Mr. Stone spotted one of your portraits in a gallery….
“Hang on, what’s one of my paintings doing in a gallery?” Jade frowned as she tried to make sense of it. She’d never sold any of her works—not the charcoals, the pen and inks, the exuberant acrylic still-lifes and especially not those two precious portraits: one of her parents and one of Mei.
After her parents had died, she’d found the portrait of them too painful to keep around and had given it to Aunt Lìli. But Jade knew with every of fiber of her being Lìli would never sell it. And the portrait of Mei was hanging in her sister’s—
“I put the portrait you did of me up for sale.”
“Mei! What the hell possessed you?”
Her eyes flashed. “The same thing that possessed you when you quit your studies to look after me. The same thing that possessed you when you looked to re-mortgage our house on the sly. The same thing that possessed you when you went for a job interview in some strange guy’s hotel room instead of doing the sensible thing and meeting him in a public place!”
Total impasse. Two prideful, strong-willed creatures facing off, each intimately aware of the other’s strengths and weaknesses, neither willing to give an inch.
Jade combed her fingers through her hair, too ashamed to meet Mei’s knowing eyes.
“Just because I have crappy kidneys, doesn’t mean I’m deaf or dumb,” Mei said.
“I’ll just fix us all some breakfast, shall I?” Grace eased up from her seat and prudently disappeared into the kitchen.
Jade sighed. “Guess we’re both just as bad as each other, hey?”
Mei’s answering snort said it all. “I think you beat me hands down this time, sis’. How could you even think of putting yourself at risk like that?” Her cocoa-brown eyes sparked with anger. “I don’t care how darn fabulous a job sounds, that was a totally dumb thing to do. Don’t do it again. You hear me? I was worried sick about you until Grace filled me in.”
“Right. So I’ll just wish on a star tonight and when I wake up tomorrow morning, instead of being a barista at Carlo’s Café, I’ll be a high-powered young CEO of my own company with a six-figure salary, and all our financial problems will be solved. Hell, I’ll just buy you new kidneys from a couple of willing donors and hire the best surgeons in the entire world to transplant them. How does that sound?”
“Sounds darn good to me. But in the meantime, you’re being paid to do what you’ve always wanted to do: paint. So suck it up and live with it.”
Mei managed a wan smile after that little speech, and Jade deemed it safe to approach and beg forgiveness. She crawled over and knelt on the floor beside her sister, clenching her hands at her sides to resist the impulse to brush a sweat-dampened lock of hair back from Mei’s face.
“I need you to stop worrying about me, Jade.”
“I promise I’ll try.” An impossible task. Her current job barely covered utilities, and despite her miserly ways, the nest-egg from their parents’ estate was being sucked up at an alarming rate.
“So you’re going to accept Mr Stone’s offer, right?”
Pieter’s good intentions, expertly fabricated from half-truths and secrets, mantled Jade ever more heavily. “I guess I have to.” For now.
A loud rap sounded on the door.
“I’ll get it,” Grace trilled from the kitchen. “What with you two hardly being fit for company and all. At least I’m wearing a robe.” She strolled through the living room, wiping her hands on a tea-towel as she headed for the front door.
Jade heard murmured voices but she wasn’t really paying attention. “I don’t really want to take on this whole commissioning a portrait thing, but it’ll buy us some time, at least,” she said to Mei. “But there’s one condition: I want your painting back from whatever gallery you put it in. No way you’re selling it to a stranger. Deal?”
“Deal.”
“And you’ve got to do whatever Grace tells you if it’s to do with your health. No giving her any grief about meals being too bland and needing more salt. All right?”
“That’s three things, but all right.” Mei’s eyes glowed with affection and the world seemed almost bright again—at least until the next blow fate saw fit to deal them.
When it came to helping her sister, Jade was hardly going to look Pieter’s gift horse in the mouth but she couldn’t help feeling a growing wariness. Where did the hunky, black-leather-clad fly in the ointment fit into all this?
