Becoming: A Reverse Harem Tale (Mountain Magic Book 1), стр. 18

he was normally chatty, Ed stayed quiet on the walk over, and I didn't try to draw him out. He held the door open for me, and we went inside, though he didn't let go of my hand.

I looked around as we entered. I hadn't paid a lot of attention last night. Today, I studied the library as Ed led me deeper into the stacks.

Whoever had funded the building must have loved libraries. The polished granite floor sparkled in the light from one of the many large windows, and the majority of the shelves were made of high quality wood. I felt like we walked, hand in hand, through a museum. His arm brushed mine and drew my attention to his nicely defined arms.

"Do you play sports?"

He glanced at me, a wrinkle in his brow. "No, why?"

"Oh, I just wondered."

"I hike a lot. Swim, lots of things in the national forest. No organized sports."

"So, what are we doing next weekend, that you have claimed me for two days?"

"It's a surprise."

"I need to be at least a little prepared," I protested.

"Pack an overnight bag, bring a swimsuit and sunscreen." He smiled.

"Overnight?" I let him hear my surprise.

"You're ruining the surprise." Ed tightened his grip on my hand.

"Is it just you and me?"

"What? No, Allan and Doc will be there." Ed acted confused as to why I would even ask.

"Oh. Okay." Was he interested in me or not? Hell, was this coming weekend a date or not? I really didn't quite understand Ed, so I didn't ask any more questions and went back to admiring the beautiful library.

Ed broke the silence after a few more minutes of leading me seemingly aimlessly around the lower level of the library. "Do you like him?"

I knew of at least three other 'hims' he could be asking about, and I didn't want to make assumptions. "Him who?"

"Doc."

I had actually thought he was going to ask me about Alex, and I was caught a little off guard. "Doc? Yeah, of course. He's really nice. Why?"

Ed glanced at me, expression unreadable. He didn't answer, just gave my hand another quick squeeze and kept walking.

I wondered if I would ever understand Ed. Maybe I should talk to Allan, or even Doc at some point.

"So, you like dancing?" Ed twirled me around once and caught me in his arms when he knocked me off balance from the unexpected move. My breath caught at being held in his strong arms. He was incredibly cute.

I laughed. "Yes. I do."

"Doc is a very good dancer."

I just shook my head. Maybe I shouldn't try to understand Ed. Maybe I should just go with it.

∞ ∞ ∞

I hoped Alex didn't mind that I dressed for dancing in jeans and cowboy boots. At least I had a lavender blouse that someone had once told me went well with my eyes. If we were country dancing, I would fit right in. If it was something else…well, at least I had slick soled shoes. Since I had flown here, I couldn't pack much, and I hadn't had time–or a need–to go shopping yet. I had only brought my cowboy boots, hiking boots, some sandals, and as many clothes as I could cram into my suitcase. That included only one dress, and it was a little nice for a night out dancing.

If Alex did care, he would have to get over it.

Victoria wore a cute yellow sundress and sandals. Her small purse matched, and I wondered how many of those she had. I liked my small backpack purse, though.

I grinned. "I might be under dressed."

"Girl, it's Colorado. You'll fit right in. Come on, let's go. I haven't been dancing in ages."

Victoria's enthusiasm was contagious, and I felt pretty good as we left our dorm and headed out to meet Alex.

Alex sat on a stone bench near the sidewalk by our dorm. His sapphire eyes lit up when he saw us, and he smiled as he stood. He wore black slacks and a green dress shirt. The green accented his eyes, and one of these days, I thought I might be brave enough to run my hands through his blond curls.

"My friend will meet us there." Alex fell in next to us, and we went down the sidewalk to the main street through campus. A red Mustang sat on the curb, and somehow, I wasn't surprised when Alex beeped it open for us.

Victoria looked up at him as he helped her into the back. "What do you drive in the winter?"

"Truck, like most everyone else."

He gave me a hand to get down into the sports car. It was actually easier to get into Doc's truck, but I wasn't complaining about driving around in a Mustang, either. The comfortable leather seats folded around me.

The car rumbled to life after Alex got in and pushed the ignition. I enjoyed the ride as he slowly drove off campus. At the roundabout, he went east on the third turnout. I hadn't been this direction yet, and watched the scenery. More shops lined the street, and farther back, I could see houses, until we left the main part of town and were out in the valley for a while. After a few minutes, the road wound up into the hills on the opposite side of the valley from the fae lake.

We passed into the pine forest, and Alex slowed until we were out in the open again. We climbed, and the view of the valley was breathtaking. Snow peaked mountains in the far distance, verdant valley below us containing both the town and grassy pastures, bisected by a meandering river.

The trees enclosed us again, and then we drove over the pass to the other side of the mountains. Not far from the top, Alex turned off on a small paved road and drove down the tree-lined road until we reached a small parking lot. Once he found a place to park, I opened the door, and Alex managed to get over to help me out