by Lucy Rains
A Torn Dream
Book 2
In the JADE Series
By Lucy Rains
Other titles by Lucy Rains
A Broken Jewel
Book 1
In the JADE Series
~For my best friend, my confidant,
my biggest supporter, my lover,
and my eternal companion~
Chapter 1
“You’re not seriously going to buy that are you?”
I eyed the purple orb Pierce held in his hand, the green leathery spikes pointing upward.
“It’s good,” he said.
“It looks like an alien egg,” I complained. “How do you even eat it?”
Pierce picked up two more dragon fruits and dropped them into the plastic bag. “Cut it up, throw it in a smoothie.”
“Do we even have a blender?” Alex asked from behind me. He carefully set down a loaf of bread and three jugs of milk into the shopping cart that Kyson was pushing.
Soft music played overhead and various shoppers shuffled around us as we stood in the middle of the organic market. Pierce continued placing random produce in the basket, ignoring my skeptical glances. After eating nothing but take out for the past three days, Gavin and Pierce had demanded a trip to the store.
“Yes,” Pierce answered, turning and walking over to the leafy greens.
A toddler ran past me as I turned, screeching to his mom about an orange. I simultaneously gasped, yelped, grabbed my chest and jumped. My heart rate went from 80 to 170 and I had to take a second to calm my pulse.
Gavin wrapped an arm around my shoulders, pulling me close to him. My feet were rooted into the floor, my knees locked.
“You’re okay,” Gavin soothed into my ear in a low voice. A volume so low only I could hear.
I forced out a heavy breath and made a mental effort to drop my shoulders. The other guys carried on as normal even though I knew they all felt my panic.
“You know,” Alex said thoughtfully, “I think Jade should start being a little more domestic. Like brushing up her cooking skills.”
I turned and slowly raised an eyebrow at him. Kyson attempted to hide his laugh and coughed into his hand.
“I was raised on a diet of whole grains, vegetables, and simple protein.” My head tilted when I looked at him, as if I was considering his suggestion. “So the first meal I would make would probably be brussel sprouts and boiled chicken.”
Alex blanched, “I’m going to get a pizza.” He quickly pivoted and strode away from us.
“I doubt he’s going to find anything worth his time,” Gavin mumbled.
My eyes darted around the produce section looking for any irregularities or trying to feel out any hostile emotions. Trying to seek out anyone that seemed out of place. The sensation of being watched constantly plagued me. I was unable to calm my senses from being on high alert the second we had left the beach house.
Trying to distract myself, I picked up a tomato and turned it around in my hand, thinking about Alex's comment. We had been living together for over 3 weeks now. Was it wrong that I had never helped with making dinners? Was this something the other guys thought? It hadn’t even occurred to me that I should offer to make a meal. Trying to keep my voice nonchalant I cleared my throat, “Maybe I could start chipping in, you know, making dinner sometimes.”
Blue eyes were suddenly in front of me, as Pierce bent his head to my level and took the tomato out of my hands. “I don’t mind cooking for you. And neither does Kyson.”
“As long as you don’t mind doing the dishes,” Kyson added. “I think this is the cleanest dinnerware and cutlery we’ve ever eaten with.”
Pierce’s sudden nearness brought a flutter to my stomach. Before backing off, he pinned me with a stern look, Don’t worry about it. Alex is just trying to distract you.
He waited until I nodded my understanding, then turned away from me and headed towards the deli section. Kyson pushed the cart to follow after him.
I let out a sigh and turned to Gavin, who had released my shoulders and was still standing quietly. “Where’s the beauty aisle?”
At my question, Kyson and Pierce turned around to look at me. I held up a hand to signal for them to be calm. “I just want to go look for a brush. Mine didn’t get packed.”
They glanced at Gavin and continued walking. I reached for Gavin’s hand and he stiffened as my fingers locked in his. Ignoring his reaction, I led him out of the produce section and towards the sparse beauty section. He was still getting used to simple acts of affection, especially in public.
Keeping my eyes forward, still scanning our surroundings, I directed my question to Gavin, “Is there anything you want to get or look at?”
A shrug was his only response. Gavin had been his quiet, reserved self since leaving Maryland, but with far less tension. His bitterness had eased, the strain in his shoulders gone. I hadn’t even heard him wake from any nightmares.
I, on the other hand, was still working on that.
“I have what I need,” he said quietly, pulling me closer to him as we walked.
We had to squeeze past a lady that held a phone up to her ear and stood in the middle of the aisle we needed to go down. I turned my head up to look at him, wanting to read his expression, but he continued to avoid my eyes.
He stood quietly as I searched through the toiletries, his emotions calm and patient. I found a bamboo paddle brush and a bottle of organic honey shampoo. The shampoo in the rental house smelled like cheap soap and was making my hair a tangled mess.
As I handed the items to Gavin to hold, Alex appeared around the corner. His eyebrows came down into a scowl.
I rolled my eyes, “Give it a rest, no make up in sight.”
“They don’t have any pizzas. At least nothing edible.”
“Define edible,” I said.
His top lip wrinkled, “None without spinach or made out of cauliflower.”