No way was Malach Pieter’s nephew, that much Jade knew. There had to be some major strings attached to this whole crazy scheme. What was Pieter hoping to achieve by throwing them together? She hoped she could resist Malach next time she saw him because there wasn’t room for a man like him in her life.
Mei’s smile faltered. She blinked slowly, and her eyes widened, as if she was unable to believe what she was seeing. Jade suddenly realized Mei was looking past her, over her shoulder.
~~~
Chapter Seven
Jade turned, half-expecting to see Grace standing behind her doing something stupid to try and make Mei laugh. But it wasn’t Mei.
Her body reacted instantly and she lurched to her feet, locking her muscles to prevent herself from swaying like a drunkard. Or falling flat on her face from the shock.
The man standing in the doorway took one step toward her and her limbs turned to jelly. Two steps and her knees gave way.
In a blur of movement he was there, standing right before her, his hands snaking out to grasp her forearms and keep her upright.
“Wh-what are you doing here?” she whispered.
Grace materialized in the doorway, fanning herself with her hands and pretending to swoon. “That’s Malach,” she said to Mei. “Your sister’s date from last night.”
Jade tore her gaze away from Malach’s face in time to see her best friend mouthing, “Way to go, J. He’s hot!” accompanied by more ostentatious fanning of hands. “I’m Grace,” she said, introducing herself because Jade didn’t seem inclined to. “And this is Mei.”
“I am pleased to meet you,” she heard him say. “I am Malach.”
It sounded polite enough but Jade’s full attention had skipped back to her sister. Mei’s gaze darted between Malach and Jade. Her eyes had brimmed with tears and she was biting her lower lip. Jade’s stomach twisted into a knot. She knew her sister well enough to know that Mei grieved for lost possibilities, for boyfriends and lovers she might never have.
Jade grieved with her. “Mei!” All the anguish and despair, all the futile rage she’d tried so hard to suppress since Mei’s diagnosis throbbed in her voice. She tried to wrench herself away from Malach but it was Grace who hurried to Mei’s side, gathered Mei into her arms and comforted her while she sobbed as if her heart was breaking. Grace had seamlessly usurped Jade’s role as mother, sister, confidante. Jade might have hated her friend if it wasn’t for the fact she hated Pieter more for what he’d done to them.
Jade rounded on Malach, glaring up at him. “What are you doing here?”
“We need to talk.”
Only now did she register his modern attire of black boots, worn jeans and a black shirt. Goodness knows where he’d gotten the clothes—or the small suitcase he’d dumped by the door when he’d rushed over to her. Pieter must have waved his magic wand from afar again.
She blinked again, focusing on the man himself. And silently admitted that she preferred him in leather—not that he didn’t look fine in jeans and a shirt. He looked good in modern clothes, really good. But in his traditional garb he oozed strength and confidence. She sighed. She sure could do with some strength and confidence right now.
“So talk,” she said.
“In private.”
Jade lifted her chin. “Here will do just fine. There’s nothing you can say to me that Mei and Grace can’t hear, too.”
He quirked an eyebrow. “Are you sure about that, Jade?”
“Yes. Of course I’m sure.”
He cut right to
the chase. Unfortunately. “Why did you not tell me you were a virgin before we had intercourse?”
She flushed and wished she was anywhere but here. The situation would only be made worse if she tried to deny it, so she bit her tongue and stood her ground. She darted a glance at Mei and Grace. As she’d feared, their eyes were saucer-round.
Grace’s expression segued to “I knew it!” triumph. Mei blotted her tears and smiled at Jade, trying so hard to be brave and not reveal how much she was hurting. If her health continued to deteriorate at this rate, she might not live long enough to even have a boyfriend, let alone lose her own virginity.
God. She was only eighteen. So young, with so much of her life left to live.
