Masked SheWolf (MSW book 1)

Chapter 10 - Daniel

"Okay!" I agree enthusiastically.

She holds out her hand for me and I take it immediately. Faces of other people blur in front of me as she's leading me upstairs somewhere. She stops in front of a door and opens it, pulling me inside with her. The music is more muted here, and I can hear my own breathing, but there is a ringing in my ears. I see a bed and realize we're in her room.

Oh!

Anticipating what she had planned, I pull her toward my chest with a grin on my face.

"What are you doing?" she squeaks.

"Isn't it obvious?" I say back.

"Ew, no! That's not what I meant! Let go of me!" she protests, sounding a little afraid.

Dejected, I do as she says. My parents always tell me to respect girls, and I don't want to scare her. That has never stopped me from turning on the charm and convincing girls who've said 'no' to me before, but something about this girl makes me stop, for once. Still, I can't say I'm not disappointed.

"But why?" I pout.

"I'm fifteen you idiot!" she yells. "That's statutory rape! Hell, that's just rape!"

My eyes widen. Am I so far gone that I didn't notice she's so young? "Then why did you bring me here?"

She heaves a sigh and shakes her head with both her hands on her forehead. "This was a bad idea. I don't know what I was thinking. Of course, if he's drunk enough not to remember this in the morning, then he'd be drunk enough to expect this! Why didn't you think of that?"

She's confusing me again, and I frown. "Are you... talking to yourself?"

She gives me an exasperated look. "Yes, I'm talking to myself, you idiot."

That's twice that she called me 'idiot'. I wonder why I don't feel offended, but I'm distracted by what she said before. "What don't you want me to remember?"

She sighs again, but this time, she slumps down on her bed and looks tired. "My secret," she reminds me.

I gasp in shock and kneel down in front of her. "So there really is a secret?" I whisper with wonder.

She laughs a little and nods her head. "Yes, there really is a secret," she repeats. "I can't tell anyone I know about this, and I thought a total stranger would be a good choice. Obviously, I miscalculated a lot of things."

She looks down with a sad expression on her face. I don't know why, but it makes me sad too, to see her about to cry.

"Oh please tell me!" I beg. "I love secret, and like you said, I won't remember this tomorrow. Please? I'll tell you a secret, too!"

She hesitates and does that nose scrunching thing she does before she agrees. "Alright."

"Yes," I quietly cheer, which takes the sadness out of her eyes.

"Do you know that my dad is not really my dad?" she begins by asking.

I blink twice. "What?" So far, this is the worse secret ever.

"The man who raised me is not the same one who gave birth to me," she explains.

I suppress a laugh. "Men don't give birth, silly... women do."

She rolls her eyes, although she's smiling at the same time. "Okay, fine, he's not my biological father. Is that better?"

I put on a straight face. "Continue," I try to say with authority.

It only succeeds in making her laugh again. "You're funny when you're drunk, you know that?"

I shrug. "I'm funny all the time," I correct her. "I've never been this drunk."