by Juniper Hart
Samantha looked to the witch-vampire hybrid with grateful eyes. “I’m sorry it became so sticky. The last thing I wanted was to get everyone into this. That’s why I was so quiet about it.”
“There were enough secrets for everyone,” Jordan interjected, casting her a warm look as he squeezed her fingers. “I didn’t exactly handle things well, either.”
Samantha returned his gaze, aware that Landon and the Council only knew a fraction of what had transpired over the year. They still didn’t know about Jordan’s downward spiral which had almost cost him everything. They didn’t realize how close he had come to exposing his true nature to Marco and James.
“So, what’s next for you, Jordan?” Lane asked, leaning over the table to peer into his face, like she was expecting to see some great change. “Are you going back to fighting?”
Jordan looked at her, a wry grin on his face. “I have my mate, my career ahead of me. Yeah, I think I’m going to focus on fighting and Samantha only.”
“And what about you, Samantha?” Lane’s eyes bored into her, making her slightly uncomfortable, as if she was trying to probe into her thoughts. “What will you do now that you’re free?”
The query filled Samantha with a flood of strange emotions, ones she’d never known before.
Free. I’m free. What does that mean? She couldn’t think of a time in her life when she’d ever experienced the sensation she was feeling now. She had her mate, without secrets or guile. She had her own career at Landon’s company as a web designer.
“I think…” She paused, and all eyes were on her expectantly. “I think I’d like to have a baby.”
There was a round of gasps at the stunning answer, no one more shocked than she.
“A baby?” Jordan laughed. “I think we can arrange for that.”
The Council murmured appreciatively, but again, Samantha was drawn to Lane’s face, which had twisted in keen interest.
“A baby,” she whispered. “I would very much like to meet this creature when she’s born.”
“Maybe you’ll be able to cast a spell of protection on her,” Jordan said wryly, but Lane shook her head, gaze still fixed on Samantha.
“I don’t think that will be necessary,” she said. “I suspect that this child will be very special—more special than any of us realize.”
Samantha shifted her weight uncomfortably, unsure of what to make of Lane’s prophecy.
Why do I feel like she knows something that I don’t? She didn’t ask her question aloud.
Landon cleared his throat. “If there’s no other crap you’d like to drop on us today,” the wolf said, “I think we can call this meeting to a close.”
Sam and Jordan exchanged a look.
“No more crap,” they agreed in unison as Theo banged the gavel to dismiss the Council.
Clutching her hand, Jordan led his mate outside and out of earshot before turning to her with a look of wonderment on his face.
“Did you mean what you said about a baby?” he demanded. “Is that really what you want right now?”
Samantha swallowed and met his eyes.
“Would that be a bad thing?” she asked softly, and Jordan laughed, shaking his dark head quickly.
“Not at all,” he replied. “I just thought that maybe, after everything you’ve been through, you might want to take a breather and get to know yourself.” Tears misted her eyes, and Jordan’s smile faded. “What’s wrong?” he demanded, cupping her face with his hands. “What happened?”
“I know myself when I’m with you,” she choked. “I’ve never been surer of myself. I don’t need to know anything else.”
“Okay!” he laughed, pulling her into a hug. “I’m all for having a baby.”
“Good,” she whispered. “Because I’m already pregnant.”
Jordan set her back down in disbelief, his eyes almost popping from their sockets.
“Y-you are?” he gasped.
“Are you angry?”
Jordan whooped and pulled her back into a hug so tight, she squealed for mercy.
“Does it seem like I’m angry?” he yelled, dropping kisses all along her head until he finally landed on her mouth.
Their eyes clashed, and Samantha was filled with the warmth of his love.
This is how it’s supposed to feel, she thought, smiling through her tears. This is what love is.
Epilogue
“It’s okay! Everything is okay!” Jordan jumped down the stairs, three at a time, almost breaking his ankle when he landed hard at the bottom.
Samantha looked up, laughing at his expression, and then her face contorted into another spasm of pain. She put a slender hand on her belly and took several quick breaths.
“We need to get to the Enchanted hospital, Jordy,” she told him, gasping in between breaths. “Lane said it’s important we get there for the birth.” She paused to let out a low, guttural moan. “OH! Ouch! Ouch!”
Jordan reached for her and embraced her around her waist, helping her toward the door.
“Shh, it’s okay, I’ve got you,” he promised. “I’ve got everything. Can you make it to the car, or should I call on Lane to come here?”
“I-I can make it,” she managed to answer. In short, uneven breaths, she nodded and headed toward the front, taking small breaks in between. I can’t have the baby here. I need to have the baby at the Enchanted hospital.
Lane’s words still echoed through her mind, words that both frightened and excited her. “Your child will be born different than any other Enchanted children.”
“Different how?” Samantha asked worriedly.
“Only time can dictate that.”
Nothing will be wrong with the baby, she assured herself. The pregnancy had gone perfectly, and there had been no abnormalities detected, but still…
Jordan grabbed the pre-packed bag they’d made for the hospital and keys off the entrance table. “Deep breaths, babe. We’ll be at the hospital in twelve minutes, even with traffic. I timed it on the GPS.”
