Tame the Beast (Ever After #1) (25 page)

She couldn’t take anymore. Corin was a mess when sober. Drunk, he was dangerously unpredictable. “Stop it!” she yelled, anger ripping through her. “Just stop it!”

For the briefest of moments, Corin paused. Adam barred his shoulder into Corin’s chest, sending him flying backward. Catching his breath, Corin looked between Clara and Adam. Anger flashed in his dark eyes.

“Just leave,” Adam said through strained breath. “You’re not wanted here.”

“What a match.” The ferocity in Corin’s voice sent chills down her spine. He looked at Adam. “The constant fuck up,” he said before turning his gaze to Clara, “and the girl stupid enough to stand by him.”

Clara felt a heavy weight lift off her shoulders as Corin turned toward the stairs. Adam broke the silence as he hurried to her side and asked, “Are you okay?”

Before Clara could answer, Corin rushed forward, catching them both off guard. Something flashed in the light as his fist slammed into Adam’s side. Clara tried to scream, but the sound caught in her throat.

Adam staggered back, and Corin drew his hand back a second time, a sharp blade clutched between his fingers. Just as Corin’s arm swung, Adam charged forward, throwing Corin against the banister with such force the wood cracked.

Screams filled the hall as Corin fell from the second story. Adam staggered again, falling back against the wall.

Clara couldn’t focus on the chaos that buzzed around her. She could only rush towards Adam. Kneeling beside him, her hands fluttered between his face and the blade in his side. Something told her to leave it, but she fought against the desire to take away the pain.

“Somebody help him!” she screamed. “Call 911!”

She heard the distant sound of calls being made as students ran around the house. Some fled the second trouble began like terrified ants losing their prized hill. Others were frozen, still trying to process what had happened.

“Clara,” Adam said. “I’m sorry for—”

“Shhh.” She tried to keep him quiet. On the inside, she was losing her mind, but something told her to keep him calm. If only she could get her hands to stop shaking. “It will be okay. You’ll be okay.”

“No. I—”

“Stop.” Clara covered his mouth with her fingers. “You’re going to be okay.”

She tried not to look at the blood that was soaking into his dark blue shirt. She didn’t want to think about losing him. That would make the tears at the corners of her eyes come rushing down. He was going to be okay. He
had
to be okay.

“Just hold on. You’ll be okay,” she repeated. “Look at me, damn it! You are
going
to be okay.”

Adam’s blue eyes found hers, twitching like he couldn’t focus.

“You’ll be okay,” she said, not knowing if she believed it. But she had to. The alternative would not be accepted.

Clara glanced at his wound and instantly regretted it. He was losing blood fast. If an ambulance didn’t make it soon …

No, she would not think about that.

Swallowing hard, she said, “Hang in there, Adam. Do you hear me? Stay with me. You have to stay with me.”

He slowly nodded, leaning into her arm as his eyelids flickered.

“No,” she cried. “No, you have to stay with me. Please. You have to. I—” Her voice cracked, unable to keep the tears at bay. “I love you.” She didn’t know if he heard her through the broken sobs. “You have to stay with me, damn it! I love you.”

The feeling of helplessness sunk into her every bone. All she could do was hold him tight as his eyelids drifted shut.

Chapter Twenty-Five

Clara paced back and forth along the hallway. A full day had passed, but last night’s events were still playing over and over in her head. She couldn’t believe Corin had been stupid enough to attack Adam, and yet, something told her she shouldn’t be as surprised as she was. Corin was always one fight away from ending up in serious trouble. But this was Adam he’d attacked. Fresh tears fell down her cheeks.

She hadn’t been allowed to ride with him in the ambulance, but Deacon had been sober enough to drive them all to the hospital. Clara could have, but being without a car put her at a huge disadvantage. That and she couldn’t stop shaking.

After hours of sitting in one spot, she had fallen asleep on Rose’s shoulder and hadn’t heard about his condition since. When she had finally woken, Luke, Rose, and Deacon wandered down to the cafeteria for food, but Clara couldn’t stand being away from the waiting room. They’d promised to bring her something back.

