Clayton's Jade (Runes Stone Series) Read online

  The area had several fallen trees and blackberry bushes that started right behind the tasmanian. This was not a good area for a fight, it would not end well. If they went backwards or to the side they would be tripping and or falling into the bushes. If they got to close to the road people would see them. “You know better than that by now. He just beat me to you that’s all. In time you will find out I was the right man for you.” He just stood there with his arms crossed in front of his chest. The way he stood and the look on his face said that he was cocky and knew everything. She hated cocky arrogant men and tended to put them in their place.

  “Not in this lifetime and not the next one either, besides I wouldn’t have let you in the front door of my home let alone answered it. Go home where you belong and get out of my forest.” The predator in her was trying to take over and that would not be a good thing right now. This guy thought she was just some easy female that he could tell what to do and she would do it and that really pissed her off.

  “I will leave when I’m damn good and ready to and not a minute before. You will be mine before this is through. Then I will make you regret everything you’ve just said to me.” He got closer as he was talking to her but she held her ground. The guy might scare the shit out of her but she would be damned if she showed it.

  “Right, like that’s ever going to happen. First off I like men that are clean and take showers on a regular base. You stink to the high heavens. I will never be yours in this life time or in the next. I am not property for someone to claim. Now you need to leave this area or we will help you. You have two days.” She turned and started to walk away when he roughly grabbed her upper arm, and whipped it behind her back until she heard a pop. Fire and pain raced through her arm. She knew he had fractured it but was not worried about it, she healed fast. Then he leaned down and licked her neck. She used her foot and kicked out at him. He was expecting it and moved before she could land a direct hit. Shifting his hand he raked his claws across her back and bit her shoulder.

  “I told you I would leave when I was ready and not a minute before.” Then he shoved her away from him.

  It was about that time that Clayton got angry. She noticed that the eyes on the wolf tattoo on his arm were turning red. For some reason she knew that it did not bode well when that happened. “Clayton?”

  “Back up Kaylee.” His voice had gotten deeper and rougher. His face started to change at first it got longer and wider then fur started to appear all over his body and his hair got longer. On the top of his head there appeared to be a wolf’s head and partial skin with the fur still on it. Both the wolf’s head eyes and Claytons eyes were fiery red. More muscles had expanded his shoulders, arms, legs and abs. The thing was she was still attracted to him even while he was in this form.

  Kaylee knew she should back up, but doing it was a different thing. He seemed to be more pissed off since she had gotten hurt. He didn’t change while they were talking to the tasmanian it wasn’t until the he had twisted her arm and raked her back with his claws. Was he attracted to her too? “Calm down Clayton.” Stepping up to him she touched his arm and looked him directly in the eyes. “I’m ok he did not hurt me very bad. Save this for another day.” He eyes started to turn back into the blue that she could get lost in and then she knew that he was going back to his calm state. They had other things that needed to be done and the tasmanian could take a back burner for a couple of days, then they would deal with him. Now on top of shopping and dinner they had to go patch her up and talk to some of her friends. They were going to need help getting rid of him, at least in his human form. Tugging on his arm she started to pull him back towards the road and to the car. It had been a bad idea to stop and try to talk to the Tasmanian devil but she had to try as that was part of who she was.

  By the time they reached the road he had turned completely back to normal at least for the rest of the world. “Let’s get the cheese then go to dinner and after we eat I need to talk to some of my friends.” Waiting until he got his shirt back on so that she could enjoy the view just a little bit more before it was gone again. What would it be like to just let go for once in her life and take a chance. He already knew she was a cat it could be fun. It was something to think about.

  As they came out of the trees they could see the sky in between the clouds she could see the stars. It looked like little pockets of diamonds in the sky. The area was open with the exception of a few trees. She could see a couple of houses off in the distance but nothing really close.

  After dinner she should would go down to the beach and talk with Todd he would know who to get in contact with. She also had a need to hear the waves as they crashed against the shore then watch as they rolled back out. For some reason the ocean seemed to relax her and she needed it. It felt like her body was in hyper drive and hurting at the same time, she didn’t understand it. The thing was, it was just getting worse and it had started today. Oh well, she would figure it out later when she was by herself.

  They were almost to the cheese company when he talked to her. “Thank you for back there. You know making me calm down. No one has ever been able to do that before.” It was almost like he was embarrassed about it. The thing was there was nothing to be embarrassed about. What happened was just a fact of living for the different types of species that walk the earth. People would freak out if they knew everything that was around them. Their concept of reality was so far off track that it was scary. Things that went bump in the night really do go bump and more.

  “Hey for the time being we are team players and that’s what they do for each other right? Next time it’s your turn.” She thought if she kept it light it would be better for him. If it took him that long to say something it would not be good to go on and on about it.

