Once in a Full Moon Page 0,18

sight. I prayed the man was okay, but I wasn't sure what was happening just a few yards away in the heavy snow. I heard a crunch, then a male voice yell. All at once, there was a smack and the sound of yelping. Then there was dead silence.

I didn't know if the person was alive. I didn't hear the wolves. I didn't hear the man.

I waited. I wondered if I should call out to him, but I was afraid this might excite the wolves if they were still there. I didn't know what to do next.

When I didn't hear a sound, I knew I had to do something. I decided to go farther into the woods and see what had happened. I was terrified of what I might find.

Just then, the figure emerged from behind a tree. The guy was alive, out of breath, and exhausted. The snow fell heavily, blocking me from seeing my rescuer. Then, all at once, striking blue eyes shone through the snow. I was even more shocked... it was Brandon Maddox.

I was so happy to see someone that I threw my hands up and cheered.

Brandon had been fighting the wolf pack with all his strength. The falling snow made it hard to see, the woods made it hard to navigate through, and the cold temperature made it hard to breathe.

I'd always thought Brandon was handsome, but now he looked even more magnificent.

"Are you... okay?" It was the first thing he asked.

"Am I okay? I wasn't the one fighting a pack of wolves."

Brandon tossed the branch into the woods. It was then a few dark red drops fell into the lily white snow.

"You're bleeding!" I said, pointing to the red stains.

"What?" He didn't even look at his hand. "What are you doing... here?" he asked. He was still running on adrenaline.

"You've been hurt," I said. "We should get you to a doctor."

He raised his hand. Drops continued to fall into the snow.

"You need to have that looked at," I said. "You might need stitches."

"It's nothing," he said.

"You could have rabies," I warned.

"I'm fine."

"Can I see?" I asked.

"Uh... sure."

I hadn't even spoken to Brandon before now, but words couldn't express the gratitude I felt discovering anyone - especially him - here with me in the woods. I'd always been drawn to Brandon, and his heroic actions only magnified my feelings. I slowly reached out to him. Our fingers touched and I melted.

I took his hand and held it in mine. It was strong and warm even though it was wet from the falling snow. I gently peeled back his ripped glove to examine the wound. There was a bloody gash in the palm of his hand.

"You've been bitten!" I said, alarmed. "You'll have to see a doctor. You don't want it to get infected."

"That's okay - " he said, trying to shrug off the seriousness of the wound.

"No, you must."

"I'm fine."

"But you're still bleeding. I'll bandage it for you." I dug my free hand into my purse and took out a pack of tissues. I applied a few tissues to his hand and unwound my scarf from around my neck. I could feel him staring at me as I tended to his wound. He examined my hair, my face, my lips. Gently, I wrapped the scarf around his hand and tucked in the ends.

We stood in the snow - in the middle of the woods, in the middle of Legend's Run. Brandon Maddox's hand in mine. Neither one of us was letting go.

"It's kind of bulky," I said, "but it will do for now."

I felt so tired. Now, knowing someone was with me, that I wasn't alone anymore and that I wasn't hurt, my body started to cave in. Brandon reached out and steadied me with his good hand.

"I could have been - " I said, realizing the severity of the situation. "But you - "

It was hard for me to get past the image that plagued my mind - if Brandon hadn't shown up when he did, I'd have been attacked by a pack of wolves. Instead, he had scared them off. But he'd been bitten.

"I'd take you to a doctor," I said. "But I don't even know where I am."

Then Brandon smiled - a terminally seductive smile. The kind smiled by A-list movie stars. The kind that takes one's breath away.

"I'll show you," he finally said.

I let go of his hand. As we started