by Dannika Dark
Chapter 8
Two weeks had passed since Charlie shocked us with his return. Austin spoke with him privately, although he didn’t disclose to me the details of their conversation. He didn’t want to upset April by mentioning his name in our house. Aside from that, Maddox would probably skin him alive. We were certain April hadn’t told Maddox; otherwise, he would have been out for blood. God knows we had enough to worry about with the rogues. I hadn’t seen Charlie since, and that was probably for the best. For several days I couldn’t concentrate at work—constantly looking up each time the bell jingled on the door, thinking it might be Charlie.
I licked icing off my finger and set the butter knife on the counter.
“Holy shitola. It’s like Betty Crocker had an orgy.” Denver stood in the kitchen doorway, eyes wide at the cupcakes covering every visible inch of countertop and table available. “What the train wreck is going on in here?”
“Want one?”
A hysterical laugh bubbled out, and he raked his fingers through his light hair, examining the kitchen as if it were a crime scene. “I don’t think one cupcake is going to make much of a dent. Is this for a client?”
I worried my lip and wiped a few crumbs into the sink. “No, I just wanted to bake some cupcakes. One dozen led to four, and the rest is history.”
“You’re a bag of nuts.” He lifted a red-velvet cupcake and licked the frosting. “Good thing the twins have been playing outside all day or else—”
“Wow,” someone whispered in awe.
Two boys with russet-colored hair stood in the open doorway, eyes as wide as saucers as they took in the unholy display of sugar.
“Too late,” Denver sang, gobbling up his cupcake in one bite. He wiped some icing on his faded, long-sleeved shirt.
“May we have one, Aunt Lexi? We’ll share, if that’s okay.”
I laughed inwardly at their politeness and held up a finger. “One each.”
They took their time, perusing the table and investigating all the different flavors.
“So what’s up with you lately?” Denver asked. “Does this have to do with why April’s been acting funny?”
When the boys began giggling, I peered over my shoulder and saw Spartacus standing on one of the long benches, licking a cupcake.
“Take him out of here,” I snapped. “I don’t need all my cupcakes covered in cat hair.”
They snatched their treats and raced into the living room, the cat under Hendrix’s arm.
“It calms me,” I replied. “I don’t know how to explain it, but baking is therapeutic.”
“You should let your mate work out some of those kinks.”
The next thing I knew, my face slammed against the floor, and I heard a high-pitched ringing in my ears. Denver was yelling far away, and everything around me had narrowed into tunnel vision.
“Call a Relic!” Denver cried out, his voice distant and muffled as if from a dream.
The sudden movement of people in my line of vision made me nauseous, so I shut my eyes. Someone rolled me onto my back, and slowly my hearing returned. I took a deep breath and looked up.
The first thing I noticed was Austin’s smell. Then it was the warmth from his hand as he rested it on my forehead. I concentrated on his eyes, drawing strength from his spirit wolf.
“Lexi? Can you hear me? What the hell happened?” Austin growled at Denver.
The look on his face frightened me.
Denver shook his head. “We were just talking, and she dropped like a stone.”
Austin lifted me into his arms and moved through the house. I nestled my face against his neck, drawing in his scent and using him as my anchor.
“Is something wrong with her?” Naya asked worriedly.
“We’ll be upstairs,” Austin said gruffly. “Make sure the stove is turned off.” He sighed and gave me a scolding glance. “Have you been standing over that hot oven all day? I knew I shouldn’t have left you this morning when I saw you pulling out all those bags of sugar.”
“You smell good,” I murmured. “Better than cupcakes.”
And of all the inappropriate times, I got the tingles.
He gently laid me down on the bed and began removing my shoes and socks. “When’s the last time you shifted?”
“Colorado,” I confessed.
“Jesus, no wonder. Why don’t you shift in here, and I’ll hang out and keep your wolf company.”
My shoe dropped to the floor.
“She doesn’t want to come out.”
