Clay's Hope (23 page)

Returning with the drink, I set it aside and
sat beside her, gently smoothing back her hair.

I hated this helplessness. Though she’d
explained what she thought had happened, I didn’t know how she
wanted me to handle the situation here. Sam would have more
questions. What did she want me to tell him, if anything?

Sam came in a few minutes later.

“Thanks for bringing her. I’ll care for her
from here.”

Dismissed? Not likely. Angry, I looked up at
him.

Sam sighed.

“Having you here will cause problems she’s
in no condition to deal with. She’s sleeping. I’ll keep an eye on
her. Go get something to eat.”

I didn’t like it, but he was right.

Several hours later, Sam found me in the
room I’d taken for myself.

“She’s asking for you.”

I was up and out the door before he had time
to say more. Based on the last time this happened, she shouldn’t be
awake yet. Was she really better?

Letting myself into the apartment without
knocking, I quietly approached her room. I could hear her moving
around. I stopped at the door and leaned against the jamb to study
her. She was leaning against the bed and digging through her bag.
She moved slowly; and, from the faces she made, her head still
ached.

She caught sight of me, reached into her
bag, and pulled out her pink bikini.

“Really, Clay? You’re killing me. Where are
my jeans?”

Her playfulness, despite her pain, made me
smile slightly. She studied my face for a while. She tended to do
that whenever I pulled my hair back so she could see me. I loved
the attention.

She blinked slowly, and I knew she was still
too tired to be up. Sparing her from further searching, I stepped
close and, without looking away from her, pulled the jeans she
wanted from her bag.

I held them out and tapped my lips, needing
confirmation that she really did want to be with me like she’d said
in the car.

She smiled widely. “A kiss for the
jeans?”

I nodded; but, instead of kissing me, she
pulled the jeans from my hand and tossed them on the bed.

Then she further surprised me by stepping
closer and placing her hands on my chest. Her fingers branded me
through my shirt.

“I don’t need bribes to kiss you, Clay. Come
here.”

My heart burst, and I claimed her lips. She
opened for me, sweetly and willingly, as she curled her fingers in
my shirt. If she thought I’d tried to move away from her, she was
mistaken. I wrapped my arms around her and held her close. Her lips
parted and nibbled at my top lip. She was killing me again. I
reached up to cup the back of her head, wanting more. And she gave
more. Standing on her toes, she slid her arms around my neck and
opened to me further. The feel of her tongue running over my bottom
lip almost undid me.

I growled and struggled not to crush her to
me. When she used her tongue again, I opened my mouth and captured
hers, kissing her like I’d wanted to when she’d first walked out
the Introduction room’s door.

Her pulse jumped wildly, and I knew I needed
to ease off. It was too much for her right now. But, her lips
begged me to stay. With effort, I pulled away. She whimpered, and
pride filled me. She wanted me. She’d told the truth. I just needed
to be patient a little longer and let her get over her fears. That
knowledge eased some of my frustration.

I kissed her cheek, then her forehead,
trying to calm her.

With a shaky exhale, she wrapped her arms
around my waist and rested her head on my chest. I held her close,
waiting for whatever she might do or say next.

Unfortunately, Sam walked into the apartment
before she did anything. She sighed and pulled back. Reluctantly, I
let her go.

She looked up at me.

“Can you come with me for this, or will that
cause more problems?”

“It would be best if he stayed away, Gabby,”
Sam answered from behind me.

She leaned to the side to look around
me.

“I didn’t ask what was best. Best went out
the window years ago, Sam, when ‘making do’ moved in. Is he
allowed?”

Sam sighed. I didn’t turn to look at him. I
kept my focus on Gabby and the emotions playing across her
face.

“It’s allowed. He’s unMated, but he’s
considered rejected. He’ll be challenged by everyone for his place
in the Introduction order.”

She glanced at me. “Do you want to be
there?”

I nodded.

“All right then. Sam, please head over and
get things ready. Clay will walk me there. Clay, I just need to
change, then I’m ready.”

