LUELLE'S MATE (Shifters of the Bulgarian Bloodline Book 4)

by Dalia Wright

  “Alright, what?” Anna bit her lip. Why did her sister sound so worried? It wasn’t like her.

  “Meamm and deatt went into town to get some things. It’s just the two of us here.” Why would that matter? “You snuck out last night. Was it to see a boy?”

  “What? I-”

  “You’ve been sneaking out all week, and the week before that.” The little girl stared at her sister with wide eyes.

  “You’ve known for this long?” Anna stammered. She had thought she was good at hiding it. Clearly, not.

  “Jah. I woke up one night when you were opening the door.”

  “Did you-”

  “Nee, I didn’t tell meamm or deatt. But you’ve been acting strange. You’ve been… moping. Have you been sneaking out to see a boy?”

  Anna’s cheeks flushed. “Jah, but it’s not like…” she trailed off. What was she supposed to say? It was everything she would normally say it wasn’t. She knew there was no way to make herself feel less bad about it. “Please, don’t tell deatt. He’ll be shamed if he knows.”

  “I won’t tell him, because you’re right. He will feel shamed if he knows. And that’s why you can’t tell anyone else.” Sarah crossed her arms over her chest.

  “I haven’t yet. I don’t plan on doing it now. Anyways, it’s done. It’s over.”

  “You mean, you and that boy?”

  “Jah. I don’t think we’ll be seeing each other again. It’s clear we’re not looking for the same thing.” Anna bit her lip. She wanted to stay here. He was, no doubt, expecting her to go with him. I still could. She could maybe live without seeing her family. I should at least ask him if he wants to join the community. Right? She should, but she knew what his answer would be, and she wasn’t sure she was ready for that.

  “That’s why you’ve been moping. He broke your heart.”

  “What?” Anna snapped. “Nee, that’s crazy.” She tried to protest, but she couldn’t bring herself to. She felt tears fight against the corner of her eye. She felt one slide down.

  Anna lifted her hand angrily and wiped it away. Sarah didn’t say a word for a long time. She just sat there. Finally, after half an hour she stood. “You know, Gott has a plan for you, Anna. You’ve been an inspiration to more people than you realize, and Gott hasn’t overlooked that. Whatever happened between you and that boy, Gott has something in mind for you – wonderful things.”

  Her little sister’s words shocked her.

  Growing up, when Sarah was really little, she had followed Anna around like a shadow, but since turning 12 that had stopped. Sarah hardly ever talked to Anna, let alone wanted to spend time with her.

  Anna felt her mouth fall open as Sarah made her way out of the bedroom.

  Their parents arrived late in the afternoon, mostly carrying things that their father said would be for the church luncheon on Sunday. It was going to be a special event from what Anna’s father said; she just couldn’t figure out why. But it didn’t matter. Anna helped them unpack and then headed over to the church with her father. When she saw the white truck, she almost stumbled over her own feet. Thankfully her father hadn’t seen it she cleared her throat, trying not to let onto the fact that she did not want to see him right now. Not in front of her father.

  “Brad! What are you doing here? I thought I told you to take the day off today.”

  “You did, sir. I came by because I wanted to talk to you.”

  “You wanted to talk to me? Is everything alright?”

  “Yes, sir. It is.” Anna felt her heart drop into the pit of her stomach as Brad looked at her. Nee, he wouldn’t. “I just have something I could use your insight on.”

  Anna watched as her father frowned. “Alright. Well, come on in to the church and we can talk.” Anna opened her mouth to protest. That seemed to remind her father that she was standing there. A smile spread over his lips. “You know, I think I left some papers at the house, could you run home and get it for me?”

  Anna nodded, less than pleased that she was getting sent home. She wanted to know what they were going to talk about. No, she needed to know. I will have to meet with him tonight and ask him about it. Whatever he was doing, he was out of line and she was going to make sure he knew that. He might ruin everything. I can’t believe he’s doing this! She thought as she turned on her heels and stocked off towards the house. She had no clue what he was actually doing, but she couldn’t believe he was doing it!