He stood up with his fists planted on his hips, scolding me with his judgmental look. “Just as well; the Relic is on her way.”
“I’m fine.”
“Is she okay?” Trevor asked from the doorway. “Denver said she fainted again.”
Austin’s icy blue eyes narrowed. “What do you mean again?”
Trevor backed up a step. “You didn’t tell him?”
With a flick of his wrist, Austin slammed the door and shut Trevor out of the room. “What the hell’s going on that you’re keeping secrets from me?”
I eased up on my elbows. “I didn’t do it intentionally; it just slipped my mind. That was the night Charlie showed up at the store. I didn’t want to worry you, and I’ve felt fine ever since. It was my first day back to work after sitting on my butt for a week; it’s no wonder.”
Austin climbed onto the bed, sinking his weight on my left and letting me stroke his chin. “Are you hungry? Maybe you haven’t eaten enough.”
“I’ve had plenty.”
“Cupcakes don’t count.” He inched closer, his hand sliding up my shirt and resting on my belly. When I saw his pupils dilate and that amorous look on his face, I decided to let Dr. Austin examine me instead of the Relic. After all, he gave the most thorough examinations.
I took his wrist and moved his hand until it rested over my sex.
He flashed me a roguish grin. “Let’s wait for the Relic.”
But I couldn’t wait. The heat from his hand was penetrating through my clothing, as was the smoldering look in his eyes.
I stroked my fingers on top of his. “This would make me feel so much better,” I said in slow words.
His smile diminished. Austin slipped his hand inside my sweats and moved his fingers the way I liked—going deep and then circling right over the sensitive spot.
“Damn,” he breathed, and his eyes hooded.
The chemistry between us had always been intense. Sometimes the more I resisted him the stronger it became, as if we were two magnets drawn to each other.
“Please,” I begged, arching my back.
He nibbled my ear and whispered, “Baby, keep doing that.”
A flush of heat covered my body, and I wanted him to claim me. Austin consumed me with his alpha energy as he slipped his fingers beneath my panties.
One touch.
That’s all it took.
I felt it to the core of my being. It reminded me of our first intimate moment in this house, a thunderstorm crashing outside and Austin pleasuring me all night in every way but one. I trembled with desire now as I had then.
Desire rumbled in his chest. “I want to take you on a drive.”
Images flashed in my mind—erotic memories of things we had done under the privacy of a million stars.
I gasped, shocked by the intensity of my orgasm, which struck me out of nowhere. Austin massaged my inner thigh, moving his hand slowly up to my stomach and breathing hard against my neck.
“Jesus, Lexi. I can’t do this.”
He was trembling with need, so I rolled against his chest, swallowed up by his embrace.
“That’s okay,” I whispered. “I wouldn’t want to traumatize the poor Relic who walks in on us. She’ll think you’re the reason why I’m weak in the knees.”
Austin laughed silently and kissed the top of my head. “All right, smartass. Just lie still and let me know if you need anything.”
“I think I’m good for now,” I said with a smi
le in my voice.
***
“I do realize that you’re the Packmaster, but every patient I treat receives my absolute confidence,” the Relic told Austin in his proper British accent.
Austin was a tad jealous because, as it turned out, the Relic who had delivered Izzy’s babies had sent her partner, Edward, in her stead. Shifters don’t have much need for Relics since we don’t catch diseases and heal through shifting. They were only necessary if one of the kids got hurt or something didn’t heal right. Austin wasn’t thrilled to have a man giving me a medical exam, and maybe part of that was because Edward was rather dashing in a BBC Masterpiece kind of way. Dirty-blond hair with a stubborn kink, small eyes beneath brows sloped down as if he was deep in thought. His Grecian nose gave him character and made up for his thin lips, which were slightly angled. He also didn’t look older than thirty, so that didn’t instill confidence in my mate.
“Austin, it’s fine. Just let him do his thing,” I said from my seat on the bed.
