when he
opened the door for me. This man that held me, emanated so much emotion, it was
palpable. He stepped into the living room and closed the door behind us; the
click of the latch echoed in the silent room.

He didn’t put me down
until we entered our bedroom. As I slid down against his body my stomach did a
flip. We had been through a lot to get to this moment. I loved him so much my
heart ached. He must have been feeling the same, because his intense gaze
lingered and held my eyes; I couldn’t look away, even if I wanted to. We seemed
to be frozen and unmoving as we expressed our feelings through eye contact.

Finally, after what
felt like hours, Nate moved. He reached out and tucked a lock of my strawberry
blond hair behind my ear. I leaned into his hand and instead of pulling away he
lightly traced his finger over my lobe and down to my jaw, searing a trail of
heat along my skin. He continued his journey until he reached my lips and
softly moved the pad of his finger over them. Just as I opened my mouth, as he
had done a week ago in our bed in Vegas, he drew his hand away and he stepped
behind me.

I sucked in a breath as
he melded his body to mine. I could feel his hot breath in my hair and I leaned
back into his chest. He breathed in deeply. “I love your hair,” he whispered.
“The color of fire with the smell of raspberries.” His voice was a raspy
whisper and it was sexy as hell. His warmth seeped into my back, creating a
current between us. I closed my eyes as his hands moved over my arms and then
down my ribs. I could feel his fingers through the soft fabric of my silk
blouse. I swayed against him as his hand slipped under my blouse and in one
fluid movement he ripped it from my body. I gasped as the cold air caressed my
skin. Goose bumps appeared along my flesh, only disappearing as he rubbed his
rough hands over my waist. I tried to turn around to face him, but he held me,
nuzzling his face into my hair. He gently brushed the strands to the side and
then began to kiss my shoulder and neck ever so softly. I sighed, becoming lost
in sensations. “Welcome home,” he whispered into my ear, his hot breath kissing
the sensitive lobe.

His low husky voice
made me shiver and I tried to turn around. I wanted to kiss him; to touch him.
Again, he held me in place, not letting me move. I knew if I really wanted to
turn around, he’d let me. And honestly after all the training I had done with
Adrian when I realized I was a werewolf, I could have flipped him over my
shoulder and tossed him to the floor. But my mind had gone to mush: his scent
and touch were driving me mad. I was under his spell, helpless to feel and
experience what he wanted. His fingers trailed down to wrap me in his arms and
lifted me, tossing me onto the bed. The pillows and mattress bounced with me.

The movement broke the
spell I was under and I took the chance to explore. My hand grabbed at his V
neck and yanked. My eyes widened in shock when the fabric ripped. He froze
above me and glanced at the tear at his shoulder. At first I thought he might
be angry. I still wasn’t used to my new strength, as a werewolf, I should have
known better. A laugh burst out of him, his eyes shining. I grinned, not sure what
to say and before any words could form on my lips he pulled the shirt again,
ripping the V neck even more, until it was off of him completely. I joined in
his laughter and rose up to touch his lips.

With laughter and
excitement, he kissed me harder, until all humor evaporated, the emotion
changing to something so intense words couldn’t express the meaning.

Bang, Bang Bang.
The
sound of pounding on the door pulled me out of a deep sleep. As I regained
consciousness, I felt Nate’s arms wrapped around me. The sound of his strong
heart beat thudded against my ear. I opened my eyes and glanced around, not
sure where I was. Was it just this morning that we were in Vegas?
Bang Bang.
Again, someone thumped on the door. “I know you’re in there Megan. Open
up.” My honeymoon was officially over, my mother was here.

Despite the noise Nate
remained asleep, his face peaceful, his breathing deep. He must have been
tired. We had to leave for the airport at three o’clock that morning and unlike
me, he hadn’t had a chance to rest. The sun was still out, so we couldn’t have
been sleeping long. Not wanting to wake him, I moved quietly, trying not to
disturb him.