Sam didn’t move, and she arched a brow at
him until he left grumbling about Mating fights and sick women who
didn’t know when to stay in bed.

Gabby turned her arched brow on me. I wisely
retreated so she could change.

From the living room, I listened to her
move. At one point, she sat still on the bed for several minutes.
Sam was right. She should still be in bed. I wasn’t about to tell
her that, though. Instead, I poured her a glass of orange juice and
waited for the door to open.

When she walked out, she didn’t look much
better. Beautiful, as always, but tired and pale.

I offered her the glass of juice. She smiled
and gulped it down.

“I need just a minute in the bathroom. Can
you find my shoes for me?”

Shoes? I watched her use the wall for
support as she shuffled her way to the bathroom. She didn’t need
shoes because she wasn’t going to walk anywhere.

She closed herself into the bathroom, and I
went to her bedroom for her slippers. I listened to the water run
and the soft sounds of her brushing her teeth. Slippers in hand, I
returned to the hall. She wouldn’t like it, but tough. I set the
slippers on the floor so she could step right into them.

By the time the door opened again, she
looked paler. She glanced down at the slippers.

“Where are my shoes?”

I shrugged and pointed to the slippers. I
wasn’t going to negotiate.

She stepped into them without another word,
and before she lifted her head, I picked her up and settled her
against my chest.

“I can walk, Clay.”

I shook my head and moved toward the door.
What she’d done to get to the bathroom hadn’t been walking.

Shifting her slight weight to one arm, I
opened the door and stepped into the hall. She sighed, wrapped her
arms around my neck, and leaned her head against my shoulder. I
loved it. When her fingers started playing with the back of my
hair, I decided I needed to start carrying her everywhere.

The few males we passed in the hall stopped
and stared, their irritation plain. I wouldn’t be welcome at the
Introduction. Carrying her would be an insult to every unMated who
had shown up. I didn’t care. She was mine. They needed to know
that.

At the intersection of halls which led to
the Introduction room, she stopped me.

“No, go outside and around back. I won’t go
in that room ever again.”

Her voice wavered a little at the end, and
my hold tightened. If she didn’t want to go in there, then she
wouldn’t. No Elder would force my Mate.

I turned around and went to the main
entrance. I carefully set her on her feet, grabbed a spare jacket
from one of the hooks, and helped her put it on. She studied me as
I took the time to button it up. Hopefully, she was thinking of
kissing me like I was her. I didn’t try, though. She needed rest,
not a racing pulse.

When I finished, I picked her back up and
carried her outside. She shivered lightly in my arms as I walked
across the dark yard toward the back of the building. Just before
we reached the corner, she patted me lightly on the chest.

“Put me down, Clay. I’ll walk now.”

I stopped but didn’t let go. Why was she
doing this? She was still trembling and weak. She should just tell
Sam to piss off. My fingers twitched as I suppressed the urge to
growl. I could smell the men around the corner. Too many for her to
walk among them.

“It’ll be okay, Clay. There are a lot of
fast people here. I won’t fall on my face.”

I studied her in the moonlight. She gazed up
at me, her expression open. She didn’t want to do this. She was
doing it for me. To keep me safe. I wanted to hug her and hold her
to me. Instead, I did as she asked and set her on her feet.

She walked steadily around the corner with
her shoulders back and head high. I kept close, a secondary
shadow.

Three Elders stood by the back door. They
ignored me and watched Gabby. Gabby ignored them and looked at the
gathered men.

“I’m Gabby. There will be no Introduction
order. I won’t have anyone left out, or leaving without a fair
chance. So, instead of the stuffy cabin, let’s just do this out
here.”

As she continued forward, the males lined
up. She shivered again. It was small, but I noticed. Some of the
men did, too.

“I believe the Elders mentioned I was ill;
so if I start to stammer, bear with me.”

She moved forward, and I stayed close to
her. Most of the men ignored me. A few bared their teeth at me
after she passed. I paid little attention to them or the Elders
trailing behind us. My focus remained on Gabby and the shivers that
occurred with increasing frequency.

