by Leela Ash
“Let me go!” the man shouted. “Please! I didn’t do anything wrong!”
“You don’t think mining on our turf counts as wrong?” Jonah growled.
The bear shifter winced, cowering away from Jonah’s powerful form. “What are you doing here? And if I were you, I would be as specific as possible.”
The man hesitated, but Nichols began to growl and shift back into his bear form.
“All right! We’re just digging, man.”
“Digging?” Jonah laughed. “This looks a little elaborate for ‘just digging’. And you’re forgetting the most important part. This is our territory.”
“Well, you know…” the shifter said uncomfortably. “It’s just what Thames is telling us to do.”
“Thames?”
Jonah exchanged a look with Nichols. They were familiar with Thames. He was one of the most dangerous bear shifters in the world. And he had taken quite a shining to Stonybrooke.
“Yeah. He told us we had to dig this big hole or he’d kill our families and make us watch,” the man said, his tone almost bored as he recited what he’d been told. “So we’re digging.”
Jonah looked to Nichols. He was the one he always looked to when dealing with the bear shifters. He could tell if another bear shifter was lying or if they were telling the truth. Nichols nodded and Jonah sighed.
“What do you know about the hybrids?”
“Heh,” the man said, an unkind glint in his eye. “They think they’re the cock’s walk, but they’re not that much stronger than bears. They’re just for covert missions. We managed to use the stone’s power to breed them a while back.”
“How did you manage that?” Jonah asked, confused. “It’s been in Stonybrooke for decades.”
“Trade secret,” the man said smugly.
Nichols and Erik started for the man and Jonah held his hand up.
“Stand down,” he muttered, letting the injured bear shifter get to his feet. “Where is Thames now?”
“Well, I think he figured to use the mine as a distraction, because he took off with the stone.”
“What?!”
Jonah’s growling voice startled everyone in the mine as it echoed around them, and the bear shifter tsked and shook his head.
“Take it easy, man. You think it’s safe being in a giant-ass hole like this?” he asked. “You want the place to cave in?!”
Jonah sighed. “Where did Thames take off to?”
“He didn’t say.”
“Nichols?” Jonah growled.
Nichols sighed, back in his human form again now that he knew the man posed no threat.
“He doesn’t know shit,” Nichols said. “He’s totally useless.”
“Hey!” the other bear said, incensed.
“We should finish him off,” Erik said from behind the man. “He almost killed me. And he’d do it again.”
“Yeah,” Nichols agreed. “He’s obviously just a mindless puppet. Thames will be able to use him again if he gets the chance.”
Jonah sighed and turned his back on the men.
“You guys do what you need to do. I’ve got to get back.”
“Right,” Nichols said, though Jonah could tell he was surprised. Frankly, Jonah rarely left before everything was all said and done. And normally he wouldn’t, except that he had left right in the middle of dinner. He couldn’t imagine how Betsy must feel. And Lyla…
Jonah groaned inwardly as he shifted back into his wolf form. The idea of disappointing Lyla made him feel awful, and he hated himself more and more for letting her interfere with his work. But she was something special. The night they had spent together had been hot on his mind, making it nearly impossible for him to think about anything else. They clearly couldn’t do anything like that again. Not with the mission so damn urgent. He would get home and give Gregors a call. And then, he vowed, he would go about his life doing his best to ignore Lyla and his feelings for her.
14.
Betsy seemed surprisingly fine when Jonah disappeared. Lyla, however, was a little bit of a wreck. She knew the bear shifters were causing trouble, and the way he had disappeared meant only one thing in her mind. Something was going on, and Jonah’s life could be in danger.
“This is delicious,” Lyla said, taking a bite of the pie Betsy had baked for Lyla and Jonah to thank them for the auction.
“It’s an old family recipe,” Betsy said dismissively. Lyla grinned privately. Betsy sure was acting funny lately. Normally, she would rant and rave about her pie and how she had made it, but there was a faraway look in her eyes that told Lyla that whoever had been on the phone had Betsy distracted.
“Spill it,” Lyla said. “Something is going on with you. And as your best friend, I feel like I have the right to know.”
Betsy didn’t seem to hear her at first. When the words sunk in though, Betsy couldn’t hide the guilty grin on her face.
“There’s nothing going on with me,” Betsy lied.
“Are you sure about that?” Lyla asked, raising an eyebrow. Betsy shrugged mysteriously. Lyla was about to pursue the subject further, but a sudden wave of nausea struck her.
She stood up and made it to the downstairs bathroom just in time to vomit into the toilet.
She heard Betsy’s soft footsteps coming after her and locked the door before she could come in.
When Lyla was finished, she washed her face and rinsed her mouth out before finally returning to the living room, where Betsy was sitting on the couch, wringing her hands nervously.
“Are you all right?” Betsy asked, her eyes wide with concern.
“I’m fine,” Lyla said. “Really. But I should probably get home. If it’s contagious, I wouldn’t forgive myself for getting you and Jonah sick.”
“Oh please,” Betsy said with a soft laugh. “We’re built like tanks. Jonah’s never even had a cold.”
“Of course he hasn’t,” Lyla said, bemused.
“Please just stay here tonight. We can make sure you’re all right.”
“I couldn’t possibly,” Lyla said, attempting to walk to the door. “It’s a huge imposition.”
“No, really. At least, this way, it won’t be a surprise to me if you don’t show up at work tomorrow,” Betsy joked.
Lyla sighed. She wasn’t going to get anywhere with Betsy there, hovering over her to make sure she was all right. Normally, she would be flattered by that and feel comforted and safe, but the idea of spending the night in the same house as Jonah, with Betsy right down the hall, made another surge of nausea course through her.
“I’d love to stay, but really, a sick person is just no fun to be around. I would feel too bad having you waiting on me.”
Betsy frowned, and Lyla’s heart constricted as she walked out onto the porch. “I’ll see you tomorrow,” Lyla said, though when the words came out of her mouth, they felt hollow for some reason. Maybe she didn’t fully believe that.
“All right, Lyla,” Betsy said quietly. “I’ll see you soon then.”
Lyla suddenly felt overcome with emotion and turned away before Betsy could see her cry. Why did it feel like they were saying goodbye forever? It was ridiculous. They only lived about fifteen minutes away from each other, by car. That was no reason for her to react this way.
Lyla sighed and slung her purse over her shoulder as she walked out to cross the vast front lawn that led to the driveway where her car was parked.
She stopped suddenly, sensing she was being watched. Lyle furrowed her brow and looked around, her heart panging painfully as she watched Jonah, stark naked in the moonlight, crossing the backyard toward the house. His eyes were intent upon her, but neither of them spoke. Before she had the chance, Jonah disappeared into the house, and she dissolved into tears as soon as she heard the screen door slam shut behind him.
***
The next morning when Lyla woke up, another powerful surge of nausea overwhelmed her. She barely made it to the bathroom before she had lost what was left in her stomach from t
he night before.
Lyla showered groggily, her entire body feeling sore, and she almost felt more tired from it than when she had gotten into the shower. She had never felt so terrible in her life.
“Bets?”
“God, Lyla, are you all right? I’ve been worried sick!”
“I’m just not feeling well,” Lyla said. “I don’t know if I can come in today.”
“Lord, honey, I didn’t expect you to!” Betsy exclaimed. “I’d like you to see a doctor.”
“I don’t need to see a doctor,” Lyla mumbled.
“Lyla…I won’t accept you taking a day off without a doctor’s note,” Betsy said. And then, quietly, as if she knew something that Lyla didn’t, “You’ll thank me for it later.”
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 who 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, 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 its 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. Maybe 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.”
