Shifters Rule (Rule Series) (14 page)

Familiar, cold fingers pulled at him until he sank into comforting darkness.

.

*****

.

Fingers probed his wound, and he gasped.
 
His eyes popped open to find Silver checking the injury.
 
She dabbed the area with a wet cloth.
 
Smiling, she said, “Promise me you won’t ever get hurt again.”

He wished he could.
 
“I’ll be okay.
 
Don’t worry.”

“I know.”
 
She climbed onto the bed beside him, careful not to rock the mattress too much.
 
She reached into her shirt, looped the chain around her thumb and one finger, and pulled the ring out.
 
Her eyes dropped, shy again.
 
“Thank you for this.
 
I think it’s beautiful.”

Not being able to stand or even to sit up was frustrating.
 
He wanted to give her the ring, make it official.
 
“I wish I could get down on one knee.
 
You deserve a romantic proposal.
 
I mean, a pre-proposal.”

“You gave me one.”
 
Her cheeks flushed a soft shade of pink.
 
She played with the ring instead of looking directly at him.
 
“In the dream, you made it perfect.
 
The white horse was incredible.”

“But it wasn’t real.”

“It was to me.”

Elbows on the bed, Jack tried to sit up.
 
Pain shot through him.
 
He bit off a cry and collapsed.
 
He was too weak to do anything more strenuous than sleep.
 
Silver glared at him for trying to get up.
 
She dropped the ring beneath her shirt so no one else would see it.
 

“Don’t try that again,” she said.
 
“You know what silver knives do to your body. You need to rest so you can heal properly.”

He groaned.
 
“How bad is it?”

“The edges are beginning to pulsate.
 
It’s starting to heal.
 
How long did it take last time?”

“Hours for the wound to close, but it was weeks before I felt like myself.
 
Remember when I puked at my birthday party?
 
I had some bad headaches that week.
 
I didn’t know to use your blood then, so maybe this will be different.”

“You’ll be on your feet in no time.
 
I just know it.”

Jack was numbed by how beautiful Silver looked sitting on the edge of his bed.
 
Her honey blond hair fell like a silky curtain, partially hiding her face from view.
 
He reached for the hair and moved it aside long enough for her blue eyes to meet his.
 
Something electric passed between them.
 
In that moment Jack knew he wouldn’t find another girl like her, not if he lived a thousand years.
 
The love he had for her was strong and true.

They were meant to be; it was destiny.

He came to a decision.
 
Fear of the future disappeared.
 
For the first time in his life he believed in destiny.
 
He and Silver belonged together.
 
It was a fact.
 
And now he knew what he needed to do about it.

“Marry me,” he blurted out before he could rethink his position.

Her eyes widened.
 
“What?”

“Before you go away to college, marry me.”

“Are you serious?
 
Or are you delirious again?”

“Yes.”
 
He grabbed her hand and held it firmly between both of his.
 
“I’m serious.
 
Forget the promise ring crap.
 
We can do this.
 
We can make it work.”

Silver pulled away.
 
She got off the bed and walked around the room before zeroing in on his dresser.
 
One by one, she opened the drawers.
 
She took all the clothes out of each and tossed them on top of the dresser.
 
While she talked to him, she refolded each item with neat precision and returned them to the drawers.
 

Jack noticed with amusement how she was separating the clothing by colors.
 
She put black, white, and gray items in the top drawer.
 
She used the second for blue and green stuff, red and brown in the third.
 
Working diligently, she gave him a long list of reasons why they shouldn’t get married.
 
It surprised him because she had told Trina she wanted them to get married before she went away.
 
What had changed her mind?

“Where would we live?” she asked.
 
“How would we live?
 
You just graduated from high school and hunting isn’t exactly a job you can list on your resume.
 
I’ll be struggling with college courses, working hard to keep my head above water, and you aren’t the most understanding person when it comes to academics taking time away from us.

“I won’t have more than a moment to spend with you during my first year or two.
 
Just holidays.
 
Maybe some weekends.
 
And what if I got pregnant?
 
What are we going to do with a baby?
 
I love you more than anything, but I don’t want to give up my dreams.
 
I can’t.
 
I’m sorry.
 
I can’t do it, not even for you.”

Jack’s hope deflated.
 
Rejection stung worse than the knife wound.
 
He certainly hadn’t expected her to say no.
 
She was willing to take the promise ring, but not willing to marry him.
 
What did it mean?
 
Maybe she didn’t have any intention of marrying him ever.
 
She could be keeping her options open just in case she met a better guy.

Silver finished rearranging his dresser.
 
She returned to the bed and stood over him with thumbs locked in her jeans belt loops.
 
“My head is screaming at me to be reasonable and logical and make you wait until I graduate.
 
Trina was right.
 
We are way too young to get serious.
 
But… I love you.”
 
A huge smile transformed her face.
 
“Let’s do it.
 
Let’s get married before classes begin.”

Jack jerked upright, ready to jump out of bed and hold her close.
 
For a moment he forgot he was seriously injured.
 
A fresh wave of pain reminded him.
 
He bit off a curse and collapsed onto the bed again.
 
Her laughter mingled with his.
 
Nothing could ruin the moment.
 
Life was good.
 
He had the girl.
 
What could go wrong?