  “You’re on.” He had a look on his face that said thanks. Then a change of topic could give a person whip lash if they were turning their heads, “So what kind of cheese are we getting?

  “Anything that appeals to you. I like medium cheddar and pepper jack.” Maybe they should get other types of cheese so they had a selection when people started to arrive. Ok, time to breathe through her mouth not her nose. This place had great cheese but the smell was horrible in here. She was watching him as he came into the store and knew exactly when he breathed through his nose. Trying not to laugh was hurting too much and she let loose. She started laughing so hard her whole body shaking. She shouldn’t have done that because of the injuries she had received flared up. His whole face wrinkled up and he turned very pale. “Let’s go outside” He needed to get some fresh air, shaking her head and still smirking they headed outside. “Ok take a couple of deep breathes then we will go back in. This time breathe through your mouth not your nose.”

  Watching him as his chest expanded taking in more air then letting it out was causing her to have breathing problems of her own. “Let’s get this over with. You know I could get even with some of my associates by taking them to a place like this. However, I wouldn’t warn them about the smell beforehand.” He had a good since of humor but even more he loved a good practical joke.

  Opening the door, they walked back into the store and started exploring the different cheeses that the store had to offer. Grabbing a hand basket to put the cheese in, they walked to the side that had Colby and Pepper Jack. Picking up the largest sizes that they had in both she put them into the basket. Suddenly the basket was whisked out of her hand and being filled with sample sizes of different types of cheese by the time he was done the basket was full. Looking at pile of cheese she wondered how she was going to fit that into the refrigerator along with the other things they were going to get at the grocery store. “Did you really have to get that much cheese?” Shaking her head as she walked out of the store.

  “Yes I did. I like cheese and want to try different ones, call it a taste testing, if you will.” Tossing the cheese into the backseat he got into the car.

  Getting into the car she sat down and then using her good arm
she slowly slid the seatbelt over and latched it. At this point she thought the seatbelt was causing more pain than it was worth. Feeling his eyes on her watching her every move then the focus on the spot where the seatbelt settled between her breasts. So he did want her. Hoping that curiosity really didn’t kill the cat she licked her lower lip and waited to see what would happen. When nothing happened she realized that his eyes had never left her breast area. In a way she was disappointed but oh well, maybe later when he wasn’t so fixated she would try again.

  “So are you ready to go eat?” ok so maybe saying that was bad timing considering what he was looking at.

  “Right. Dinner.” He turned and faced the windshield then started the car. She had done that on purpose. When her tongue slipped out between her lips and brushed over them, he thought about grabbing her and tasting what she had just offered him. Knowing that’s what she wanted and not acknowledging it was very hard both mentally and physically. He knew where they were going this time. The name and description told him about where it was. The drive to the Chart Room Restaurant was oddly quiet. She didn’t know what to say and he didn’t say anything. By the time they got to the restaurant she was ready to get out of the car. Maybe being around other people would be good for them right now. They were still getting to know each other and having been thrown together without any choices was not a very good start to anything. The restaurant was packed as it always was, no surprises there. The people were nice and the food was fresh and tasted great. It wasn’t a long wait until they were seated at table that overlooked the dock. Seal were always getting on the dock at this time of night. They were very cute to look at but like any wild animal they were dangerous.

  “So what do you recommend to eat here?” He was looking at the menu as he asked. He had that same look on his face that he had in the cheese store. That would not be good.

  “Why don’t you get a sampler plate that way you have a variety of things to try.” She looked up from her menu and saw that her choice agreed with him. When the waitress came to take their order he ordered the samplers plate along with clam chowder and she ordered steamers with garlic butter and clam chowder. “I will let you try one of my steamers they are the best around.”

  “Just one?” between his pouty face and mischievous hint in his eyes that practically said come on take the bait. What should she say?

  “I will think about it while I’m eating.” smiling at him, she pulled her drink towards her to take a sip.

  He knew that earning her trust was going to be hard, but it would be worth it. Rushing in and taking over was not the way to do things with Kaylee, even if it was part of his nature. He was watching as she as was moving the straw around her mouth while she looked at him. Her teasing was driving him crazy and his jeans were starting to hurt. Desperately wanting to be the straw in her mouth sliding in and out dueling with her tongue, he knew that he wouldn’t kiss her until after dinner. Moving around in his chair he hoped to alleviate some of the uncomfortable tension going on, not that it would, but he had to try. It was either that or reaching below the table to adjust himself. One long night coming up. “So what is your friend like? You know you can’t tell him what’s really going on, right.”

  “Yes, I know however we may need help and he is the contact for all the supernaturals in this area. He is a good person to have on your side.” Noticing the waitress coming towards the table with their clam chowder, she went quiet waiting for her to put the bowls on the table and leave. They had a lot of stuff to talk about, but had to keep their voices low so that other people couldn’t hear them.

