The Chosen Series Box Set: Books 1 - 3

by Charlene Hartnady

  She covered his hand with her own. Her wide, blue eyes shone with unshed tears. “You are worried. I can see it.”

  He smiled, but it felt tight and forced. “I am sure that he will come soon…that it will all work out.”

  “Are you trying to convince me or yourself?” A tear fell and she quickly wiped it away. “The vampire healer who checked me told me that I have one of the narrowest pelvises she has ever seen. If our son gets much bigger”—she bit down on her lip, swallowing hard—“I am worried that he will get too big.”

  The need to punch something increased. His beast bristled inside. Ward rose to his feet, needing to move. Needing to do something. “I’ll admit, I’m worried.” He paced. “You are still smaller than a human and therefore much smaller than a vampire female.”

  “I’m really scared, Ward.” Her voice cracked and his heart stopped beating.

  He went down on his haunches in front of her. “You will have this baby soon.”

  “You said ten to twelve weeks. I only just hit ten. He’s growing quickly. At this rate…”

  He couldn’t stop the roar this time or the curse that followed. “Don’t say it.”

  “We agreed that we were going to face facts.” Her voice had a panicked edge, but other than that she was rock solid. He admired her strength, his feelings for his female grew.

  “If only there was a way to make this baby come now.”

  “That’s it.” He smiled. “You’re genius.” He leaned forward, having to reach over her belly and kissed her solidly on the lips. Going back down on his haunches, he took both her hands in his. “It has happened before that a human female went over time. We took her into Sweetwater and had the human healers make the baby come. They gave her some sort of medicine that brought on labor. Maybe we could do the same with you.”

  “I’m not a human, Ward.”

  He chuckled. “I had noticed, sweetheart, trust me. A human wouldn’t have your amazing canines…”

  “Fangs.” She smiled, looking a little more relaxed.

  “Fangs…” He growled the word. “Have I ever told you that I love the way you sink them into me.”

  Her eyes clouded, turning stormy blue in an instant.

  “What is it?” Cupping her jaw, he tilted her chin back up so that she was looking at him once more. “Speak to me, Steph.”

  She sighed heavily. “Now is hardly the time. We have this baby to worry about.”

  “If you have something on your mind, I want to know about it. I don’t want you worrying about anything right now.”

  She nodded once. “Why don’t you bite me anymore, Ward? You’ve claimed me, but you don’t bite me. Don’t you want to?”

  Ward clenched his jaw. His teeth distended just at the mere thought of biting his female. “I have to use every ounce of self-control not to bite you.”

  “Well then…”

  “I’ve claimed you and I am yours, Stephany. I need you to know that I will always be yours, but you do not consider yourself mated to me. I can see it, can feel it. It would be wrong of me to mark you in that way.” He sighed. “Maybe one day…”

  Her eyes darkened. “Why did you do it before?”

  “It was wrong of me.” He shook his head. “I feel things when I am with you…I allowed myself to give in to my instincts before.” He paused. “This was only supposed to be a one-time thing. I guess deep down inside, I knew that we belonged together, Steph, even then.” How did he make her understand?

  “I want to be your mate so badly that it hurts, more than you will ever know. I find it really hard to shrug off the lores though. To turn my back on the beliefs of my species. I have seen Lance as my mate for twenty long years.”

  A low growl was torn from him at the mention of the other male’s name.

  His female flinched but held his gaze. “I’m sorry.” Her eyes were solemn. “I can’t help it. I wish to God I could feel differently. My heart is yours, but I can never be your—”

  “Don’t say it…” Ward grit his teeth, trying hard to put a rein on his emotions. “Don’t ever say those words again, Stephany. It would kill me. Understand that I consider myself to be your mate. I have imprinted on you on a cellular level, it is a bond that can never be broken. I will never want another female. You are it for me. Do you understand that?”

  She nodded, biting down on her lip.

  “Good. I hope that in time you will come to feel the same.” She tried to say something, but he stopped her with the shake of his head. “I will pack a bag. We are going to Sweetwater. It will be risky, but we will have to go to one of their hospitals. I can only hope that the vampires don’t find out.”

  “We don’t have to go to a hospital, I know a doctor. She is a friend of Tanya’s. That way we can avoid such a public place.” She clutched his hands. “Brant and Zane may have scouts out looking for us.”

  He felt everything in himself tighten. “They will definitely have eyes everywhere and this time swearing allegiance will not be enough.”

  “They will want your head.” Her eyes turned fearful.

  “Hey.” He tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. “They have to catch me first.”

  “You forget, I will be there slowing you down.”

  “You would have to get a whole hell of a lot bigger to slow this wolf down, honey. Light as a feather.” And to prove a point, he stood and in one easy motion lifted her with him.

  She shrieked with surprise, her cry quickly turned into a fit of laughter though. Tucking her against him, Ward took a seat while leaving Stephany on his lap. She shook her head. “You’re crazy,” Steph whispered, her shoulders still shook with laughter.

  “Crazy for you.” He kissed the top of her head. “Now tell me a bit more about Tanya’s friend. Won’t she let the vampires know the moment we call?”