  “So, what is this about?”

  Brad took a deep breath. “Sir, it’s about your daughter.”

  He saw the look flash cross the minsters face. “What about my daughter exactly?”

  “Um, I… well,” Brad told himself he was going to do this. It was the right thing and this man deserved the truth. He had been good to Brad and had given him a chance when a lot of people in his situation wouldn’t have. “Sir, I’m in love with your daughter. Er, your eldest daughter, that is.”

  Sarah was a little girl, but he didn’t want the minster thinking worse of him than he already would!

  “You’re in love with my Annabel?”

  “Yes, sir. I am. And I intent to ask for her hand in marriage. I’d like you to give me your permission for that.”

  The truth is, Brad didn’t even know if he was supposed to ask the father or not for permission, but he figured it was worth a shot. He had already picked up a small ring. His fingers reached around it and pulled it from his pocket. He showed the small silver band to the man in front of him. It was the bright blue stone that had made him decide it would be perfect for Anna.

  “I’ll be honest, it’s not as fancy as I wish I could say it is, but I thought it would be perfect for her.” Simple yet stunning. Just like Anna.

  “She will like it very much. And you intend to join our community.”

  “I’d like to very much.”

  “If she says no?”

  Brad bit his lip. He hadn’t even considered it. Of course, he knew something that Anna’s father didn’t know. She was in love with him. “I hadn’t even thought of it, sir.”

  The minster smiled softly. “You’re very confident in this, aren’t you.”

  “Y-jah.”

  Brad’s response made the minsters smile widen. “You know, if you join our community, it will not be easy.”

  “I know. And that is something I’m willing to accept. I’m willing to give it everything I have in order to marry your daughter.”

  Anna arrived back at the church as the two men were walking up the steps. She had ran there and ran back in hopes of being able to catch some of their conversation.

  They both turned to look at her, going silent.

  “Anna! There you are. We were just about to head back to the house for a quick snack. Why don’t you come with us?”

  Anna’s mouth fell open. She didn’t try to hide how annoyed she was. She had just ran all the way there and all the way back. Now they were going to go back and they wanted her to come with them?

  “I’d rather stay here, I think.”

  “Nonsense.” Her father waved the statement away with the flick of a wrist. Anna suddenly realized it hadn’t been a question at all. She had no choice, so she nodded and together the three of them fell into pace with each other. Anna didn’t dare look at Brad, despite how much she wanted to know what he and her father had been talking about.

  “You know, Anna I was just telling Brad the other day that I have always felt Gott was the reason he was hired.”

  Her father’s eyes sparkled as he retold her the story about running into Brad for the first time and then asking him to come work on the church.

  Anna wasn’t really listening, though. She was too busy trying to figure out what it could have been that her father and Brad were talking about. She hated that she had no clue what it was. Had Brad told about their affair? What would her father do if he knew?

  Nee, he couldn’t have said anything. Deatt wouldn’t be inviting him back to the house if that was the case. So that
was part of it cleared up. The walk felt like it took a lot less time than it had half an hour ago. As they made their way into the house, Anna’s mother looked up.

  “Brad, what are you doing here? I thought you had the day off.”

  “I do, ma’am. I stopped by to talk to your husband about something.”

  Anna saw the concern flash across her mothers face.

  “Actually, I think it’s best you talk to Anna about that.”

  Anna felt her heart drop into the pit of her stomach. She turned slowly, her heart racing as she caught her father staring at her.

  Brad cleared his throat, stepping towards Anna and getting her attention. Anna opened her mouth to say something, but nothing came out.

  She watched as Brad reached into his pocket. He lowered himself onto one knee.

  Anna’s mouth fell open.

  “Annabel,” Brad pulled a small ring out of his pocket and held it out to her.

