by Sky Winters
“Walker?” I called out, “Walker, I’m starving and you’ve got nothing in your kitchen,” I explained as I padded back to the bedroom. I opened the door to find him out of bed and fastening his belt. Even standing their shirtless I felt my pulse ramp up. In the early morning light I could make out his tattoos better. Howling wolves were interspersed with bursts of light on his upper arms. With his back to me I could see the incredible detail of a huge wolf outstretched and hands covering its face. The artist must have been immensely talented, the images looked like they would spring right off the skin.
Walker turned to face me. “If you toss me that shirt you’re wearing I can take you out.”
I glanced down at my torso like I didn’t know what he was talking about and had myself a “duh” moment. I shouldn’t be allowed in the same room as beautiful men. They kill brain cells. I peel the shirt off and toss it to him; I was completely nude again.
“You should go ahead and get dressed,” Walker suggested, “Before I toss you back on that bed again.”
My stomach rumbled audibly again in protest. “As lovely as that sounds, I’m sore and so hungry I could eat a horse.” I shake my dress from the night before out and slip it on over my head. I hadn’t bothered with a bra while I was getting ready the night before. I hurried and slipped my shoes back on. I was getting the shakes I was so hungry.
Walker had been watching me get ready. “You don’t have any underwear, do you?”
“Shit.” Somehow I did forget that more than minor detail. “This is all I have. I wasn’t planning on having a sleepover.” In the haste to leave Joker’s the night before we both forgot I wasn’t wearing anything under my dress. Such a state is actually really unsafe o a motorcycle.
Walker rummaged around in his dresser and pulled out a pair of jeans. “Put these on. They might be a little big, but at least you’ll be covered.”
I studied the waistband and the slimness of Walkers hips and torso. There was a better chance these would be too small, but I pulled them on anyway. I managed to get them buttoned and they did fit comfortably. Yay me!
Walker nodded his approval. “Great. Let’s get out of here.”
Chapter 5
What was supposed to have been a most glorious one-night stand had turned into nearly a month of coital bliss. We couldn’t get enough of each other. If we weren’t having sex we were at least touching in some fashion.
Walker had decided to try pushing his luck at Joker’s again that night after I got off work. I’m not terribly keen on that, but he had put on his alpha pants and there was nothing I could do or say that would change his mind. Not even a blowjob. It was that serious.
I arrived at work only twenty minutes late. I had managed to sleep through my alarm that morning. It wasn’t my favorite way to start my day.
I met up with Crystal in the break room to grab myself a cup of coffee and settle my frayed nerves before jumping into my edits.
“Where have you been, missy?” Crystal asked. Her hands were planted on her hips in mock indignation.
“I overslept.”
“I’m not talking about this morning. I mean the last month. I haven’t seen you and you blew off girls night on Friday.”
“Well…” I blushed and looked at the floor. I felt sheepish; I could only imagine how I looked.
“Oh. My. God. You blew me off for that guy didn’t you?” Crystal tried, but couldn’t keep the shit-eating grin off her face. “That good, huh?”
I nodded. “Oh man, Crystal he’s amazing. Even if he’s just the Stephen rebound guy, he makes me feel so good.” I finished stirring and take a swallow of my coffee and grimaced. “Ugh! Who made the coffee this morning?”
Crystal looked offended then glanced at the contents of her own mug. “I did not ten minutes ago.” She took a sip and shrugged. “Tastes fine to me.”
I wrinkled my nose before taking another tentative sip and freeze as it hits my stomach. “Oh, fuck.” I tossed my cup in the sink and bolted to the trashcan in the corner of the room just in time to completely empty out the contents of my stomach.
Crystal hurried over and grabbed my hair, pulling it out of the line of fire. I paused after heaving to test for any potential aftershock. “Can you grab me a paper towel?” I asked weakly.
“Of course.” Crystal hurried back with my request. “Have a little too much this weekend?”
“No. I had one drink on Friday and that’s it. Maybe I caught a bug or something.”