Jade wished again—as she’d done so many times—that she was Mei’s sister in truth. Then there would have been a much higher chance she could have been a kidney donor for Mei. Her heart ached anew as she relived the anguish of a family secret blown wide open in cruelest possible of circumstances. That Jade hadn’t been a donor match had been shock enough. But then to discover that the reason why was not just bad luck, but because Mei had been adopted? It’d been a helluva way to learn the truth.
She allowed her anger at her parents for hiding the truth to wash through her. And then, seeing in Mei’s face that her sister knew exactly what Jade was thinking, she leashed it again and banished it to a tiny corner of her mind where it would fester. As it always did.
“I’ve changed my mind,” she said, attempting to free herself from Malach’s confining grip.
“A woman’s prerogative,” he agreed.
“We’ll finish this conversation in private and—”
“Your bedroom’s free.” Grace’s voice squeaked with poorly hidden delight. She’d been nagging Jade to get laid for an entire year and now Jade had taken the plunge, Grace seemed hell-bent on encouraging her to enjoy herself. Thoroughly.
“Your bedroom sounds like a very good place indeed,” Malach said. The suggestion in his voice speared straight to Jade’s currently underwear-free zone, which made the entire situation ten times more shocking.
“Oh, and while you’re there, J, you really should grab another pair of knickers.” Grace tried not to smile too widely at Jade’s outraged expression. “You know, just to help him keep his mind on your… discussion.” Her gaze bored into Malach’s. They sized each other up and nodded, both in perfect accord.
Mei stared at the flimsy skirt of Jade’s dress through slitted eyes. She loosed a strangled squawk, clapping her hands over her mouth she put two and two together. Her eyes sparkled as they sought Jade’s.
Jade groaned. A detailed blow-by-blow account of her recently acquired sex-life would soon be on the agenda for a demanding audience of two.
Malach finally deigned to release her arms. She flounced from the room—make that attempted to flounce, while holding the skirt of her dress tightly down over her butt and thighs. Her exit was accompanied by the muffled giggles of her so-called innocent little sister and the not-so-muffled laughter of her so-called best friend.
The instigator of this whole humiliating situation trailed after her. He entered her bedroom and without a by-your-leave, made himself at home by kicking off his boots and lounging on Jade’s bed while she rooted round in a drawer for underpants.
Undies in hand, she bent to step into them then abruptly realized she had an interested by-lounger. And from his unnatural stillness and the heat of his gaze, he was very interested indeed.
Jade flushed and straightened. She crumpled the panties in her fist and hid them behind her back. “You, stay put. No following me or pawing through my undies or… or… anything else while I’m gone. I’ll be right back.”
“And I will be waiting.”
She fled to the bathroom, making sure to lock the door behind her.
After she’d donned her underwear, hampered by weak-kneed delayed reaction and shaking hands, she examined her face in the mirror. Slashes of hectic color washed her cheeks, boldly highlighting her inner turmoil… and the excitement she didn’t want to admit to.
This would not do. She splashed cold water on her face and willed herself to calm down before daring another examination.
Better. On the surface she looked like she was in control—like someone who could deal with a man like Malach.
She firmly informed her reflection that no way was she buying into this month-long contract rubbish Pieter was peddling. If the old man was going to pay her to paint Malach’s portrait and pay Grace for Mei’s care, then he could show her the money.
Oh, that’s right: there was none. Because the old man had done a runner. So she was going to march into her bedroom and tell Malach the cold hard facts, tell him that she didn’t believe a thing Pieter had told them and he shouldn’t, either. And once she’d gotten that out of the way, she was going to tell Malach right to his face he had to go. He had to leave her alone… or she couldn’t be responsible for her actions.
Ah crap. Grace was right: years of sex deprivation had addled her brain. Now she’d had a taste of it she wanted more. To be quite specific, she wanted more of Malach. But as loudly as her newfound libido called, Mei was the most important person in Jade’s life right now. She couldn’t afford to be distracted by a man—however hot and delectably lickable he might be. However wonderful a lover he might be. They would have to manage without Pieter’s dubious brand of “assistance”. Somehow.
