Shifters in the Snow: Bundle of Joy: Seventeen Paranormal Romances of Winter Wolves, Merry Bears, and Holiday Spirits

by J. K Harper

  “Oh.” Robin was clearly embarrassed.

  “Christ, I can’t believe you’d do something like this to me.”

  She pointed at her belly. “Don’t forget you did this to me.”

  “And I missed out on…” I looked at her stomach. “On what looks like forty-one weeks of getting to know my kid.”

  “Kids,” she added.

  “What?”

  “There are two of them in there… Surprise!” she said weakly. “And I’m not forty-one weeks along. Speaking of which…”

  I folded my arms over my chest and began to pace. “You’re having my twins,” I mumbled, overwhelmed with the new information. Now, all I had to figure out how to enlighten her on the fact that she was gong to have not just one half-human, half wolf shifter baby, but two. After her nine-month secret, I wasn’t going to take a page from her playbook and leave here without telling her…no matter what the consequences were. “Twins. Two kids.”

  She gripped the door post. “Look, Landon. I really am sorry for how this went down. I should have told you, but I want you to know you don’t have to process it all tonight. You should go home. We can talk another time, like in three or four days.”

  “I’m not going anywhere,” I barked. “Not until I—”

  Robin’s eyes went wide all of a sudden.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Landon…your eyes. They’re glowing.”

  Without looking away, I took a step toward her. “There’s something you need to know.”

  “I already do…and it doesn’t change a thing.”

  “You’re doing it again, Robin…assuming you know things you actually don’t.”

  “This time I don’t believe so,” she countered in her sassy tone.

  “Try me.”

  She smirked. “You’re a wolf shifter. I already knew. So can you like, come back another time to talk? I’ve got some things to do. I have to be somewhere.”

  What the hell? She knew? “How long have you known?” I asked, nervous and paranoid.

  “Since before high school.”

  “But how?”

  “I saw Lucas and Leland doing a ski-less slide down that backcountry trail one winter. They didn’t know I was around. It scared the hell out of me, seeing them change from human to wolves right in front my eyes.”

  “Shit.” This was alarming news. I couldn’t help wondering how many more people may have seen us.

  “The naked part was pretty cool too,” she joked.

  I was not laughing. “Did you tell anyone?”

  “Just my dad. He said he already knew.”

  “What?”

  “Yeah…I really have to go now, Landon. Call me in a week or so.”

  I stepped closer to her and ran a hand through her hair. “You’re carrying my child.”

  “Children,” she corrected me, cheeks flushed.

  “Yes, children. Sorry, it’s still sinking in.”

  “I need to go now.”

  “Fine. I’ll call you to set up a time.”

  “Awesome. Take care.”

  I returned to my truck, then turned to ask her if she wanted me to drive her to wherever she was in such a hurry to get to. Panic flew up my spine when her grip on the doorpost slackened, and she slumped to the floor.

  Chapter 12

  Landon

  Settling Robin to sit on the floor in the doorway, I hurried to the car for my medical bag and raced back to her. Seeing her there, flopped against her front door, just about did me in.

  “Robin, I’m still here. I’ll just take a look at you to make sure you’re safe to move, all right?” All she did was groan as I slipped the blood pressure sleeve up her arm. “I’ll check your vitals and then have a quick listen to the baby.”

  “Babies,” she mumbled.

  “That’s right. The babies.”

  “All right. Your heart rate and blood pressure are good,” I told her. “I’ll just lift your top up a bit to see how babies are doing. The heart rate is good. One-forty-two. It’s excellent. Let me check for the other one.” I moved the stethoscope around to her side. “One-thirty-five. In the normal range too. Perfect, just like their momma.”

  “Suck-up.”

  Well, she was definitely coherent.

  “I need to check the first baby’s position, Robin…so I just need to slide your skirt up a little…and move aside your—”

  She slapped my hand. “It’s not like you haven’t seen it. Go ahead. Rip off the panties and play around in my vagina.”

  I had no words.