  Stephany shook her head against his chest, pulling away only so she could look him in the eye. “She wouldn’t do that if I asked her not to. She will understand the need for secrecy, and she is a very good human healer. If she can’t help us personally, then I am sure she will know someone who can. I trust her not to say anything.”

  Ward held her gaze for a long time. What choice did he have? If this human betrayed their trust, his head would end up on the end of a spike. Yet if they did nothing, his female and son were at risk. He had put Stephany in this position and he would keep her safe at all costs, even if it meant his life. “You put your feet up while I pack a bag and inform the others.” He wished that he could just bring the healer here, but there were too many risks involved considering Stephany was a vampire. His female might need the human hospital, so it would be much safer if she was just in Sweetwater. Once she and the baby were strong enough, he would bring them back.

  She made to stand, but he held onto her. “Let me help you pack.” She pushed at his chest.

  He shook his head. “The trip will be hard enough on you. Please rest while you can.”

  She smiled. “Who knows, maybe it will bring on the labor naturally?”

  “It might. Let’s hope that he waits until we are close to town though.”

  Her jaw clenched and he wished that he’d just kept his big mouth shut. She swallowed hard. “Did I mention that I was scared? I’m such a coward.”

  He pulled her towards him. “It is normal to be afraid. I will be with you every step of the way.”

  She nodded. “Be sure to pack a bag for the baby.”

  He grinned, his heart warming even through the fear for his female and their unborn child. “I will pack some things for our son. We need to think of a name.”

  Stephany shook her head. “No, let’s wait until he is born. It will be bad luck otherwise.”

  “Both you and our son are going to be just fine. We do need to think of a name for him though. Believe in him and trust that we can do this together. If we hurry, the human healer can start your labor today. He will make it. Do you hear me?”

  It took a long time for her to answe
r. “Yes.”

  “You need to believe it, Steph. For him”—he rubbed her belly—“for yourself and most of all for us. We are a family now.”

  She nodded, another tear tracked down her cheek. Ward wiped it away with his thumb. “No more tears, just positive thoughts.”

  She nodded again.

  “I have a few name ideas.” He ran his hand up and down her arm.

  She smiled and it was like seeing the sun on a cloudy day or a rainbow after a storm. Ward couldn’t help but to smile back. “You’ve thought of a few names?” She cleared her throat.

  He nodded. “He needs a strong name. Something like Jericho or Raidon.”

  Stephany nodded. “I like them.”

  He could tell that she was trying to be polite. “I have a few more, but I want you to come up with some as well.”

  “I will think on it.”

  “Good, because we don’t have much time.”

  She nodded for a few beats before turning her eyes up in thought. “What about your father’s name. He must’ve had a strong alpha name.”

  Ward chuckled. “His name was Nathanial. A little old fashioned. Not exactly very alpha, especially since he insisted on being called by his full name.”

  When she smiled, he knew she wasn’t keen on it which was fine since he hadn’t expected her to like such a different name anyways. It was why he hadn’t planned on bringing it up in the first place. Ward kissed her, her soft lips almost his undoing. When she gripped his shoulders and whimpered, he felt his beast rise up inside him, it insisted that he take her, brand her and mark her as his. Ward pushed down on the need, breaking the kiss on a low growl. “Put your feet up. Try and nap. I will let you know when we are nearly ready to go.” Since she was in his arms anyways, he picked her up and carried her to their bed.

  “I can walk you know.”

  “I realize that.” He put his face into her hair and breathed in her delicious scent. He would never be able to get enough of this female. His arms tightened for just a second. Ward took a deep breath, he had to force himself to let her go. One thing was for sure, he would not leave her side until this baby came. A whole vampire army couldn’t keep him away, though he prayed it wouldn’t come to that.

  “Let me help…” She propped herself up on her elbows.

  “Rest,” he growled.

  She narrowed her eyes at him, but leaned back into the pillows. “Don’t forget to pack me—”

  “I won’t forget anything, I promise. Rest.” He caressed her jaw one last time before leaving the room.

  Chapter 20

  Ward hadn’t lied when he’d said that the journey would be hard on her. They had to stop frequently so that she could get off to stretch or to relieve her bladder.

  Her back ached. She felt nauseous from the constant motion. Her belly felt tight. The worst was her lower back. It didn’t matter how she sat or what she did, she could find no relief from the ceaseless dull pain. She thought that she must be driving Ward mad from the continual shifting in her seating. If she irritated him, he gave no sign, just kept moving in a slow lope. Her fingers throbbed and her thighs burned from holding onto him. Stephany was so afraid of falling. Her center of gravity had moved or something because she struggled to maintain a constant balance. The incessant fidgeting to find relief from her aches and pains didn’t help. Ward had stopped once or twice when she’d shifted dangerously far to the left or right.

  Thankfully, they avoided fallen trees and large outcrops of rock by choosing instead to go around such obstacles. Unfortunately though, this added greatly to their travel time as they picked their way through the dense undergrowth.