“Well don’t worry, I’m not planning on cooking dinner any time soon.”
He mumbled “Hallelujah,” under his breath, and left Gavin and I standing in our aisle.
I turned to Gavin, “I need to use the bathroom.”
A week ago, I would have told Gavin to go back to Pierce and wait for me. I would have seen the act of me going to use the restroom as a harmless act of privacy. Now, I knew better.
Much better.
He nodded and we headed to the back of the store, him still holding my items.
“You know, it's probably time to go get you some more clothes.” Gavin mentioned casually.
I stiffened and my steps slowed. My heart rate immediately quickened at the idea and I shook my head, “I’m fine.”
“You know you need a swimsuit, right?”
I stopped walking and turned to look at him, his head turned slowly towards me, a small smile tugging at the corner of his mouth that I knew he was fighting to hide.
“The last time I went clothes shopping it didn’t end well.”
He shook his head, “That was Pierce’s fault. It will be different this time.”
I sighed, “I really don’t want to.”
I tried to continue walking forward but Gavin stepped in front of me. “Why?”
My eyes closed and I tried to suppress the memories that pushed at my mind’s surface. “Dress shopping with Kyson ended horribly.”
Gavin let out a big smile at this, “Actually, I heard it ended very well.”
“And then all that money and time I spent shopping with Pierce was a waste and I...,” I swallowed. “I just don’t want to.”
My hand ran over my pony tail as my feet shifted. This was the first time I had left the rental house in two days and it had taken an extrao
rdinary amount of coaxing and eventually threatening to get me to do so. Trepidation had constantly been brimming in the back of my mind since we had hit Georgia. I didn’t know how to fix it, I didn’t know how to calm it. But the idea of leaving the security of our beach house triggered my anxiety to new levels.
Zraa was still out there.
There would be repercussions for our actions.
My hope was that time would ease the post traumatic stress that was holding me down. Unlike the guys, I wasn’t naive enough to think that we were in the complete clear of any threats. So no, clothes shopping was not a high priority for me.
Gavin turned and let me continue walking, but added, “We’ll see how long the others let you live in only two outfits. But a swimsuit is a must. Or I could see if there are any nude beaches around here?”
A flush instantly filled my cheeks and I scowled at the the low chuckle that came from him. He felt every bit of both my anxiety and curiosity at the idea.
“Oh, shut up,” I grumbled as I pushed through the swaying bathroom door.
Thankful for the privacy of an empty bathroom where I could relax the confident expression I was faking, my hands rested on the tiled countertop and I let my head hang low. My eyes closed and my lips parted to release a steady breathe. I tried self mental talk, counting backwards from 100, and rolling my neck around. None of these things calmed me.
A person didn’t see the things I had seen and walk away without scars.
The sense of ease I had felt after leaving Baltimore was short lived. After we ditched the car and picked up another vehicle, sleep came and went as we drove south. I could never fully relax and my mind wouldn't turn off. Second guessing everything I had done at the lab, regretting my actions with my mother. Reliving the horror of almost losing Pierce. And of course, Charles's parting words.
“Not of this world.”
“Think outside of this world.”
My eyes closed and I cringed at the memory. It was so far fetched. So impossible. Not human? From a different planet? It would provide an explanation for so many things. But whether it made sense or not, I didn’t know if I could accept it. The guys had been silent on the topic and I hadn’t tried bringing it up.
I was washing my hands when two girls, early twenties, ripped jeans and midriff shirts came sauntering into the bathroom. Tattoos crawled up the shorter one’s arm, crosses and roses colored in with bright ink. She smacked her gum loudly as she adjusted the leather choker around her neck. The taller one let out a high whistle as she threw her purse onto the counter at the opposite end from me and pulled out a vaping pen. Lust oozed from the pores of their minds and I stifled the urge to cringe in disgust.
“Did you see him?” the tall one asked.
“Kind of hard not to. Didn’t he look like that guy we were with last night?” Shorty responded.
I turned off my water and began pulling out a paper towel.
The tall one, wrapped her long black hair up in a hair tie and stared at her reflection in the mirror. Standing next to each other they looked like sisters, only the shorter one had darker hair and the tall one lacked any tattoos.
Tall sister turned to her purse, “That guy out there? He is way hotter than Mike Whatever from last night.”
My paper towel froze in my hand. My eyes locked with my reflection as I realized they were talking about Gavin.
Shorty pulled out a hideous deep red lipstick and began wiping it over her thin lips. “You should get his number.”
I coughed loudly at this, throwing my paper towels away. The familiar burn of hot jealousy began tingling in my chest.
I needed to leave. I needed to walk away.
But I didn’t.
A desperate urge deep in my mind screamed at me to stay, morbidly curious at their comments.
So instead, I pulled out my own chapstick and began slowly swiping it over my lips.
“Whatever, it was you he was looking at!” Shorty shrieked.
“I know,” the taller one said, snapping her fingers, “tell him you’re having car problems.” She smiled at her idea, “Lets get him under our hood and then get his number.”