Samantha had to smile and allowed for her mate to escort her to the car. Once he had secured her in the seat, he almost leapt into the driver’s side and barreled out of the driveway, nearly hitting an oncoming car.
“Getting us into an accident is not going to help,” she told him dryly, and he cast her a sheepish look. “We have time. Just watch the road.”
“Sorry,” he muttered, slowing his driving. He continued to cast her wary looks as they drove, swerving into oncoming traffic as they did.
“WATCH THE ROAD!” she howled at him. “You’re causing me more stress than the baby right now!”
“Sorry!” he yelped again and forced himself to do exactly like she’d instructed. “I’m not used to this!”
“You’re a fighter! You’re used to more pressure than this!” she reminded him, grinding her teeth as another contraction struck.
“You’re doing great, baby. Almost there.” Jordan was able to keep the car on the road for the rest of the ride, parking in the emergency vehicle spot when they arrived.
“Jordy, you can’t park here!” Samantha groaned when he tried to usher her out of the car. “You’ll get towed.”
“I don’t give a damn. This is for emergency vehicles, and this is an emergency. I’ll come get the car when I know you’re safe and sound.”
Samantha knew that arguing with him was futile and instead let him deposit her into a wheelchair. At breakneck speed, he headed into the maternity ward, howling at the top of his lungs.
“My baby is coming!” he yelled. “Help! My child is on the way!”
A nurse bolted around the station and cast Jordan a scathing look. “Sir, this is a hospital. You are not the only expectant parents. Lower your voice at once!”
But Jordan was not dissuaded by her stern tone. “If this is a hospital, get the mother of my child into a bed! She’s having a baby!”
The nurse’s mouth formed a reproving line, and she frowned.
“I hea
rd you the first time,” she snapped, but she took the handles of the wheelchair from Jordan, leading Samantha away. When Jordan tried to follow, Samantha stopped him.
“No! Go move the car!” she grumbled. “I don’t want to pay for impound fees!”
Like a squirrel watching a tennis match, Jordan looked from his mate toward the doors and back, but she had already disappeared with the nurse.
“Is he always like that?” the nurse grumbled.
“Not really,” Samantha chuckled.
“What is it about men in childbirth that turns them into idiots? He’s a wolf, right? They are the worst.”
“He’s not so bad,” she said with affection. “I’ve certainly seen worse.”
Jordan bolted back out to where he had left the car. To his relief, it hadn’t been towed, and he quickly went to move it before rushing back to his wife. When he arrived back at the nurse’s station, there was no one there to direct him. Impatiently, he listened for sounds of Samantha’s voice down the hallway, but he had no idea where she’d been taken.
I need to be with Sam, he thought, wringing his hands nervously. He, too, thought of what Lane had said about the prophecy. Nothing is wrong with the baby. I’m sure everything’s fine. We would have known before if there was a problem. Still, he wanted nothing more than to be with Sam, holding her hand and reassuring her that nothing was wrong. Where is that damned uppity nurse now?
Again, Jordan craned his neck to look, but there was no one in sight. He tried looking through the frosted glass window to no avail.
“Jordan?” He spun at the sound of his name, and relief sagged through him as Harley came rushing toward him. “How is she doing?” he asked, his eyes as worried as Jordan felt. “Has she had the baby yet?”
“No… I don’t know. I can’t find anyone. I went to move the car… Hello?” Jordan swirled to yell out again for attention. No one materialized.
A stab of fear sliced through him then. What if something’s wrong? What if that’s why I can’t find anyone? What if they’re all dealing with a crisis with Sam?
Harley seemed to detect the distress on his face.
“I’m sure everything’s fine,” the older man said comfortingly. “Women have been having babies since the beginning of time.”
Not babies like this, Jordan thought tersely, but he didn’t refuse when Harley led him toward the waiting area.
“Come and sit down. You’ll need all the rest you can get after what’s coming. Enjoy your last few minutes of being able to sit down.”
Jordan wasn’t able to sit and instead began to pace the area nervously.
“I can’t believe you guys didn’t find out the sex,” Harley said, trying to make small talk to alleviate the stress on his protégé’s face. “You might be the only modern-day couple who hasn’t.”
Jordan shrugged, his anxiety mounting. Where the hell is everyone? Where did they take Sam? I should be in there with her. Something’s wrong. This prophecy…
“I know you probably don’t want to discuss this right now,” Harley said. Jordan was only half listening, his mind awhirl with terrible thoughts.
“What?” he asked with more sharpness than he had intended.
“I have a fight lined up for you next month. This guy is an up-and-comer but late to the game.”
“Uh-huh. Sounds fine,” Jordan said absently.
“He’s a slugger, boxing background. Packs a mean punch, and apparently, he’s an A-grade asshole, too.”
“Okay.”
“But he’s also from your neighborhood, so you might know some of his entourage.”
That caught Jordan’s attention, and he turned his eyes on his trainer. “Oh, yeah? What’s his name?”
“Derrek Jameson.”
Jordan stared at Harley for a long moment before suddenly bursting into laughter. “Really?”
