Carmen shifted awkwardly in the booth of the little diner. The whole town was small and old-fashioned, and she got the impression that new trends took quite a while to reach shifter clans.
Greg was sitting beside her, his eyes glued on her chest whenever he thought she wasn’t looking at him. He was really kind of a pig, and Carmen did her best to ignore him.
It wasn’t difficult. She was fascinated by Rachel and Bobby, who were sitting on the other side of the booth. There was a wild chemistry between them, completely unlike anything she had ever seen or experienced first-hand. It definitely paled in comparison to what Rachel and Roger shared.
Bobby was a mysterious man, tall, broad, and masculine. He was nothing like Roger. The complete opposite, in fact. His hair was black, and his eyes were a piercing blue. He was unbelievably handsome, and the only time his serious expression changed was when he looked at Rachel, or she spoke to him. Then his face would soften, and the tenderness in his eyes was unmistakable. Carmen had never seen such an outward display of love before, whether they wanted to call it that or not.
Still, Rachel was playing hard to get, and did her best to pretend she was oblivious to Bobby’s feelings for her. What she really needed, Carmen knew, was to hear how he felt. It wasn’t enough for him to feel it. Not if he wasn’t acting on it or honest with her about it. Why their relationship was so on again off again was beyond Carmen. It seemed obvious that the two were crazy about each other.
“So, what’s your major?” Greg asked Carmen. She sighed.
“I’m undecided.”
“Nice. A woman who likes options.”
Carmen pursed her lips. Greg was hardly a conversationalist, though he did rival Bobby in the looks department. His face was more playful and less brooding, but he was ridiculously handsome in his own right. Despite his many flaws, Carmen could tell why Rachel would want to introduce them. He was sweet, in a way, and he looked like he worked out about seven hours a day.
Still, he was kind of a pig. That wasn’t the kind of man she wanted to be with. He was hardly a man at all. A real man would have more self-restraint than to stare at her breasts all afternoon. She couldn’t imagine Mr. Thomas doing something like that…
“Are you listening?” Greg exclaimed. “I asked you what you wanted to be when you grew up. Not a lot of shifters get the option to go to university, you know. We kind of get stuck in the community.”
“Yeah,” Rachel said. “And it didn’t help that most universities didn’t open up to shifters until about ten years ago. Why bother going somewhere you aren’t wanted?”
“But you’re going,” Bobby said darkly.
“That’s because I can’t wait around for my life to come together or rely on anyone else to do it for me,” Rachel said sharply, fixing a glare on Bobby. “I want a fulfilling life. I’m not waiting around for anything.”
Bobby glowered down at the table but stayed silent. Carmen felt a pang of guilt. If she hadn’t been thinking about Rachel’s dad, the conflict might not have happened.
“Sorry,” Carmen said quickly. “I didn’t want to be anything in particular. I just wanted my own house.”
“That’s funny,” Greg said.
“Yeah…” Carmen replied. Why bother telling them that her father had never given her any support growing up? That he had shit on all of her dreams until her only real wish was to live alone where nobody else could ever hurt her again?
“Hey, the movie is going to start soon,” Rachel said, digging in her purse pointedly to pay the bill. Bobby grabbed her arm and pulled it away from her bag, and dropped two twenty dollar bills on the table.
“Let’s go,” he said darkly. He slid his hand down her arm and gripped her hand, and Rachel’s face brightened. She caught Carmen’s eyes as everybody stood from the table. Carmen smiled weakly. At least one of them was having a good time.
***
The theater in Stonybrooke was a drive-in, and Bobby and Rachel wasted no time in making out. Carmen was only mildly disgusted, but her agitation mounted when Greg, who was sharing the back seat with Carmen, tried to feel her up.
“Hey, cut it out!” she exclaimed, smacking his hand away.
“Dude, chill out about it,” Greg laughed. “You’re hotter than I thought you would be. I’m a good guy, you know, you don’t have to worry about anything. I won’t tell anyone.”
“First of all, there isn’t anyone around here for you to tell. And secondly, I’m not even interested in you, okay? So just leave me alone.”
“Rachel, why did you bother hooking me up with such an uptight bitch?” Greg exclaimed. Rachel and Bobby broke away from each other for a minute, Rachel’s face bright red.
“You fucker, I told you to be cool!”
“Oh yeah, she’s a virgin,” Greg said, his voice mocking. “Poor little virgin doesn’t know how to have any fun. It’s not like I’m going to fuck you or anything.”
“No,” Carmen said. “You’ve got it backward. It’s not like I’m going to fuck you.”
She opened the car door and stormed off.
“Carmen, wait!” Rachel called, scrambling out of the car after her.
“I need to be alone!” Carmen exclaimed. “I can find my way back, just enjoy your night without me.”
“Fuckin’ bitch,” Greg mumbled.
“Are you sure?” Rachel asked. It was clear she didn’t want to leave Bobby, and Carmen honestly didn’t want any company anyway.
“I’m serious, just everybody leave me alone,” Carmen said firmly. “I’ll be fine.”
“All right…” Rachel said. “But it’s kind of dangerous around here.”
“Whatever,” Carmen sighed.
Rachel shrugged and got back in the car. “Suit yourself. Just be careful and don’t talk to anybody.”
“Don’t even look them in the eye,” Bobby said seriously. It was the first thing he had said to her all night.
“Thanks,” Carmen said, surprised by his concern. “I won’t.”
The sound of the movie playing at the theater grew more and more distant as Carmen walked toward the Thomas residence, grateful that the place was so small that she could easily find her way home.
“Fuck yes,” a deep man’s voice suddenly hissed. “Just what I need after that bullshit. What kind of a name is Thames, anyway?”
“What?”
Before she could help herself, Carmen looked up at the man and he caught her eye gleefully.
“Oh, wanna play, do you pet?”
“No, I –”
Carmen’s heart hammered in her chest as he lunged at her, his meaty hands just barely missing her shirt.
“What’s the matter? Don’t like games?”
“What is with people tonight?!” Carmen exclaimed.
“Hey!”
Carmen grew hot as a familiar, masculine voice shouted across the distance. She looked up, a mixture of relief and fear flooding her. Mr. Thomas was quickly closing the distance between himself and Carmen and her assailant, a dark, dangerous look on his face. If she ever found herself on the receiving end of an anger like that, she didn’t know what she would do.
“Chill out Clark,” the man said, stepping away from Carmen and laughing. “I was just messing around.”
Clark. So that was his name. It suited him.
“You know you’re supposed to stay away from visitors, Joseph,” Clark said darkly. “They don’t know the rules here. Besides, she’s half your age!”
“Sorry, man. It was just a joke.”
So putting your hands on a woman was a joke now?
Rage filled Carmen’s chest but she said nothing. All she could do was watch the interaction between the men as the energy between them grew less intimidating. Clark stared hard at Joseph until Joseph laughed and shook his head, walking away as if nothing had happened.
“Are you all right?” Clark asked.
“Thank you,” Carmen said shakily. “Can we go back to your house now?”
Clark smiled gently and put his hand on her shoulder. It was the first time he had touched her, and the heat in her body intensified. What was going on with her?
“Of course,” Clark said, dropping his hand quickly and clearing his throat. “I’ll drive you.”