Crystal chuckled. “With all the sex you’ve been having, maybe you’re pregnant.”
“Come on, Crystal. Don’t even joke like that.” I stiffened as I do the mental math. Counting backwards from then I was officially a week late. I dug my birth control pack out of my purse and see that I’d taken each and every single pill, but somehow didn’t notice when I’d finished the placebo pills and still hadn’t gotten my period. I looked up at Crystal wide-eyed. “Fuck. You might be right.”
Crystal startled. “What? I was just kidding. Give me those.” She snatched the pink pod out of my hands and saw the same thing I did. “Did you miss one or maybe took one too late?”
I shook my head. “Nope. I even set an alarm so I don’t forget. What are the odds?”
“Less than three per cent. We need to go to the drugstore now. I’ll tell the boss that you’ve got a stomach bug and I need to take you home.”
“Lyla! Come on out of there. What does it say?” Crystal was banging on my bathroom door. I knew she was lingering out there the entire time, which didn’t exactly take the pressure off to pee.
I had kept my eyes closed until the timer went off. I needed to know, but I didn’t want to. Lo and behold that hunk of plastic that could not lie, told me my fate in plain digital letters: pregnant. 3+ weeks.
I traipsed over to the bathroom door and weakly pulled it open.
“So?” Crystal asked tapping her foot.
I couldn’t speak. The capacity for normal human speech had been forgotten in that moment. Instead I handed her the test.
“Holy shit! Lyla, you’re pregnant!” Crystal got a little giddy for a second, but when she realized I wasn’t celebrating too she stopped. “Are you alright? I thought you wanted to be a mom?”
“I did. I do! I just didn’t think it was going to be with a guy who is supposed to be temporary and while I was on The Pill.”
“Just tell me what you want to do and I’ll help support you one hundred per cent.” I felt her hands smoothing the tension from my back.
“Nothing. Nothing for now, thanks. I’ll see Walker tonight and I’ll discuss it with him. In the meantime, would you mind calling my gynecologist and getting me an appointment today? I don’t trust my fingers to not drop my phone.”
I waited for Walker to pick me up out on the sidewalk. I knew he would be suspicious since he usually came to the door, but I was too anxious to be cooped up. The ultrasound photo felt like a bomb in my purse that would go off any second. I was lucky my doctor was able to get me in within a couple of hours to confirm exactly what was going on with me.
I could hear the roar of the motorcycle from the entrance of the neighborhood, my anxiety ticked up as the sound drew closer. Walker pulled up in front of me and turned off the bike. “What’s going on?” Worry clear on his face.
Again, I couldn’t say the word. I just handed him the fuzzy black and white printout and held my breath.
He stared for a moment before going completely ashen. “What am I looking at here? Are you…?” Turned out he couldn’t say it either.
I nodded. I could feel the tears welling up in my eyes, no matter how hard I fought them back. This was it. He was going to bail and I’d never see him again.
The look of shock quickly rearranged itself into one of elation. “You’re pregnant? We’re going to have a baby!” He scooped me up and squeezed me tight, planting scratchy kisses all over my face.
“You aren’t mad?” I was dumbfounded. I hadn’t expected his reaction.
“Mad? Why would I be mad? This is amazing fucking news! I’m going to have a baby with the woman I love.” Time came to a grinding halt.
Love? Was it love between the two of us? I had been under the impression that it was lust. Well, mostly lust with a healthy amount of affection and respect sprinkled in. I wasn’t sure how to answer and judging by the look on Walker’s face, I thought he’d rather I forgot he said anything at all.
Since I wasn’t sure about my feelings for him, I decided to drop the subject for the time being in favor of a much more pressing one. “Babies,” I announced pointing to the two dark spots on the ultrasound.
“What?” Walker asked, snapping out of his daze.
“Babies; as in plural. We are having twins, and apparently big ones. My doctor said I look like I’m about two months along, which is nuts.”
