Page 33 of Stone (Claimed and Protected #3)

S tone

“She’s good for you.” Kekoa’s comment shouldn’t annoy me at all, but it did.

“What the fuck did you say to her?”

“You’re in a cranky mood again. What the fuck, bro?” He settled next to me at the bar, turning his attention to the insanity on the dance floor.

I wasn’t certain how to answer him. “Did you ever have the feeling the house of cards you built was about to face a fucking tornado?”

He chuckled. “A bit philosophical today. Aren’t you?”

“This isn’t being philosophical. It’s being realistic. It’s too fucking quiet. Everything is hanging in the air and it pisses me off.” I could feel the storm brewing and it was driving me crazy.

“Just about everything pisses you off. Except for that woman getting ready to slide under that pole right over there.”

“Are you kidding me?” I snapped. “She’s frustrating as hell because she refuses to follow my orders. She’s determined to ignore the danger when she was almost killed by some assholes. She’s rearranged my life and refuses to allow me to stay in a bad mood.”

Kekoa sucked in his breath before bursting out laughing. “You, my friend, have it bad for her. Even worse than what you felt a thousand years ago.”

“No, I don’t.”

“Why are you lying to yourself? What am I saying? You’re both lying to the person inside. I only hope you’re not lying to each other.”

There wasn’t enough whiskey on the planet to keep me listening to dating advice. “Since when did you become the relationship expert?”

He shrugged. “You forget I was the shoulder you sobbed on.”

“First of all, I don’t sob.” Now I regretted telling him anything.

“Just be real with her. You want her in your life, Stone.”

“Yeah, but I’m not good for her.”

“I disagree. The two of you are like Hawaiian magic together. You’re too hard on yourself, bro.”

“Not nearly hard enough.” He knew enough about what I’d agreed to all those years ago and that the subject was now off limits.

I’d spilled my guts during a down time only days after arriving on the island, purchasing a house sight unseen because I’d recently buried my parents and felt like some fucking lost puppy dog.

Not my finest hour. I took a sip of my whiskey, enjoying the smooth taste. The loud cheering and laughter as the limbo dancer fell on his ass barely registered. I only had eyes for the woman next in line. She never stopped impressing me, even when she was pressing every single button.

“As I said, you’re being too hard on yourself. She’s digging you, man. You love her. A match made in heaven.”

I snorted. “I wouldn’t know anything about love.”

“From what you’ve told me, that lady taught you about love. Just don’t look a gift horse in the mouth.”

“No gift horse. Just…”

“Just everything you’ve been pining away for. What did Akoni tell you?”

“That a flight came in late with questionable passengers, two from England, but as far as he could tell, they’re just tourists.”

“But you don’t buy it.”

“Nope. I need to find the connection from Matis to Bradford Vale. Whatever I’m missing could cost Dani her life.”

Kekoa rubbed his chin. “Wow. You’re really worried. Did you ever stop to think maybe you’re looking at the situation the wrong way?”

“Meaning what?”

“You think this is about Vice President Vale’s position in the White House. While he’s been a harsh critic of every revolutionary group, he’s not so far out there a man like Matis should take notice. Maybe this has more to do with the vice president’s past.”

“A Frenchman and a guy born and raised in Virginia? That’s difficult to swallow.” But he did have a point. I’d searched the internet for every foreign affairs opinion Vale had issued over the years, finding nothing useful, at least nothing that would push Matis into creating such a powerful enemy.

Another loud cheer drew my attention. I lifted my gaze to the limbo contest, laughing as I shook my head. “She’s fearless.”

“She’s pretty amazing if you ask me. Maybe you should tell her you think so.” He leaned further in and we both watched as she took her turn. With her lithe body, she easily slipped under the teak pole. “Oh! Would you look at that? She’ll go to the final round.”

“I tell her.” Nope. I’d done nothing more than tell her she was beautiful. I threw back the remainder of my whiskey, wondering how to break through the final barriers we continued to have. Maybe not keeping things from her was my best option.

The collective cheer made her laugh, the lilting sound filtering all the way to where we were sitting.

I was thrilled for her, sticking my knuckle and thumb between my lips and whistling my appreciation. “You go, girl.”

She continued laughing as she took a bow, stepping away as two guests lowered the bar one last time.

“It’s like she belongs here, bro,” Kekoa said in my ear.