Austin lingered in the doorway, staring Edward down. “I’ll be right outside the door. If I so much as hear one whimper—”
“I assure you, she’s in capable hands.” Edward swung the door shut in Austin’s face and whirled around. “Firstly, I would appreciate if you addressed me by my full name or surname, whichever you prefer. I never did care for Ed. Secondly, how long ago did you have your first spell?”
I scooted up while he dragged a chair to the edge of the bed and sat down, crossing his legs. “Two weeks ago.”
Without asking, he took my wrist and held two fingers over my pulse. “And you never had anything like this happen before?”
“No. I didn’t even faint the first time Austin did the dishes.” When Edward didn’t laugh, I said, “That was a joke.”
“Yes,” he replied, staring at his watch. Then he let go of my wrist and lifted each of my eyelids, shining a light back and forth in front of my pupils. “Any other unusual symptoms?”
“None that I can think of. What’s your last name?”
“Graves.”
“That’s not very inspiring for a Relic.”
He opened a black bag and took out a needle kit. “Back to your symptoms. When I ask if you’ve noticed anything unusual, I don’t mean in human terms. My partner has made me aware of your history growing up human, so I need you to think like a Shifter. Have you experienced any peculiar… behavior? Anything out of the ordinary. Let me assure you that anything you disclose will remain private.”
All I kept staring at was the giant needle he was prepping. After a moment, he placed it on a cloth and tied a strip of rubber around my upper arm. I winced, focusing on his question to avoid tossing the needle across the room.
“I don’t know. I’ve felt nervous lately, but there’s a lot of stuff going on right now in the house that could be the cause. I spent hours baking this morning, and I guess it wore me out.”
Edward slapped my arm and squinted, sliding the needle in. “You have beautiful veins.”
“I hear that a lot.”
He cleared his throat, focusing on the task at hand.
Hmm. Edward didn’t have much of a sense of humor. But he wasn’t unpleasant and kept a professional bedside manner.
Once my blood filled the vial, he removed the tube and expertly pulled out the needle. He replaced it with a cotton ball and bent my arm. I watched with curiosity as he cleared off the table next to me and placed three small bottles of clear liquid on the felt cloth. Then he opened a case and set a rectangular glass plate down, smearing a sample of my blood in three rows. Edward carefully removed the caps from each bottle, one at a time, and replaced them with a top that allowed him to squeeze a drop onto each blood smear. He watched it for a moment and then began humming.
“Are you new?” I asked.
He gave a lackluster reply. “I’ve been in practice for thirteen years.”
“Why did you come here?”
“Hard to find clientele in England. There are more Relics than you can imagine, and we tend to hand down clients through the family.”
“So you left all your clients behind?”
“Actually, my parents spent a great deal of time procreating, so after they retired, my older siblings took all their clients. Sometimes it’s not advantageous to be the youngest in a large family of Relics. That left me with plenty of opportunities,” he said, adding something blue to my vial of blood and then giving it a shake.
I’d never really given it much thought. Relics inherit knowledge from their ancestors who often specialize in different Breeds, but without clients, their skills go to waste. They worked as doctors, therapists, and even advisors. Immortals and other Breeds liked to keep their secrets within the same family, so they usually formed a close relationship with only one.
“Is this kind of thing normal?” I asked. “I mean, a sick Shifter.”
Edward rolled the vial between his fingers and then looked at the glass plate. One of the streaks turned orange. “I’ve seen all kinds of afflictions in my time, and there are a number of defects that can pass down genetically. Is there anything I should know about your parents?”
I laughed and snorted hard enough that it broke his concentration. He gave me a bemused look.
“Sorry, it’s not you. I don’t know who my parents are. My mother was killed, and my father was a drifter.”
“How very tragic for you.”
“Not as tragic as your cable-knit sweater.”
Edward didn’t bat an eyelash as he cleared off the table and wiped down his glass plate. “I don’t mean that offensively, only that Shifters and Relics are similar in that we cherish family. Not all Breeds have the luxury of having children.”