Walker sighed and handed me back the photo. “We need to talk.”
Shit. “Here it comes, the rejection.”
“No! No, no. Are you kidding? I wasn’t planning on letting you go and considering the circumstances now, you’re stuck with me.” He grinned, an expression that quickly melted away. “You’re pregnancy is going to go by fast. Shifter babies develop especially quick.” He paused to weigh my reaction before continuing. “The Wraith’s aren’t just a club, we’re also able to shift from people to animals; specifically wolves.”
I felt like someone dropped ice down my back. “Those are just stories! There is no such thing.” I’m having babies with a delusional crazy person.
“Sure, but the stories are based in reality. They have to come from somewhere.” He raked a hand through his hair. “Look, I don’t want to discuss this here. Let’s go and I’ll explain everything when we’re around safe company.” He held his hand out to me.
Of course, I hesitated. Walker just told me he was a goddamn werewolf. I should be running and screaming in the other direction, but my feet had become rooted to the spot. I wrestled with what I should do. This could be the part where the crazy man wanted to make me his bride or kill me. There were enough of those stories floating around in the world too.
In the end, I decided to hear him out.
Chapter 6
Joker’s was quiet compared to the first night I was there. Walker dragged me over to a booth in the furthest corner away from the smoke and sensitive ears.
“So now that we’re among ‘safe company’, are you going to tell me what this craziness is all about?” I demanded. Walker looked down at his hands. I couldn’t believe it. He actually looked nervous!
“Have you ever heard the Native American stories about skin walkers? You know, animals that take on human form?”
“No. Can’t say that I have.”
“Okay. I’ll give you the short version. In the old legends, the skin walkers were the priests of the tribe that had gone astray down an evil path. They had killed a close family member so they were able to become animal at night.”
I was skeptical, but told myself to keep an open mind. I always had the option to run away and change my name later.
“Only part of that is true. You have to perform an evil deed, but you also have to have the bloodline to do it. Neither of my parents could shift, but I guess they had the ability to if they would have just killed.”
“Wouldn’t they have had to kill their parents or one of their children to do that?”
Walker shook his head and waved to the bartender. “No. That part of the legend is off too. I didn’t. I had been in a bar fight with the old president of the Wraiths actually. We both got loaded and I hit on his girlfriend.” I cocked an eyebrow at that salacious detail, but didn’t interrupt.
“Naturally, he got pissed and things got physical. I had been in plenty of fights before, but something was different that night. I can’t really explain it since it was a feeling more than anything.” The bartender interrupted and took our drink orders.
I was on the edge of my seat at that point and annoyed at her for the disruption. I didn’t want a drink; I wanted to hear the end. When the bartender left he continued, “I remember punching him in the nose and knocking him to the ground, there’s a big hole where I must have blacked out and then the next thing I know. I’m standing over him, his face looking like hamburger meat. I had beaten him to death.”
I slouched back in my seat with an uneasy feeling in the pit of my stomach. That was a lot of information to absorb and I wasn’t so sure I wanted to. The father of my twins was a murderer. Sure he claimed to not remember, but I couldn’t be sure of that.
“There’s another thing you should know about the babies…”
“Walker Lewis!” A voice boomed through the bar, jarring me out of my thoughts. “Get your sorry ass over here and pledge yourself to me.” Danny had arrived to make the evening even worse for me. Great.
“Hell no. In fact,” Walker stood up and composed himself. An air of authority had settled around him, “You get on your knees and pledge yourself to me.”
The two men closed the space between each other and stood toe to toe. Danny had about an inch on Walker’s height, but Walker had the advantage of being roughly fifteen years younger. I should have wanted to giggle at the absurdity of the tough guy standoff, but the tension between them tossed the silliness right out of the room.
“I ain’t pledgin’ nothin’, Walker. I’m the leader of this club and you will accept that. On your knees, now,” Danny growled.
“Go fuck yourself,” Walker said evenly, “there is no way you are allowed to be the leader anymore. Tell me something. What is it that a true alpha should be able to do that the others can’t?”
