Kelly tried to absorb this information. If what he told her was true, the baby was already growing at an accelerated rate. Freaky. A little panic and fear slipped into her head. She tried to wrap her mind around this. “When it comes out, what will it look like?”
Marc smiled at her indulgently. “It looks just like a normal human baby. And probably the majority of the time, once it learns how to control the change, it will choose to be in human form. Werejaguar babies do not shift until somewhere around their first birthday. So you don’t have to worry about that at all.”
“Is there any risk to me being human and you being a shifter? Anything that would hurt me or the baby?” Kelly asked.
“Not at all,” Marc said. “It’s a benefit as part of our mating bond, which I realize you can’t feel as strongly as I can. You may experience some of the regular kinds of side effects of pregnancy, but there is nothing about human physiology versus mine that would put our baby at risk.” His hand tightened around hers.
She quieted for a long moment. “I am going to be a mother.” She never expected that she would be able to say those words. I am going to be a mother. Kelly felt an immense joy welling inside of her.
As the tears began to fall, she saw Marc’s look of panic. “What is it? What’s wrong? Do you feel all right?”
She was crying and laughing at the same time. She tried to put into words what she was feeling. “You don’t understand. I never thought that this could happen to me. I thought that I was infertile, and I would never be able to be a mother and carry a child. Everything is different now, and I’m still trying to process it, but I’m so happy. I’m so happy.” She smoothed her shirt down and hoisted herself into a sitting position. She wrapped her arms around his neck. “Thank you. Thank you for coming into my life and giving me this gift.”
His strong arms tightened around her, and she felt every bit of his love for her. It was crazy and illogical, and everything about the situation should have thrown warning flags in her head, but seeing the baby’s heartbeat and knowing that she was going to be a mother had changed everything for her.
She and Marc got copies of the pictures from the ultrasound, and she kept them clutched in her hand as they went back out to the limo. Just when they had settled inside, her phone started to ring. She saw by the caller ID that it was Becca. She gestured to Marc to let him know that she needed to take the call. He nodded and pulled out his own phone, and she knew that he was busy with work. She hated that she had already taken so much time away from him considering how busy it sounded like he was.
She hit the answer button on the screen. “Hey, Becca,” she said.
“Listen, girl. You are not going to believe what I just heard,” Becca said. “By the way, where are you? You missed bowling last night.”
Kelly found that she wasn’t ready to tell her friend that she was back in Las Vegas or anything about Marc quite yet. She was still processing it all herself. “I’ve been feeling a little under the weather. It’ll probably be a couple more days before I can even leave the house,” she said. She made a mental note that she was going to have to make a decision about her future soon, because Marc was already pressing her to quit her job and move to Vegas permanently. “What did you hear?” she asked to distract her friend.
“Well, I hope you feel better soon,” Becca said. “You won’t believe this. I heard that Adam’s secretary finally fessed up to him that the baby she’s carrying isn’t his baby. Apparently, she messed around with guys besides your-ex. This whole thing came to light because one of her boyfriends wanted a paternity test.”
“Paternity test? Why?” asked Kelly.
“Well the guy’s a good-for-nothing leech. He wanted child support from that bitch now that she snagged a rich husband. If the baby was his, they would have to share custody and she would have to support him. Long story short, they had it and the baby wasn’t Adam’s.”
Kelly closed her eyes. Her ex-husband dumped her for his young, hot secretary, and it turned out, he got duped by her. She opened her eyes. Her throat felt rough and dry. Jesus. What comes around goes around.
“Listen, Kelly, I don’t think you were the one that had the problem in the bedroom. Based on what I heard, Adam’s shooting blanks. Isn’t that hilarious? Serves the asshole right. Karma’s a bitch.”
“Just hilarious,” Kelly said faintly. Her brain still coped from the massive revelation. All of this time she had been thinking that she was the one with the problem, and all along it had been Adam. She had let that one thing dictate so much of how she had lived her life over the last four years, and mostly in a negative way.
