Lyla was puzzled; Betsy just wanted her to be safe, of course, but still, she couldn’t shake the feeling that there was more going on than she knew about. And what was with Betsy’s mysterious phone call the night before?
“All right,” Lyla said with a heavy sigh. “I’ll go.”
“Good!” Betsy said cheerfully. “Let me know how it goes.”
“All right,” Lyla said with a sigh. She really didn’t want to see a doctor, but Betsy was good at making her feel like she didn’t have a choice but to take care of herself. And, of course, it was hard not to when she clearly did it out of love.
Lyla puttered around her bungalow a little while longer, taking the chance to take a look at her leaking faucets and the refrigerator that never seemed to be cold enough. She was really starting to hate how run down this little place was. She wished there was some way she would be able to fix everything that was wrong with it.
Finally, after another round of throwing up, Lyla sighed. It was time to honor her word and go see the doctor. If nothing else, it would keep Betsy off her back the next day.
“Miss Winston,” the doctor said as soon as she walked in the room, before Lyla even had a chance to say hello. “I get what the trouble is. You’re pregnant.”
Lyla slunk down into a chair, her stomach in knots. “What the hell are you talking about? I haven’t even been tested yet.”
“You don’t need a test for this!” her doctor insisted. “You can smell it! Well…I can smell it. Shifters in general can.”
“You have to be mistaken,” Lyla said, her hands beginning to tremble. This was the last thing she needed. “How could this have happened?”
“Well, I would wager you had unprotected sex with a wolf shifter,” the doctor said, her eyes glinting with amusement. “That tends to be the case in unwanted shifter pups.”
“I didn’t say unwanted!” Lyla exclaimed quickly. “Just…not right now. Why now?!”
She was so stunned, she could hardly move, and the doctor spoke at her a mile a minute, talking about the tests and vitamins and things she was going to have to expect now that she was expecting. But Lyla didn’t hear a word of it. All she could do was think of Jonah; Jonah, who was working so hard to protect Stonybrooke. Jonah, who, if distracted for even half a second during a crucial moment, could be killed. What was she going to do?
“You’re going to have to come back in a few weeks to check on your progress. There are a lot of things you need to do. It can be very confusing for a human’s body when it’s impregnated with a shifter child.”
“Confusing?” Lyla asked, frowning. So far, she had been having what, from what she could tell, was a normal pregnancy, at least as far as being pregnant with the rapidly growing wolf pups. And she was getting tired of everybody assuming she was just a human. That’s not how she had been raised.
“Well, the human body works a little bit differently. Shifters age much faster, and often have lifespans that are different than humans as well. But I’m sure you know that already.”
Lyla was getting really tired of the condescending doctor, no matter how pleasant she could be.
“With all due respect, I understand the ins and outs of shifter pregnancies,” Lyla said with a sigh. “and although I have mostly human blood, there is a possibility that this pregnancy might not be as bad as you think it’s going to be.”
“I like that optimism!” the doctor said.
Lyla sighed in disgust.
“Is there anything else?” she asked.
The doctor shook her head.
“Just take this prescription for your prenatal vitamins; they have to be a little bit tweaked for shifter-human hybrids. From there, everything should work itself out.”
“All right,” Lyla said. “Thanks.”
The doctor smiled at her and then disappeared quickly from the room, undoubtedly off to tend to another patient that she would take more seriously.
Lyla climbed into her car, seething, and headed back to the bungalow. Every once in a while, as she drove, it would hit her that she really was carrying Jonah’s child, and a wave of fear would crash down upon her. The bear hybrids had been after her for some reason. If she stayed in Stonybrooke, then chances were high something could happen to the baby.
Lyla arrived home and laid down on the couch, covering her face with her hands. How could she have been so careless? And what was she going to tell Jonah? It was bad enough that she was pregnant at all, let alone being pregnant in the face of incredible danger. How would she live with herself knowing she had put Jonah in danger? He already had so much on his mind.
