Heart of Stone - Book 2: Hearts Collide

Aubree padded into the kitchen, her vanilla-rose scent flooding over him. It took every ounce of strength he had to keep his gaze locked on the leaves blowing gently in the breeze.

She inhaled and moaned. “Mmm... coffee.”

He clenched his teeth at the sound that erupted from her, wanting nothing more than to hear it again as his lips caressed her soft flesh.

At the rate he was going, he was going to need another shower soon.

He listened to her pour herself a cup, his eyes catching and following a little sparrow flitting onto a branch on one of the trees outside. A second one joined the first, flapping around the first before they both took off through the forest.

“There’s cream in the fridge. Eggs in there too. I thought about making breakfast for us, but knowing my tendency to burn things... I figured, I should leave that up to you,” he said, chancing a glance at her.

She peered into the fridge, wearing a yellow sundress that hugged her curves and stopped a few inches above her knees. Her damp hair was pulled back in a braid that draped a few inches over her bare shoulder. She looked fresh and clean, and instinct wanted to tear that dress off and make her hot and sweaty...

He looked away and massaged his forehead. The handle of the mug he held in his other hand made a little cracking sound and he loosened his grip on it before setting it down on the table next to him.

She pulled out a carton of eggs and a little container of cream before she closed the door and turned to him. “Okay. How do you like your eggs?”

He swallowed, still rubbing his forehead as he looked away. “Doesn’t matter.”

She shifted on her feet, a little burst of nervousness tumbling off her. “Do you have a headache?”

He smirked to himself. If only it was that simple. “No. Just hungry.” And not simply for food.

That seemed to eradicate her nervousness and she perked right up. “I can fix that.”

He groaned and opened the sliding door to let some fresh air in. She either had no idea how she affected him, or she was avoiding it altogether.

The fresh air helped to clear his mind a bit and relax his muscles, but what he really needed to do was burn off all this excess energy. Some food would help too.

“How many eggs do you want?” She was still oblivious to his raging testosterone as she began to crack the shells and dropping the yokes into a bowl.

“Make the whole carton,” he grunted. “I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

He felt her eyes staring at him as he stepped outside and began running laps around the perimeter.

As much as he longed to shift into his wolf and take off into the woods, he subdued the urge and focused his attention on the feel of the wind against his skin and the smells of the earth around him. The ground was soft under his bare feet and the jeans rubbed him in places that didn’t need rubbing, but he could feel the tension in his body lifting as his muscles began to sing.

When he could smell cooking eggs in the air, he returned to the kitchen, barely breaking a sweat. Tracking dirt across the kitchen floor, he helped himself to a glass and filled it with water from the dispenser on the fridge. He drank it down while Aubree scraped the scrambled eggs into a big ceramic serving dish.

“Feel better now?” she asked as she set the empty frying pan down.

He refilled the glass with more water. “Yes, a little. Food will help as well.”

She set the dish on the table and searched the cabinets above the sink for some plates and began to pull two out when Stone stopped her. “Take one for yourself.”

Setting one back, she turned to him, her brows knitting together. “What about you? I thought you were hungry.”

“I am. Help yourself to as much as you want and I’ll eat what’s left in the bowl.”

Her eyes widened. “You’ll eat it all?”

He bit down on his lip to hold back a smirk. He would like to eat a lot more than a bunch of eggs, but that was for another day. “Yes. I told you, I’m hungry.”

He wanted to touch her cheek but pulled himself away instead. Turning, he walked over to the table and sat down in front of his mug and a fork she had set for him. She took the seat across from him and set her plate down before dishing out some eggs for herself. Her eyes glanced up at him, asking if he was sure about eating it all.

When she had taken her share, he picked the dish up and set it in front of him and began to eat. From his peripheral vision, he saw her shake her head, an amused smile playing across her lips as she lifted some eggs to her mouth.

“What is it?” he asked.

“Nothing. Just can’t believe you’re going to eat all that.”

“Best to get used to it. We all eat a lot of food here, although it tends to be game out in the woods.”

“So you mentioned before,” she said, looking down to her meal and eating quietly.

The sundress had inch-thick straps and other than that, her shoulders were bare and completely exposed.

Except for a delicate silver chain with a cross pendant around her neck. She hadn’t worn that necklace before, had she?

“Nice necklace.”

