The Tiger's Pregnant Bride

by Bonnie Burrows

  Wiping her tears away, she sat up and scooped the pregnancy tests off of the bed and tossed them in the trash.

  “I’m just going to hide it until I figure out what I’m going to do.”

  Grace looked at Olivia, her expression empathetic. “You do realize that shifters gestate faster than humans? This time next month, you’ll look six months pregnant, instead of just several weeks. You can’t hide this. You have to tell Sable. He’ll think of something, Olivia. He loves you. He won’t make you get married if you don’t want to.”

  Olivia nodded, wishing she was as sure as Grace was that Sable wouldn’t force her hand in marriage. He was convinced they were soul mates. He would do what he had to do to save Olivia and his unborn child. With the council out for blood and willing to do anything to uphold their archaic laws, the only way to save Olivia would be to marry her. She had to think of something, and quickly.

  She could run, but she risked being caught, or giving birth alone. If she gave birth in a hospital, would the doctors know that the baby wasn’t human? No, she couldn’t risk it. She would have to tell Sable and hope that he did the right thing.

  Olivia stood and hugged Grace. “Thank you for everything, Grace. You’re a good friend.”

  “It’s going to be okay Olivia.” Grace held her friend tight. Olivia walked out of the house and got into her car, her head falling to the steering wheel for a moment while she struggled to keep her composure. She was going to get through this. She had to.

  Olivia pulled out her phone and sent Sable a text. Where are you?

  He replied within minutes. He was at his home still, helping Egan with a project. She pulled her car onto the road and headed for Sable’s house. She might as well get this out of the way so they could figure out where to go from here.

  Lost in thought, she drove on autopilot. Before she knew it, she had arrived at Sable’s house. She walked slowly up the steps, dreading this moment and wishing she could turn back time. They’d always been so careful, yet here she was. Pregnant, scared, and about to be forced into a life that she didn’t want. All so the council and human politicians could say that they had control over “today’s issues.” What did that even mean? How did forcing a human to marry a shifter solve anything?

  The door loomed before her as she reached for the handle. She pushed the heavy door inward and walked into the foyer.

  Her phone chimed merrily. She read Sable’s text and headed for the family room. They were about to wrap up whatever school project Sable was helping Egan with and he would meet her in the family room afterwards. Olivia headed for the spacious sitting room in the center of the house. She plopped down in the overstuffed recliner, pulling the cozy throw over her shoulders and immediately drifting off to sleep.

  Sable found her just like that, sweetly sleeping in his favorite recliner. She had kicked off her shoes and tucked her tiny feet up under the throw. Olivia looked so peaceful there, and so right in his home. He wondered if she would move in with him if he asked, but he cast the thought away as quickly as it had come. Olivia was such a free spirit; she would always need her own space and her own money to be happy. She thrived on being self-sufficient. Forcing her to depend on him would crush her spirit and make her feel trapped.

  Sable leaned over and scooped Olivia up, sitting in the recliner and pulling her close. She snuggled into his chest, her breathing heavy with exhaustion. She didn’t stir as he adjusted the foot stool and settled in beneath her. She felt so good in his arms, it was all he could do not to wake her up and take her right there. But Olivia had been struggling to sleep for days now, and she needed to rest. Every time he had asked her what was wrong, she had claimed her exhaustion was work related, but he had a feeling that she was trying avoid hurting his feelings.

  He hadn’t left her side since his dream, and he was sure the closeness was wearing on her. When Egan had mentioned that he was working on a project for school, Sable jumped on the chance to help. Egan didn’t need his help—he was one month away from graduating with honors—but Sable needed an excuse to leave Olivia alone for a couple hours.

  He’d been surprised by her text earlier, though he was delighted that she missed him already. Maybe she was starting to warm up to the idea of spending their lives together.

  Sable rested his cheek on her head and closed his eyes. Olivia wasn’t the only one who could use some sleep, though he wasn’t complaining.