The phone rang suddenly and Lyla answered it without even thinking twice. When she heard Betsy’s voice, though, she nearly had to run to the bathroom again to throw up. This time, though, it had nothing to do with morning sickness.
“Well? Are you all right?” Betsy demanded. “I’ve been trying to call for an hour.”
“I’m fine,” Lyla said. “The doctor told me it was just a flu bug. It’s been going around, apparently. Probably picked it up at the auction.”
“Oh,” Betsy said. Why did she sound disappointed? “Well, I’m glad you’re okay. Get plenty of rest and fluids. I’ll be over tonight with some chicken soup. Maybe Jonah can come over and take a look at the leak you’re always complaining about. He’s always been good with his hands.”
Didn’t Lyla know it? That’s how she had gotten into this damned mess.
“Thanks, Betsy,” she said quickly, unable to prevent her friend from coming over. “Hey, do you know Jonah’s number? I’d like to ask him myself. It would sound weird to have you ask him for me, right?”
“Sure,” Betsy said. She recited Jonah’s phone number and Lyla scribbled it down quickly. “You take care of yourself, all right? We’ll be by in a bit.”
“Thanks, Bets,” Lyla said.
They hung up, and again, a feeling of presentiment overwhelmed Lyla. She shook it off and took a deep breath as she dialed Jonah’s number. His phone rang once before he answered.
“Lyla,” his deep voice rumbled soothingly into her ear. “Hi.”
“Hi,” Lyla whispered.
She wanted more than anything to have him there beside her. To tell him just what was going on and to share the moment of shock and awe with him. They had created a life together. There was a tiny person growing in her womb, and Jonah was his father. Jonah. Strong, brooding, sensual Jonah, with his deep eyes and quiet strength. Jonah Lucas and not anybody else. And she wanted nothing more than to be with him, stay near him as much as she could
But she couldn’t tell him any of that. It was obvious his mission had to come first; before any of his personal feelings. Before her pregnancy. Before her feelings. Even before his own feelings.
“I want to see you,” Jonah said before she had a chance to speak. “I know it’s completely wrong, totally bad timing, but I really think I’m starting to…”
“Jonah…” Lyla whispered, closing her eyes. It was too painful to let him finish. He was telling her exactly what she longed to hear, but there was no way she could be so selfish. Staying in his life, especially with a child on the way, would put his life in danger every day. They never should have given in to their feelings. It just wasn’t a good time for either of them. But now, there was going to be a baby involved.
“What is it? Are you all right? Betsy told me what happened yesterday.”
“Actually,” Lyla said, swallowing hard. She was lucky she was speaking to him now and not later when he could see her face. Maybe even sense what had seemed so obvious to the doctor that afternoon. “I’m fine. It was just a little bug. I just wanted you to ask Betsy not to come by this afternoon. Something came up. That’s all.”
“Oh,” Jonah said, his deep, rich voice disappointed. “Yeah, of course. I can do that for you.”
“Thanks, Jonah,” Lylah said, trying to bury the guilt of talking to him. She just couldn’t bring herself to tell him. Not now. Not like this. M
aybe in person. But not now.
“No problem. So I was wondering if, maybe when you’re feeling a little better…”
“Oh, that’s my other line, sorry. Can we pick this back up in person later?”
“What? Oh,” Jonah said, confused. “Sure. Sorry. Feel better.”
“Thank you,” Lyla said.
She hung up and sighed. He was too sweet. And he deserved to know the truth, but somehow, even though she had called and felt like all she wanted was to have him there with her, she had chickened out and hadn’t been able to tell Jonah what was going on. How could she?
Lyla sat in silence, going over the phone call again and again in her head, when suddenly the phone rang.
“Why did you tell Jonah not to come? You know I want to make sure that you’re okay.”
“Betsy! It’s just…something came up.”
“I know what’s really going on,” Betsy said quietly.
