Page 7 of Fangs & Fur

Noah

For the rest of the evening, Xander and I get to know one another. And with every question I ask, his responses make my head spin. From the fact that he’s four years older than me at 28, and inherited the house from his late uncle. Xander shared strained memories of his childhood, yet he had never heard of a Xbox, and his favorite game was called Blind Man’s Bluff. Whatever the hell that is.

The rain fades as the night grows old, and I find myself fading by the minute. Pumpkin purrs loudly beside Nyx, who lies on her side behind him, and even then she is a whole cat longer than he is. I smile at them both.

“You look tired.” Xander breaks my thoughts as he tidies up the kitchen with practiced movements. His jet-black hair shines under the kitchen lights, and I wonder if it's as soft as it looks.

Maybe I am a total creep, but I can't help drooling over this hunk of walking charisma. The way he smells of leather and how his deep voice carries an energy that makes my skin prickle with desire. By simply being in his presence, my heart hasn’t stopped pounding all evening.

“I’m okay,” I speak around a yawn that betrays me, and Xander gives me a pointed look. I blush under his intense gaze and fiddle with the hem of my shirt.

“I think I'll head to bed,” I say, standing from my seat, feeling how tight my back has grown from slouching. Xander’s gaze follows me, and something crosses his face that looks strangely like worry, but I brush it off and begin my way to the stairs. “Thank you for dinner. My turn next.”

I can't look over my shoulder as I feel his gaze burning into the back of my head, and instead, I practically run up the stairs and out of view, hiding myself in my room and doing a little happy dance.

Yet my fragile moment of happiness is ruined when my phone lights up from across the room. A phone call. And there is only one person with my number.

Richard.

Creeping over to the nightstand where my phone vibrates with the incoming call, my throat goes bone dry as my ex-boyfriend's name lights up the screen. I haven’t yet told him I'm not coming back, not ever. Not like all the other times where he kicked me out and then came begging for me to come back. Promising he would do better, be better.

I swallow the lump of saliva and answer, lifting the phone to my ear.

“Baby? Are you there?” Richard’s voice sends a chill down my spine, and my stomach churns.

“Richard…” I start, but he cuts me off.

“Where are you? It’s been over a day. I’m sorry I got so mad. I just can't help it sometimes. You know me.” His voice is full of pain and desperation. It grates on my nerves compared to the deep rumble of Xander’s voice that I have grown fond of in the short time I’ve been around him.

“I’m not coming back, Richard,” my voice shakes. “We broke up, and I’m sick of it. You don't keep to your promises, and I can't keep putting up with your temper tantrums.”

The line is silent, and I pull my phone away from my ear to check that the call hasn’t been disconnected. Lifting my phone, I come face-to-face with Richard’s screaming voice.

“...dare you! After everything I’ve done for you, this is how you repay me? I am the only person who knows what’s good for you. And you’re too blinded by your childish emotions to see that!”

I cringe, my pulse spikes, and every muscle shakes again, just as I did when his fist was inches from my head. As I open my mouth to respond, the door to my room swings open and Xander strides in. His chrome eyes almost glow under the orange light of the lamp as he nears me. His fingers gently wrap around mine and pull my phone from my grasp.

Tapping his finger across the screen, Xander ends the call and then proceeds to block Richard’s number. I can only stand in shock with my mouth wide open.

Placing my phone on the nightstand, Xander turns, his hand squeezes my shoulder, leaving a trail of tingly heat, and then he’s slipping from the room, closing the door shut with a calm click.

I stare at the door, mouth agape and heart thudding in my chest. What the hell just happened? My gaze slowly turns to where my phone sits; the energy surrounding it feels more like a black hole rather than a simple inanimate object.

Xander just hung up and blocked Richard! For me!

My mind races as the adrenaline of my ex-boyfriend's threats slowly fades into the background noise of my mind. How had Xander heard any of that? He was still downstairs when I answered. It makes no sense.

Like a broken record, the pattern of strange anomalies since moving in seems to slip past me as a wave of satisfaction washes through me. And despite the unusualness of the last 24 hours, I smile to myself. Once again, this complete stranger, who lives in a possibly haunted house, has shown me more kindness in a single day than anyone has in my entire life.

Sucking in a deep breath, I finally get my heart under control. The strain of the day finally sinks into my skin, and I suddenly feel like I weigh a ton. I wash up quickly and call for Pumpkin, but I'm sure he’s preoccupied with his new girlfriend.

I snicker to myself and climb into bed, smelling the new sheets along with the woodsy scent of the house. My eyelids grow heavier by the second, and I fall into a slumber. Despite my sapped energy, my mind stays alert throughout the night.

Just as Xander advertised, the house is filled with questionable noises. From taps at the window above my bed that sound just like someone's nails racking across the glass to heavy footsteps sprinting up and down the hallway that shake the ground.

It's an ambiance that I'm sure I will get used to, but my heart still jolts with every new knock and tap. But it’s when the handle of my bedroom door begins to turn, the bolts squeaking, that I tense and watch from my curled-up position.

With bated breath, the iron handle spins and rattles, and my throat grows dry. Yet before I can hide under my blankets, an ungodly yowl explodes from the hallway, and the door handle snaps shut.