by Sky Winters
“I hope you’re right.”
“Alright, let’s examine you and get some tests on the go.”
Lucy followed his instructions and let him check her over. A nurse came in and took some viles of blood and sent her to the restroom for a urine sample and then he came back in for a bit.
“Really, everything looks good, Lucy. You’re healthy. Your heart rate is solid. Your blood pressure is fine. Let’s get the rest of the tests run through the lab and make you an appointment to return next week.”
“Thanks, Dr. Morton,” she told him, feeling a bit better that at least he didn’t tell her she was half dead already or anything.
Of course, it was short lived as she returned home and continued to feel lousy. It didn’t help when she went to take her birth control pill and realized her period was due. Now, she would feel even worse. She hoped desperately that the doctor would be able to shed some light on her problem when she returned in a few days.
Ryan kept asking if she was okay and she told him she seemed to have a bug of some sort. He’d been really good about taking care of her when he was over but she felt like a pain in the ass and wanted to feel better. Fortunately, by the time her doctor’s appointment rolled around, she seemed to be returning to normal, though her period never had shown up. She’d even taken another one of the pregnancy tests and it had come up negative.
“How are we doing today, Lucy?” Dr. Morton asked when he walked into the exam room.
“I feel much better. I think maybe it may have just been as you said, stress and fatigue.”
“Well, I’ve got your tests back and I have some news for you.”
“Good, I hope.”
“I think so. There are no traces of drugs in your system, so whatever they gave you has flushed itself out.”
“But you don’t know what it was?”
“No. I can send you to a more specialized lab where they can test your hair and tell you if you really need to know, but it shouldn’t be a concern since it’s no longer present.”
“Okay.”
“You are negative for any diseases that could have been passed from a needle or consumed. You said you weren’t sexually assaulted, but I checked for STDs anyway, just to be safe. All came up clean. I also believe I’ve found the underlying reason for your bouts of illness.”
“Oh? Then not just stress or being tired?”
“Well, those are symptoms, but not the cause in this case. Lucy, you’re pregnant.”
“What? No. That’s impossible. I’m on the pill.”
“It’s not 100% effective. I’m sure you know that.”
“Yeah, but is there a chance you got a false positive or something? I’ve missed my period this week and took a test last night. It came up negative.”
“From the drugstore?”
“Yes.”
“Those tests are designed for humans. They don’t always read correctly for shifters. Both your blood and urine possess pregnancy markers. I suggest you follow up with your gynecologist for a full exam and proper care going forward.”
Lucy looked at him, as if it might make him change his mind about the diagnosis.
“Lucy, you said that you were abducted. I’m assuming you were without your birth control pills while there. Have you had sex since then?’
“Yes,” Lucy mumbled, already realizing her mistake.
“And how long had you been taking them again when you had sex after that?”
Lucy was sure her face said it all. She sighed loudly.
“I think you just found your answer to how this might have happened.”
“Yeah.”
“Make an appointment with your gynecologist to discuss your options. I’m sure you are aware that shifter pregnancy progresses at an accelerated rate. The sooner you decide what you intend to do, the better.”
“Okay. Thank you Dr. Morton.”
Lucy left his office in a daze. How was she going to tell Ryan this? He had already made it clear early on that he wasn’t keen on having a family and here she was pregnant before they had even discussed getting more serious about their relationship.
She needed to talk to someone. Since the abduction, she’d hardly talked to Sasha other than in class. Sasha had been offended that she’d just taken off without telling her and let her worry like she had. Lucy wanted to tell her the truth, but knew it was better than she be a bit angry with her than in danger if there was even the slightest chance this might continue at any point.
“Sasha, I need you.”
“What’s wrong?” Sasha asked, sounding like she had just woken up.
“Did I catch you at a bad time?”
“No. Uh, I just had a late night out with this new guy I’ve been seeing and was taking a nap like an old woman. You want to come over?”
“If that’s okay.”
“Sure. I’ll be waiting for you.”
Lucy spilled her guts to Sasha about the baby and how scared she was and Sasha listened intently. It had always been her best trait, listening when you needed it most.
“You don’t have to tell him, you know. You can take care of it and pretend it never happened.”
“I don’t think I could live with myself if I did that. Knowing that I’d ended it without discussing it with him would just eat at me. You know that.”
“Why are you so scared to tell him?”
“I don’t know.”
“Yes, you do. From what I’ve seen, you and Ryan talk about everything, share everything. Why wouldn’t you be able to tell him?”
“He doesn’t want kids. He told me the first night that we went out.”
“Do you want kids?”
“I didn’t think so, but now . . .I mean, I’m scared, but I kind of like the idea. I’d just prefer that I was like normal women and having one instead of maybe a half dozen.”