Danny scoffed and took a step back. “Get a human girl pregnant. Why are you asking stupid questions?”
Walker tilted his head, making sure he had the attention of every person in the bar. He had Danny on the ropes and needed everyone to know it. “And how is that going for you and your wife? She’s totally human, right?”
Danny narrowed his eyes and snarled. “That is none of your business, you piece of shit.”
“Temper temper, Danny. We’re just having a talk.” Walker leered at his soon to be former alpha. “It sounds like, no babies then. Am I right?”
Danny refused to answer. His faces had broken out in red blotches and he kept opening and closing his fists at his side.
“My lovely girl over here just happens to be pregnant with twins, my twins to be exact. So tell me then, who should kneel to whom?” Walker’s face lit up in epiphany. “Hang on. This explains everything. You knew. You knew I was the true alpha, didn’t you?”
Danny sputtered an attempted explanation, but Walker cut him off, “You spent the last fifteen years busting me down and running me out because I was a threat to your title. Oh, you motherfucker. You are good.” Walker smiled and wagged a finger at Danny.
“Tell you what. All will be forgiven if you just hit the floor and pledge your unwavering loyalty to me.” Something in the room had changed just then. I looked at the faces of the other men in the bar. Most were focused on Walker, some were on Danny waiting for him to do something, and a few were scrutinizing me for signs that Walker’s claim was true.
Danny made a move that caught my eye. He shed his jacket and dropped to all fours on the floor in front of Walker. His skin rippled and popped. In a blink a grizzled wolf was lying where Danny used to be. Walker followed suit and turned into the most gorgeous sable wolf I had ever seen. Danny had rolled over onto his back, exposing his belly in a posture of submission. While staring into the face of the older wolf he put one paw on his rivals belly and growled.
I rubbed my eyes thinking they had suddenly gone bad. There was no way the two arguing men had just turned into animals. I looked around the room for the reactions of the others and while being glued to the story unfolding, none of them looked shocked.
Oh wow. Walker was telling the truth. As hard as my brain tried to rationalize what just happened, it couldn’t. There was no rational explan
ation for what just happened other than it was something supernatural, which is batshit crazy.
Now my life had gotten tangled up in it and I didn’t know what to do. I splayed a hand over my belly, what would become of my babies? If the realization that Walker was telling the truth and shifted in front of me was the warm up punch, then the realization that my little babies could be just like him was the knockout punch. I felt woozy and had to sit down.
I stuck my head between my knees and closed my eyes. My breathing was ragged and labored despite my best effort to calm it. The insanity was too much.
“Lyla are you okay? Do you need anything?” I could hear Walker’s voice, but he sounded fuzzy and far away. I shook my head in response. I didn’t want to answer him, not just yet.
He bundled me into his arms where I finally broke down and wept. I just let him hold me there until his t-shirt was soaked and I was dried out.
“Lyla, is there anything I can do to help?” Walker murmured.
“Yes. Take me home.”
Walker laid me down on my old threadbare couch. His concern for me was touching and warmed some of the icy feelings I felt for him in that moment. I had rolled over to keep my back to him. I just couldn’t look at him. He had told me the truth and yet I still felt betrayed somehow.
“Lyla. Talk to me. I can’t help you if you don’t tell me what’s wrong. Honestly, you’re freaking me the fuck out.” I could hear the anxiety in Walker’s voice, but I still wrestled with how to handle this. I could let him know how I was feeling, but there was that other side that hoped if I ignored him he would just go away.
I decided to talk to him. I rolled over and looked Walker square in the eye, he has to understand what I just went through. “You turned into a dog! I watched you drop on all fours and sprout fur. What I believed to be reality has been dashed to pieces so you’ll have to excuse me for being less than chatty.”
Walker grabbed my hand and stroked my fingers. “You have every right to feel that way. If the roles had been reversed I would probably feel the same. If you want me to go, I will.”
