B0079G5GMK EBOK (6 page)

“Oh
,
my God,” Clarissa blew out.

“You were amazing!”
yelled Stella
.

“I was terrified. Look at me. My knees don't seem to hold me anymore.”

“Look at me! I'm all jelly,” Stella giggled hysterically. “I couldn't have done that, not ever. Adam looked like a panther that was going to jump on you and mug you at any moment.” Stella tried to say while she burst into laughter.

“I know. I saw that too. Oh lord, I'm never going to leave this toilet, ever,”
said Clarissa
and tried to massage her shaking hands.

They looked at each other and burst into hysterical laughter. Tears flowed from their eyes and they had to grab each other. Otherwise they would've fallen. Occasionally they went silent, but as their eyes met they started to giggle again. Their laughter sounded really hysterical by now, but neither of them could stop.

“Shh, someone's coming,” Clarissa spurted.

“Mmm. Shh,”
answered Stella
and burst into loud laughter.

The door opened and Brianna
was standing in front of
them
like a sign of storm.

“You stupid cow!” She screamed and attacked Clarissa.

“Get off her!” Stella yelled and jumped on Brianna's back.

“Adam is mine!” Brianna yelled and tried to pull Clarissa's long hair.

Luckily, Clarissa was much taller than Brianna, so Brianna couldn't grab her golden hair. As a newborn shape shifter, Clarissa had also discovered some strange strong powers in her, much stronger than a normal human could ever have, so she could easily hold
Brianna away from herself.

“Why would I want any waste of yours?” Clarissa asked tauntingly.

“Adam is no waste! He is mine now. We are a
couple, you moron, so stop your
desperate play of seduction! I will never allow him to be yours!” Brianna shouted loudly.

“I don't have any problem with that. If you think he's yours, he is yours, right?”
said Clarissa smiling
like a little demon.

“You! You devious cow! Keep your hands away from Adam!”

“Oh, that will be easy, but are you sure Adam will keep his hands away from me?”
she
asked sweetly.

“Oh, you truly are an amazing cow!” Brianna raged and tried to attack Clarissa.

At that very moment the toilet door opened and there stood Fabio.

“Ladies.”

“Are you sure you want to keep on yelling? Everyone and I mean everyone, heard what you yelled, including Adam,” said Fabio and looked straight at Brianna.

“Adam,”
said Brianna
with distress.

“Yes, and last I checked he looked really pissed.”

“Pissed,”
repeated Brianna as
panic flashed on her face.

“Stella, come down now,”
ordered Clarissa
and Stella jumped lightly from Brianna's back.

“All fun ends too soon,”
mumbled Stella
, but smiled playfully at Fabio. “Maybe you want to tell us more specifically how pissed Adam truly is?”

Fabio merely
grunted at her. Brianna tried to straighten her creased clothes and clear
the
tags
from her hair with her fingers
before she sneaked out the toilet, embarrassed. When she was gone
, they could hear how Adam raging
at her while Brianna cried, trying to come up
with
at least some kind of explanation.

“That went well,” Clarissa stated sourly.

“Indeed. You must be proud of yourself,” said Fabio and lifted his eyebrows.

“But…
”
started Clarissa
. Stella shook her head surreptitiously and Clarissa shrugged and started to tidy up her face.

Fabio grunted something incomprehensible and left quietly, leaving the embarrassed girls behind. Neither of them said anything, until Clarissa glanced at Stella and noticed that she was holding
back
her laughter. They burst into hysterical laughter. “I heard that,”
echoed Fabio's voice
in Clarissa's mind
,
and she laughed even more hysterically.

The school day was almost over when Clarissa and Stella
finally
dared to come out of the toilet. Th
ey opened the door carefully as
Stella peeked into the hallway.

“All clear,” s
he whispered
,
and they sneaked out.

“I better go home,”
said Clarissa
. She felt exhausted. “I wouldn't want to meet Adam now.”

“Me neither, though this is your mess, not mine,” said Stella and gave her friend a quick hug.

“Take care,” Stella whispered. “And remember to call later! I want to know everything about those handsome friends of yours, who just happened to move here right now and were suitably placed in our classes, when the last time I checked they were already way too full.”

“Ditto and don't worry, I will call you. It's a promise,” said Clarissa and looked longingly after her friend.

Clarissa sighed and dragged herself to the front door. Joshua
was standing
there and he sure didn't look happy. Clarissa glanced at
him and got ready for a heated
admonition sermon. However, he didn't say a thing, and she followed him to his car.

Joshua stayed silent for the whole car trip and she started to get worried. What was wrong with him? She had gone far, maybe even too far, with her play with Adam. Still, this was awkward. Why would Joshua care if she teased Adam? He had to know it was only a game. She didn't mean anything. It had only been
for
fun and Joshua must know that she cared for him, right? Clarissa reached out and touched his cheek. She was quite sure that he would withd
raw from her, but instead he stepped hard
on the break
,
making the car
come to a
screeching
stop in
the middle of the road. Joshua pulled her into his arms and pressed his greedy l
ips on her mouth.
Clarissa pressed herself closer
unconsciously
and wrapped her arms around him. Joshua
deepened the kiss and her
world
spun around. His
hot lips were stuffing her and his tongue seemed to search her mouth inch by inch. His hands caressed her neck and back and she felt small thrills in her lower belly.

