by Lola Gabriel
If he called, she would make something up. There was no way she would tell him she was pregnant, not now, but she was afraid he would hear the panic in her voice and somehow put everything together. She knew that was unlikely, but it made her nervous all the same. She glanced down at her stomach and told herself she was being ridiculous. There was no way she was showing, no way the man could have known her reason for wanting Bastian to contact her. He wasn’t about to barge in here and refuse to let her leave. Her mind was still trying to jump to the worst-case scenario, even as she told herself she was overreacting, and when her cell phone rang, she made a desperate squeaking sound.
She picked it up as though it might bite her, sure she would see an unknown caller and that it would be Bastian. Relief flooded her when she saw Dr. Gordon’s name on her screen. She answered the call.
“Thanks for getting back to me so quickly,” she said.
“Of course,” the doctor replied. “I have bad news and what I hope is good news.”
“Go on,” Rachel said.
“The bad news is we have nothing out of state at this time. The hopefully good news is that there’s an opening for a receptionist in our Dallas branch. One of the team has just put her notice in today. I have spoken to Dr. Monroe, the head doctor, and explained the situation. The job there is yours if you want it.”
Dallas wasn’t as far away as Rachel would have liked it to have been, but it was better than staying here, and deep down, she knew she was overreacting. Bastian couldn’t know she was pregnant. He wasn’t going to come looking for her.
“That would be perfect. Thank you so much,” Rachel said.
“You’re welcome, Rachel. Now, I’ll give you the address of the office and Dr. Monroe’s contact number. She’ll be expecting your call during business hours tomorrow. You won’t be able to start until the week after next when the current receptionist’s notice period ends. Is that okay?”
“Yes,” Rachel said.
It was perfect. It would give her a chance to find somewhere to live and get settled in. She carefully wrote down the address and phone number and thanked Dr. Gordon again.
“I know you’ve already gone way above and beyond for me, Dr. Gordon, and I really appreciate it, but could I ask one more favor?” Rachel said. “Please don’t tell anyone where I’ve gone, not even the other receptionists. And if anyone calls asking for me, just have them pretend they’ve never heard of me.”
“Done,” Dr. Gordon said. “Good luck, Rachel.”
“Thank you,” she said again and ended the call.
She sat down for a moment, clutching the piece of paper with the address and contact number of the new doctor’s office to her chest. It was all going to work out just fine. Even if Bastian tried to find her, he wouldn’t be able to do it. She had told him she worked in a doctor’s office, but not which one, and if the staff there pretended they’d never heard of her, he would have no reason to doubt their words.
Rachel stood up and took one last look around the house. She smiled sadly. She had been happy here, but she knew that she had to go. She set her cell phone down on the coffee table. She would have to leave it behind in case Bastian could somehow trace her through it. It would be a shame to lose contact with everyone in her contacts list, but she had always known this day would come. It had just happened a little bit sooner than she had thought it would, that was all.
She turned around and left the living room. She put her jacket on and took her house key off the bunch. Picking her suitcase up, she opened her front door and stepped outside. She glanced around, quickly scanning the streets for the man from the house with the yellow front door. She couldn’t see him, and no one passing by gave her a second glance. She locked the door quickly, slipping the key back through the mail slot. She hurried to her car and threw her suitcase into the trunk. She got in, started the engine, and pulled away, heading for a new city, a new life. A life as a mom. She rubbed her stomach and smiled to herself. Everything was going to work out just fine, she told herself again. And she knew it would. She would make damned sure of it.
6
Bastian’s cell phone rang as he sat in his apartment eating pizza. He picked it up and frowned when he saw Brady’s name on the screen. They didn’t have a call scheduled for that evening, and Brady wasn’t the type to call for a chat. Something had to be wrong. Bastian was instantly on high alert. He had heard back from Oscar last week and Oscar had confirmed that the rumors of a hunter had been just that—rumors. They had originated from a small wolf pack who was just looking to make trouble and Oscar had dealt with them accordingly. But what if Oscar had been wrong and they weren’t just rumors? What if it was true and the hunter had moved on to Fredericksburg? That could explain the call. Bastian decided to stop speculating, take the call, and find out for sure what the hell was going on.
“What’s up, Brady?” Bastian said, taking the call.
“Maybe nothing. Maybe something,” Brady said. “There was a girl here earlier. Blonde, late twenties. She was asking questions about you, said she wanted your phone number. Her name is Rachel, assuming that’s not a fake name. Does it ring any bells?”