Clara turned and began to pace the floor for the umpteenth time when Mrs. Beaumont exited the main hall. Clara froze, watching Angela lean over the nurses’ station. If only she could hear what his mother was saying. Pulling away, Angela turned her attention towards Clara.

Before Angela had a chance to speak, Clara blurted, “How is he?”

“He’s fine. He lost a lot of blood, but no major organs were hit. He was extremely lucky.” A warm smile crept across her lips. “I want to thank you. Adam tells me you were by his side until the paramedics arrived.”

Clara nodded, her voice trapped in her throat.

Angela gestured to a nearby chair. “He also tells me you two have been seeing each other the past few months.”

Now Clara really didn’t know what to say. She began stuttering over her words, but Angela cut her off.

“It’s all right,” Angela said. “I’ll tell you the same thing I told my son. I’m happy for him. In fact, I was thrilled the moment he introduced us. But he is just like his father was. The second you tell him to do something, he does the opposite.”

“I don’t follow,” Clara replied.

“His father wasn’t perfect. He had many faults, and yet I loved him from the moment I met him twenty-four years ago. Even through his affairs, not that Adam ever needs to know that.”

Clara’s jaw dropped. “Affairs? As in …”

Angela nodded. “I never wanted my son to grow up with those same loose morals. I might have been a little hard on him this year, but I thought it was for the best.”

“How—” Clara bit her tongue, unsure if she were about to ask too much.

“Go on,” Angela told her.

“How could you forgive him after that? Edward, I mean.”

“I don’t think I ever did. Not completely. But we had an image to keep. And despite his faults, he was still a good man, and he always provided for his family.” A sad smile spread across Angela’s face, her eyes almost the same beautiful color as her son’s. “Adam’s future was always far more important to me than any infidelity. I’m not excusing my husband’s behavior, but I have always done what I thought was best for my son.”

“Why are you telling me this?” Clara asked before she could stop herself.

“Because years ago my husband’s actions cost him his relationship with Adam. Adam was changed because of it. And not for the better.”

Clara swallowed hard. “You knew about …”

“Vivian?” Angela’s thin brow rose in the perfect arch. “How could I not? It was obvious something big tore apart the relationship between my husband and Adam. Then Adam announced he broke up with her, a girl he was crazy about at the time. It wasn’t hard to put two and two together.” The air around them grew heavy with memories of the past. Angela took a deep breath.

“And you stayed with him.” Clara shook her head, taking it all in. While Adam kept the secret to spare his mother’s heartbreak, she was protecting his future.

Angela nodded. A soft smile grew on her lips. The poised woman Clara knew as Dean Beaumont slipped away, replaced by someone carefree as she said, “You want to know something else? I never liked that girl.”

“What?” Clara asked as if they were a pair of gossiping friends.

“Sure, she was beautiful but just like the rest of them. At eighteen, you’d have thought she was inheriting a crown.” Angela’s tone turned solemn. “Power and money have a way of changing some people.”

Clara’s hands twitched in her lap as she listened. She didn’t know what she had done to deserve such raw honestly from someone as successful and put together as the Angela Beaumont. But perhaps that was why Angela was sharing such intimate details. Adam and his mother lived in a world where eyes were always on them. Had his mother ever been able to open up to anyone about the secrets of her marriage?

The urge to shield them both from the watchful public surged through Clara, and she found herself asking, “Why share this with me?”

Angela held Clara’s stare. “Because I think Adam’s found someone who makes him want to be a better man. And it’s important for her to understand the world he lives in, and the pressure it brings. Although, I have no doubt that she couldn’t handle it.” With another smile, Angela added, “In fact, she could probably handle it far better than I ever could.”

Clara’s cheeks flushed as she realized Mrs. Beaumont was giving her blessing. “Are you still angry at him?” she asked boldly, recalling the rant Angela gave as she’d tore through the hospital looking for her son. Apparently, the sudden airline flight she had to take back to Rouen had not cooled his mother’s temper after finding out her grown child had thrown a party that sent him to the ER.

“I’m just happy he’s okay.” Catching Clara’s gaze, she asked, “Do you love him?”

Clara’s heart almost stopped. Words flew around her head in a jumbled mess. With a deep breath, she replied, “More than anything.”

