Magic of the Moonlight: A Full Moon Novel Read Free Page B

that Brandon was a handsome and benevolent one—that he was more tormented by his own condition than anyone else should be.
    But I knew that what I was hoping for was impossible. We had three weeks to find a cure for Brandon and make him one of the ordinary students of Legend’s Run before another full moon appeared. But even then, Brandon Maddox was anything but ordinary.

TWO
    seeking solutions
    I t was time to find a cure for Brandon. I was more focused on it than I’d ever been. If we could find a cure for him turning into a werewolf, then we’d be able to deal with the singular conflict of me dating a Westsider.
    Ivy, Abby, and I were in the school library, and I was surfing the net for anything that could help solve Brandon’s lycan condition while they were occupied with a pile of magazines. However, in my surfing, I wasn’t finding anything that seemed reasonable and was becoming increasingly frustrated.
    Annoyed, I was tapping my nails against the keys when Ivy placed her hand on mine.
    “Stop!” she said. “What are you so worked up about?”
    “Oh . . . nothing.”
    “Are you still thinking about werewolves?” Ivy asked, looking up from her rag mag and peering at the screen. “We know that Brandon was the costumed stalker. And your report is done. What gives?”
    “Uh . . .” I switched to the school’s home page. “I don’t know. It just stuck with me.”
    “Are you trying to cure the Wolfman?” Ivy teased. “You’re always helping out the underprivileged.”
    “He’s not underprivileged, Ivy.”
    “Well, he isn’t one of us.” She rolled her eyes and returned to her mag.
    I know, I know, I thought. I didn’t want to be reminded that my friends didn’t approve of outsiders.
    “I’m thinking of having a party this weekend,” Abby said. “Ivy and Nash had one, so it’s my turn. Then it will be yours, Celeste.”
    I couldn’t imagine hosting a party at my house. Our house was modest, not the grand estates my friends called home. We had a few rooms, but they were filled with hand-knit blankets, outdated sofas, and decades-old carpeting instead of designer decor.
    “Well, speaking of werewolves,” I said. “Maybe we could invite Brandon?” I asked gingerly.
    “There she goes again,” Ivy protested. “You are always stuck on him. You feel bad for him because everyone’s been calling him Wolfman?”
    “Including you,” I said. “And yes, I do.”
    “Well, I kind of do, too,” Abby said.
    “You do?” Ivy and I asked in unison. I was happy that I had someone on my side, but I could tell by Ivy’s tone of “you do?” that she felt betrayed.
    “He did find Pumpkin,” Abby said. “I was distraught without her.”
    “Yes, that was a nice thing to do,” Ivy said. “But you’ve seen how he eats. Those gloves. He’s weird.”
    I took Abby’s positive remark as an opportunity to continue to bring Brandon into the mix. “I think inviting him to your party would be a great way to pay him back,” I said. “Someone vandalized his car, so I’m sure he’s feeling awful. This could be an olive-branch opportunity if we included him.”
    “Uh . . . sure,” Abby said. “What’s one more?”
    Ivy rolled her eyes. She didn’t like Abby being more amiable than her.
    “That would be great!” I said.
    “Are you kidding?” Ivy said. “Just like that? Let him into your house?”
    “He was at Nash’s and seemed pretty normal,” Abby said.
    “You don’t think people will talk?” Ivy asked. “All the popular students, and then him?”
    “Let them,” I said. “Maybe it will be fun to be the center of gossip for a change.”
    “Everyone thinks he was the werewolf,” Ivy challenged.
    “So, maybe he is,” I said. “But it won’t be a full moon for a few more weeks.” I gave her a shot back.
    “This will be cool,” Abby said. “I did want to do something for him—for finding Pumpkin, but I didn’t know what. I feel good about this. Thanks for