by Raeden West
"You're pregnant?" he asked her calmly and searched her face as he looked at her and held one of her hands in his own. He sat a few inches from her on the couch where he'd had her sit, but his body language was relaxed and not stressed out. She wondered how he could stay so calm.
"Yes. This is all your fault. I haven't been able to work I've been so sick and then my grandma had me take a test and it's not the flu. It's a baby. Your baby! I cannot believe you got me pregnant," She growled at him.
"Well, that sometimes happens when you get carried away and aren't careful," he told her, and then grinned at her. "Hot damn, I'm gonna be a daddy."
"You're not upset?" Lydia blinked at him.
Tomas let out a half laugh. "Why do you think I wanted help finding a wife?"
"You got me pregnant on purpose then!" Lydia accused him angrily. She felt like she'd been setup, although they'd only had sex once, how was he supposed to know she'd be fertile. It didn't make a lot of sense.
"Well, it didn't really occur to me in the middle of what we were doing that you'd get pregnant, but anytime you have unprotected sex, pregnancy can be a side effect. I haven't had any luck with those dating sites in finding a suitable woman and I know I like you. All things considered, this situation could be worse." Tomas took her hand in his own. "Marry me Lydia, I promise I'll take care of you and the baby and any future babies we might have. I know we’re sexually compatible and I like your wit and company and fire. Your passion is one of those things that so many women are missing in life. I know this isn't what or how you would want something like this, and I honestly was trying to figure out how to get you to go out on another date with me before you showed up here. I like you. I was going to ask you out again before this."
"Then why have you ignored me for the last few weeks?" Lydia asked him suspiciously. He wasn't the type to lie, but at this point she wasn't sure she trusted him further than she could throw him.
"Would you have said yes?" Tomas asked her quietly. When she paused and then shook her head no he gave her a hard look. "Exactly. I was trying to figure out the best course of action to win you over."
"Win me over?" Lydia searched his face, trying to understand what he meant.
Tomas put his hand to her cheek and looked into her eyes. "You're kind of easily spooked. You require a gentle hand and finesse and it has to be your idea or you don't really seem open to taking suggestions. You're not the type of girl you can just push around and get your way without hurting your feelings. You deserve respect, and I was trying to figure out how to meet what you needed and wait for you to come around to the idea. I was hoping if I had you start finding me a wife, working closely with you, it would give me time to seduce you and win your heart. I got lucky you came home with me that night. I don't regret getting you pregnant, though I wasn't thinking about that when it happened."
"I am not a horse," Lydia's brows knitted together, not sure whether to be offended, or flattered at his wording.
"No, if you were a horse, I'd have already won you over." He chuckled and pulled her into his arms before she could react and stop him. "I am glad you are here tonight. I'm fine with having a baby, I'm fine with you being the one to have my baby. I've wanted you from the moment I saw you and I wasn't going to give up until I made you mine. One night isn't enough. I want a lifetime with you."
"How can you know so fast that you want me?" Lydia blinked at him in confusion.
"I just do. My wolf knows you're my mate. I can tell we’re compatible in all the areas that count, and I find you intelligent, beautiful and accomplished. What more could a man want?" he asked her gently and before she could answer him he kissed her. When she melted against him, he deepened the kiss and wrapped his arms around her tightly, holding her close.
Eventually he pulled back and looked at her.
"I won't deny the chemistry between us, but do you really think that's enough?" Lydia asked him and hesitated. When he kissed her, it made her forget everything else in this world except the way her lips felt against his, his strong arms wrapping around her body. She wanted him.
"I think it's more than a lot of people have. I think we will have mutual respect, admiration, we’re both shifters so we won't need to keep secrets from each other. Around here, we can shift and run freely. Our children will be free to play and run and not worry about a human parent. You don't care about my money. I can take care of you, but I appreciate that you work and do your own thing and are a capable woman."
"I don't like being told what to do, and you're the kind of man who will want to boss me around." Lydia told him and then pressed her hand to his cheek. "I need you to be willing to compromise, and explain things and tell me your motivations for things. I'm a lot more likely to cooperate if you communicate with me. I know you're a big bad wolf and used to getting your way, but I'm a cat and I do things my way."
"I know, it's one of the things I like about you. You're not afraid to stand up to me and show me your claws. In fact, the last time you were here, you left claw marks in my back." He grinned at her and then kissed her again, slowly getting her out of her clothes. Pulling her back until he was on the couch and she was about to get pulled into his lap he kissed her belly. "Ride me Lydia, you can take charge, show me what you like. I can be patient. I'm a good boy."
The innocent look he gave her had her cracking up. "You are far from innocent, and I don't think you'll be able to handle just sitting there letting me make all the decisions."
"Try me," he challenged her and grinned, putting his hands back behind his head and watching her. She had her shirt buttons open and the front clasp of her bra was undone, her breasts hung there exposed as she leaned down between his legs. Pulling his zipper down and undoing the button on his jeans she pulled his already erect cock out of his boxers through the hole. Stroking him, she watched him with her eyes.