“I get that, but it’s just life. You have to accept what you’re given. My point is, that you were never keen on the idea of kids either, but now you’re thinking it might just be okay. If you talk to Ryan, there’s a good chance he might think it’s okay too. If he doesn’t and he doesn’t, you’ll make that call together and, if you can’t agree, you might have to make a hard choice.”
“See, that last part is what I’m afraid of. What if I lose him and end up a single mother of six Alphas that I can’t even relate to?”
“Then, I will hold your hand and date only men who can help you raise your little bastard Alphas,” she said.
Lucy laughed, despite herself.
CHAPTER TWENTY
Ryan
Just as Ryan had expected, things weren’t over. Though huge chunks of both drug factions had been hit in the factory explosion, there were still plenty of people out there who fancied themselves the new leader and the turf war between them had continued on for weeks after Jameson and company left this earthly realm.
He and Tate had spent long hours collecting information from various informants and hookers that led them to take out a number of dealers, but new ones continued to pop up. Along the way, he came across associates of the men who had taken Lucy and eventually found out where they were storing and cutting the worst of the Fentanyl backed speedballs. Rather than reporting it in, he put in a call to some of his pack members who had also lost loved ones to this nasty faction of wolves.
Wolves deal with wolves. He might be a cop, but he was a wolf first and this was payback for his brother and for Lucy. At just the right time, he and his pack launched an attack on their warehouse and wiped them all out, setting fire to the place when they were done. When forensics arrived, they would find dead cons, useless drugs and DNA that matched nothing that made any sense to them.
It was the beginning of the end for most of the drug lords on the east side. It would never be a clean place, but the deadly dealers were gone and all that remained were some low level guys that were much easier to track and control. Vice took over most of that for them and begin cleaning up as much as would ever be done
in the area.
“I think this is a good time for me to retire,” Tate told him.
“Not yet,” Ryan told him.
“You can’t retire until after the Valentine’s dance.”
“Surely you don’t think I’m coming to some stupid dance.”
“I do and I’m going to show you why,” Ryan told him, standing by their lockers at the station.
“Oh, I can’t wait.”
Ryan reached into his locker and pulled out a small velvet box, opening it up to show him. Tate smiled broadly.
“I’m going to propose at the dance.”
“Isn’t that a bit overdone? Proposing on Valentine’s Day?”
“Probably, but that dance is the only reason she agreed to go out with me a second time. She felt sorry for me, I think. It seems like the perfect place to propose to me.”
“Haven’t you only been dating this girl for a couple of months?”
“Yes.”
“You don’t think this is a little quick?’
“No. Sometimes, you just know.”
“Well, I guess congratulations are in order then, but I don’t see that I need to be there for it.”
“You’re breaking my heart with your lack of support.”
“Win me back by throwing me a drunken bash for my retirement.”
“I’ll think about it. If you show up at the dance.’
“We’ll see.”
“Yeah. We’ll see.”
Ryan put the ring in his pocket and closed the locker.
“See you tomorrow, old man.”
“See you the, punk.”
Ryan laughed and headed out to his car. He drove over to Lucy’s and parked, already smelling whatever she was cooking before he got to the front door. He let himself in with his key and dropped his keys on the table by the door. Why he even kept his own place anymore was beyond him. He enjoyed it here more and spent most of his time here. He smiled as he considered that it could all change soon enough.
“What are you cooking?” he asked.
“Something simple. Roast chicken, rice and steamed carrots.”
“Sounds . . . healthy.”
“Is that a complaint?’
“No. I would never complain about a free meal, especially one of yours,” he said, kissing her on the forehead.
“Just thought I could stand to eat a little healthier after the way I’ve been feeling lately.”
“I guess it can’t hurt.”
“How was your day?”
“Not too bad. Trying to get Tate to come to the Valentine’s dance. Think I almost have him talked into it.”
‘Is he going to bring a date?’
“I doubt it, but wouldn’t that be something if he did?”
Lucy laughed and pulled the chicken from the oven, taking it over to the table. Ryan picked up the rice and carrots and walked them over.
“You want a glass of wine with dinner?”
“Um, no, but you have one if you like.”
“You sure?”
“Yep. I’m just going to have some water.”
‘Okay. I’ll get you a bottle and a glass,” he told her.
She seemed a bit nervous or something. He couldn’t quite put his finger on it, but he let it go. She’d been a bit jittery off and on since the incident and he’d tried to give her some space to work it out unless she felt up to talking.
“You ready for the dance?”
“Yes. Are you?”
“I am. I don’t think the guys know what to make of me going from having no date to being head over heels. They keep trying to take credit for my happiness.”
“And here I thought I was the one that got credit for your happiness.”
Ryan reached for his wine and took a sip. The words rang hollow. There was definitely something wrong. She wasn’t even making eye contact, instead focused on pushing the food around on her plate, eating small bites here and there.
“What’s up, Lucy?”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, I can tell when there is something on your mind. Spill it, woman,” he told her, smiling.