Angela nodded. “Go see him. He hasn’t stopped asking for you. Demanded, really.”

Clara laughed lightly. Leave it to Adam to lie in a hospital bed and still dish out commands. With unsure legs, Clara walked towards his room.

“There you are,” Adam said as she entered.

“Hey,” she uttered. He looked like a wounded animal. Her throat began to swell again, but she commanded the tears to stay in their place. “Your mom told me to come in.”

“Well, it’s about time. I was dying to see you hours ago. Come here,” he said with open arms. “Good news. Doc says I’ll be okay.”

Clara nodded, taking a seat on the edge of his bed. “Yeah I heard. You lost a lot of blood, but no major organs were hit.”

“Good thing Corin is a lousy shot.”

Clara wanted to laugh with him, but the last few overwhelming hours stole any happiness from her veins. “What’s going to happen to him?”

“Mother said he’s in ICU, but he’ll be okay. Out of campus policy, he’ll be expelled, and we have enough witnesses to press charges. I’ll get off on self-defense, but she also wants a restraining order filed.”

“Good,” she said, smiling at his words.
Guess Momma Beaumont doesn’t like her only cub to be messed with.
She was beginning to like the dean more and more. Fishing for conversation, she added, “Luke and Rose broke up.”

Adam tilted his head. “I figured. Rose is too good for him anyways.”

Still unable to speak, Clara laughed. What did one say after the night they’d had? Her mind soared back to the moment she’d thought she lost him.

“So,” he began, breaking the silence. His grin stretched ear to ear. “Word on the street says you love me.”

Clara’s face flushed red. “You heard that.”

“Wouldn’t mind hearing it again.”

Clara tried to stay calm, but the blood in her cheeks began to rise. She could have lied, but one look into his storm-filled eyes, and there was no denying it. “Fine. I love you, Adam Beaumont. Despite my better judgment, I love you.”

A huge smile flashed across his face as he pulled her into a kiss. “I love you too,” he said against her lips. “And I was stupid to let you go. Clara, I’m so sor-”

“Stop,” she said, pressing her fingers against his mouth. “I know. And, right now, I just want to forget about all this and move forward. With you.”

He replied with a lazy smile that sent her heart into overdrive. Clara pulled away, looking at him like some sort of prize she’d never expected to win. Adam drove her downright crazy, and yet, she couldn't deny the fact that her happiest, most carefree moments always began with him by her side. This was not the way her year at Beaumont University was supposed to be. Nor was she was supposed to fall for Adam, let alone love him, and yet she did. She did with all her heart.

Adam reached for her hand, rubbing his thumb along her open palm. Oh, how easy it was to lose herself in his touch. Desire flashed in his eyes as he pulled her back into the kiss. She responded instantly, kissing him back with everything she had. The heat building inside her was near sweltering, sending her wanton thoughts in all the wrong directions. She knew they would have to take things slow for a while. Still, a girl could fantasize.

"So when do you think you'll be fully healed?" she asked as her hand slid down his chest.

Adam's voice hitched. "Not sure, but I know the nurses said they were done for the day, and visiting hours were almost over ..."

Clara shook her head, laughing. She knew exactly where his dirty thoughts were going. "I don't want to cause you any more pain."

“A little pain might be worth it.” There was a storm brewing in his eyes again.

Clara wanted to argue, but her gaze slipped towards the door of his private room and back to Adam, the man she’d thought she lost forever. She wanted to feel every inch of him against her, feel his heart beating against her chest. "Are you sure?"

A mischievous smile pulled at his lips as he nodded. The heat in his stare ignited every inch of her skin as she moved onto the bed, straddling him. She was careful not to put any pressure on his wound as she leaned forward and pulled him into another feverish kiss. He responded instantly, bringing his hands up to her waist.

Adam pulled her closer for good measure. Despite all his screw ups, she was here. His perfect match. The lady and the temptress. She was the good girl who would be a little naughty just for him, but on top of everything, she loved him. He would be damned if he ever let her slip through his fingers again.

What’s Next?

The Country Rose

Coming Summer 2016

“Come on, baby,” Rose cooed over the steering wheel for the hundredth time. “I know you can do it. We’re only an hour away.”

The car whined as she turned the key with force.