  “The closest baby’s head is down,” I informed her after my check-up. “You’re safe to move. Let’s get you to the hospital, okay? It’s best if I drive you.”

  “I think it’s time for the babies to get here,” she said absent-mindedly.

  “It is.” Hooking an arm under her legs at the knees and slipping the other behind her back, I picked her up and carried her to the passenger seat of my truck. “Are you dizzy at all?”

  “Mmmm…no. Just…fat,” she groaned.

  “You’re not fat, doll. You’re pregnant, and gorgeous, I might add. Did you pack a bag for the delivery?”

  “Yep. Closet. Front door,” she muttered without opening her eyes. “Purse and keys are in the kitchen.”

  “Great. I’ll lock up.”

  “You should hurry, Landon. Another contraction is coming…ouch!” she suddenly cried out.

  “Your contractions started?”

  “Yesssssssssss!”

  “How far apart?”

  “Every five or six minutes! Owwwwwww!” she screamed in pain.

  “Breathe, Robin. Breathe…just like you practiced.”

  “Heee heee hooooooo…heee heee hooooooo—owwwwwww!”

  “Close enough. Jesus, why didn’t you tell me this before? I’ll get your stuff!” I gunned it inside, practically vaulting over furniture to get to the kitchen, darting my eyes every which way until I found her purse and keys. Rushing back to her front door, I grabbed the pregnancy hospital bag and pulled the door behind me before racing to my car again.

  “We’re all set. I’ll get you over to Reno General. Your water hasn’t broken, by any chance. Has it?”

  “It has,” she confirmed.

  Jesus Christ. This was one time I couldn’t get the car moving off fast enough. “I wish you’d told me sooner,” I said, reversing out of her driveway so quickly that the tires screeched. “With contractions at five minutes apart, and for twins… we should have checked you in hours ago.”

  “Heee heee oooooh—I was busy—heee heee oooooh.”

  “Doing what?” I asked, glancing over at her to keep an eye on her as I drove.

  “Trying to get you to leave—heee heee oooooh.”

  “Christ, Robin. You’d better get over that real fast, because I’m not going anywhere.”

  “Stubborn bastard.”

  “Yes. That would be me. Is the contraction easing up yet?”

  “A little,” she panted out.

  “We’ll be there soon. Try to relax. Did you want me to phone your dad or anyone else?”

  “Yes. Call Dad, and Tiffany, and my grams. Oh and my doctor. She should be on call. All the numbers are in my phone. Awww crap, I put my phone to charge in the living room. Can we go back?”

  “We’re not far from the hospital. I’ll get you checked in and then I’ll go back for it. Or you know what? I’ll get Lawrence or Leo to meet us at the ER. Do you mind if he goes into your place for the phone?”

  “No, it’s fine. Call them,” she answered, taking short breaths again.

  I quickly pulled out my cell and sent a text to Leo, as he was more likely to be glued to his smartphone screen. “Is that another contraction?”

  “Uh-huh.”

  “Shit. They’re less than four minutes apart now.” I floored it the rest of the way, and part-skidded into the ambulance bay of the emergency ward.

  “Oh Goddddddddd, owwwwwwwwww!” she bawled as I pu
t the car in park.

  “Breathe,” I told her, though this time, some of that consoling was for my own nerves. My phone buzzed in my pocket. Leo had already been on the road and close to the hospital when I texted him earlier, so this new message he sent was to let me know he had found parking and was waiting somewhere inside. Opening my door, I turned to look at her. “Leo’s here. I’ll get him your keys and find you some help.”

  She reached across and grabbed my shoulder, digging her fingernails into my shirt with so much force she was sure to draw blood eventually. “Nooooooo! Don’t leave me out here…owwwwwwww! It hurtssssssssss!”

  “All right,” I said calmly, unclamping her fingers from their powerful grip. “Hang on.” I unclipped my seatbelt and jumped out, heading to the passenger side.

  She was panting hard, drenched in sweat, with strands of wet hair stuck to the sides of her face.

  And still, she was beautiful.

  That was the point where I knew without a doubt that I would do just about anything to make her mine completely.