“What?” Lyla said, her heart panging hard in her chest.
“It’s always obvious to other females when another female is carrying pups.”
Lyla cringed.
“Bets, I’m sorry. It’s just…”
“Well, it technically isn’t my business. I know. And I probably shouldn’t have said anything. I just thought Jonah and I could give you some advice, or words of comfort, I guess.”
“Well…I don’t think I want any comfort about this right now if that makes sense. I’m going to need to freak out for a while. And please, don’t tell anybody. Not even your brother.”
“Of course,” Betsy said.
Lyla sighed in relief. When Betsy said something, she meant it. She was the most loyal person that Lyla had ever met in her life, besides her grandfather.
“Thank you, Betsy. I owe you.”
“You really don’t,” Betsy said. “I’ll always be here for you, you know. You’ve been so good to me over the past couple of years.”
“I love you, Bets.”
Betsy was silent for a moment and Lyla felt a nervous butterfly in her stomach. It wasn’t really widely accepted for shifters to express or accept the expression of feelings, especially from anybody outside the pack. But it was clear Jonah had been close to inviting her closer to him, which was incredibly surprising. Just as surprising as it was when Betsy replied, “I love you too.”
For the first time since she had been told she was pregnant, Lyla felt like everything was going to be all right.
15.
“Oh cut it out,” Betsy was saying in the other room. Jonah’s ears perked up, hoping he would hear Lyla’s voice speaking to his sister, but he was shocked when he heard the deep voice of Douglas on the phone.
“You know it’s true,” Douglas was saying, his voice gentle and sweet; a quality that Jonah wouldn’t have believed his old friend was capable of. “It takes a special kind of woman…”
“Bets! I’m home!” Jonah called. If they kept talking, Jonah knew he wouldn’t be able to stop listening. But if Betsy knew he was there, she would be able to stop the conversation before he heard too much.
“I’ve got to go,” Betsy said quickly. “Jonah’s back.”
“Call again soon,” Douglas said.
“I will,” Betsy whispered.
“Welcome home,” Betsy said, coming down the stairs, attempting to hide just how flustered she felt, and Jonah looked at her as if for the first time. Betsy had never shown any interest in anyone before. She had always been painfully shy, almost to the point of being antisocial. But he had to admit, she and Douglas had always been pretty comfortable with each other. It was a natural progression that he had somehow completely missed. Maybe because he had been gone for three years.
“I have some bad news,” Jonah said. He had just gotten back from a brief meeting with the team and Gregors was adamant about sending them after the Serah Stone. They had pinpointed Thames and his cronies on the coast, about two hours away from Oak Mountain, where Nichols was from. “I have to go for a little while.”
Betsy’s face fell, and Jonah went to her quickly.
“But trust me,” he said. “It’s the last thing I want to do. And I will be back as soon as I can.”
“That’s not always really up to you, Jonah,” Betsy said quietly. “It’s not right for you to be here until your job is done, right?”
Jonah looked down at the ground and sighed. “I guess so.”
The truth was, he was dreading leaving more than he’d ever thought possible. Just knowing he would be leaving Lyla behind, and his childhood home after spending so much time away from it already…it was tearing him apart. But it had already gotten him hurt once to be distracted by matters of the heart. How was he going to justify staying and risking the lives of everybody in Stonybrooke? It just wasn’t worth it. He had no choice. Betsy was more right than she would ever know. His job wouldn’t be done until she was safe.
“I’m so sorry, sis,” Jonah said. It was tearing him up inside. How would he be able to leave Lyla behind? His sister? It was just too unfair.
“It really isn’t your fault, Jonah,” Betsy said. He knew that if she were a human, she would probably be crying right about then. But Betsy was proud shifter stock. She would rather die than show her emotions on her face. At least the most negative of them. And yet, being her younger brother, Jonah had always been able to read her like a book. It was easy to tell how she felt, especially with her being such a kind and compassionate soul. Even the slightest of things could wound her deeply, whether she showed those wounds to anybody or not. And now, he was abandoning her.
