Clay's Hope (26 page)

I kept cooking. Where was Gabby? I strained
to hear her footsteps as Rachel kept up her one-sided
conversation.

“Shy? Don’t worry. How about I tell you a
little about myself? Let’s see...I’m a nursing student, which I’m
sure Gabby’s mentioned. I’ll be graduating next spring. I love
summer and can do without winter.”

Gabby finally opened the door and stepped
inside. She looked pale again. Definitely exhausted. She glanced at
Rachel then me before moving into the room and closing the door. I
remained focused on the food in the pan while Rachel walked past
Gabby to get silverware.

“You didn’t tell me he could
cook
,”
Rachel said.

“He cooks, he cleans, he warms up my feet at
night, and he keeps the toilet seat down...so hands off. He’s
mine.”

My heart flipped. Rachel laughed good
naturedly, but I barely heard. He’s mine. The words warmed my
insides. Did she realize what she’d said? I turned to look at her.
She met my gaze for a moment before Rachel distracted her
again.

“How you feeling?” Rachel said, touching
Gabby’s forehead. “I asked Clay, but he didn’t say.”

Rachel gave me a pointed look, and I
shrugged and went back to cooking. Everything was almost done.

“Not the best, but it’s getting better. I
think it’s mental exhaustion, nothing contagious.”

“Mm,” Rachel said. “I still think you should
go to the doctor. Could it be something you didn’t think of yet?
Pregnant?”

What the...?

My heart seized, and I dropped the spoon. It
hit the stove, spattered me with potato shrapnel, and bounced back
at me. Swallowing hard, I tried to catch it and fumbled a bit
before my brain started working again and I was able to close my
fist around the wooden handle.

Gabby. Pregnant. The thought consumed me in
the best way. A family. I wanted that. I swallowed again and caught
the silence behind me. Without looking, I went back to stirring the
food.

“No,” Gabby said with a hint of humor. “Now,
behave.”

I turned off the stove and brought the pan
to the table. Rachel thanked me as I scooped a portion onto her
plate. Gabby smiled when I did the same for her. The remaining
food, I dumped onto my own plate.

It wasn’t bad eating with Rachel there. She
kept up the conversation, asking Gabby questions about her weekend
and her day. Her scent told me she really did worry about Gabby. So
did I.

After Gabby finished, Rachel shooed her out
of the kitchen with orders to rest while we cleaned up. Rachel
turned on me with a grin and started talking about a cute pair of
shoes she’d found. As I washed off the stove, I wondered how Peter
put up with such a talker.

By the time we had everything clean, Gabby
was lying asleep across the bed on top the covers.

“Good night, Clay,” Rachel called from her
room just before she closed her door. It was way too early to go to
bed. At least I didn’t have to hide the fact I was spending the
night.

Gently picking Gabby up, I pulled back the
covers. Then I removed her socks. She’d be more comfortable without
her pants, but I wouldn’t be. I pulled the covers up, tucked her
in, and kissed her forehead. Her nose wrinkled in her sleep when my
whiskers brushed her skin. I chuckled and reclined next to her. Not
yet ready to sleep, I read for a while. She didn’t move much, but I
glanced at her often. I had to. With two words, she’d made it
impossible to look away. He’s mine.

I read for a while, slept a bit, then woke
and read some more. The sun rose and still she slept. That was what
she should have done yesterday.

Finally, she yawned, stretched, and opened
her eyes.

“Good morning,” she said, pulling the covers
up to her chin.

I closed my book and studied her. She had
more color back.

“I want to talk to you but keep falling
asleep. If I do it again, wake me up.”

Not a chance. I slid an arm around her and
pulled her against my side. She smiled and relaxed.

“During the Introduction, when I said my
head hurt, I saw a man step away from the line. I know how your
kind views Introductions. It didn’t seem right, so I peeked at his
spark. It hurt like hell, but I saw he had the same color light as
Elder Joshua and the wolf that’d attacked us. I thought maybe it
could be the same guy‒that he needed to leave because you’d
recognize his scent. Then, I saw three more, further away.
Something’s going on, but I can’t figure out what.

“I know you didn’t stay with the pack
full-time, but did you ever notice any of them acting
differently?”