She looked across the limo at the man who sat there talking quietly on another call. Marc. He had changed her life in so many ways. She felt something for him that she never expected. Kelly put her hand over her stomach. She was on the verge of starting a completely new life. It wasn’t going to take much to convince her of where she belonged.
“Becca, I have to go,” she said coughing into the phone in a fake cough. “I’ll call you later.”
“All righty. Should I come and bring you some chicken soup or something?”
“No, no. I’m at the doctor’s office. I had an appointment.”
“Appointment? What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. Just routine checkup. Don’t you worry.”
“Okay. You call me when you feel better, okay?”
“Absolutely.”
She hung up the phone and carefully looked at Marc again from underneath her lashes. This strong powerful man was her future. Adam and all of his bullshit was her past.
Marc disconnected his call, smiling at her. “Finished?”
“Yeah.”
“Who was it?” He looked curious.
“Becca, my friend.” Kelly studied his face. “Why do you ask? I didn’t ask who you called.”
A smirk. “I just want to make sure I don’t have competition. You’re mine, don’t you forget that.”
Kelly rolled her eyes. She felt annoyed by his possessiveness, but at the same time, his lavish attention was kind of cute. Her ex had never made her feel wanted. It was nice to know that she was still desirable.
Marc opened the limo door for her. They were back on the road.
They arrived at Marc’s gargantuan house a few minutes later. He pulled her gently out of the limo and looked down at her. “Are you ready for this?” he asked. “I’ve kept it small this time so we don’t overwhelm you, just my closest friends and family. I know they can be a bit much at first. But rest assured that everyone here already loves you.”
Kelly didn’t know how that was possible since no one had even met her yet, but she knew this was a necessary evil. If she was going to be with Marc, she had to meet his family and the rest of his clan. She allowed him to escort her inside even as she felt the old feelings of insecurity surfaced again inside of her. But with Marc by her side, she coped, and it didn’t take long before she started to enjoy herself.
She met Marc’s half-brother, Reid, and his cousins, Alex and Juan. His father, Martin, was a larger-than-life personality who had her laughing so hard her sides hurt. Marc was a gracious host, and over dinner, he told them all funny, yet touching, anecdotes about her that she didn’t even remember telling him. He made her sound vibrant and exciting.
Her cheeks hurt from smiling so much. At dinner, she found herself sitting next to Reid. It didn’t take a genius to recognize the warm, open, affection and admiration between the two men.
“So when do you think the two of you will tie the knot?” Reid asked her.
“I hadn’t really thought about it,” she said. “All of this has been a whirlwind to me.”
“Marc has that effect on people.” The handsome man chuckled. “And lucky you, you’re not susceptible to that whole persuasion thing of his. It can be a bit annoying for us. Last week he was pissed at me for something stupid, he made me eat a basket of onions. He charmed me into thinking it was apples. I had terrible heartb
urn for days, I thought I was gonna die. The bastard. I should slip some laxative into his coffee or something as payback.” Another side of Marc she didn’t know. “Marc’s a prankster?”
“We all are. We’ve pranked one another since we were kids. Old habit, I guess.”
She looked back at Marc and saw him wink at her. “So what’s your superpower, Reid?” she asked. “Or is it a secret?”
“I’m really fast,” he said with a note of pride in his voice.
“What do you mean, fast?”
“You know the Flash?”
“Is that some kind of comic book superhero?”
“Yeah, I can run as fast as him. But I’m much cooler, I should say. I don’t run around wearing spandex.”
That got her to smile. “They said superheroes’ power is in their costumes. Otherwise, why would Superman run around with underwear outside his pants?”
Reid barked a laugh. “So true. And don’t get me started with Wonder Woman.”
“The new remake movie or the original with Lynda Carter?”
“Lynda Carter starred on season two. Cathy Lee Crosby was in the pilot season. I loved Lynda Carter. I had such a crush with her when I was growing up.”