  “Anytime now, Landon,” she yapped, snapping me out of my momentary daze.

  “Let’s go, doll.” I carried her inside. “Hey! Get us a gurney,” I shouted at the first orderly in sight as the bay doors swung open.

  “Will do,” the kid answered, sauntering off.

  “Heee heee heee—this is not working! The pain, oh Goddddddd!”

  “They’re almost ready for you. Keep breathing, baby.”

  “I can’t take it!” she bawled, writhing in my arms.

  We rushed over to the triage nurse, who was busy assessing another walk-in. The emergency room was packed to the rafters.

  “Make them give me something for the pain, please!”

  I noticed an empty wheelchair across the room and headed for it. “I don’t work in this ER,” I started, lowering her into the wheelchair. “But I’ll see what I can do.”

  Robin winced in pain. “Just get me some drugs! I don’t care if you have to go to a back alley dealer to get it!” she roared in a deep voice that had me pretty sure she had just been possessed by Satan.

  “I’m on it.” Finding the triage nurse again, I butted into the line. “I’m Dr. O’Halloran from Carson City Memorial. Who’s on shift from obstetrics? I have a patient here who’s about to have twins. Her contractions are already less than four minutes apart.”

  That got her attention. In no time, a screaming Robin was being rushed over to obstetrics, while I quickly got her registered with the admitting nurse.

  My Robin.

  Carrying my babies.

  Half-wolf shifters.

  The idea had my chest wrenched tight and my heart pounding, but I was ready to fight for all three of them.

  Chapter 13

  Landon

  I bumped into Leo on my way out of ER. He saw my intense focus, and as he had been through the delivery of his own twins, he knew to leave things be.

  “So…kids with Robin Parker, huh? That was fast.”

  “Don’t ask…I’ll fill everyone in later.”

  “They’d be here if you told us sooner. Want me to get them down here?”

  “Uh, maybe. It may be a lot for Robin. Let’s play it by ear.”

  “Sounds good. Godspeed, brother,” he told me, patting me on the shoulder as I gave him her keys. “Be ready for one hell of a wild ride.”

  “I am.” Leo was not a man of many wise words, so that piece of advice was tantamount to a thirty-minute speech by the average male. “I texted you the address. Thank again.”

  “Later.” He left in a hurry—smart guy that he is—and I rushed to her side in the delivery room.

  The staff were on point, skipping the labor room altogether because Robin was so close to giving birth. A nurse had helped her into a gown, and was hooking her up to the monitoring equipment and doing the usual pre-delivery prep. On her way out, the nurse handed me a gown and hairnet to put on.

  I geared up, went to Robin’s side and took one of her hands in mine. “We’re going to be fine.”

  She paused her groaning and glared at me. Yanking the center of my shirt with her other hand, she dragged my upper body down so I could look at her. “Are you in this bed, Landon? Because I do not see you lying here with a swollen belly and pressure against your pelvis that feels like the weight of a goddamned Mack truck!” She released me and returned her arms to her side. “And do not tell me to breathe again.”

  I smiled just a little.

  “Don’t effing smile either,” she grunted, already hoarse from raising holy hell in her very own endearing way. She actually said ‘effing’. It was cute. “Just please get those people to give me some drugs! Oh Godddddddd another contractionnnnnnn! Just kill me nowwwwwwwww.”

  Honestly, she was adorable like this, and nowhere near as extreme as some of the deliveries I had already assisted with or performed at Carson City Memorial. Still, I was not about to risk letting her in on those little tidbits. Settling for a nod, I quickly left and silently wished for a safe and speedy delivery.

  The Obstetrics doctor on staff came in just as I was heading out the door. His face was familiar from the medical circuit, but I couldn’t remember his name. I took a second to read his name tag.

  “Dr. Rothstein,” I addressed the middle-aged man. “I’m Dr. O’Halloran. Carson City Memorial. ER Ward. And I’m the father.”

  He narrowed his eyes and studied my face for a second. “Good to meet you. You do look somewhat familiar. Is this your wife?”