Her proud stance melted away with each step,
bowing her back and curving her shoulders. About halfway down the
line, Gabby slowed. I thought she might be ready to call for a
rest, but she didn’t.

The men beyond her watched her with worry as
she stopped completely. Then she gasped, the sound ringing in the
silence, flinched, and touched her head as if in pain.

With a burst of speed, I stood behind her,
ready to catch her. The werewolf she faced looked at me in
confusion, then at her, and finally the Elders who’d quietly
followed us until now.

“Gabby,” Sam said, his voice heavy with
worry and warning. It was too late for that.

She held up her hand.

“A moment, please,” she said, sounding
strained.

I kept my hands out, ready to grab her as
she slowly straightened. She breathed deeply, as if orienting
herself, then glanced at me. Worry filled her eyes. She held my
gaze as if trying to tell me something. What, though? She was weak
from sharing her ability with those women. She wouldn’t have her
pull on men here. Besides, it only seemed to affect human men. No,
it couldn’t be that. Why else would she worry? The answer hit me,
and I looked at the men around us. She’d tried to use her sight.
But why? The males watched us. Nothing seemed out of place.

While I studied the woods, she turned to the
men in front of her.

“I’m sorry. Like I said, I’m not feeling
well. The pain in my head just took me by surprise.”

We all heard the lie in her words, but no
one commented. She took another steadying breath and started moving
again. Only, this time, her progress was slower and her steps more
labored. Tremors shook her, confirming that she’d used her gift and
exhausted herself.

I wasn’t the only one watching her with
concern. Each man she passed glanced at the Elders trailing us, as
if wondering why they hadn’t put a stop to this. I wondered the
same thing.

After a few more steps, Gabby halted.

“A f-face I know. I’m here as
p-promised.”

I eyed the man she stared at. Who the hell
was he and how did she know him?

“I see that, Little One,” he said.
“Although, it looks like you should be in bed, instead.”

Curling my hands into fists, I tried to
control my anger at his use of a pet name.

“I would b-be if people would j-just leave
me alone. B-but it’s not meant t-to be. So, you know my name, but I
d-don’t know yours.”

“Luke Taylor, love.”

Love? I wondered if I could knock his
British accent out along with a few teeth.

Luke-the-Brit held out his hand. Gabby
glanced at it and hesitated. I ground my teeth together, jealousy
ripping through me when she reached forward and wrapped her hand in
his. She paled, exhaled heavily, and swayed on her feet. Luke’s
slight smirk disappeared.

I held myself ready. To catch her. To fight
for her. To do whatever she needed of me.

Gabby’s heart started to beat loudly as if
overtaxed. She made a small sound between a gasp and a moan. I
inhaled deeply and noted her scent had changed, too. Mellowed. I
started to pace just behind her, my focus on both of them.

Luke frowned at Gabby.

“I need to talk to you,” she said, her words
slurred. “Don’t leave until I do.”

Luke looked as surprised as I felt.

“Clay,” she whispered. Her head lolled to
the side as she tried to find me. “Catch me.”

She let go of Luke’s hand and fell against
me.

“Is she okay?” Sam asked. He stood beside
me, his hand extended to touch her forehead.

I couldn’t stop the growl as I lifted her
into my arms and settled her against my chest.

“You pushed this.” A tremor ran over my arm.
Fur appeared and disappeared. “These women aren’t like us. They’re
fragile. You know that. You say you’re protecting them. Who’s
protecting them from you?”

The males around us shifted in agitation.
They were thinking the same thing. The Elders should have put a
stop to this Introduction. They’d all sensed her exhaustion and
witnessed her frailty.

Sam looked down at Gabby, her pale cheek
resting against me, and I had the satisfaction of seeing guilt pass
over his features.

I stepped around him and carried her inside,
hurrying to get to her room. Anyone I passed moved out of our way.
Word of what had happened had already spread.

Charlene stood by the apartment door and
opened it for me. She followed me in as I strode across the small
space to Gabby’s bedroom.

“Do you need anything, Clay?”