Just as I made it to
the living room, she began to bang again. I whipped open the door as her fist
hung in the air. I tied the straps of the robe I had thrown on and glared at
the woman who had ignored me most of my life. “What are you doing Mother?” My
voice was filled with all of the annoyance that I felt for having been woken
from such a perfect nap, snuggled with my new husband.

Her face twisted in
what looked like disgust, her nose tipped in the air as if she smelled
something foul. “How could you?” she asked coolly, storming past me, her bony
shoulder digging into mine. Her strong perfume wafted into my nostrils, making
my eyes water.

I stood with the door
open; facing the outdoors with my eyes closed and took a deep breath trying to
gather courage to face her. Finally I closed the door and spun around. “How
could I what
Mom?
Marry the man I love?”

She stood against the
arm chair, wearing a tight silver sleeveless dress. Her platinum hair fell in
waves around her gorgeous, young-looking face. I hated that people said I
looked like her. Except for our hair and eye color we had a lot of the same
features. “You know what I mean. What am I supposed to tell everyone?”

I let out a frustrated
breath and stepped over to the couch to sit down. I sat forward with my hands
clutched on my knees, my fingers digging into my skin. “We hadn’t even picked a
wedding date. It’s not like the invitations went out.”

“I have been discussing
this wedding with my friends for months, everyone knew it was happening. And
now I’ll have to tell them it’s cancelled. How can you be so selfish?”

My head snapped back
like she had slapped me. I was utterly stunned by her words. A slow simmering
rage began inside me, threatening to erupt. “Why do you even care mother?” I
asked quietly, through gritted teeth. I winced as my nails dug into my knee, as
I tried to hold back the anger. “You never gave a damn about me before, why
start now?”

Her gray eyes narrowed
into slits. “How dare you say that I don’t care about you? Who was there for
you to buy you clothes and every toy you ever wanted. Who do you think picked
out your car?”

It was almost sad, that
the examples she used for caring were of things she had paid for. She hadn’t
been a real parent to me in years. “That’s right mother, because that is how
you express your feelings, with money!” I raised my voice, almost yelling at
this woman who was so cold to me during my entire childhood. I never understood
how she had come from such wonderful parents. She flinched at the unexpected
raise in volume in my voice. “It’s not you who I cried to when I scuffed my
knee or fell off my bike, that was Mona. Just like she explained puberty and
the facts of life to me, it wasn’t you who taught me how to ride a bike in the
first place, that was Ben. They are my real parents. They are the ones who
should have been at my wedding. But because of
your
selfishness, you
managed to ruin what should have been the happiest time in my life.” Ben and
Mona worked for my parents. She was my nanny turned cook and he was our
gardener. They had a small house on our property and as I told my mother, they
had been more of a family to me than my own parents.

Her normally fake
tanned complexion, paled as she stared at me in shock. Her eyes watered with
equally fake tears. “How dare you say that to me? I am your mother. I love you.
I have always loved you.” Her voice was thick with emotion as she dug through
her designer bag for a tissue, dabbing at her eyes with it once she found one.

I cringed as a tiny
nibble of guilt worked its way into my conscience.
Damn her fake tears.
But
I wouldn’t
let her manipulate me. I did nothing wrong and I was tired of
her treating me this way. “That’s a load of crap and you know it.” Her eyes
bugged out of her head and I had to suppress a laugh as I went on with what I
should have told her a long time ago. “Look around Mom,” I gestured with my
hand to the space around us. “None of your friends are here. You don’t have to
put on a show. It’s just you and me and we both know that as soon as you
inherited Grandma’s money after she died, I was a burden, an obstacle, in the
way of your social life. You never wanted me around and there is no point in
pretending.” I was shaking with anger now, but I had done the impossible—my
mother was speechless. The silence in the room was thick with animosity as we
stared each other down. I could hear a gull outside let out a shriek and the
sound of the waves swaying against the beach, but nothing else.