Masked SheWolf (MSW book 1)

Chapter 18 - Daniel

Her eyes widen. "You mean tell him we're related?"

I shrug. "Yeah. Maybe it will help you move past your dad's mistake. Maybe you'll even like your brother. Maybe he already knows about you but he just didn't recognize you. Any of these could be true, you never know."

"Or maybe the reminder will just be too much for me and I will make a fool of myself and become miserable again," she counters. "Or maybe Trent was living a double life before he died and had two families. Or maybe John's mother was his real wife and my mom was the one he cheated with. Any of these could be true too."

"I'm sorry, it was just a suggestion," I try to pacify her.

Zoey shakes her head adamantly. "It's too risky."

My resolve grows again. "You mean you're afraid," I state. "You know, maybe the only way for you to get over it is by meeting John, finding out he's just as much of a jerk as your father was and putting them both out of your life for good. Yeah, it's a risk, but so what? Are you going to be confused your entire life without doing anything to change how you feel? Don't you want to be happy? Don't you think you deserve to be?"

I can see her determination wavering, but she's still too scared to admit defeat. I grab her hand and give it a reassuring squeeze.

"At least say you'll think about it," I beg.

A moment later, she sighs and looks at me with a pained expression. "Alright, I will think about it," she relents. Smiling, I try to kiss her cheek but she stops me. "On one condition."

I pull back and stare at her uncertainly. "What's that?"

She hesitates and bites her lip. "I want to tell my family about us first," she announces.

I'm very surprised, to say the least. "The whole reason we haven't told anyone is because you're not ready."

"I know," she assures me. "But I've been thinking about it, and there's no reason we can't tell them we're dating without mentioning Trent and John."

I frown. "I thought you said you're not allowed to date."

She winces. "Um, yeah, I may have over-exaggerated that part," she confesses. "They never openly forbade me from dating... I just assumed that's what they would say. I think they might even be happy for me. They love your family."

"Why did you say that, then?" I think I know the answer, but I want to hear it from her.

"Because, uh, I wasn't sure I wanted to go out with you at the time."

That's what I thought. I can't really blame her though. I wouldn't have gone out with me, either.

"But I'm glad that I did," she quickly adds. "I like being with you, and I want my family and yours to know it."

She's the first girl to ever be proud to be in a relationship with me. I can't help smiling at that. "Then let's tell them."

She doesn't seem as happy as she claims to be. "Daniel... we might have to tell your parents that I know the secret. Mine won't have a reason to suspect anything about John, and they don't even have to know about Michael, but... yours might ask you about it."

Oh. That's why she's hesitating so much.

Am I ready to have my family hate me? On the one hand, we've never kept secrets this big from each other. Michael would certainly not talk to me for a long time. But on the other hand, I don't like hiding my relationship with Zoey. It's not something I'm ashamed of; quite the opposite, I still can't believe she's dating me. I want us to be able to go out whenever we want without worrying about what to tell our parents.

"I don't know Zo," I say.

"It's your decision," she says to reassure me. "When you're ready, you can tell your parents, and then I'll tell mine."

I nod, wondering how the positions could have been reversed so quickly. "Thank you."

She smiles back at me, and I know the difficult moment has passed. "That was one surprisingly good speech... about being afraid to be happy."

I look away sheepishly. I was hoping she wouldn't comment on it. "Yeah, uh, I've been making up a speech like that in my head for a while now... to tell Michael. I've never had the guts to say it though. My parents would never forgive me."

She squeezes my hand reassuringly. Right then, I make up my mind; I will find the right moment and tell my family everything. I am not going to hide this amazing girl anymore like a shameful secret.

All of my previous confidence evaporates in an instant; I've put myself in a vulnerable position and cannot pretend to still be self-assured anymore. I stare sideways at her, and she stares back evenly, though I hear her heart speeding up. My own heart starts racing in anticipation.

I feel an urge to kiss her again. It's different this time though; I'm not drunk, and I actually do care if she wants me to kiss her or not. Maybe what's really different is that some part of me has started to really care about her. That scares me more than anything.

More importantly, I can't rush into things like I'm used to doing. I know she's never been with anyone, and I don't want to scare her off or make her feel like I'm forcing her into anything. But at the same time, these days, I'm happier than I've ever been, and it's all because of her. It's a new and strange feeling to me. I don't mind being nervous, as long as I am with her right now.

Then, I lean in slowly and put my lips against hers for one small moment. I pull back just a little bit and wait, giving her ample time to stop me if she wants to. She breathes heavily a couple of times and tilts her head slightly, inviting me. I capture her lips with a bit less caution this time.

She tastes like the blueberry energy drink she just had. My hand lifts up to her neck, the other going to her back. She grabs hold of my shirt on both sides and grips it tightly as the kiss intensifies. Moments later, we pull away at the same time for air. She puts her forehead against mine, our eyes closed and our breaths mingling.

I don't feel the usual triumph at reaching that next step. I'm very happy about the kiss, but I'm worried if she is too. Then I start to doubt whether or not I should have gone for a kiss at all, in case she didn't like it. I was doing very well so far, I don't want to ruin it by rushing.

"Was that out of line?" I ask her, whispering.

"A little, maybe," she murmurs back. "I don't know."

I can't help smiling. "You okay? Not too dizzy?"

She chuckles and shakes her head. "There it is. Arrogance."

"It's okay, you can slap me again," I allow.

"Okay."

Then she pulls me toward her by my shirt, and we go back to where we were before.