“But that show was originally aired in the 70’s, was it? And you don’t look that old to me.”
“I love the classics. Silent films and stuff. Chaplin, Laurel and Hardy.”
“I didn’t know you’re a cinema aficionado.” She looked around the room and realized that even though she knew she was in a room full of werejaguars, she didn’t feel uncomfortable.
“So, Reid, do you have any love prospects on the horizon?” she asked again.
Reid scratched his chin while wrinkled his nose. “Hmm. Like I said, I’m fast, so nobody’s managed to catch me yet. I kinda like it that way.”
She liked Reid. In fact, she liked almost all of Marc’s family. There was just one person, though, who didn’t seem to like her. The tall blonde who had been introduced as one of Marc’s second cousins was sitting at the end of the table. She had barely said a word to Kelly, but Kelly caught her staring at her several times, almost as if she was measuring her up.
“Oh, don’t pay attention to her,” Reid said, seeing the direction of her look. “Margot’s just being Margot.”
“Meaning?”
“You should probably ask Marc about that,” he said carefully.
Now Kelly was intensely curious. After dinner, when everyone was gathered in the immense living room, she decided to try finding out for herself.
“How was dinner, Margot?” she asked as she approached.
“Bland actually,” the woman said coolly. “Not unlike the company.”
Kelly couldn’t help but catch the tone of sarcasm. “Well, it was a long flight, so I’m sure Marc was looking forward to a quiet evening with family,” Kelly said more confidently than she felt.
“Marc doesn’t do quiet. He’s the alpha, and he needs more spice in his life,” Margot said. “But, of course, you probably know that. He’s confided in me for years. I’m sure he’s mentioned me to you.”
“No, as matter fact, he hasn’t,” Kelly said. “I’m sorry. Excuse me.” There was clearly a lot more to the Marc and Margot story, but she wasn’t going to let the woman continue to insult her or insinuate something that Kelly didn’t know if it was true or not. Marc waved for her to join him in a conversation with his father, but even with her back turned, she could feel the icy weight of Margot’s gaze.
CHAPTER SEVEN
After dinner, Marc had gotten caught up in a conversation with Reid about a recent incident that happened during one of their latest operations. He felt confident that Kelly would be okay navigating his family circle. What he hadn’t expected was that Margot would show up as well. He had thought even if she did, she wouldn’t engage with Kelly in any way. But as he looked across the room and saw the two women speaking, he knew that he been wrong.
He waved Kelly over to him and motioned to his dad that he needed a moment. As Kelly approached, he put his arm around her shoulders. “I see that you have met Margot,” he said in a neutral tone.
“I have,” Kelly said. She wore a confused expression on her face.
He could just imagine what Margot had said. He needed to have a conversation with the woman and set her straight on the current situation. It was a discussion he wasn’t looking forward to.
He broke up with Margot two months ago, but she had the annoying habit of popping up wherever she wasn’t welcome. She also barraged him with calls and texts—he thought of changing his numbers. Marc thought the fact that he hadn’t returned her phone calls in over a month was indication enough that things had cooled between them.
“Come with me. Let’s take a walk on the patio.” Marc maneuvered Kelly away from the crowd and outside into the cooling desert air. “I’m not sure what Margot might have said, but I’d encourage you to forget all of it.”
“I’m not sure that I like her at all,” Kelly whispered to him.
He chuckled.
“That’s how most of the family feels about Margot,” he said. He pulled her to the edge of the terrace. The house was up on a hilltop, and the city of Las Vegas was spread below them. He heard Kelly’s small gasp and knew what she was seeing. There was a part of him that delighted in seeing this all again through her eyes. When you lived in the city long enough, you had a tendency to be a bit jaded about it.
“It’s beautiful here,” she said.