  **

  Sable awoke to a strange sound outside. Moving through the dark house, he quietly opened the door and slipped into the back yard. A heavy fog covered the lawn, giving the illusion that Sable was walking on air as he moved toward the source of the noise. Behind him, a door slammed. Sable moved into the bushes, watching the open yard to see who was following him. Aldrich and Laskin appeared out of the fog, their figures dark in the distant moonlight, but he knew it was them. The fog carried their voices toward him, and he could hear bits and pieces of their hushed conversation.

  “Olivia… dealt with… this cannot be allowed.”

  Suddenly, Laskin turned on Aldrich, stabbing the elder in the heart with a long, curved hunting knife. Aldrich fell to the ground like a ton of bricks, his hand trying desperately to pull the knife from his chest. Laskin stood in the moonlight, slowly shifting until his entire tiger form was revealed. But Sable could see in the pale moonlight that Laskin was different. Rather than the typical orange-coated tiger, Laskin’s coat was white and silver. Before Sable could figure out what the color meant, he heard a scream in the distance.

  Certain it was Olivia, Sable began running through the bushes, shifting as he leapt from a giant boulder into the air. He could hear Laskin running down a parallel trail beside him, though Laskin’s labored breathing made it impossible for him to hear Sable as he bounded silently through the forest.

  Sable reached the clearing a split second after Laskin, his gaze following Olivia’s cries. Laskin saw her first, his roar filled with rage as he ran towards her and the shifter by her side. Laskin landed on top of the other tiger, teeth sinking into the neck of her protector as he landed on his back.

  Sable was shocked when the tiger turned towards him, and he looked into his own eyes from across the clearing. Olivia sat helpless a few feet away, bleeding and moaning in pain. Sable watched in horror as Laskin ripped into the other Sable, jumping off the crumpled tiger to advance on the defenseless Olivia. In blind rage, Sable roared and lunged at Laskin. Laskin turned and grinned, his tiger visage twisted with hate.

  “You’re too late Sable. You can’t save her.”

  Sable sat up in the recliner, his heart pounding, his breath coming in quick gasps. Something stirred in his arms, and he was surprised to see Olivia, safe and sleeping peacefully. He buried his face in her hair, heart still pounding in his chest as he fought to shake the dream off. For now, she was safe. But Sable knew that Olivia would soon be in danger.

  He inhaled the scent of her, the crisp, clean fragrance of her shampoo. He kissed the top of her head sweetly, the terrifying vision of his dream still heavy on his heart. He had to protect her, but he couldn’t do that if he didn’t know what the danger was.

  But what he did know was that Olivia was hiding something. He had seen it in the way she’d acted, making excuses to go into work when she had weeks of unused vacation time. She might not know exactly what caused his dream, but she knew something.

  Sable shook her gently until her eyes fluttered open. She struggled to pull herself from sleep, which was odd for her. Sable shook her a little harder, starting to worry that this woman who usually woke up so peppy now seemed to be extremely drowsy.

  She finally opened her eyes and sat up a little, her expression colored with confusion, and her voice raspy when she asked, “What’s going on Sable?”

  “We need to talk. I don’t know what’s going on, but I know you are hiding something from me. I need to know what it is, because I can’t protect you if I don’t know everything you know.”

  Olivia nod
ded, not even questioning why she would need to be protected and what from. She took a deep breath and sighed, eyes shimmering with unshed tears. Sable waited, internally screaming for her to get on with it, the anticipation was killing him. But internally, he knew that the only thing that would help her now was to be patient and let her tell him in her own words.

  Finally she said, “I don’t know what to say so I’ll just say it. I’m pregnant.” She looked at him, waiting for a reaction. To yell, to laugh, or to cry. Anything.

  Sable sat quietly, unmoving. The words were familiar, but he was fighting to make sense of what she said. Then the image of the broken condom in the trash. Foolishly trying to convince himself that nothing would happen. He understood now, and he was not prepared.