She flashed him a bright smile that squeezed his heart. “Thanks. My grandmother gave it to me before she passed.”

He swallowed. “Is it silver?”

“No. White gold. Why do you ask?”

“What carat? Is there any silver in it?”

She shrugged. Her heart began to thump a little faster as she reached up to brush her hair behind her ear, even though it was already pulled back and out of her face. The alteration of her scent matched the nervous gesture.

Stone turned back to his breakfast. If there was any silver content in it, could it help him to keep his hands and lips to himself? Or at least, keep his mouth away from her neck?

“Does silver bother you guys?” she asked after a few moments of silence.

He kept his eyes glued to his food. “Yes.”

“Oh. Um, what happens when you touch silver?” She twisted the pendant around her fingertips.

“It burns. Any jewelry we own is custom made to ensure there is no silver in it.”

“So, that necklace and earrings I wore last week...”

He nodded. “Eighteen-carat white gold. That’s seventy-five percent gold and twenty-five percent platinum.”

He stopped eating and stared at the bowl of eggs.

He had those earrings made for Adelaide during their last visit to the Olde World in the early twentieth century. It had been a spur of the moment decision when they were visiting an Olde Order Council meeting being held in Moscow. They had never seen anything like it. It looked like silver but it didn’t burn their skin. Adelaide had been captivated by it and Stone later went back to talk to the seller about having earrings with pearls made to go with Adelaide’s pearl necklace. The style was so simple and delicate, the maker was worried it couldn’t be done, but he did it.

He cleared his throat. “The earrings, that is. The necklace I made myself and gave it to her after the birth of our son.”

His voice grew heavy thinking about them.

How Adelaide’s warm brown eyes gazed up into his as the newborn pup began to nurse for the first time. How he licked her muzzle affectionately before burying his nose into her neck. How she leaned into him as she began to drift off to sleep from exhaustion. The bliss in his heart was so overwhelming, he thought it would burst and he blinked back his tears of joy.

‘Ya luta ti.’

‘I love you too, Sten.’

Aubree’s eyebrows furrowed. “Son? You mean, Gavin and Gwen?”

He shouldn’t have mentioned it. This time should have been spent thinking about Aubree and the future, not falling back into memories of the past filled with his greatest joy, followed by his deepest sorrow.

How his soul shattered, his heart bled, as he held their lifeless bodies in his arms...

“Never mind. Forget I said it,” he grumbled.

“No, no, wait a second. Did you have another son?” Aubree pressed.

Stone grit his teeth together. “I said, forget it.”

She flinched at his tone, sending a sharp pain through his heart.

He pressed his hand to his face. He didn’t mean to use that tone with her. It was painful to think about them. To talk about the loves he lost. The devastation nearly destroyed him. Losing a soulmate crippled any lycan, but to lose the pup their love created struck just as hard. He grew inside her. She carried him and brought him into this world. Stone watched him grow from a small, hairless pup and into a strong, young male before they were both ripped from his life at the same time.

He gripped his fork tightly in his hand. “I... My apologies. Yes, I had another son. He was my firstborn.” He swallowed as he raked his hands through his hair. “His name was Arthur.”

She reached over and touched his hand holding the fork. Her warmth spread through him. He looked up and saw the sorrow in her eyes. She didn’t ask what happened and he was thankful that she didn’t press further.

“I’m sorry.”

He lowered his eyes as he placed his other hand on top of hers and rotated them so that he held it between his palms. Her hand was so much smaller than his and so soft and delicate. “I don’t want to think about it.”

“I understand.”

[I don’t mean to intrude, Alpha,] came Gunner’s deep voice in his head, [but you have the day off from hunting, and you both could use this time to get to know each other. May I suggest you take her out on a date?]

Stone’s hand met with his face. [Have I been projecting my thoughts out to everyone?]

[No. I’m in the basement.]

That explained it. He heaved a sigh as he pulled his hand away from his face. [Well, that’s somewhat of a relief. I suppose you’re right.]

[You know I am.]

“Stone?”

He looked up to see Aubree’s forehead creased with concern. He gave her a weak smile. “But you’re here now and you’ve had a few rough days, so...” He hesitated, running his fingers through his hair. “Would you like to go out on a date?”

— Schatzi: is a term of endearment, meaning “little treasure” in German