“It isn’t really about fault, is it?” Jonah sighed. “It’s about responsibility.”
“I know. You have a responsibility to the SEALs. I would never dream of getting in the way of that.”
“You’d never be in the way, Bets,” Jonah growled, holding his sister by the shoulders and looking into her eyes. “I love you more than I’ll ever love anybody. You’re my sister. My first best friend. And trust me when I say that I will come back as soon as I possibly can. I will never leave you for that long again.”
Betsy gazed at him silently for a moment, appreciation radiating from her body. “When do you have to leave?” she finally asked.
“In the morning,” Jonah sighed. “But there’s something I have to take care of first.”
Betsy nodded and Jonah smiled. There was nothing more that he could do about the situation except hope to try to talk to Lyla. They were distracting enough when he was on the job that he nearly lost his life once. And he suspected they would continue to be distracting to him until he managed to sort out these inconvenient feelings once and for all.
***
“Jonah! What are you doing here?!”
Lyla’s mouth gaped open when she opened the door to her small bungalow.
“Betsy told me you have a leaky pipe. Thought I would take a look at it for you.”
He didn’t know why he had lied, or how the lie had slipped so easily off his tongue. Somehow, things between him and Lyla weren’t quite transparent. As much as he wanted her – and the wolf had already more than laid its claim – he still wasn’t quite sure where he stood with her. It was an unpleasant place to be.
“Oh,” Lyla said, stepping aside to let Jonah inside. “Come in.”
The house was refreshingly familiar, and memories of the night when they had come there together sprang to life in his mind. He wanted her more than he had ever wanted anybody in his life.
“Lyla,” he said, reaching for her arms.
Somehow, she avoided his grip and had slipped into the next room.
“I’ve been having trouble since I first moved in, but it only got worse with time.”
“Yeah,” Jonah said, trying his best not to feel brushed off. “That does tend to be how these things happen.”
“I didn’t know you were such a handyman.”
Lyla’s voice was muffled now, half of her body hidden by the open door of her refrigerator as she dug arou
nd and pulled out a bottle of water for herself.
“I just know my way around a house, that’s all,” Jonah said.
“Do you want anything?” Lyla asked.
Why was she being so casual about all of this? Surely, she had felt it too; that moment between them when the wolf had made his claim and she had surrendered to it; allowed herself to be his, and his fully. He hadn’t just imagined it. It had happened. What was going on?
“No, thanks,” Jonah said, avoiding her eyes and heading to the area where the pipes were obviously having the most trouble.
They were silent for a few moments as Jonah examined the pipes, the tension in the room so thick between them he was sure he would burst if they went another second without saying anything. When he turned around to face her, Jonah opened his mouth to speak.
Before he could, the wolf had taken over in an instant, and his hands were suddenly on her shoulders, his body pressed close against hers. He dipped his head down and sampled the sweetness of her lips, and Lyla gasped softly, surprised and aroused by the advance.
But soon, her hands were on his chest and she was pushing him away, walking toward the other room.
“Jonah, we need to talk,” she said miserably.
There was something he really didn’t like about the tone of her voice.
“What do you mean?” he asked. “What’s wrong?”
“Other than everything?” she mumbled.
“Lyla…”
“It’s just…whatever you’re feeling…you get that I can’t feel the same way about you, right?”
Jonah frowned. “I don’t know what you mean.”
“Well, this is just sex, right? We can’t be anything more than that. I can’t…I can’t love you, Jonah. It isn’t right.”
Jonah felt like he’d had the wind knocked out of him.
“You think I just want to be here for the sex?” he asked, surprised by how hurt he was by the implication. Why was she acting this way? He knew he had connected with her in a deep way reserved only for those who had mated for life. And sure, she wasn’t shifter enough to know these things, but still, the wolf had certain expectations.
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