  Just the four of them, Ward had decided to keep the party small, choosing only Rushe and Tyler to accompany them. Ward had explained to her that Rushe was one of the most ferocious wolves they had in battle, greatly respected by all the shifters. Ward had referred to him as a berserker, saying that he would go into an almost uncontrollable trance like fury during battle. Sure, Rushe was a big male, but with his puppy dog eyes and sweet demeanor, she never would have thought that a battle hardened berserker lay just below the surface. Capable of doing some serious damage to his enemies no doubt.

  In his wolf form, he was a mottled grey with a white underbelly and almost as big as Ward. The other shifter, Tyler, was quiet, keeping mostly to himself both as a wolf and when in male form. He was also a mottled grey but with the odd smudge of rust throughout his coat. He had the most incredible golden eyes.

  Tyler was one of the males from the group that had dropped her back in Sweetwater the first time round. He was an excellent tracker and even more talented at hiding a trail. They kept the party small so as not to draw attention to themselves.

  For what felt like the hundredth time since their last stop, Stephany shifted her position to try and ease the god awful pain that radiated from her lower back. How females remained in this state for an extended period of time was beyond her. If she got to see Tanya again, before the royal birth, she would warn her friend of what was ahead. To think that the small human would get much bigger than her was just plain crazy. Then again, how many pregnant females could attest to being carried, for hours on end, on the back of a wolf? Thankfully the movements were pretty even, or she wouldn’t have been able to cope at all.

  She let out the longest, loudest sigh of relief as they arrived in the clearing that housed the barn.

  As before, the males first changed into their human forms. Ward locked his mesmerizing green eyes with hers, putting his hand to the small of her back. “How are you holding up?”

  She somehow managed a smile. “I’m good.” But her smile felt tight with fatigue.

  Ward nodded and kissed her quickly. “You look tired. Once we have called the human female, you should rest.” The other males were already in the barn changing. They walked to the outbuilding together, Ward helped her into the back of the vehicle.

  “I won’t be long.” He said before moving to the rear of the barn so that he could also change. Before she knew it, the trunk banged shut. He had stowed their bags, which the other two males had carried on their backs in special side pouches.

  Ward slid in next to her, his familiar scent washed over her, helping to calm her racing heart. Just the thought of what lay ahead caused ice to fill her veins. This baby meant more to her than she had ever thought possible. She often found herself thinking of how he would look. Would he look exactly like Ward, or would there be something of herself in his features? Would he look up at her with adoring eyes like the little boy Sebastian had done with his mother?

  Stephany shook her head, feeling her eyes prick with tears. It was important that she take Ward’s advice and stay positive. She could do this. Her baby was still small enough. One thing was for sure, she would die trying if she had to. Ward may not want to hear her speak of her own potential death, but she would make sure that Becky understood. That the human was fully prepared to try and save her son if it came to it.

  Tyler rode with Rushe upfront. “Are you comfortable?” Rushe glanced up in the rear view mirror for a beat before his eyes went back to the road ahead.

  “Yes, thanks.” Again she felt shock at the revelation of his being a berserker in battle.

  Ward pulled her more firmly against him. “Do you have the cell phone?”

  She nodded. “Fully charged and ready to go.”

  “Good.” He ran a hand up and down her spine. “Call the female. The sooner this happens the better. We are about an hour away from sunset. Chances are good that you will be in labor throughout the night.” They had established that all females regardless of species tended to take many hours for their bodies to prepare for the expulsion of the child. This was particularly true if a female was birthing for the first time. Vampire females had an especially hard time with the process, even those deemed physically able. Deaths were not uncommon.

  She shuddered and tried to mask the response by rummaging in her pocket for the phone.


  “You say that this Becky female’s number is stored on this phone?” Ward’s gaze was locked on the device in her hand.

  “Yes, I told you that Tanya and this female are very good friends. It is lucky that we took the phone after all.” Stephany scrolled through the contact list until she found the right one, pushing to dial.

  “You bitch.” Becky sounded really happy, which contradicted the statement. “Where the freaking hell have you been? I haven’t heard from you in ages.”

  “It’s not Tanya, she gave me her phone, it’s Stephany.”

  “Steph?” Now she sounded a little shocked. “How are you?”

  Stephany couldn’t help but to glance down at her distended belly and at the male that held her so possessively. “I’m”—she hesitated—“good thanks.”

  “I must say, you are the last person that I expected to hear from. Is Tanya okay?” Concern was etched into every word that the human spoke.

  “Yes, yes…she’s fine. At least she was when I left the coven two weeks ago.”

  “Why did you leave the coven? What’s going on?”

  Stephany sighed. “Okay, firstly you need to know that the vampires are looking for me. I’m in grave danger. You have to keep this to yourself. Can I trust you not to tell anyone, including Tanya, about this conversation or any meetings that may follow?”

  “You can trust me, Steph. I consider you a friend.”

  “Thank you.” Stephany briefly relayed the events that led up to this moment, though not yet disclosing why they had come.

  “Okay…” Becky giggled. “You boinked a shifter and now you’re preggers with his baby. Oh my God! I have to say, you are the last person I expected that from. Tell me, Steph, are they just as attractive as the vampire males?”

  Ward could obviously hear the conversation, because he shifted his weight while growling softly.

  “Are they also as well hung and experienced in the sack?” Now the human sounded excited.