Picking up her pastry, she took a bite. It was her favorite kind with raspberry and cream cheese, but she barely tasted it. She swallowed another flavorless bite and felt as if everyone in the room stared at her. Her new shifting brain pattern hadn't stopped being the topic of conversation from what she'd heard.

Suddenly, a tray dropped down on the table beside her. Thinking it was Della back early from her morning event, Kylie sighed the words, "Thank you," and turned with a smile.

Not Della.

Lucas smiled. "Thanks for what?"

"Nothing," she said, and almost asked him to leave. But damn it, hadn't she told him they were friends? And as friends, there was no good reason why he couldn't sit at a table with her. Well, aside from a certain she-wolf who would want to kill her because of it.

His blue eyes twinkled with humor. "You've got jelly." He brushed his finger across her lip. Then he popped the digit into his mouth.

"That's what napkins are for," she said, reaching for one and giving her tingling lips a good swipe.

He chuckled.

Realizing Derek might be watching, Kylie cut her eyes to his table. He was gone. Which meant he'd seen them and taken off. Great. She let herself feel guilty for a second and then she got mad. She wouldn't be in this situation if he would have come over and sat with her. Nope.

Taking a deep breath, she reached for her milk and took a long sip. Then she looked at Lucas who was watching her.

"You are so damn beautiful," he said.

She rolled her eyes and put down her milk. "Just friends," she insisted. "Okay. But you're still beautiful." His grin widened. "Even with a milk mustache." He handed her a napkin and chuckled. Then he grew serious.

"Burnett told me about what happened with Della. Is she going to be okay?"

"I think so." She didn't go into any detail, or mention Chan. She didn't know how much Burnett had said, or how much even Della was supposed to be telling anyone about the Code-Red incidents.

"I heard about what happened in town and then with your mom," he

added. "It sounds like you've had a crappy time since I've been away."

"Yeah, pretty crappy."

He picked up his pastry and took a bite without getting anything on himself, of course. "I also heard..." His eyes brightened in humor.

"About what your skunk did to Fredericka. I'm sure she deserved it."

"She did." Was this his way of showing loyalty to Kylie over Fredericka?

Not that he had to choose between them. Kylie and Lucas were just friends. And if she could just stop remembering how good it had felt to kiss him, she really thought they could be friends, too. "Your last few weeks didn't sound too great, either. Is your sister going to be okay?"

He nodded. "I think so. I've got her staying with some friends. I'm going to talk to Holiday about her enrolling here for school. You are signing up, right?"

Kylie pinched off a piece of pastry. "I'm hoping so. My mom said she's thinking about it."

The thought of what Kylie would do if her mom really said no caused her stomach to knot. She belonged here, with the others. Her gaze shifted around the different tables hosting what looked like families of supernaturals.

Hopefully, soon she'd even discover what table she belonged to.

This isn't the same world you used to live in. Kylie heard Miranda's words from last night echo in her head. No, it wasn't the same world.

It was dark and sometimes very dangerous, but it was her world now.

Chapter Twenty-eight

"How do I make it stop?" Kylie, exhausted from lack of sleep, asked the question as she dropped into a chair across from Holiday's desk at the start of their two o'clock appointment. "I don't want to do this whole dream crap anymore."

Holiday sat back and pursed her lips. "This gift is too special to call crap. And you can't stop it, but you can control it with practice."

"Okay, how do I control this shit then?"

Holiday chuckled. "Haven't you sensed yourself moving in the dream world?"

"You mean, like flying?"

"Yeah, like flying."

"Sure, but sometimes I don't wake up until I'm already in the dream."

"Okay, here's what you do. Before you go to bed..." Holiday rattled off a series of techniques to train herself to wake up from a dream. It wasn't a guarantee Kylie could control it but Holiday thought it was a first step.

They had moved on to the subject of the ghost when Holiday's cell rang. She picked it up from the desk and glanced at the caller's number.

Her eyes lit up. "I ... need to take this call. Can you give me a few minutes?"

Kylie started to get up, but Holiday sprang from her chair first and started toward the door. "Hello, Mr. Eastman."

Holiday shut the door behind her with a firm click and Kylie settled back and closed her eyes.

"Yes, I'm so excited that you're considering my offer." Holiday's words filled Kylie's ear.

Kylie snapped her eyes open. Not again with the sensitive hearing!

"I can't tell you how much Shadow Falls needs someone like yourself on our board."

Kylie put her hands over her ears, not wanting to eavesdrop. "Yes, a hundred thousand should cover it."

Kylie frowned when the voice continued to sneak through her palms. Then she realized what this meant. Holiday had found another investor for Shadow Falls, which meant Burnett would be leaving.