She sat down her fork and looked across the table at him.
“I’m pregnant.”
Now, it was time for Ryan to put down his fork.
“What?’
“I’m pregnant.”
“What? How? When?”
“Well, I think pregnant is self-explanatory. I suspect you know how and I’m guessing during our little escapades in the safe house. I wasn’t taking the pill during my abduction and we didn’t use protection, which, in hindsight, was a mistake. I wasn’t feeling well a lot, so I went to the doctor and he ran tests. They came back good, except I’m pregnant.”
She was babbling. He could tell that she was overwhelmed and frightened and perhaps he was a little himself, but he there was something else too. He stood up and walked down to her end of the table, where she had begun to cry.
“Lucy, why are you crying?”
“I don’t know. I don’t know what I’m feeling anymore. I don’t have any control over my emotions. I just cry for no reason.”
“Lucy, I love you. If we are going to have a baby, then we’ll have it together.”
“You don’t want a baby.”
“Come here, come over to the sofa with me and let’s talk.”
He helped her up and walked her over to the sofa to sit down, then sat beside her, his body turned toward hers.
“When I met you, I didn’t want a baby. I also didn’t want a girlfriend. I wanted to focus on my job and not have to worry about how that might affect a family.”
“I know.”
“You fucked every bit of that up, Lucy.”
She jerked her head up toward him and he smiled at her.
“And I love you for doing that to me. So, now, we’re going to have a baby and I’ll love that too.”
“What if we have more than one. What if we have five or six?”
“Then I’ll love all of them, when I’m not at my second and third job to support them.”
Lucy looked own again, but he reached out and pulled her chin up toward him.
“We’ll be fine. I’m scared shitless and I know you are too, but we aren’t the first wolves to have babies. We’ll be okay.”
“Okay,” she said meekly.
“Bad news though, you’re going to have to go meet my parents Mom will kill me if we have a baby without telling her first and she’ll kill me twice if I don’t bring you to meet her before we do.”
“Should I be scared?”
“Never. You should never be scared of anything.”
Ryan leaned in and kissed her, his mind racing with thoughts he wouldn’t share with her. He was excited about having babies, it wasn’t that, but he was terrified about how he would take care of them. They would be expensive and he worked in a dangerous world.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Lucy
“I look like a basketball,” Lucy moaned as she slipped the Valentine’s Day dress over her head.
“Don’t be silly. You’re barely even showing.”
She pooched her belly out further and he laughed.
“Everyone is going to know you’ve been naughty,” she told him.
“It’ll give them something new to talk about.”
Lucy smiled.
“I think we need to move into the same house,” he said.
“You do, huh? Don’t we pretty much already live in the same house?”
“Yes, but you’re going to need a lot more help soon and we’ll save money if we live together instead of apart.”
“Which house would you like to live in then?”
“When is your lease up?”
“Whenever I say it is. It ran out a while back and she’s just been letting me rent month to month.”
“Then let’s look for a new place, someplace big enough for us and all these pups we’re expecting to come along. I’ve got a lease, but I can br
eak it.”
“Can we afford a bigger place though?”
“If we can afford two places, then we can afford one bigger place.”
“Yeah, but once I finish school, I’ll lose all my school income. I won’t have any.”
“I guess you’ll have to put that new degree you’ll have to use then.”
She looked at him, terrified at the thought of trying to find a job while nursing a bunch of new pups.
“I’m kidding, Lucy. I have some money saved up. We have enough to make a decent down payment and to keep us going for a while after that. My income from the police isn’t the greatest, but it’s enough to support a family.”
“A large family.”
“Possibly.”
She felt a strange mix of excitement and fear, but nodded at him.
“A new house then?”
“Yes.”
“Wonderful. Now, finish getting dressed so I can show you off to my buddies at work.”
Lucy smiled at him and turned back toward the mirror. She sighed at the obvious pudge in her dress and sat down at the small dressing table that had come with the rental to do her hair and makeup. She walked out into the living room and heard Ryan let out a low whistle.
“Damn, I’m a lucky man.”
“You sure are,” she teased, walking toward him, and smoothing out the collar on his jacket.
“Well, let’s go do this thing,” he said.
The Valentine’s dance was just as cheesy as she had expected it to be, with heart shaped mylar balloons, streamers and a chocolate fountain surrounded by strawberries. The room was filled with everyone from middle aged detectives with beer bellies to young traffic cops who looked like they just left the academy. She’d only met a few of the officers during stops by the station or from the follow up after her missing persons fiasco.
Ryan was very attentive, quickly rectifying that by introducing her all around. Everyone seemed to accept her quickly as a part of their family. It might be very sophomoric little event, but she had to admit it was a good time. She and Ryan danced and chatted with other couples that she could see herself spending time with at some future date.
“Alright, Wilson. Here I am. Now, move over and let me dance with this pretty little wife and kid of yours.”
