All Chapters of My Arch Nemesis in my Bed: Chapter 41 - Chapter 50

I fumbled for my phone’s flashlight, my hands shaking as I swept the beam across the empty tent.Naomi’s sleeping bag was definitely gone. Not just empty—gone.My mind immediately went to the worst places. What if something had taken her? What if she’d gotten lost trying? What if—What if it was Luca?The thought made my stomach lurch. Victoria’s warnings echoed in my headNo. I shook my head violently. Luca wouldn’t hurt Naomi. He wouldn’t hurt anyone.But another voice, smaller and more insidious, whispered: What if he didn’t mean to? What if the wolf took over? What if his wolf had decided Naomi looked like prey?I had to find her. Had to make sure she was okay.I unzipped the tent as quietly as possible and slipped outside. The forest was darker than I’d expected, the moon barely visible through the canopy of trees.My first instinct was to check Luca’s tent. If something had happened to Naomi, he would have heard it. He would have—Or maybe he was the reason she was gone.The tho

I stared at him, my hands stilling on his chest. “What? But girls are always throwing themselves at you. You dated Amy Peterson last year. Girls practically climb you like a tree at parties or follow you around like lost puppies”“That doesn’t mean I did anything about it.” His thumb traced along my jaw. “I didn’t want with her or them.”“But why? Any of them would—”“Because you’re the only one I’ve always wanted.” He kissed me softly, just a brush of lips. “It’s always been you, Lily. Only you.”His hands slid up my sides, thumbs brushing the edge of my bra, and I gasped at the sensation.“Can I?” he asked roughly.I nodded not trusting my voice. His hands shook as he reached around me, fumbling with the clasp. After a moment of struggle, he pulled back with a frustrated laugh.“I have no idea what I’m doing.”“Here,” I said, reaching behind myself. My fingers found the three little clasps of the hooks easily. “Let me.”The bra fell away, and Luca’s breath caught audibly. His eyes w

The cold morning air sliced through my thin sleep shirt as I stepped into the trees. My bare feet found every rock, every piece of broken bark scattered across the forest floor.“Luca?”Nothing answered back.I pushed deeper, following what looked like a deer path and hoping that was the path he’d taken. Branches grabbed at my hair and I had to duck under a low-hanging limb that scraped across my shoulders.Where the hell was he?I stopped at a small clearing and turned in a slow circle. Empty. Just me and about fifty different ways something could be watching me from the shadows.A twig snapped somewhere to my left.I froze. “Luca, if that’s you, this isn’t funny.”A bird took off from somewhere above me, wings beating hard against the leaves. My heart jumped into my throat before I realized what it was.God, I was jumpy.I kept walking, stepping over a rotting log that squished under my weight. Something moved in my peripheral vision and I spun toward it.Just a branch swaying in th

The car felt smaller on the way home. Like the air had been sucked out of it.I pressed my forehead against the cool window, watching trees blur past. Same trees that had hidden a monster three hours ago. Now they just looked normal. Boring, even.Luca sat diagonal from me, scrolling through his phone like nothing had happened. Like he hadn’t just killed something with his bare hands. Well, not hands exactly. Teeth. Claws. Whatever.But I kept staring at those hands. The same hands that had been claws three hours ago. The same hands that had touched me last night. Now they were just typing a text message, completely human.“Jesus Christ,” Dad muttered, checking the rearview mirror again.That made it the fifteenth time in the last hour. I’d been counting.“Language, honey,” Mom said automatically, but her voice was shaky.“Sorry. It’s just—bears don’t usually get that aggressive. Not around campsites.”“Maybe it was protecting cubs,” I offered.Dad’s eyes found mine in the mirror. “It

It had been eight days since I’d told Luca I loved him in my bedroom. And today is our prom. We’d fought about this, of course we are still us. The night after I’d texted Riley to ask him to take, Luca had cornered me in the kitchen while Mom and Dad were watching TV in the living room.“Riley really?” he’d hissed, voice low and angry. “You asked fucking Riley to prom?”“I had to ask someone,” I’d whispered back. “And Naomi’s not talking to me, so our original plan of going as friends is out. And I would be miserable if I go alone.”“You could have gone alone.”“Right, because that wouldn’t raise any questions. ‘Hey Mom and Dad, I know you’ve been planning my prom for years, but I’ve decided to skip it entirely for no reason.’”His jaw had clenched. “So ask someone else. Anyone else.”“Like who? And don’t say ask you, because we both know that’s impossible.”That had shut him up, but I could see it in his eyes the frustration, the jealousy, the helpless anger at the situation. He’d a