Clay's Hope

by Melissa Haag

  Chapter 16

  I still didn't have the answer when Gabby returned with two steaming plates. With a shy smile, she offered me one then sat on the bed beside me. We ate in silence. It wasn't easy to stay focused on the food. The lingering feel of her lips on mine, her hands on my shoulders, consumed me.

  Her comment about finding my lips rang in my head, too. Could that be her obsession with trimming my beard? Did she want to see my skin so she knew where to bite? A tremor shot through me, and I hurried to eat. I needed to shave.

  Before I finished, I heard Rachel leave. Good.

  Gabby took our plates and left the room. While she washed dishes, I slipped into the bathroom with scissors and a razor.

  I trimmed back the whiskers from around my mouth and shaved everything from my neck. A shudder of anticipation rippled over me as I stared at the exposed skin in the mirror. Now, I was ready for her to bite me and Claim me as her own.

  After a quick shower, during which I heard her pause often outside the door, I dressed and tried to calm myself. Would she Claim me right away? My gut clenched at the thought, then reason kicked in. Probably not. She wouldn't rush into it. But, she might kiss me some more.

  With that thought in my head, I reached for the doorknob but a knock on the front door stopped me from stepping out. I turned back toward the mirror and scowled at myself. Why now? I ran my fingers through my hair in frustration. Unsure if Gabby wanted me to make my presence known, I waited and listened as she went to answer the door.

  At Gabby's faint words, I curled my hands into fists.

  "Morning, Sam. This is a surprise."

  I wanted to curse and hit something. Sam showing up was not a good sign.

  "Um, don't get me wrong, I like seeing you, but is there a reason you're here?"

  The impatience in Gabby's voice helped calm me. She wanted to see me because she knew I'd shaved. For her.

  "We'll wait for Clay," Sam said.

  With a deep breath, I reached for the door.

  Gabby turned to look at me as I padded into the living room. Excitement made her eyes shine. I wanted to go straight to her, wrap my arms around her, and let her inspect me for as long as she'd like. Too bad Sam stood by the door watching us.

  Still, I focused on Gabby as she focused on me. Her gaze took in my clothes then zeroed in on my face, and, lastly, my exposed neck. There, she lingered. My pulse jumped. Could she see what she did to me with just a glance?

  Finally, she met my gaze again and smiled. Behind her, Sam shifted, drawing my attention.

  "You know why I'm here, Clay."

  Gabby glanced at Sam, a trace of annoyance coloring her expression.

  No doubt, he was here because of the challenges. Did he honestly think I would step aside so easily?

  "I'm told you didn't take the news well."

  I shrugged and crossed my arms. I thought I took the news that other men would be coming after my woman with a fair amount of grace.

  Gabby caught my shrug and frowned.

  "What's going on? What news?" she said, glancing between Sam and me.

  "You didn't tell her?" Sam said.

  Crap.

  "He's not talking to me, yet," Gabby said.

  Sam shook his head at me. "You've dug your own hole then, son." He looked at Gabby. "A group of Forlorn have asked Elder Joshua to approach you for an unofficial kind of Introduction. Joshua approved, but he made it clear they were to keep it brief and then leave, unless any of them had a further request of him."

  Anger spiked through me. I still resented how the Elders were handling this.

  A bitter tang reached me, and I realized I wasn't the only one struggling to control myself. Gabby's fists were clenched at her sides as she glared at Sam.

  "I thought I was done with that. We had a deal." She crossed her arms, looking too much like me. "I know I said I was done."

  Sam's expression shifted slightly to one of pity. "Honey, there are rules we must follow to keep peace in the pack. Clay had six months to convince you of his suit. That time has passed. That means unMated can once again approach you, with permission."

  Gabby's face flushed.

  "That's complete crap," she said. "First of all, I didn't reject anyone. Second, no one ever told me about this stupid rule." Her voice rose, and she started jabbing the air with her finger as she made each point. She seemed to realize it suddenly and dropped her hands to her sides again. "You know what? I don't care what the pack rules are. I gave you my word and my time. Now, I expect you to keep yours. I worked hard to get here, Sam. I won't let anyone take this away from me."

  "By not completing the Claim, you've become eligible again. Charlene was granted a special consideration because, at that time, we weren't even sure a Claiming would be possible between a human and a werewolf. Now that we know it is, you fall under the same rules," Sam said.

  "No, I don't. Is this why Clay was beat up?"

  I snorted. Beat up? Sure I was a bit bruised, but she should see the other three. Apparently, making any sort of noise during her current volatile mood was a wrong move because she whirled on me.

  "Feel free to jump in at any time," she said, arching a brow at me. She was beautiful all the time, more so when angry and flushed.