  “Sable, please say something. I’m so sorry, I really am. But I know—”

  He stopped her, shaking his head while he searched for the words. “This isn’t your fault. None of this is your fault, but my dreams finally make sense. I should have known you were pregnant, but I didn’t think the condom broke until after I tossed it and I should have realized that I was wrong sooner.”

  Olivia flew up out of the chair, her face red hot with anger.

  “You knew it broke and you didn’t tell me? Sable what the hell? I’ve been freaking out this entire time. You should have told me.”

  “I didn’t want you to worry needlessly. The chances of anything actually happening were so slim that I didn’t want to upset you.”

  Olivia laughed, the sound angry and tight. “It doesn’t look like that slim chance did us much good, now did it?” She was shaking she was so angry. He should have told her. Maybe she could have done something. But done what? The truth was, she wouldn’t have done anything.

  Olivia slumped onto the sofa, the anger deflated by the realization that knowing wouldn’t have changed anything. It wasn’t like he’d done anything intentionally. And even though she was scared, and she wasn’t sure she could deal with being the mother of a shifter, she knew that he would never let her down no matter how much she yelled and cursed at him.

  “I’m sorry Sable. I shouldn’t have yelled. I’m just so scared.”

  She burst into tears, burying her face in her hands. Sable moved to kneel in front of her, holding her face in his large hands.

  “I’m not going to let anything happen to you. Everything is going to be all right.”

  Olivia nodded, not trusting herself to speak. Sable sat quietly, thumb rubbing her temple while she absorbed the events of the last twenty-four hours. They had to come up with a plan, and soon. As soon as the council found out what they’d done, they would be all over them to get married and for her to go through the vetting process, which seemed like a moot point since she was already carrying Sable’s child. But the councilmen were elderly, and they liked things done a certain way, even if it didn’t make sense in today’s world.

  She looked up at Sable, tears still threatening. “What are we going to do?”

  Taking a deep breath and choosing his words wisely, he held her hands as he spoke. “Olivia, I know this isn’t want you wanted, but the law is clear. We have to get married. Both our governments require it, whether we agree or not. If we don’t, we both could face execution.”

  Olivia was stunned. There were so many ludicrous laws still on the books, but they were never enforced and had long since faded out of practice. She had always assumed that this law was the same, and at worse they might face some sort of excommunication. But execution? They had to be kidding. This was the twenty-first century, not some dark ages feudal society based on ignorance and fear. She shook her head, her voice barely a whisper as she fought to keep herself under control. This couldn’t be happening. She couldn’t be forced to choose between getting married and her very life.

  Sable pulled her into his arms, holding her tight as she fought a battle with herself. He tried not to let her reticence hurt him; after all, he was going to be forced to marry too. But for Sable, his first dream had changed everything, and marrying Olivia simply felt right. He knew she would feel that way too, but she had to get there on her own.

  He kept his voice low, trying to reassure her that she had options. “What if we talked to the council, and explained that we are willing to register and raise this baby together, but we only want to marry when we’re ready? I don’t know if they’ll go for it, but it’s worth a shot.”

  Olivia nodded. If they could be reasoned with, maybe this didn’t have to be the end of the world.

  “Good. I’ll call them tomorrow and ask them to meet us here. We can explain the situation and see if they’re willing to negotiate.”

  “And if they’re not?”

  “We’ll cross that bridge when we get there, but let’s hope they can see our side of it.”

  Olivia nodded, her eyelids growing heavy. Sable laid her gently on the sofa. Carrying a shifter baby was exhausting for female shifters; he couldn’t imagine how hard this was on Olivia. He tucked her in and left the room to let her sleep. Tomorrow was going to be a rough day for her, and the council likely wouldn’t negotiate the law. But he couldn’t look into her eyes and not at least try to convince the council to bend the rules. He didn’t want to tell her that it was likely a pointless conversation; they had to get married, and that was that. For now, he wanted her to rest knowing that he was in her corner. Tomorrow would bring its own problems. Tonight, he wanted to celebrate that he was going to be a father.