“Close enough that we’re able to get into the city in less than fifteen minutes, but far outside enough that when we need to stretch our legs, we can do that,” he said. He gave her a small nod when he saw her raised eyebrow. “It’s helpful to be able to shift and give our animals exercise at least every few days. It helps to keep our relationship balanced.”
Kelly shook her head again. “This is all so surreal.”
“Kelly.” Marc turned her in his arms so that she faced him. “You’ll get used to it after time. But for now, I just have one question for you. “
“I haven’t made a decision yet, Marc,” she said clearly anticipating his question.
“Hear me out, babe. I’m suggesting a try-out. A weekend isn’t going to tell you everything you need to know. I’ll make sure if you decide to move back, that we work something out with your job, so don’t concern yourself with that. But I believe, and I think you do, too, that this is the right thing to do.”
“I … It’s still a lot to process, Marc. Two days ago, I thought shapeshifters were only a myth. I-I need more time to think…
“Time? It’s got to be more than that. Tell me what it is that is causing your hesitation,” he asked.
She pulled away from him and looked out at the lights below them in silence. He wanted to say something but knew that he had to give her the space to come around to this important decision by herself. He was anxious, but ultimately, it was her decision.
A decision that he wasn’t going to honor. She belonged to him and she carried his cub. His heir. Whether she liked it or not, she became family, part of the DaVaca clan and the clan stuck together.
Kelly slowly inhaled the night breeze. “Fated mates and werejaguar babies and everything that comes with it? Moving across the country from where I live now? It’s just a lot to ask and take in,” she finally said.
He moved to stand beside her and gently placed his hand on the small of her back. He didn’t look at her but instead stared out at the view as well. “I realize that, but I know that it’s right. Give me a chance to show that to you. Stay, please. Besides, you’ll be having my cub in ninety days. You’ll need to be surrounded by my people. You’ll need help and I don’t intend for you to go through it alone.”
He heard her small sigh, but his finely tuned sentences knew it for what it was. She was on the edge of accepting. “A trial period,” she said.
“A trial period,” he echoed. “But it has to feel like the real deal. I want you to understand wh
at it means to be part of this family, and what it means to be in a relationship with me. The two of us can know that it’s a test run, but I’d appreciate it if you don’t share this with the rest of the family. I want them to get to know you without any reservations. There is a lot to learn about us and where we came from. I think when you start to see that, you’ll understand that things aren’t so scary, and this is a place you will want to call your home.”
There was a span of silence again as she seemed to absorb this. “What are you suggesting?”
Marc smiled. “I will call the movers in the morning to pack the things that you want from your house. Everything that you want will be here within the week. I can call anyone you would like to tell them of our arrangement, or if you would prefer to call, you can do that as well. I’m thinking you might like to start with your parents?”
Kelly took out her phone and stared at it. Then she gave him a half smile as she dialed a number. “Mom?” she said when the other end was answered. “Can you get Dad on the line, too? I have something that I want to tell the two of you.”
Marc’s felt a swelling of pride in his chest.
This was going better than he ever expected. He could see that even though Kelly was still hesitant, there was a ripple of excitement underneath her demeanor as well. This might be one of the most exciting things that had ever happened to her, and he intended to show her the world.
He already began ticking off the list of things that he needed to do first thing in the morning. He was mentally delegating them out to Reid and the rest of the crew as she finished telling her surely shocked parents about her decision to make a temporary, but likely permanent, move to Las Vegas. He beamed with pleasure as he listened to her tell them that she had met someone special, and she was excited about what the future held for her. He would make sure that she would never regret her decision.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Kelly sat in the midst of what seemed like a hundred boxes. Even though Marc had said that he would just ensure that the most critical items were moved right away from her house in New York, it seemed as if her entire household had been packed overnight. That was why she was grateful that he had assigned her a personal assistant, even though she felt slightly uncomfortable with the idea.
Spotilicious: BBW Werejaguar Shapeshifter Paranormal Romance (Jaguartown Book 1) Page 5