"Put your mouth on me Lydia, I need you to taste me," he told her and pulled her down towards his lap.
"Nope. You said I got to make the decisions. Is thirty seconds really all you can handle?" Lydia asked him, laughing at the puppy dog expression on his face as he pushed his hips up to wag his cock at her and get her to suck it.
"Baby, if you put your mouth on me, I'll let you do whatever you want after," he told her and then blinked and pouted, sticking his lower lip out teasing her and had Lydia take pity on him. Kneeling down between his legs, she took him in her mouth.
She spent the rest of the night having him make love to her in all the imaginative ways she could come up with, just to prove her point. He struggled with letting her be in control, but he put in the effort to do things her way.
Lydia knew these moments would probably end up being rare, but the fact he'd try had her trusting him a lot more than before.
Chapter 6
They were being married in front of the justice of the peace. Her white dress was a baby doll cut that hid her due-any-day pregnant belly. She'd been living with Tomas for a while before agreeing to finally marrying him. She wanted to make sure she could handle it before she finally tied the knot and the one person who'd been on Tomas's side had been her grandma.
Standing next to the two of them as their witness, dear old grandma was here and giving Tomas the googly crush eyes that almost had Lydia groaning. Her grandma may be old, but she joked she wasn't dead and told Lydia if she didn't want Tomas, she'd take him. Lydia appreciated her grandma's humor and was glad to see her out of the house. Tomas had brought her grandma to come live on the ranch with them and she'd thrived since they put her house on the market. She loved going out every day with the animals, and though she was getting old, she could still shift and meander after the two younger ones.
Lydia wasn't sure entirely what their future would look like, but she felt confident that Tomas and her would find a way to make it work at this point. He was a pretty mellow, relaxed man and only put his foot down when he strongly believed in something. He was always willing to explain why he felt a certain way, an
d even if Lydia didn't always agree with him, he had a way of winning her over to his way of doing things.
Smiling at him, she signed the final bit of paperwork and he slipped a simple gold ring on her finger. She hadn't wanted anything big or elaborate, and he was okay with that. While he had a lot of money, she didn't need to feel the need to spend it as fast as he could make it, and because of it he often tried to spoil her even when she didn't need anything.
"I love you Lydia." Tomas took her into his arms and kissed her. "I know I haven't told you yet and I realize you need to hear the words. Thank you for having faith in me, and for giving me your heart and body. I'm looking forward to growing old with you, having more children down the road and spending my life by your side."
"You're going to make me cry! Don't get all mushy on me," Lydia said and pinched his shoulder playfully as she smiled at him. "I love you too, but let's have this baby first before we talk about more. The first time he pees on you, you may change your mind about having another one."
"They pee on you?" Tomas looked confused.
"Well, sometimes when you change them, if you don't do it fast enough." Lydia started to laugh at the look of horror on his face. "And don't think you'll be getting out of diapers, it's not going to be all guns and horses. He has to get out of diapers before you can stick him on his own horse."
"Well, how long will that be?" Tomas asked and chuckled as he put her arm through his and then offered his other arm to her grandma to escort her out to the truck. They were having a small get together tonight at the ranch to celebrate their nuptials. He had decided to try to mend fences with the pack, and had invited them to come out to celebrate with him and his new wife.
Driving back to the ranch, he couldn't help but feel how lucky and blessed he was that Lydia had been open minded to the chemistry between them, and hadn't let his personality, money, or domineering ways scare her off. He knew he could be a bit of a control freak at times, and she was never afraid to stand up to him, and sometimes especially in the bedroom, she even encouraged him.
He didn't know how he'd gotten so lucky to find such a wonderful woman who seemed to mesh with him completely, but he was thankful every day for her existence. Looking at her belly one more time, he couldn't wait to meet his son. They'd decided to name him Blake Daniel, after his father Blake, and her father Daniel.
She'd never met his parents, but when she'd heard their story, she'd cried for his loss and he could just add that to the list of reasons why she was one of the best women he'd ever met. Kind, compassionate, not afraid of the horses, didn't mind getting dirty. Okay, she couldn't cook to save her life but that's what a house keeper was for.
"What are you thinking about? You have a goofy expression on your face," Lydia mused as she watched him drive down the highway back towards the ranch.
"How lucky I am to have you, and that you can't cook." He grinned at her and winked.
"You're really going to hold that pot roast against me?" She groaned and buried her face in her hands for a moment, laughing hard.
"Well, it was so bad the dogs wouldn't eat it. It's kind of hard to tell you I love your cooking when the dogs won't even touch it," he told her and gave her a look that said he still loved her anyways.
"I promise I'll stay out of the kitchen. I think Marie would kill me if I burned another one of her oven pans black anyways," Lydia said, laughing, remembering how Marie almost wept over the ruined pan after she'd destroyed the pot roast she'd tried to make to surprise Tomas with. He'd tried to eat it, but not even whisky was able to help get it down this throat.
"I don't need you in the kitchen. I can think of many other rooms that I'd rather have you in anyways," he teased her, grinning.