  **

  Olivia woke the next morning feeling refreshed and starving. She sat up, but dizziness overtook her and she was forced to lie back down. She groaned as the nausea roiled within her, surprised when Sable showed up immediately at her side.

  “Can I get you something? Anything you want.”

  She started to nod, and thought better of it, asking him for some toast and some fruit. He kissed her hand and stood, headed for the kitchen. Olivia closed her eyes again, willing the light-headed feeling to go away. She knew once she ate something, she would feel a million times better, but until then, she felt like death warmed over.

  She heard the doorbell ring, then footsteps hurrying down the hall. Egan appeared in the doorway, food in hand, large smile on his face.

  “Where is Sable?”

  “The councilmen are here. He’s going to talk to them and try to leave you out of it. How do you feel? I can’t believe I’m going to be an uncle.” Egan beamed with pride, looking tenderly at her already swelling belly as she ate.

  “I feel awful.”

  He chuckled softly. “I’ve heard that is pretty much standard no matter what species.”

  She nodded as she chewed, relieved that she was already feeling better. She finished her toast and a few slices of peaches, washing it all down with some skim milk.

  “That’s much better.”

  “So when are you two going to get married?”

  Olivia looked shocked. Surely Egan knew that she had no intention of getting married, at least not right away.

  “We’re not getting married.”

  Egan’s face paled. “You mean that Sable is talking to them because you intend to refuse? Are you sure?”

  “He’s going to attempt to talk some sense into them. If that doesn’t work, then I guess I’ll tell them that I disagree with the law and I refuse to marry. I’ll register the baby—”

  “Olivia, no you can’t do that. You can’t just refuse. They’ll kill you on the spot.”

  “No they won’t, Sable will talk to them.”

  Egan was frantic, his voice hardly above a whisper, “No, Olivia, he can’t. Our money holds no power against ancient laws. If the elders order you to marry and you refuse, they will kill you.”

  Egan looked around. “Stay here, I’ll be back.”

  Olivia started to argue, but decided against it. Egan returned a few short minutes later with a backpack.

  “Be quiet. They’re still making small talk in the library. Follow me.”

  Olivia nodded,
following Egan down the hall and through to the other wing of the house. When they were as far away from the library as possible, Egan opened a room that Olivia had never been in and pulled her inside. He rushed to a picture, pulling it open like a door to reveal a wall-safe. He hastily typed in the code and the safe opened with a whisper of air as the seal broke. He pulled stacks of cash out of the safe, shoving it into the bag. He grabbed a notepad off the mahogany desk and scribbled a quick note on it.

  “Sable will find it and know where to come for us,” he said by way of explanation. He replaced the picture to its original position and led Olivia toward a book case in the back corner of the room. He ran his hand across the books, counting to himself before he pulled on one of the leather-bound additions.

  The shelf moved slightly, revealing a dark passage behind it. Throwing the backpack onto his shoulder, he grabbed Olivia’s hand. She pulled back, unsure of the dark.

  “Do you want to live?” She nodded. “Then you have to trust me. Sable told me what to do if there was ever an emergency. Please. Let me save you. They’ve been looking for any excuse to get rid of you for years.”

  Olivia gasped.

  “Now that they have just cause, they won’t hesitate. Please, Olivia. We have to leave.”

  She walked into the passageway, holding her hand on the wall as he closed the bookshelf and plunged them into darkness. He grabbed her by the hand and led her in the dark, his eyes easily adjusting. They went as fast as Olivia could in the pitch black, Egan leading the way.

  Olivia felt like they’d been running for miles when they finally stopped and Egan flipped on a tiny computer screen. He moved the cursor to pan the security cameras. Satisfied that the coast was clear, he opened the door and led Olivia out onto a tiny trail.

  Olivia had expected the passageway to spill out into the dense forest beyond the property line. But within minutes, the tiny path led them into the main park in the heart of the city. Glancing over her shoulder, Olivia couldn’t tell where they’d emerged from, which was surely the point. If the councilmen had discovered her missing, they surely would head straight for the forest, the exact opposite direction of where they were.