  “Ach.” Anna raised her hand to her mouth, her heart racing as she stared at the man below her.

  “Will you be my wife?”

  “I… I…” Anna stared at him, her mouth moving but unable to get words out. He hadn’t mentioned any of this to her. He hadn’t even suggested that he was going to ask her to marry him. How long had he been hiding this? “Jah.” She finally forced the words out.

  Brad grinned widely, jumping to his feet and pulling her into his arms. His lips touched the top of her head. “I love you,” he whispered.

  Anna’s heart raced. She knew her family was staring at them. She knew they were all listening. She didn’t care.

  “I love you, too.” She said softly, sinking into his embrace. My husband-to-be. She thought. She couldn’t believe it. She never would have thought that he would be willing to do this. For her. For their baby.

  “Why didn’t you tell me?” She didn’t sound mad.

  Brad just smiled widely. “I didn’t want to ruin the surprise. I wanted you to be surprised when I did it. I’ve thought about it for a while now. I never thought I’d have to make the choice so soon but… after everything…” He trailed off, just in case someone was listening.

  “What about your family?”

  “They understand. They want to meet you, and it will take them some time to get used to the changes, but they’re happy for me. And just happy, I don’t think they ever thought I’d want to get married.”

  “So that was what you spoke to my father about?”

  “Y-jah.”

  “And that was all?”

  Brad glanced over at the woman who would be his wife. Was she trying to ask if her father knew about the baby? “Yes, that’s all we spoke about. Why? Is there something else?” His eyes sparkled as he said it.

  He grinned as Anna’s cheeks flushed.

  “Nee.” She said quickly. She had wanted to know if he mentioned the baby, but apparently not. That was all that mattered. She looked down at the small ring on her finger. It fit just like it was made for her. She had no clue how he managed to find it. It was perfect.

  Leaning against him, she wrapped her arms around his hips. He pulled her close, wrapping his arm around her shoulder.

  “I think I’ll like it here,” he said, “you know, living here. With you. A family. It will be nice.”

  “It will take a lot of getting used to.”

  “That is alright.”

  “We’ll have to see if father can help the process move faster.” She bit her lip, hoping she wasn’t going to start showing before they were married. They needed enough time between marriage and Anna giving birth to make it look possible.

  “Everything will be alright. After all, it’s Gott’s plan, right?” His eyes sparkled as she said it.

  “Jah.”

  Anna closed her eyes. It was starting to cool down outside now that the sun was setting, and it looked gorgeous. She never thought that she would be sitting in her parent’s front yard with someone she was going to marry- someone she wanted to marry- and planning her future.

  “I want a small house,” she said.

  “A small house?”

  “Jah, nothing too big. Just something nice and simple. I don’t want a big family so we don’t need anything crazy.”

  “Don’t I get a say in how big our family is?” he teased.

  Anna’s eyes sparkled as she turned to him. “Well, how big of a family do you want?”

  “I don’t care, as long as it’s with you.” His lips touched her softly.

  His answer made her heart flutter- or maybe that was just him overall. Either way, Anna’s heart skipped several beats as she returned his kiss. She couldn’t put into words how lucky she was to have this man in her life. Her mind went back to the conversation she had her sister had earlier.

  “You know, Gott has a plan for you, Anna. You’ve been an inspiration to more people than you realize, and Gott hasn’t overlooked that. Whatever happened between you and that boy, Gott has something in mind for you, wonderful things.”

  Had this been his plan all along? Was Brad His plan for Anna? Was Anna His plan for Brad?

  Were they meant to be?

  The End

  Therapy for the Navy Seal

  By: Elaine Young

  CHAPTER ONE:

  Duke Ballard threw back another shot of vodka and gestured to Jim for another one. He kept replaying the conversation he had just had with Captain Lyndon, his commanding officer. He had tried to keep his anger in check, but the conversation had ended with him slamming his fist against the officer’s desk and sending the framed picture of his wife and two kids flying to the floor. Muttering an apology, Duke had stormed out of the office. Lately he felt like his temper was always simmering just below the surface, waiting to erupt.