  “No,” I answered, although what I wanted to say was ‘not yet’. I also kept it short so as to not rile up the pregnant woman giving me the crazy eye as she cleared her throat. “Robin is really close. Her membrane ruptured over forty minutes ago, contractions are approximately every two minutes, and she’s having twins. The first one is in a head-down position.”

  “It certainly explains why you’re here in the twin birthing room, with two incubators and such. So are they identical and sharing one placenta?”

  “Yes,” Robin answered. “I think my OB/GYN said it was one placenta… I can’t remember.”

  “How many weeks?”

  “Thirty-seven.”

  “Were you scheduled for a planned birth?”

  She nodded. “In three days.”

  “Never mind that. You’re here now.” He tapped in some information on his tablet, presumably to check Robin’s vitals that the nurse had taken while I was getting Robin admitted. “Okay. Looks good. Everything is just where we need them to be. Perfect for both Mom and baby.”

  “Babies!” Robin corrected him. “Plural.”

  “Ahhh yes. Two adorable newborns on the way. Pardon the slip, Mom. I won’t forget one in there. I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

  She gripped the safety bars on both sides of the hospital bed. “What about meds, Doc? I need something…something stronger than air and shouting obscenities would really help right about now.”

  He shook his full head of peppered gray hair and smiled lightheartedly. “No can do, young lady. Those little ones will be here before the painkillers kick in.”

  For a woman at the peak of her labor pains, Robin took that update pretty well. She only added about ten cuss words in her next two sentences and flipped him the bird before he pivoted and left the room to get prepped.

  I returned to her bedside. “I’m sorry you have to go through this without some pain relief, Robin,” I told her, looking down into her face.

  She calmed for a brief moment, and just when I thought she would spew out more profanity, she whispered, “Thank you. I don’t think I’ve ever seen this side of you, Landon. Finding out about this pregnancy and living through the three trimesters mostly on my own was a wake-up call. I’m glad you’re the one who knocked me up. You’ll make a great daddy for our babies…or wolf cubs.”

  I was stunned. “That means a lot, honey. And you should know the babies will be born human. You don’t have anything to worry about. We only take o
n our wolf form later on, and as our kids are half human, they may never turn into shifters.”

  “You know what I mean.”

  “Yes. I do. Thank you, doll.”

  I was floored for a while, but when she added, “I love you, Landon O’Halloran,” I replied that I loved her deeply, and already adored our kids. Then I made a wild guess that the pain had done something to her cognitive abilities, and just dismissed the whole thing.

  The delivery room nurse returned. “We’re just about ready for you, Mommy,” she told Robin. “Would you like sterile sheets draped over your knees? It’s optional.”

  “Oh, so the sheets are optional, but the drugs are a no-go, eh?” Robin spat out, wincing in pain. “Keep your damn sheets.”

  The nurse barely registered Robin’s comment. These staff saw and heard way more than anything my woman could ever come up with. She moved to the end of the bed and did a quick check on the baby. “Hang on, honey. We won’t be too much longer. One baby is close to crowning. Dr. Rothstein is on his way.”

  “Owwwwwwww!” Robin squealed through an intense contraction, grabbing my hand. “I can’t handle thisssssssss. Where’s my dad? Where’s Tiff? Godddddddddd…they’ll miss everything.”

  “You can get through this,” the nurse reassured her. “I’m sure the rest of your family will be here just as soon as they can. Right now I need you to keep breathing through the pain. You are this close.”

  “But there’s two of them in there!” she said, voice strained and faint. “I won’t make it.”

  Dr. Rothstein elbowed into the room with his gloves, mask, and gown all ready, followed by a second nurse who would help, which was standard for a twin birth. “We’ll try to deliver your babies naturally,” he told her, getting into position. Robin screamed through a burst of pain and clenched my hand more tightly. “All I need is just one good, long push, and you’ll be able to say hello to baby number one, okay Robin?”

  “I don’t know! It hurts so much, Doc.”

  “Get ready now. Have you picked out names, Mom? Dad?”