"Okay children, that's enough," Grandma said covering her ears, the flirting in the truck was getting a little too hot for her. "Save it for your wedding night."
THE END
Rescued by the Tiger
Chapter one
“I don’t think you have anything to worry about, Lisa. These things happen all the time. It’s probably just some random teenager out with his friends. They don’t have anything better to do, so they decide to spray paint graffiti where were they think somebody is going to enjoy their work."
Jessica, my best friend from across the street had my best interest at heart, but I really didn’t understand how she could possibly say the things that she was saying. This was the second time that I found my mailbox knocked over and the side of my house was painted with a very derogatory statement about my sex life.
“That might be very well true, but I’m getting sick and tired of getting the neighbor boy to paint it over. Every time that he does, he snickers and turns his head. I don’t blame him, because it’s not exactly something that you would like to see written anywhere. I’m just lucky that it wasn’t on the front side. It’s mostly hidden by the shadows of the trees. I’m glad that the leaves have not started falling yet, or my neighbors would have a bird’s eye view of what was written. They’re elderly and would probably have a heart attack and I would be to blame.” I was getting dressed for work and Jessica had stopped over for our customary coffee together.
“If you are really worried about it, then you could put up a security camera and find out who’s doing it. It wouldn’t take all that much. I’m sure that you can get some reasonable stuff at your local hardware store. I might even have a contact in a security company that could come over and give you an assessment. I’ve heard good things and you don’t get those kinds of referrals without something to back them up.”
I put on my black skirt that went down to my knees with a slit up the side. It gave a brief glimpse of things to come. I wouldn’t call myself promiscuous and I certainly wouldn’t call myself what was written on the side of my house. I’m not saying that I’m a nun, but I’m a little bit more selective about who I take to my bed. There are exceptions to every rule and every woman knows that there are certain guys that can do it for them. My on again and off again romance with the neighbor boy was probably ill advised. We only had three such occasions to get together and each time was strictly physical and nothing emotional. I don’t know that for sure about him, but for me it was mostly to get one out of the chamber.
“I may just take you up on that offer, Jessica. If you have the number on you, I can put it into my cell phone and make sure to give them a call later on today. This all feels personal, like somebody has taken offense to something that I’ve done. It would be better if they would just come out and tell me how they feel. Doing something like this makes me feel that I am dealing with a coward. It’s also possible that they want to scare me, but they’re going to have to do a whole lot better than that.” I grabbed my black blazer, feeling slightly more secure in my day wear.
Working as an insurance specialist at my own office had given me the license to buy practically anything I wanted. I’m certainly not a minimalist and I like the finer things like champagne and caviar. I have refined tastes on a shoestring budget, but sometimes you have to live a little in order to make your life worthwhile. I have credit cards, but I’m not in debt and that’s something that I can’t say for most people.
I stopped at my mirror by the bed to check my makeup and make sure that my red hair was perfectly situated. I had a couple pins in and I was trying a new style. It really did make my face and my neck look more accessible.
“I really do have to go. The two little ones are probably clamoring for breakfast and giving David a hard time. I already punched the number of the security company into your phone. Be sure to call them, because you never know about these things. They could escalate and there might be a big possibility that you have some kind of stalker. I still think that it’s probably teenagers blowing off some steam at the start of the school year.” She was wearing a white robe and every so often it would separate and let me see the creaminess of her thighs. I’d never gone into being with a woman, but I may have to change my mind on that front.
“If I do get the security expert, then I’m definitely going to need an assurance that they can be discreet. I don’t want everybody to know my business. I think it goes without saying that my private life is my own. I know that you would never say anything.” I said that to make sure that she knew that I wouldn’t be happy with her had this information became part of the rumor mill.
I would say that Jessica was the dictionary definition of a trophy wife. She was twenty years younger than her husband, David. She had the kind of body that was sculpted with palates and yoga every morning. I figured it was a prerequisite when they got married that she keep her shape. The only way to know for sure would be to ask David. I wasn’t going to do that, because it really was none of my business.
I went downstairs and grabbed my brown leather coat that probably cost more than most people would pay for something like that. Five hundred dollars was a mere pittance compared to the feel of that material against my skin. It was almost better than sex, but I don’t think even chocolate can compare to the pleasures that two bodies can give each other.
“Have a good day. I’ll see you when you get back from work. You know that you have an open invitation to come over for supper any night. We always have more than enough and I’m sure that David would get a kick out of seeing you again.” I got the feeling that she wanted to add a component to her sex life that involved me with a certain ensemble that would probably make David’s eyes go out of his head. “The kids are usually in bed early. We could pop open a bottle of wine and see what happens.” She was always making these veiled sexual innuendos.
“You keep persisting like this and you might just find me on your doorstep. I was going to tell you to be careful what you wish for…you just might get it.”
This made her blush. She touched my cheek and began to shake her head in disbelief. I could tell that there was an attraction, but I wasn’t sure if I was willing to walk down that road with them. If it went badly, then it would be awkward for us to live in the same community.