  “I realize that we are going to need help to get rid of the Tasmanian and whatever friends he has with him, with the exception of the people that will be directly involved everyone else needs to remain oblivious. Sending people into a panic would not be a good thing not to mention they might think you are crazy and need to go into a mental ward.”

  She didn’t think that her friends would treat her any different. For now she would take his word for it. Most for her friends were shifters like her, just different kinds. Some belonged to pods and some to packs then there were loners like her. They banded together when they needed to which wasn’t often. “Ok, fine we will do this your way and just ask for help with the Tasmanian devil for now. Why don’t we enjoy our dinner then deal with the business end of things afterwards.” She waited till he had the spoon up to his mouth “the only good thing about meeting up with the Tasmanian was seeing you without your shirt.” Finishing the statement as the spoon was in his mouth. He coughed as the hot soup hit his throat and his hand shot out for his drink to cool off his mouth.

  He polished off half of his drink before setting it down. “That was not nice. I mean it was and it wasn’t. You could have waited till I had swallowed my soup. So, did you like what you saw?”

  “I liked everything.” she moved her eyes from his chest until she was looking in his eyes.

  “Everything?” He said smiling.

  “Well everything that I could see, I should say.” Not knowing what was better the soup or the look on his face, she just smiled and took another bite. Dinner was going to be fun, steamers were messy. “Even your alter ego.” She said in between bites.

  “Really. Most people would run and hide.” She could see that he was shocked by the way he was acting. She wondered if it had happened before.

  “You know if most people really saw the true me they would run screaming for their momma’s no matter how old they were. Most people live in their little boxes and never stop to consider what is outside of them. I think most of them would die of a heart attack if they knew what was really out there. I don’t always believe what I’m told, but seeing is believing.” Just as they finished their appetizers their dinners had arrived. In a way she wanted dinner over and in another she didn’t. She didn’t understand what was going on with her, but she was confusing the hell out of herself. One minute she was mad and in the next she was happy. Maybe she could talk to her friend in private and see what he knew or at least could point her in the right direction. For now though let the teasing begin. Using her fork she took the entire steamer out of its shell. Making sure it was on there good she dunked it into the garlic butter in the bowl next to her plate. Then she with as much finesse that she had, which was not much, tried without much success to make it into her mouth without butter dripping down her chin. Ok, now napkin or tongue? She ended up using a napkin to catch the butter as it fell down her chin. Steamers were very good but very messy. After she had her first steamer she dipped another in the butter and offered it to him. He leaned over and took it from her fork. She watched his face as the different flavors and textures burst in his mouth. Now that he had tasted them she realized she would be fighting for a few more bites. He was trying to figure out if she was going to eat all of them. She should have waited until she was full before she let him try them.

  Where in the hell was he putting all the food that he was eating? They only thing she could come up with was that he burned it off in the berserker rage that he had going on. “So what do you think of the steamers?”

  “They are amazing. However, everything that I have tried here has been good. You ummm have butter right …ya …ok you got it.” Yep it was time to shut up. That’s what he was thinking. At least she was using a napkin. If her tongue had tried to get some of the butter he would have had one hell of a wet spot on his jeans to explain. It was taking everything not to pick her and take her to the beach where no one could see them. What he wanted she wasn’t ready for. He had never had a constant hard on during the centuries that he has lived. This was a whole new experience and it was going to drive him insane before too long.

  They both went back to eating their dinners. When she was finished she pushed her bowl of steamers towards him. “They are all yours. I’m stuffed.” She just watched him as he finished off the rest of them then he paid the bill and they left.

  CHAPTER 3

  “So where are w
e heading to next?” He knew they were going to see her friend Brad, but he didn’t know where he lived. He still didn’t know if this was a good idea but he was going to trust her.

  “We need to head over to Pebble beach. He likes to hang out around the rocks.” If there was going to be trouble Brad would help besides if the dreams were right he would have found a stone today. She should have told Clayton about Brad finding the stone, but she wanted to keep him out of it for a while. However, his time was up. He was going to be dragged in kicking and screaming just like she was. There were going to be a lot of people dragged in over the next few years. Since she didn’t have an address to put into the GPS she told him each time he had to turn until they arrived. “Let me talk to him before you get out of the car.”

  The ocean was a deep dark blue that almost bordered black. As the waves raised up the light from the moon caressed it making it glisten in the night. The waves rolled in crashing against the rocks then going back out to the sea. The small rocks tumbled with a clicking noise as they hit other rocks while moving to a new place. If you walked far enough out the rocks made little tide pools which held all sorts of little creatures. She could still get lost for hours looking at the different pools. It was like each one had its own little world to live in.