Heart of Stone - Book 1: Fighting Fate

Waking up from the dream, Aubree felt a tingling sensation throughout her arm as well as something warm on her hand. Opening her eyes, she saw Stone sleeping in the next bed, facing her, his hand stretched out and holding hers. Not only that, but his bed had been pushed closer to hers as if he had intended to hold her hand as she slept while maintaining a respectful distance.

The tug on her heart at seeing him there made her smile. He looked so peaceful. His face was smooth of stress lines, his lips slightly parted.

It was the first time seeing him in such a calm, vulnerable, peaceful state, and she couldn’t help marveling at how handsome he was when he wasn’t scowling.

Her ogling was short-lived as his eyelids fluttered open.

Feeling her cheeks heat up, she quickly withdrew her hand from his before he was aware of it.

Or so she thought.

“Do you resent me that much?” he grumbled.

She swallowed, or at least tried to, but it hurt her swollen glands.

He was up and handing her a glass of water before she even had the chance to pull herself up and look for it.

“Here,” he said, slipping his hand behind her head and raising her up a bit so she could drink.

She instinctively reached for the glass that he held to her lips and brushed her fingers across his. Ignoring the electricity behind his touch and the butterflies fluttering around in her stomach, she drank carefully, relaxing as the cool liquid eased the inflammation in her throat. When she had enough, she pushed the glass away and he gently set her head back down on the pillow before turning to put the glass down.

“No,” she croaked as he turned back to her.

Flinching at the sound of her own voice, rather than the pain it caused, she saw worry crease his brows as he regarded her. He sat down on her bed next to her, but it was a hesitant move.

Looking away from him, she pursed her lips as the blood rushed to her cheeks again. “I don’t resent you.”

His nearness made her nervous—or rather, stirred up a flurry of butterflies in her stomach into such a frenzy that it was any wonder that she didn’t become nauseous. Her heart palpitated faster when he reached for her hand and entwined his fingers with hers. Looking down at her hand in his, a sense of calm enveloped her. She couldn’t put her finger on it, but something about the simple act of holding his hand made her feel at home. As if her hand was meant to be held in his, and his alone.

“You sure? You won’t change your mind later?”

Surprised by his question, her eyes flicked to his imploring blues. Her breath caught in her throat.

Resent was a strong emotion. Could she resent him later? She didn’t think so, but she couldn’t vouch for the future. She also couldn’t help wondering where he was going with this.

Unable to tear her eyes away from his, she said, “I’m sure.”

Breaking the hold he had on her, he lowered his gaze to her hand in his. “Good,” he said, his voice soft as his thumb stroked the edge of her hand. “I can’t afford to have you resent me now.”

The stroking of his thumb sent tingles up her spine. As much as she wanted to pull her hand away, she couldn’t deny how good it felt.

She should tell him about her engagement. She knew she should. She knew this was wrong. She shouldn’t be holding hands with Stone as if it meant nothing, when it meant so much more than that.

But she couldn’t, and she hated herself for holding the truth back. Why was she hesitating?

She struggled to swallow, to open her mouth and utter the words that clenched her heart, but Stone beat her to it.

“Aubree,” he said, his eyes still focusing on her hand in his. “There’s something I need to tell you.”

“Popsicle time!”

Stone’s hand whipped back as he sprang up from her bed and took a step back.

Likewise, Aubree’s hand flew to her chest as though she might have a heart attack.

Gwen paraded in, beaming a huge devilish grin on her face as she skipped toward them with a box of frozen fruit treats in her hands. She paused at the foot of her bed to look from Aubree’s blushing face to Stone’s.

Wait, was Stone actually blushing?

Aubree felt her heart speed up even more at the thought that he would get embarrassed right now. What was he going to say before Gwen popped in?

“I’m sorry,” Gwen said, despite the obvious fact that she wasn’t sorry at all. “Am I interrupting something?”

Aubree’s eyes flicked from Gwen’s smirk to Stone’s clenched jaw and slightly pink cheeks. Mashing her lips together, she fought back the urge to grin. Was it too much for him to be embarrassed in front of his sister? He would look adorable if he would stop glaring daggers at her.

Silence followed the siblings as they stared each other down. Gwen batted her eyelashes and that seemed to be the last straw for him.

“We’ll talk later,” he grumbled before he stormed out of the room.