IN THE FULL MOON

chapter 14

That night all I thought about was Brandon.

I wondered what would have happened if Ivy

hadn't interrupted us. Would I have gotten to talk

to him more? I didn't know anything about him.

Why did he move to Legend's Run? Did he really

live with his grandparents? And most important,

now that I was apart from Nash, would he ever

kiss me?

I imagined what that moment would have

been like gazing up at him as the stars

glimmered behind him. I'd ask about his wound

and he'd assure me it was nothing, all the while

knowing that he was hiding his pain from me.

And while no one was watching, he'd lean into

me and kiss me so intensely I'd feel dizzy.

* * *

It was time to officially thank Brandon. I'd

been putting it off perhaps for the wrong reasons

- Nash, school, or just being shy. Brandon hadn't

hesitated to save me, and I needed to move

beyond any more hesitating in thanking him.

I didn't know much about Brandon, but I

knew he liked Jeeps and the WWF.

The next day, I scanned the internet for

images of pro wrestlers. When I found one I

thought was beefy enough, I printed it out and

glued it to card stock. I folded the card and wrote

inside, Thanks for wrestling the wolves. You are a

true hero.

I struggled with how to sign it. Sincerely?

Best? Love? XOXO?

Just to be safe, I simply wrote Celeste.

Before I put it in the envelope, I sprayed it with

sweet perfume and stuck it into my purse.

I ran downstairs to check on the brownies I

had baking in the oven. I took the hot dessert out

and was sprinkling powdered sugar over it when

Juliette and my mom entered the kitchen. It was

cool to have my sister home for a few days, even

if was just because my mom glowed having her

two girls under her roof again.

"Why are you baking more desserts when we

have pecan and pumpkin pies coming out of our

ears?" Juliette said.

"Those smell delicious," my mom said.

"Why are you doing that to me?" Juliette

complained. "You know I'm on a diet."

"You are always on a diet," I said to my

stick-thin sister.