I shook my head, and she sighed. Smoothing
her hair back, I wished I had the answers she wanted.

Her phone vibrated, but she didn’t reach for
it. Usually, only one person called her. Sam.

“If only I could trust Sam. If I could ask
him questions about Elder Joshua without him repeating them, I
might be able to figure this thing out.”

After the way Sam had handled the
Introduction, I wasn’t willing to trust him, either. He’d
jeopardized Gabby’s wellbeing with his need to adhere to our
customs. I wondered how long it would take for the challenges to
resume.

Would he keep them away long enough for her
to fully recover?

* * * *

After almost a full week of silence, Gabby
finally answered one of Sam’s calls.

We were in her room sitting on the bed
reading, as usual, when her phone rang. She stared at it for a
moment, sighed, and picked it up. I stayed where I was and listened
to the stilted conversation. I wanted to know if he’d push the
Introductions again.

After he asked if she was feeling better, he
asked if she’d come back to the Compound over the long Thanksgiving
weekend. She avoided a direct answer, and he tried apologizing for
his actions. She made non-committal noises, obviously still mad and
not yet ready to forgive. Then, he asked what had happened to her
during the last visit.

Our gazes met briefly, and she answered
vaguely that she had been sick. A long moment of silence passed.
When he spoke, he didn’t comment on her answer but asked again that
she consider coming “home” over holiday break. She said she’d think
about it then hung up.

I thought that call was a signal that life
as we’d known it would resume. However, for the next few weeks, no
challengers approached me, and Sam continued to call Gabby daily.
Most of their brief conversations touched on weather, school, or
investments. Anything pack related stayed off limits. He was
genuinely concerned about her, but Gabby had lost whatever trust
she’d once had in him.

She talked to me often, trying to reason out
her ability. She felt certain that the answer lay in the transfer.
So I kept a close eye on her to ensure she didn’t pull that stunt
again. I didn’t leave for work until she left for school, and I
made sure I returned home before she did. I was tempted to follow
her, too, but resisted. It seemed less likely she’d use her
abilities on someone at school. She wanted to study the effect.
That made Rachel the most likely candidate. So, when Rachel was
around, I stayed in my fur. Mostly because I could get away with
more as a dog. But partly because I thought she’d eventually notice
the missing “dog” when I was around. Plus, that woman talked too
much when I was a man.

On one of the rare nights Rachel stayed in,
she started talking to Gabby about me. I lay curled on the floor
next to Gabby, listening and amused.

“You are so weird about him. What is it
about the guy that keeps you coming back?” Rachel sat on the couch,
folding her clothes.

Gabby smiled slightly and turned the page of
the book in her lap before answering.

“You don’t know him like I do.”

“How can you know him at all when you two
don’t talk?”

“You don’t need to talk to get to know
someone. You just need to listen,” Gabby said.

I watched as her eyes stopped moving over
the words in her book. Her gaze met mine, and a smile twitched her
lips. I wondered what thought put it there.

“But that’s what I’m saying. He doesn’t
talk. What are you listening to?”

Gabby laughed. “Actions speak louder than
words. He’s there when I need him, he’s kind and caring, he keeps
me safe; and as you’ve seen, he cooks and cleans. What’s not to
like, Rachel?”

Yeah, Rachel, what’s not to like? I wanted
to hug Gabby. Rachel’s grumbling told me she disagreed with my
suitability for Gabby. So I stood, walked over to her, and lay down
on one of the blouses she was trying to fold. Take that.

She laughed and tried to move me, but I just
laid my head on my paws. I caught Gabby’s wide grin and winked at
her.

Shaking her head, she went to the kitchen
and opened the fridge. I was glad she was looking for more food.
She didn’t eat enough. I’d been stopping at the store after work
trying to tempt her with different things. Mostly, what I bought
went unnoticed. Tonight, though, I was pretty proud of what I’d
found, a big double-chocolate cake. Sure enough, Gabby honed in on
it.

“Can I have a piece of your cake?” she
asked.

“I thought it was yours. It was here when I
got home,” Rachel called back.

I moved off Rachel’s clothes to watch Gabby.
As she continued to stare at the cake, her expression softened.