“I can’t wait to call Trina.
 
She’ll be my maid of honor, of course.”
 
She faltered, and her smile died.
 
“I can’t call her.
 
What am I thinking?
 
Your vampire friend just dumped her.
 
She isn’t going to want to hear about our wedding.”

“Wedding?” a voice squeaked from the doorway.
 

They hadn’t heard the door open.
 
Vanessa stood there, white faced.
 
She turned on her heels and scurried away.
 
Silver raced after her.
 
Jack struggled to get up, but he was still too weak to make it across the room even if he could find the strength to stand.
 
Giving up, he squeezed his eyes shut and rested his head against the pillow.
 

A few seconds later he heard Vanessa’s high-pitched voice yelling something about Silver being too young.
 
Silver fired back with how she was an adult and could make her own decisions.
 
Vanessa told her she couldn’t possibly manage to get good grades and take care of a husband at the same time, not to mention how they still had to save the world from a psychotic werewolf.
 

Jack settled the pillow on top of his head and pressed it down hard until he couldn’t hear anything.
 
He hadn’t meant to start a war between mother and daughter.
 
He should have waited until he was on his feet to propose.
 

The pillow was snatched from his face.
 
Ian hovered over him, twisting the pillow in his hands as if he was imagining it was Jack’s neck.
 
“Unbelievable.
 
You are awake for less than thirty minutes and you already have the house in an uproar.”
 
Ian tossed the pillow aside and sat next to Jack on the bed.
 
“You look better, more color in your cheeks.
 
How do you feel?”

“What do you care?”

“Stop behaving like a child for five minutes and maybe I’ll tell you.”
 
His gaze went to the open doorway.
 
He lowered his voice and leaned closer.
 
“You almost died.
 
Vanessa and Silver took good care of you, and they worked hard to reassure each other constantly, but they couldn’t hide how worried they both were.”

Jack blinked.
 
“So?”

“I was just thinking that anyone who could inspire such passion in two women as remarkable as the Reign women can’t be totally evil.”

“You don’t think I’m a monster anymore?”
 
It was quite a change in attitude.
 
Jack considered the possibility he was either dreaming or delirious.
 

Ian sighed.
 
“No, I don’t think you are a monster.
 
You’ve shown me where your loyalties lie.
 
However, I still think these abilities you have are unnatural.”

“Says the man who burns people with a simple touch.”

“Not people,” Ian corrected.
 
“Werewolves.
 
Sometimes vampires.
 
I do not kill people.
 
If I did, you would have been a pile of ashes a very long time ago.”

A disturbing image sprang to life in Jack’s mind.
 
Anything but comforting, the picture made Jack ask, “Would you really kill your brother’s son?”

“In a heartbeat.
 
I may have changed my mind about you, but I am still going to stop Billy.”
 
He stood.
 
“Get some rest.”

Vanessa stepped into the room.
 
Her deep scowl enveloped Ian first.
 
“Please leave.
 
I have a few things to say to my
future
son-in-law.”

A large lump formed in Jack’s throat.
 
He tried to swallow but couldn’t.
 
He’d never seen Vanessa so angry.
 
The fact it was directed at him set his teeth on edge.
 
Even Ian seemed to be afraid of Vanessa’s wrath.
 
He quickly exited, giving Jack an apologetic look before he went.

Once they were alone, Vanessa closed the door.
 
She turned slowly.
 
Her eyes pinned Jack to the bed like a bug on a wall.
 
She folded her arms over her chest.
 
“Silver tells me you want to marry her before she leaves for college.
 
Do you really think that’s the best move for the two of you?
 
My daughter has worked toward one specific goal her whole life.
 
She decided she wanted to be a lawyer when she was around six, and she hasn’t wavered from the path in all these years.”

It took a great deal of effort, but Jack managed to pull himself into a sitting position, back against the headboard.
 
He took a couple of slow breaths.
 
Beads of sweat made him feel like he needed a shower.
 
Every muscle he owned quivered at the slightest use.

He wanted to make Vanessa understand, but he didn’t know what to say.
 
There probably wasn’t anything he could say.
 
Vanessa was afraid she was losing her daughter.
 
She was afraid he was going to ruin Silver’s life.
 
She had every right to rant.
 
So he clenched his muscles to the point of snapping and prepared himself to listen for as long as she wanted to unload on him.

Vanessa threw her hands up in the air.
 
“What were you thinking when you asked my daughter to marry you?
 
Are the two of you out of your minds?
 
You can wait until she’s graduated from college.
 
I know it seems like a long time from now, but the years will pass a lot faster than you think they will.”

“I love her.”
 
It was the only thing he could think of to say.

“I know you do.
 
She loves you, too.
 
That’s the only reason I’m not killing you right now. The two of you will still love each other in a few years... unless one of you falls in love with someone else.
 
Is that why you want to marry Silver now?
 
Are you afraid of losing her to another guy?
 
Because if you are, that is no reason to get married in a rush.
 
If your love is real, it will still be real after she graduates.
 
If it isn’t real, nothing you can do will save it.”

Was she right?

Vanessa added, “I’ll leave you to think about it.
 
I’ve come to care for you, Jack.
 
I think of you as part of the family already, but don’t push it.
 
You and Silver have years ahead of you, years to make bad decisions.”