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I fought to remember everything. Lucas knelt beside me and placed his hand on my knee.

“Don’t force it,” he said.

I shook my head. “No, I…Mommy pushed me inside that little cave. Then she changed to human form and got dressed. The hunters were drunk. They kept shooting where they’d seen wolves. It was chaos.” I shook my head. I couldn’t see it clearly. All I know is that my parents had been in human form when they died—because they were dressed. They’d each taken a bullet through the heart.

“I remember waiting, terrified and quiet.” I looked at the small cave, now hidden. “I heard footsteps. It was one of the hunters. He found me and took me away. I guess I’ll never have all the answers.” I twisted around and faced Lucas. “I think they wanted to show me what we were so I wouldn’t be afraid. But because of what happened, I was always afraid—because I didn’t understand what they didn’t want me to be afraid of.”

“Are you still afraid?” he asked.

“No.” I touched his cheek. “I have you.”

“Always,” he said.

That night we made camp near a series of small waterfalls.

Standing beneath the great black sky, I leaned my back against his chest. He brought his arms around me and dipped his head to nuzzle my neck. He was my mate. Forever.

Or at least as long as we were both breathing.

I glanced up at the moon. Already it was waning toward darkness. By the time the summer solstice arrived, it would be a tiny sliver.

There were still dangers out there. I could feel them threatening. When they arrived, I’d face them with the Dark Guardians, because now I was one of them.

But for tonight, we were safe.

I turned within Lucas’s arms. He lowered his mouth to mine and kissed me passionately. The taste of him, the scent of him reaffirmed that we were alive.

For now, it was enough. For now, it was everything.

About the Author

RACHEL HAWTHORNE is the author of many books for teens, including CARRIBEAN CRUISING, ISLAND GIRLS (AND BOYS), LOVE ON THE LIFTS, THE BOYFRIEND LEAGUE, and SNOWED IN. She lives in Plano, Texas, with her husband and two dogs. You can visit her online at www.rachelhawthorne.net.

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OTHER BOOKS BY RACHEL HAWTHORNE

The Boyfriend League

Caribbean Cruising

Island Girls (and Boys)

Labor of Love

Love on the Lifts

Snowed In

Suite Dreams

Thrill Ride

Credits

Cover art © 2009 by Gustavo Marx/MergeLeft Reps

Cover design by Sasha Illingworth

Copyright

DARK GUARDIAN #1: MOONLIGHT. Text copyright © 2009 by Rachel Hawthorne. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.

EPub © Edition JANUARY 2009 ISBN: 9780061850677

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