  How could his life have taken such a dramatic turn in less than two months?

  His phone buzzed with an incoming call. The caller ID flashed with Jenna’s name. He pushed the decline button, sending the call straight to voicemail. It was her third call in two days. He knew he should pick up or call back, if for nothing else than to make sure the kids were doing okay. But he couldn’t get himself to speak to her: the guilt was too strong, too overwhelming. Duke turned his phone off and gestured to the bartender for another shot.

  Too busy numbing his anger with shots of vodka, Duke didn’t notice the blond who slid into the bar stool next to him. Within minutes, however, her beguiling scent was penetrating through the fog of alcohol and had started to tease his long-dormant senses awake. It was an entirely unfamiliar smell in the military bar frequented predominantly by men. The uniformed women who came through once in a blue moon certainly didn’t smell feminine.

  He shifted lightly in his seat, trying to casually catch a glimpse of the person next to him. He always made it a point to never be obvious when checking out a woman; you never knew what you would find. The person sitting next to him could be anything from a hot woman to a crossdressing man. After more than a decade in the military, nothing surprised Duke anymore.

  He had seen it all.

  From the corner of his eyes, he spied a pair of lean, shapely legs that seemed to go on forever. He felt immediately cheered by the sight of the legs, so far so good he thought to himself and turned towards her to get a better look. It was only then he noticed that most of the men in the bar were staring in their direction. Their eyes were glued to the woman sitting next to him. Some of them were even whistling and shouting one-liners in a bid to get her attention. Duke turned away from the men and looked closely at the woman sitting a few feet away from him, nursing an ice-cold beer and studiously ignoring the catcalls. Tapping her feet to the beat of some random song playing on the radio, she seemed oblivious to the men’s attention.

  There was no doubt about it, she was drop-dead gorgeous. Sexy as hell.

  Duke could feel himself starting to get excited just by looking at her. His body’s physical reaction to such a hot woman reminded him it had been a long time since he had been with a woman, or even f
elt any kind of attraction towards one.

  Too long. All his life - at least from the moment he had become aware of the opposite sex -he had been a notorious womanizer. And now he couldn’t even remember the last time he had slept with a woman. Just another way in how Jake’s death had changed him. Well, that’s one thing I can do something about, he thought to himself. Starting tonight. He gulped down the rest of his drink in one swing and got to his feet, ready to turn on his famous charm.

  CHAPTER TWO:

  Kara knew what was about to happen even before the tall, clean-cut man sitting next to her got to his feet. She had an uncanny ability to read people. She saw it as both a blessing and a curse. It definitely helped her in her job, but it had cost her friendships and relationships and there were times when she wished she could turn it off. But her upbringing and her choice of career had simply served to hone and fine-tune her skills and there was no turning it off.

  So when the guy got up, Kara knew he was about to hit on her. Which was fine with her - she had already decided to be receptive to his advances because he was hot and she was sad. The moment she had laid eyes on him she had felt instinctively he was in a lot of pain, and his mood suited hers perfectly. She had just moved to the town a few days ago, but she had been too busy with unpacking and organizing the two-bedroom condo she had rented to feel lonely or homesick. But it had been almost a week since the move and earlier that evening as she added the final personal touches to her living room, an intense wave of homesickness had washed over her. It hit her for the first time since the move that she was truly alone in an unfamiliar town, surrounded by nameless faces and strangers.

  She had choked back a sob thinking of all the people she had left behind. Her friends, her large, boisterous, often annoying family. The six brothers who drove her nuts all the time. She had to keep reminding herself it was a sacrifice worth making for the advancement of her career. No matter how homesick she might feel, this was something she had to do. After graduating with her degree in psychiatry, she had practiced for two years at a local clinic before being offered the gig at the military base to treat veterans and serving soldiers. It was a big step for her career.