I curled my upper lip, giving him a quick toss of my head. “She wants to go back to Paris.”

“I don’t think so.” His voice held a singsong timbre. “But she’s torn.”

“Did she say that?”

“She might have a good opportunity that she’s unsure about.”

Shifting closer, I got in his face. “Spill it.”

“Nope. Like I said. The two of you need to talk.”

Gritting my teeth, I hissed under my breath. I’d sensed something had been on her mind since talking with her friend in Paris. Why wouldn’t she be up front with me?

Well, fuck. The answer was easy. Because I’d been all over the place with my emotions.

“Mind your own business, Kekoa.” I shifted in my seat, prepared to order another drink. I’d covered all the bases and felt secure enough to relax for the evening. However, Bradford’s call had pissed me the hell off. He was hiding something, determined to talk to her and avoid my questions.

I’d point blank asked him who Matis was to him and he’d ignored me. I knew when someone was lying or purposely keeping something from me. He was doing both. His urgency in needing to speak with Dani troubled me the most.

Was Dani hiding something from me as well? I hated myself for thinking that way, but I’d sensed her needing to tell me something from the beginning. Granted, my brooding mood swings hadn’t offered her the most trustworthy opportunity, but she’d also never held anything back from me.

Until I’d started to make her feel as if there’d been someone else. If only she knew how lonely the nights had been. Maybe that was something I should explain to her.

“You should spend more time talking to her, bro,” Kekoa advised. “Your mood swings can be a killer. She’s light and bubbly and you’re like Jack the Ripper.”

“What?” I threw him a harder look, laughing at the same time. He was perhaps the only man who knew how drastic the mood swings were. I could fake it with everyone else, but he’d seen me at my worst.

Which had happened a hell of a lot.

“Just sayin’. A woman like Daniella is tough to find once, let alone twice. If you lose her this time, you’re going to be one miserable son of a bitch to deal with. What am I saying? You are already a miserable son of a bitch to deal with.”

“Fuck you.”

“She’s one great girl.” His eyes narrowed as soon as the words came out of his mouth and instantly, my hackles were raised.

I snapped my head toward her, seeing nothing out of the ordinary. I pushed the empty glass onto the bar, standing and taking a step closer to the makeshift dance floor.

Kekoa was still searching the woods surrounding the dance floor.

“What did you see?”

“Maybe nothing. Some guy standing in the shadows by the tree over there. As far as I can tell, everyone invited to the party is hovering by the bar or surrounding the limbo contest.”

The moment I turned my head looking in the direction Kekoa indicated, someone slipped out of view. The split second was all I needed to confirm it was a man dressed in dark attire. While I hadn’t been able to see his face, I could swear I caught a glimpse of a weapon cast against the torch light.

“Listen to me very carefully. You need to watch her. Do not allow Dani out of your sight.”

“I’ll keep her right here. What are you doing?”

“Catching a monster.” I moved through the crowd, avoiding Daniella’s gaze. As soon as I made it to the clump of trees, I pulled the weapon into both hands. Crouching over, I listened. With the incoming tide and the loud music, it was impossible to make out any abnormal sounds.

I crept through the darkness, heading toward the road. Movement caught my eye and I moved slowly through the trees. The further I got away from the music, the more in tune my ears became to the natural sounds.

A single crack was followed by obviously heavy footsteps. That’s when I took off running. So did whoever I was chasing. I smashed my way through the trees, determined to reach the asshole. The closer I came to the street, the more light was allowed to stream in through the thick tree canopy.

The man I was chasing was powerfully built, but capable of running quickly. I had a hard time keeping up with him, the intruder making enough headway that by the time I broke through the trees, the loud sound of a vehicle door being slammed echoed in my ears.

I rushed forward, lifting the weapon to chest level and prepared to fire. Hissing, I instantly bent my arms and kept running toward the road running parallel to Akoni’s house. The last thing I needed was to fire off a weapon at a party.

While the truck was pulling away and I couldn’t read the license plate, I managed to see the make and model.

It shouldn’t be too hard to find on such a small island. A huge part of me wanted to go after him, but my first priority was Dani. Huffing, I slipped my weapon back into the waistband of my trousers and jogged back to the house.

Kekoa caught me. “What happened?”

“Guy in a Toyota Tundra. Light blue. A newer model.”

“Sounds like a rental. What do you want me to do?”