I smiled. I just needed to be patient a
little longer...

* * * *

My patience paid off when the snow started
to fall the week before Thanksgiving. The wind howled, and despite
having the heat on, it was still chilly inside.

I lay at the end of the bed in my usual
spot. Gabby had just crawled under the covers. Even with her feet
under me, she shivered. I didn’t see how. She wore two or three
layers.

“Screw this,” she said, sitting up. Then,
she pulled off her sweatshirt and tossed it toward the closet.

I lifted my head, watching her and wondering
what she was up to. She lay back down but started wriggling under
the covers. A minute later, her sleep pants sailed across the
room.

“Clay, will you keep me warm tonight?”

What? Hell, yes!

I shifted as I jumped off the bed and
grabbed a pair of shorts to yank on. A second later, I pulled back
the covers and slid in next to her where I belonged. Hopefully she
couldn’t see my toothy grin in the dark. I just couldn’t help it.
She wasn’t sick and she wanted me in bed with her. I wrapped my
arms around her and pulled her close. She snuggled in. I grunted
when the ice cube she called a nose pressed against my bare chest,
but I didn’t let go.

“No more fur at night. Deal?”

My heart felt like it had exploded in my
chest. She was telling me I should sleep with her every night. As a
man. Sure, I knew she only wanted me for my body heat. But I didn’t
care. She could have me in whatever way she wanted me.

She fell asleep quickly while I stayed up
most the night enjoying the feel of her wrapped around me. It was
different from when I’d slept next to her when she was sick. Her
hands moved often, finding a new spot on my chest or waist to warm
themselves. I didn’t want to miss a moment of it.

When her cell rang early, I wanted to groan.
It was Sunday, the day Gabby usually slept in. Bonus snuggle time.
Hiding my disappointment, I quickly reached over her, grabbed the
phone, and handed it to her.

She glanced at the display and frowned.

“Hello?” she said.

“Gabby, I found her, but...”

“Luke?”

I scowled. Why was he calling her?

“Yes. I understand you think she’s
important, but she’s not even eighteen. How am I supposed to get
her to come with me?”

Gabby pulled away from me and sat up. I
grunted, annoyed with Luke.

“I can’t believe you actually found her. I
need to talk to her. If she’s like me, which I think she is, you
had better bring her to the Compound. I hate to admit it, but the
Elders need to know.”

“Fine. You better be there when we get
there,” he said, sounding annoyed.

Good. At least I wasn’t the only annoyed
one. He’d ruined what could have been the best morning of my life.
I refrained from sighing as Gabby got out of bed. At least there
was tonight.

It wasn’t just the next night, but every
night, that Gabby folded back the covers to invite me in next to
her. And, each day I went to work, with no signs of challengers
waiting. I lived in a state of bliss.

Daydreaming of sleeping next to Gabby, yet
again, I barely heard the shop phone ring or Dale’s answering,
“Hello, Dale’s Auto Body.” Last night, she’d been so cold she’d
practically slept on top me the entire time. If I concentrated, I
could still smell her on me.

“Clay! It’s for you.”

I straightened away from the hood of the car
I was working on and frowned. No one knew to call me here. Still, I
went to the phone.

“Hello?”

There was an indrawn breath, then a moment
of silence. The wait wasn’t long.

“Clay, I did it again,” Gabby said, her
voice sounding strained. “I’m at the diner where we had breakfast.
I need you to come get me before it gets worse.”

Damn it. I hung up the phone.

“Dale, I need a ride. It’s Gabby.”

“Okay. Let’s go.”

I jogged out the door, and he hurried to
catch up. Who had she managed to find at the diner? I’d been so
sure she would go after Rachel.

“Where to? Should we call an ambulance?”

“The diner on Main. No. She’s just sick,
again,” I said as he pulled out of the lot.

He just shook his head and kept driving.
When we pulled into the parking lot, I had the door open before he
even stopped.

“Come back when you can. Take care of
her.”

I nodded and leapt out.

Through the window, I spotted her. She
looked pale. Her bottom lip trembled when she caught sight of me. I
pulled open the door and strode to the booth where she sat.