Every half century in a small little town hidden in the woods, a beast comes out from the forest to claim his bride on the night of an eclipse. The people of call this phenomenon "the taking". This beast is said to be very dangerous. It roams door to door searching for the woman whose being calls to his animal instincts. He will kill, mutilate and destroy everything in his path until he finds his bride. In the past, the townsmen have tried to hunt the creature and kill him before they can steal one of their marriageable daughters, but the beast does not hunt alone. He has followers among the shadows to make sure his goal is accomplished. Once he finds his bride, he carries her back to the forest where she is never seen or heard from again. Celeste believes this so-called "legend" is just some scary fairytale her grandmother made up to scare her. But was she ever wrong when a pair of moonlit eyes stared straight at her through her bedroom window and entered her room. Next thing she knew, she was being carried out the house and into the woods by a half-naked man who called her his. Who would have thought? Grandma wasn't crazy after all. Young Adult novel. Paranormal/Comedy-Romance @2014

Jax's role as the "mutual friend" was to help Estella get the guy. Falling in love with her was never part of the plan. Estella Gillon lives a simple life that consists of band, friends, her father and her never-ending crush on Brice Abrams. Jax Velasco, on the other hand, is a bucket load of angst, trust issues, fear of intimacy and built-up anger. They are an unlikely pair, but somehow, the two find comfort in each other and become fast friends. Jax also happens to be a part of Brice's posse, and he may just be the key to Estella snatching the boy of her dreams. However, through all the run-ins with each other, the long car rides and the one-on-one moments spent together, the line between just friends and more starts to blur. Loyalties are tested, secrets are exposed, personal demons are faced and conflicts arise when the mutual friend transitions from being the wingman to wanting the girl for himself. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- * Copyright © 2016 October Silver. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of October Silver. * The visual image used in the cover art of this story along with all multimedia are the sole property of their respective owners. * Updated frequently * Re-posted: August 04, 2018 Completed: June 02, 2019