  "Gabby," Sam said from behind her, "it's the reason he's been fighting. He's not relinquishing his tie to you. Every time an unMated shows up here, he will challenge that man for his right for Introduction. Did Clay get beat up? Only as a byproduct of handing out beatings."

  She remained focused on me while he spoke, and as she began to understand, her angry mask fell away, replaced with one of concern. She swallowed hard then turned back to Sam.

  "Why is two years of school too much to ask for?"

  "And after that?" Sam said. "Then you'll want time to establish your career. Let's face it. There will never be a perfect time for this in your life. You just need to make the best with what you have."

  She flushed again and stalked toward him. I moved closer, concerned. In theory, Sam would never hurt her. She was a female and the future of the pack. But he was a werewolf with a temper like any other.

  She poked him in the shoulder.

  "No, Sam, you do. I'm not your pawn in this game you play with women's lives. I went to your Introductions and fulfilled any obligation I felt I owed you for the roof over my head. You have no say in who I see...or what I do, unless you intend to drag me back to the Compound and physically force me to bite someone."

  I'd been silently cheering her on until the last part. The idea of the Elders forcing her to bite someone else ripped a growl from me.

  As if it were a signal, she stepped back and moved closer to me.

  "It's time for you to leave, Sam. Don't come back."

  I could see her words hurt Sam, but I didn't feel any pity for him. He'd brought this on himself by not standing up for her rights, too. His decisions had hurt her.

  "You were never an obligation to me, Gabby." She looked away from him. He looked to me then. "You know it'd be safer for both of you if the Introductions continued at the Compound. If you keep going like this, there might be someone you won't beat. Are you willing to risk leaving her alone, then?"

  Think of her safety.

  I clenched my jaw.

  I am. Sending males to Gabby unsupervised was your choice.

  Gabby glanced at me, her gaze drifting over my bruises before she turned and went to open the door, a pointed demand for Sam to leave.

  "All right, then," Sam said quietly. He walked to the door and turned toward Gabby. "Gabby, call me anytime. I'm here to help you, no matter what you might think right now."

  She nodded, but her eyes glittered with anger. After he walked out and she closed the door behind him, she remained facing the door for a few seconds. I watched her take several long breaths and knew she was trying to calm down. Was she angry at me? I could care less i
f she remained mad at Sam.

  I moved closer, wanting to touch her, but waited.

  She turned to look at me and reached up to run her fingers through the whiskers along my jaw.

  "Much better, but I'm going to keep at you until it's all shaved off, and maybe a haircut, too."

  At her first touch, my teeth lengthened so I showed them to her again.

  She didn't seem to care. She spent time studying my face and tracking her fingers along the skin of my forehead and eye. I knew she was tracing the discolored areas and wished I knew what she was thinking.

  With a sigh, she stepped away. She didn't seem mad. Pensive, maybe.

  "I need to get ready for class. Before I go, would you show me where you got the coveralls from?"

  I smiled slightly and nodded.

  Less than five minutes later, we were pulling up to Dale's shop.

  She was looking around with interest until Dale moved to the partially opened bay door.

  "Dale from the parking lot?" she whispered, looking at me in surprise. I nodded and wondered why she remembered Dale so well. Dale waved when he saw it was me.

  I got out and moved around to open Gabby's door. I knew she was curious, but maybe having her meet Dale a second time wasn't such a good idea.

  Gabby stepped out as Dale walked toward us.

  "Hi there, Gabby. Glad Clay finally brought you around." He held out his hand, and she clasped it briefly.

  Why was I so jealous over a handshake?

  "I have to tell you that I was surprised when Clay showed up and was as good as you boasted. Although, it doesn't look like he's been taking care of your car."

  Bull crap. What was Dale playing at?

  "I'm always running back and forth to my classes. It's hard to give it up for any amount of time." She shrugged. "Speaking of which..." She glanced at me. "I really need to get going, or I'll be late. It was nice seeing you again, Dale. I hope stopping in was okay. I really wanted to see where Clay was working."

  "Stop by anytime." Dale waved as we walked back to the car.

  "I'm sure there was some type of logic to picking that place," she said as I drove home. "Someday you'll have to tell me about it."

  After she dropped me off, I dressed for work. No doubt Dale would have some questions for me.

  When I got there, Dale joked about my black eye and teased about keeping men away from Gabby but otherwise let me work. He wasn't too bad for a human.

  By the time I finished the last work order, I was ready to go home and spend time with Gabby. I couldn't stop thinking about our kiss.

  My distraction didn't keep me from noticing the scent of several wolves in the abandoned building. I rolled my shoulders and cut around back, hoping it wouldn't take me too long to send the new challengers on their way. I didn't like the idea of Gabby spending any time alone in the house. Hopefully, Rachel would be there tonight.