She threw back her shoulders, left the sanctuary of the bathroom, and marched into her bedroom.
Malach’s gaze locked onto hers and all her bravado fled. Who was she trying to kid? Malach had her right where he wanted her. One glance from those “come to bed and I’ll lick you all over” eyes and she was a goner. She’d let him do whatever he wanted again. And again.
“I missed you this morning.” His softly spoken words disarmed her completely.
“I-I’m sorry. I should have left you a note.”
“I have not had the opportunity to learn to read your tongue, so a note would have been of little use. Why did you sneak away like a thief in the night before I awoke?”
“I had things to do. Important things. Things that couldn’t wait.”
His piercing gaze softened. “Your sister. From the look of her skin and eyes, she is very unwell. ’Tis a serious ailment, then?”
“Yes.”
“I am sorry.”
“Me, too.”
“It was unfair of Pieter to suppress your memories of her. If I had known—”
“If you’d known about Mei, you’d have what? Bashed through the door of our hotel suite with your head? That would have really made everything better—you with a broken head and me having to put up with your moaning and groaning.”
His lips compressed. “I am a warrior. I have oft-times ridden into battle with broken bones and other such minor injuries. I do not moan and groan when ’tis simply a matter of ignoring the pain until such time as the injury may be safely tended to.”
Jade rolled her eyes, but it was a struggle to find the sarcasm that she usually hid behind. “Riiight. Well, good for you and all your other idiot warrior mates. I’m sure you’d all fit right in with the guys from Jackass. Look, we were stuck there and there wasn’t anything either of us could do about it. And hey, my—what did Pieter call it again? Oh yeah. My ‘passionate nature’ meant we spent a grand total of one night locked up before I spread my legs and invited you to screw me the required three times. Pieter must be laughing all the way to… to… wherever the hell the old bugger took off to.”
Malach scrubbed his hand through his hair and sighed. “There is no shame in having your character so easily divined by the old man. Pieter has spent centuries observing us. Moreover, he has the assistance of his precious goddess. Mere mortals could never hope to thwart him.”
Questions reeled through her head but tales of goddesses and centuries-old men wreaking havoc upon mere mortals would have to wait. “About this portrait thing. I don’t think it�
�s such a good idea. I mean, I’m sure Pieter will offer me a fair price and all, but what I need is—”
“This.” Malach lifted his hips from the bed to yank a large package from the back waistband of his jeans. He tossed it to her.
She stared at the writing on the package. Jade Liang. That was her, all right.
She tore open the seal. Her head spun. It was stuffed full of money. Large denominations.
She indulged in rose-tinted visions of never having to worry about money again, buying a decent bed for Mei, not having to buy budget brands and obsessively watch her pennies at the supermarket….
Then reality clouted her a good one. If she was lucky it’d cover the bills if—when—a suitable donor kidney was found for Mei. There wouldn’t be anything left over for new beds.
She swallowed, trying to work up enough moisture to speak without croaking. “Where did you get this?”
“I found it at the foot of the bed when I awoke this morning. Along with these clothes I am wearing and other items I needed to cope in this world. Even a temporary abode has been made available for my use—thought I have been unable to discover where it might be situated.” He shrugged. “Doubtless it will be revealed in time. Everything is Pieter’s doing. And knowing the old man as I do, you will find a note of explanation with the currency.”
She peered inside. There was indeed a note, written in a spidery, elaborately scripted hand.
My dearest Jade,
Enclosed is $25,000 in cash, being your fee for a service I would have you perform for me: namely completing a portrait of Malach. He is a complex man and I have faith that you will treat him with the compassion he deserves. He is the unwilling victim of my machinations, so if you must assign blame then ’tis I who must shoulder it.
There is nothing to force you to complete my request, nothing to prevent you from “taking the money and running” as you would say. Goddess knows, neither Malach nor I would blame you for that. But I hope you will see fit to fulfill this commission.
The Crystal Warriors Series Bundle Page 62