Heart of Stone - Book 1: Fighting Fate

Aubree could feel his presence before she opened her eyes. She didn’t want to leave her little haven, even if it did smell like him and belonged to him. She buried deeper under the duvet, inhaling his scent and smiling to herself.

“Take your time. I got all day,” he murmured.

Her heart fluttered at the sound of his voice.

Dammit. Wasn’t she supposed to be mad at him? Now was not the time to be swayed so easily by his voice alone. Not to mention she was still engaged to Dan.

Taking a few deep breaths, she tried to gather her twisting emotions and smooth them out. It was too early to deal with that kind of drama.

Unfortunately for her, her bladder was going to betray her.

Peeking out from under the plush duvet, she saw him reclining in a chair across from her, his eyes closed, forehead creased, and his fingers pinching the bridge of his nose. Water droplets beaded his hairline with his recently washed hair slicked back on his head. He was wearing a clean pale blue and white T-shirt and faded blue jeans with a rip in one of the knees.

He must have pulled the curtains open as the morning sunlight now streamed through the window and filled the room with warmth.

Birds tweeted and sang outside, a melody she rarely had the pleasure of hearing in the city and she couldn’t help smiling at it as her eyes continued to regard him in silence.

As he leaned back in the chair, she allowed herself a moment to let her eyes roam up his long torso. Even with the T-shirt on, she could make out the ridges of muscle that dipped and curved in all the right places on his stomach. His chest was strong and broad, his arms thick, but not gargantuan that would make her cringe.

She had denied herself the chance to fully appreciate his bare chest when she arrived yesterday evening, but this was good enough for now. It left more to the imagination.

Her eyes flitted once more to his face before her stomach clenched at the deep frown marring her lovely view. She found herself licking her lips, wanting to make it disappear under her gentle caress.

Groaning, she pulled the blanket over her head. What was wrong with her?

“Problem?”

She pursed her lips, peeking out from under the duvet once more. His blue eyes bore into hers and she found it hard to breathe. She reached for the glass of water on the bedside table to ease the dryness in her throat.

“Bathroom,” she said in a raspy voice.

Oh yeah, she sounded lovely this morning. Stupid throat.

He nodded his head toward the door to the adjoining bathroom. “Help yourself. Alistair ran out to the nearest store to pick up something for you for breakfast. He’ll probably buy everything from muffins to eggs, to cereal to pancake mix. Oh, and bacon and sausages. How could I forget the obvious meat options?” He sighed, running his fingers through his wet hair. “So... take your time.”

Tentatively, she pulled herself up, feeling self-conscious in his large T-shirt.

He didn’t notice because he had closed his eyes again and was pinching the bridge of his nose once more. “Wait, he wants to know if you like grits, and what brand?”

“Huh?” Was he using a Bluetooth device or something and talking to him right now? She tilted her head in an attempt to see if she could find anything in his ears, but his hair made it impossible.

As if he sensed her watching him, he looked up and stared at her, his jaw loosening. His eyes roamed up her bare slender legs hanging off the bed to the T-shirt draping loosely over her petite frame before stopping at the purple ring around her neck. Growling under his breath, he tore his gaze away and squeezed his eyes shut.

“Telepathy,” he grunted. “Lycans, like werewolves, share the ability to mentally communicate with other pack members. We call this ability, mind-linking.” He sighed. “Alistair is communicating to me through the mind-link to try and figure out what to buy for your breakfast.”

His eyes shot open suddenly. “Wait, you like coffee and chocolate-covered pastries!”

The alarm on his face was priceless and so adorable that it made her want to jump onto his lap and capture his lips with hers.

That thought only resulted in her crossing her legs and pursing her lips as she looked away at the floor.

She really needed a cold shower now.

The movement didn’t go unnoticed. Peering up through her long eyelashes, she saw his nostrils flaring and his hands grip the arms of the chair tightly. “I’ll take my leave.”

He pulled himself up from the chair without another word and left the room.

Exhaling, and finally able to relax, she hurried into the bathroom on shaky feet to relieve herself and take a quick shower. She didn’t know what to wear, so she put the shimmery blue dress on again since she only wore it for a few hours yesterday.

The mirror revealed that the bruises on her body were turning an even uglier shade of deep purple.

Dan will flip when he sees these, she thought with a sigh. How was she supposed to hide this from him? How was she supposed to keep the vampire threat a secret from him?

Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath and pushed those worries from her mind. She’ll deal with them later.

She paused in the bedroom once she was done as her eyes fell on the box on the bookshelf again. Her heart clenched at the memory of the old photograph and the mysterious poem. Her gaze trailed down to the two black and white photos of Gavin and Gwen and she suppressed the build-up of emotion in her throat.

Turning away, she mentally prepared herself for whatever existed on the other side of the door before she reached for the doorknob.

With a quick twist, she opened the door and looked out into the hallway. Sunlight shone from a window above the stairs and from the many glass panels in the roof above. She glanced into the office next to Stone’s room but it was empty. Heading downstairs, the house seemed eerily silent and the only sounds she could hear were the creaking of the wooden floorboards under her bare feet.

Back on the main floor, she hesitated as her eyes swept around the empty living room. The space was bright and cheerful. She ran her fingers over the back of the first leather couch she came to.

Where was everyone?

A sigh met her ears, followed by the soft scraping of a chair against a tiled floor. Someone was in the kitchen.

Taking a deep breath, she braced herself for whoever was in there, fully expecting to find Stone and his penetrating eyes that always seemed to look deep within her soul.

Relief washed over her when she saw Gwen sitting at the table, her eyelids looking tired and heavy. As she entered, only then did she notice Stone leaning his back against the counter in the corner.

Tensing up as his eyes took her in, he looked away as Gwen pulled herself up straight in her chair and gave Aubree a sleepy smile.

“Good morning,” Gwen said with a yawn. “Did you sleep well?”

Surprisingly, she did despite everything running through her mind, everything that happened, and everything that had to have been taking place outside while she slept. Nodding, she ignored the butterflies that started to dance in her stomach as she felt Stone’s gaze on her again.

“I thought you would.”

“How were things last night?” Aubree asked. She was almost afraid to, but she couldn’t help worrying about it.

“All clear on the home front,” Gwen said. “But I’ll let Papa tell you the rest while I go to bed. I’m beat.”

Gwen scampered off, leaving Aubree alone with Stone.