“You know him?” Harley asked. Jordan began to explain, but the nurse appeared, and the words died on his lips.
“Mr. Archer?”
He was at her side in seconds. “How is Sam? Is everything okay?”
“I need a word with you in private,” the nurse said firmly, casting Harley a wary look. Fear exploded inside Jordan.
“What is it?” he choked, feeling the blood drain out of his body. The nurse led him inside the double doors and smiled at him.
“Your wife had the babies, Mr. Archer,” she said. “A healthy boy and girl.”
Jordan stared at her uncomprehendingly.
“Twins?” he demanded. “She had twins?”
“Yes. Perfectly healthy and within normal weight. They’re lovely.”
Twins? How can something like that be overlooked in this day and age? It didn’t make sense to Jordan, but he didn’t mind, not if everyone was safe and happy.
“C-can I see everyone?” he breathed.
“Yes…” The nurse nodded solemnly and leaned in, her voice barely above a whisper. “But there’s something else you should know,” she murmured. Jordan stared at her. “The babies… they have no aversion to silver,” she told him. “They are Lycans, are they not?”
“Yes…” Jordan said slowly. “They are…”
The smile widened on her lips.
“Then they are miracles,” she chuckled, gesturing for him to follow. “I will take you to your wife now.”
He stood in place, his mind racing at the information he’d just been given. Lycan hybrids, twins with no aversion to silver. Is this the Vulpes prophecy?
Then, he raced off to join his new family, the prophecy all but forgotten.
Desire
Enchanted Foxes
Prologue
Someone was screaming, but no matter where Orion looked, he couldn’t make sense of where the noise stemmed from. All he knew was that someone, somewhere, needed his help.
Like a superhero in an old Stan Lee flick, the vampire sat up blindly, his blue eyes shining against the blacked-out room, seeking an answer to the question that sat only inside his head. Of course no one was really screaming, at least not within earshot, yet for the past month, he hadn’t been able to shake the feeling that he was being summoned, beckoned by something beyond his control.
Or maybe I’m just losing my mind, he thought grimly. That’s entirely more likely.
Placing his feet on the cold, wood floor, he rose from the queen-sized mattress and looked wistfully to the empty pillow at his side.
What the hell is wrong with you? he growled to himself, shaking his blond head in disbelief. There hasn’t been a head on that pillow in at least ten years. Why are you staring at it as if you expect someone to be there?
Why would there be anyone on the pillow? He had made a name for himself as a bachelor, after all, single, rich, and enjoying life to its fullest. In four hundred years, he hadn’t considered the idea of a long-term relationship, limiting his dating to quick, no-strings-attached flings.
Lately, though, it seemed that everything Orion had once believed in was dissolving around him, making less and less sense with each passing day. He was beginning to question his reasons for everything, his way of doing things, even the choices he’d made to get where he was at that moment, even though he had no true complaints. Life was as good as it could ever be for him. There was nothing he wanted for, and certainly nothing he needed.
What, then, was the problem?
If he had to think about it, he knew that he could date the start of all his new uncertainties: the screaming in his head. The shrill noise which had roused him from sleep was diminishing to a dull cry in his mind’s ear, but Orion knew that was where it would remain until he tried to rest again—at which point, it would start all over again.
It was a disconcerting cycle, and the vampire knew he had to speak to someone about it, but he had no idea who. A shrink? Henry Brandis, the Vampire Regent on the Council of Seven?
Although those were the obvious choices, he shoved both thoughts aside as quickly as they had popped into his mind. If he went with the
former, the latter would certainly hear about it, the almost incestuous nature of the Enchanted not lost on him. They were no better than a small town in some ways, despite their vast numbers. No matter how many tribes spanned how much distance, the Council of Seven was apt to learn about every little infraction.
If he spoke to the vampire councilman, however, he guaranteed that everyone would know his business. There wouldn’t even be a hope that Orion might keep his private life quiet. The last thing he needed was anyone thinking he was unstable. It was bad for business.
Orion didn’t remind himself that half the world was seeking therapy for one matter or another. He was Orion Tanner. He was beyond seeking help—or at least, that was what he told the world. Displays of weakness were not an option.
This will pass, he told himself unconvincingly. I’m sure it will pass. I just have to be patient. I’ve been through much worse in my life than a couple of bad dreams.
But he wasn’t sure how much longer he could put up with the incessant noise or go without rest. Whatever was happening to him was much more than simple night terrors.
With a deep sigh, he forced his muscled legs further into the two-storey condo and down the stairs toward the main floor. His cell phone rang as he padded toward the kitchen, and Orion noted the time to be after midnight. Not that it was late for him. On the contrary; it was the middle of the day. The only reason he’d tried to sleep was because he knew what the next few days held in store for him.
Ten to one that’s Vera, he thought, stalking toward where the device was charging. Some assistants complained that their bosses never left them alone. In Orion’s case, it was the opposite. It was Vera who was always on his ass. Thank the gods for that. If it wasn’t for her, who the hell knows where I’d be right now. She’s the best damned assistant I’ve ever had.