Page 4 of Crimson Born

Before long, the two of them excused themselves to go “look at the water.” I wasn’t fooled. Instead of walking toward the lake, they headed the other direction and disappeared into the barn together.

Josiah was nowhere in sight, so I wandered the perimeter of the bonfire alone, feeling awkward and lonely.

It was my first party outside our small community. I found myself wishing I’d changed clothes like Hannah had done so I wouldn’t stick out so obviously.

Or perhaps disappear so completely.

No one spoke to me or even smiled in my direction. And I was hot in my long sleeves, long skirt, and lace up boots.

Thinking it might be cooler near the lake’s edge, I headed away from the bonfire in that direction. The bright moon reflected on the smooth surface in a way that beckoned me, like a candle in a dark window.

It had a reddish tint tonight, which only made it prettier.

I’d always been fascinated with the full moon, often climbing out my bedroom window to sit on the roof at night and stare at it. Once I’d even fallen asleep out there and terrified my parents, who were sure I’d run away when they found my bed empty.

Before I reached the lake, the end of my shoe bumped into something hard sticking out of the ground. Away from the firelight, it was harder to see. I squatted to investigate.

Oh, it was a metal stake. Several rusty old horseshoes lay near it.

Though I’d played the game before, I’d never been any good at it. But no one was watching now, and I had nothing better to do. I picked up the horseshoes and stepped back about fifteen paces before pitching one in the direction of the stake.

Instead of the metallic clank I was hoping for, I heard a strange thud, and then a voice came out of the darkness.

“Ow. What the hell was that?”

“Oh no, I’m so sorry.” I rushed toward the owner of the voice, stopping short as a small light blinked on and broke the darkness with its soft glow.

There was a man there holding his phone, shining its built-in flashlight onto the ground around him. Bending, he lifted the horseshoe, studied it with a puzzled gaze, then turned the light on me.

“Well this is a first.” He chuckled. “I mean, I’ve had girls throw things at me, but never a horseshoe.”

I stepped closer, more cautious now that I’d gotten a look at him.

He was young. His size and deep voice had made me think he was older. And he was huge, at least six-foot-four, with wide shoulders and the kind of strong, masculine face Josiah probably wouldn’t develop until he reached his thirties.

“I’m so sorry,” I repeated, awash in embarrassment. “I’m really bad at throwing horseshoes. Are you hurt?”

He rubbed his jaw with one hand and spoke in an amused tone. “Well, I may have to reschedule that magazine cover shoot, but I guess I’ll live.”

This, followed by a smile so dazzling, I literally felt my breath rush out in a whoosh.

A breathtaking grin.Huh, so it was a real thing and not just a figure of speech.

I was pretty sure he was joking about the magazine cover thing, but he had the kind of looks that belonged on one. Thick, black hair contrasted with eyes so light blue they’d have looked right at home in my predominately Dutch and German community.

“What are you doing out here in the dark all alone?”

The guy sauntered forward and offered me the horseshoe. “I mean, besides assaulting innocent bystanders with steel projectiles?”

“Oh... I uh... I’m just... waiting on my friends. That I came with. My friends I came with. They’re... busy, and I was just coming to look at the lake.”

My garbled explanation died right there. I had never been nervous talking to a boy before, but then I’d never met a boy like this one.

“Boy” didn’t even seem to be the right word for him. He was something more than that—not quite old enough to call a man—or at least not like the men in my village, who seemed ancient to me with their beards and bellies.

He didn’t seem to notice my fumbling speech, just turned and admired the moonlit waterfront scene.

“It’s pretty, huh? I was coming down here myself to look at it. Well, really to look at the moon more than the lake. I’ve always thought there was something special about a blood moon.”

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