He pressed himself closer to her and when she felt how hot and anxious he was, she moved herself as close to him as was possible. Joshua grabbed her buttocks and a frantic growl escaped from his mouth. Clarissa had no will power. Joshua could ask anything and she would give it to him, without a doubt. Her heart yelled that Joshua was not Adam, and still she couldn't detach herself from his embrace. Her soul seemed to shatter into very small pieces and still she stayed in his arms. Somew
here in her mind she heard her m
om speaking and somehow she knew that Joshua
could hear
it too. “Stop! She has not decided yet! She is not yours to take!”

His eyes stayed closed. Clarissa tried to kiss him again, but he didn't kiss her back. “Clarissa!”
echoed Mom's voice
warning
ly
. She ignored it and
gently bit Joshua’s lower lip
. His eyes were closed so tight and his face looked anguished. With an effort he forced him
self away from her and
pressed his head against the car door, frustrated.

“Damn,” he mumbled.

“Ignore her.
She's not here, I am,” she
whispered and tried to touc
h him again. He pushed her away
harshly.

“Sofia is right. I have no right to do this, not yet.”

“What if I announce right now right here, I'll choose you?”

“Are you sure that's what you truly want?”

Clarissa hesitated. She saw Adam in her mind. His wild, black eyes and his cocky smile that he gave just for her. Images flashed. His lips on hers, his hands on her body. No, she certainly was not sure, but Adam was not for her. Couldn't be! Joshua was here and she could count on him like a rock. He would be hers eternally. That would be enough. It had to be enough. She had to forget Adam and move on. Clarissa looked at Joshua and nodded haltingly.

“Yes. I'm sure.”

“I'm sorry, Cl
arissa. Your hesitation reveals
you. I can't do this, I just can't. I want you more than anything, but I need to be sure that you're mine. I don't want to share one bit of you. As soon as you can say without a doubt that I'm the only one you want, I'll take you. But not like this. Not when you
r mind is full of pictures of
another man.”

Clarissa blushed. Why did he have to do this? Why couldn't he just say yes and be happy with that? Her mind was her business and her thoughts about Adam were hers as well. This was not fair! Clarissa stared at her toes for the rest of the drive and when the car stopped,
she ran out and went straight
into her room. Joshua followed into the kitchen, looking angry.

Sofia

“Thank you,” I said.

“For what?” Joshua grunted.

“You know what. You could've just taken her, especially when she said she'd choose you. That
would've been justified, and no
one could've blamed you.”

“That was no choice,” Joshua snorted bitterly. “I don't want to share her, not with Adam or anyone else. How cou
ld I accept that? That was not the choice of a female wolf but the
choice of a little girl. That little girl made that choice with hesitation and would've regretted it later. She was just blinded by lust and even though that was flattering, I just couldn't let her do it. She needs to be sure of what she wants and I need her to be sure she wants me.” Joshua crashed down on the kitchen chair and groped his hair out of annoyance.

“Still. I know how much you want her,” I said and smiled warmly at him.

Tiamhaidh gave Joshua a cup of steaming hot black coffee. Joshua nodded gratefully. Marie encircled Joshua's neck with her hands from behind and pressed her cheek, for a moment, against his cheek.

“That blasted Adam!” Joshua snorted.

None of us said a word. Without Adam, Clarissa would've chosen Joshua already and we all knew that. He wo
uld've been more than welcome in
our family. Now we were in a standoff
for
as long as Adam stayed around, Clarissa couldn't choose. The other males would stick around, sure, but Adam confused her mind so badly that it might take a while before she would be able to choose. I refused to believe that she would choose Adam, but as long as we couldn't be sure of that we just had to wait and hope that Adam would get bored and take off.

Clarissa

The next morning
,
Clarissa went to school with Joshua, just like every morning before, and pretended that nothing had happened. Joshua walked her to the
front of the school
and was about to turn away when Clarissa grabbed his hand.

“Joshua,” she said and looked at him passionately. “Forgive me.”

Clarissa cleaved onto him and pressed her mouth to his. An asphyxiated grumble slipped from his lips
and he surrendered to her
lips. Without even noticing, they clung to each other and lost themselves in an intense embrace.

“Get a room,”
said Stella
and slammed Clarissa's buttocks with her bag.

“Hmm,” Clarissa mumbled confusedly and tried to push Stella away.

“Seriously, that's gross,”
laughed Stella
.

“Stella,” Joshua grunted dangerously.

Stella laughed brightly and ran inside. With an effort Clarissa managed to release herself from Joshua. She looked at him apologetically and smiled with confusion.

“I have to go.”

“Then go.”

“But I don't want to.”

“Go on. I'll be near,”
said
Joshua
, smiling
.

Clarissa stepped closer to him and pressed one last kiss lightly on his lips, then rushed to the door. She turned and watched him go as her eyes met Adam's bleak eyes. He
was standing
in the middle of the yard, staring
at her with rage. Brianna
was hanging
at his arms
,
as usual, trying to convince him to go inside. He shook the whining girl off him as easily as if she were a small mosquito and started to stride towards Clarissa.