“Family isn’t who you share blood with but who will bleed for you. It’s the people who love you through your tragedies and stick around.”
“We must move forward,” he agreed. “If you ever want to speak with someone privately, my services are reasonable. Sometimes we can’t say everything to those we’re close to, and it helps to have an unbiased person to listen.”
“I’ll think about it,” I said, wondering if I’d just agreed to see a shrink.
“How’s your mate been feeling?”
My stomach dropped, hoping this wasn’t something contagious. “Fine, as far as I know.”
Edward smiled, snapping his bag shut. “No strange behavior? Trying to feed you, sexually satisfy you without intercourse, standing closer to you than normal in the company of strangers?”
Well, that seemed a little personal.
“Now that you mention it, we were at the bar the other night and he kept putting his arm around my waist. Austin sometimes gets jealous, but he’s not an insecure man. So it seemed a little weird when he escorted me into the bathroom. Call me old-fashioned, but this girl likes to pee alone.”
“Perfectly normal,” he said. “I’d like to extend my congratulations.”
“For what?”
He tipped his head to the side. “Well, it appears this is nothing more than the usual symptoms associated with pregnancy.”
I pulled my legs up, and his brows knitted.
“Is something wrong?”
“Um, are you sure I’m pregnant?”
He laughed brightly and studied a photograph on the wall. “Even if I didn’t have my test kit, I’d suspect it based on both of your symptoms. His wolf’s probably sensed it by now, but Austin hasn’t. I suspect in another week he would have figured it out on his own.”
“Why did you have to draw all that blood?” I complained, removing the cotton ball from my arm and tossing it into the wastebasket. “I could have bought one of those tests at the store and saved everyone some time.”
“I’m afraid those aren’t terribly accurate where Shifters are concerned. I hope you haven’t relied on them in the past. Sometimes it gives false positives because your chemistry is different. Is this not good news?”
“I’ve had… miscarriages in the past
. The other Relic said she thought it might have something to do with me going through my first change so late.”
“How many have you had?” he asked, lowering his voice to a whisper.
“Five.”
A grim look crossed his expression. “How regretful. Which trimester?”
“The first. I was usually sick; everything feels totally different now.”
He patted my knee. “That’s a good sign. Also, your changed behavior indicates the pregnancy has taken hold. Those urges increase as the weeks and months go by. Eat a lot of protein. I’m guessing your mate has been trying to feed you a lot of meat lately, but that’s what you need. I’ll write you an easy recipe for a morning drink—just natural herbs. We’ll keep in close touch, and I’ll pop in once a week for the first two months if that eases your mind.”
I released a breath. “That would be great. Do you think… do you think this one might keep?”
“Don’t overwork yourself,” he said, wagging his finger. “Don’t stand for long periods of time without either sitting down or walking. You should remain as active as you normally were, but keep the blood moving. The fainting spells aren’t uncommon.” He cleared his throat, and I noticed what an agreeable voice he had. Sharp and clear—very polite. “How do you wish to break the news to your mate?”
Damn, this was the part I was dreading. I wanted to throw up just thinking about it. I couldn’t keep this a secret—not with the Relic stopping by every week. Austin had said he wanted kids when we were at the cabin, but men say stupid things when women are in heat. He wouldn’t want to worry about a baby with all this pack-war stuff going on. The timing couldn’t have been worse.
“Would you mind telling him?”
Edward nodded respectfully. “Of course. Nothing to worry about, Lexi. If everything’s copacetic, I’ll be on my way. Rest easy tonight, and remember what I said about standing too long. If you work outside the house, take frequent breaks and walk around.” He winked and strolled toward the door. “I’ll see you next week.”
When he closed the door behind him, I sat Indian style and clasped my hands together. It was silent in the hall, and that knot in my stomach got even tighter as I tried to imagine what was being said on the other side of the door… and the crushed expression on Austin’s face.