The short one gave a throaty laugh and capped her lipstick. “Get him under our hood, that’s good.” She then proceeded to undo her top two buttons of her black knit tank to allow a better view of her bulbous cleavage. She examined herself from the side, “Maybe this will help,”
I stood staring, unable to move. Unable to bring myself to walk away. They were talking about Gavin. My Gavin.
Mine.
My mind was becoming irrational before I could stop it. The burn creeping into my chest. How dare they? I thought. How dare they want to tempt what was mine? To even consider it? My canines sharpened as my mouth filled with saliva.
The tall one seemed to finally notice my presence and scowled at me from the mirror. I stared at her, unblinking, with my hands curled into fists. The ability to leave the bathroom with a clear head was long gone.
“Can we help you?” she asked with a thick layer of attitude.
I swallowed, my chest heaving. I searched for words, trying to come up with a retort, but only feeling the fire in my chest.
“Oh shit, she’s not with him, is she?” Shorty laughed. “Sorry bitch, but your man has wandering eyes.”
My fist connected with her head before I could stop myself. Shorty fell to the floor in a crumpled heap and the tall shrieked as she came at me. My left foot flew up and knocked her jaw so hard she spun sideways, so when I threw a kick into her right knee she never saw it coming. She fell to the floor by her sister, screeching in agony.
The bathroom door flew open, Gavin and Kyson wide eyed and mouths open.
“Jade!” Kyson hissed. “What the hell are you doing?”
I eyed the girls, the tall one crying and grabbing her knee. Blood trickled from her bottom lip, dripping onto the floor. Her sister laid motionless.
The raging fire in my chest had lessened to a small flame and my head was beginning to clear. The longer I stared at the girls, listened to the sobs, the harder my actions came crashing down on me.
The blood, the tears.
I had done that.
I had attacked them.
For what?
“Jade!” Gavin barked, and I pulled my eyes up.
“I...they,” I looked down and back up. My mouth closed and I shook my head. “They were talking about you.”
Kyson knelt down and crouched next to both girls. He laid a hand on the short one, “You gave her a grade 3 concussion,” he turned to the one crying, “and broke her jaw.”
“I’m sorry,” I whispered, shame washing over me. “I just...lost control,” I admitted.
Kyson’s eyes closed and he rested a hand on both girls. The tall one’s tears stopped and her mouth closed as Kyson worked to heal her, easing her pain. The blood drips slowed to a stop and I saw shorty’s eyes blink.
Before I could see anything else Gavin grabbed my hand, yanking me from the bathroom. A few people had gathered by the open door and were trying to look at the scene. I kept my head down, eyes on the back of Gavin’s black Van’s.
What had I done?
My mind felt both Gavin's anger, and Kyson’s shock. I tried shutting off their emotions to my mind, because it was only making my guilt worse.
Gavin continued leading us out of the store, and I expected to be lead to the car. But instead, he pulled us across the front of the store and around the side of the building, away from the parking lot and public view.
He turned towards me, pushing my back against the cinder block wall. “What the hell were you thinking? You could have killed them!”
My mouth pinched shut and I stared at the ground. A flurry of emotions went through me. Frustration, regret... Even though I felt justified for my violence, I knew anything I said would sound unreasonable for my actions.
“Jade,” his hand came up to my chin and forced my eyes up to his. He stood there, waiting.
>
I stood there, shaking. “They were talking about you,” I whispered.
“So what? So you lose control and break their bones?”
My mouth closed again and I looked longingly at the parking lot, wishing we could just go home. Get away from this place and back to the safety of my bedroom. My eyes blinked quickly to fight the tears.
“Talk to me,” he whispered, his tone softening.
My eyes fell into his hazel ones that waited for my response. His strong jaw tight with tension, his dark eyebrows pinched together.
“I knew I should have stayed home,” I grumbled.
“That’s not an excuse.”
My jaw worked as I considered my answer. “I know,” I started slowly, “that if you had heard two guys talk about me the way those girls were talking about you, you would have done the exact, same, thing.”
At my words, I could feel the emotional shift within him. Relenting the smallest bit to my situation.
“Thats-”
“Don’t,” I interrupted. “Don’t you tell me that’s different. Don’t tell me, that if a guy was talking about wanting to mess around with me, wanting my number, you wouldn’t break his face in three different places.”
I knew my words hit their mark, because all the fight left him. Gavin’s eyes fell closed and he leaned his forehead against mine, one hand still holding mine, the other coming up to cup my face. My eyes drifted shut and I savored the nearness of his body to mine.
His head shifted slightly and his lips pressed against mine, his hand pulling my face close to his. When he pulled back, his thumb on my face wiped the small moisture that had escaped from the corner of my eye.
“Gavin! Jade!” Pierce’s voice rang out.
We turned to look at him, stepping away from the wall. When he jerked his head towards the parking lot, Gavin led me forward, still holding my hand. “Swimsuit time.”
I groaned, “Is that my punishment?”
Alex stood by the white Toyota SUV and held the door open for me, a wide grin on his face. “Babezilla strikes again!”
I ignored him and crawled into the back third row, but Alex followed after me. My mouth frowned in obvious annoyance. He ignored my mood and draped an arm over the back of my seat.