It most certainly did ring some bells. At the mention of the name Rachel, Bastian was instantly transported back to Rachel’s bed. He could almost feel her pussy around his cock as it hardened at the thought of her. He could remember exactly how she had smelled, how she had tasted. And how she had made him feel. Even now, a month after they had spent a single night and then an hour or so of the next morning together, he craved her like he had never craved anyone or anything before. He had debated going back to her place a couple of times, but each time, he reminded himself why it was a bad idea. But if she was looking for him, it would be rude not to reach out to her. It gave him a perfect excuse to revisit his fantasies of her if nothing else.
Maybe she’s coming to Houston for some reason, Bastian thought. And she’s looking me up, hoping we can spend another night together. His heart raced at the thought of it. Bad idea or not, he knew he would agree to it.
“I know her,” he said, being sure to keep his voice calm and casual. “Did you give her my number?”
“No. Of course not,” Brady said. “How stupid do you think I am? Is she dangerous?”
“No,” Bastian said, laughing softly. “I had a one-night stand with her a few weeks back. I wouldn’t mind seeing her again as it goes.”
“She left her number for me to pass on to you,” Brady said.
He gave Bastian the number and Bastian scrawled it on the pizza box.
“You had this one-night stand with her a few weeks ago, you said?” Brady asked.
Bastian sensed immediately that there was something Brady wasn’t telling him. His voice had changed just enough to make Bastian’s senses tickle.
“Yes. What aren’t you telling me, Brady?”
“I… umm,” Brady stuttered.
“Spit it out,” Bastian said.
“Well, I don’t think she’s just calling to maybe have another night together or whatever,” Brady said. Bastian raised an eyebrow, but he didn’t interrupt and Brady went on. “You see, when I was talking to her, I sensed another life growing within her. She’s pregnant, Bastian. I think maybe she wanted to tell you.”
Bastian laughed softly and shook his head.
“It’s impossible,” he said.
“But I sensed it. You know I’m never wrong about these things,” Brady said.
Bastian waved his hand impatiently through the air, waving away Brady’s words although he was aware that Brady couldn’t see him.
“I’m not saying it’s impossible for Rachel to be pregnant. I’m sure you’re right about that and I didn’t mean to doubt your senses. I just mean that it’s impossible the baby is mine. Rachel isn’t a bear,” Bastian said.
“Yeah, Bastian, she is. I thought it was weird too that there was a bear in town I didn’t know, but she let me know she’s one of us,” Brady said.
Bastian took a momen
t to let that sink in. If Rachel was a bear, then any baby she was carrying had to be his unless she had been sleeping with another bear, too. And the chances of that seemed slim if it was him she was trying to contact. Bastian felt a strange mix of emotions. Elation at knowing he might have a baby soon. Protectiveness for that baby, his flesh and blood, his heir. And anger. Anger at Rachel. Because it seemed she knew exactly who he was and had gone out of her way to be in the right place at the right time to catch his attention and get herself knocked up by the most powerful bear in the state. He hated to think of her that way, but what other reason could she have had for not telling him she was a bear? And why hadn’t she insisted they use protection if she wasn’t at least trying to get pregnant by him?
“Okay,” Bastian said after a pause. “If this is true, then that baby is the heir to this pack. I need to call Rachel. I’ll call you back.”
He hung up on Brady without waiting for an answer. He typed the number Brady had given him into his cell phone and hit call. The phone rang a few times and then went to voicemail. Bastian’s cock hardened when he heard Rachel’s voice telling him to leave a message. The sound of her voice dispelled his anger as easily as if it had never been there. He craved her with every fiber of his being, and now that he knew she was a bear, there was no reason they couldn’t be together. It was possible he was gaining not just an heir, but a mate as well.
He left a message asking Rachel to call him as soon as she got his message. He sent Brady a text telling him what happened and then he sat back to wait for Rachel’s call.
* * *
A week had passed since Bastian had left the first message for Rachel. She hadn’t returned his call that night, and he had called multiple times a day since then. She hadn’t taken any of his calls or responded to any of the messages he had left for her. Her voicemail was full now and he had resorted to sending her text messages.
He had had Brady stop by the house several times, but he had never caught Rachel in. He told Bastian that all of her furniture was still in the house and Bastian tried to tell himself she would call him back eventually. He had made a decision to try her one more time today and then if she didn’t get back to him, he was going to fly out and go to see her in person the next day. He was past even caring if that seemed too drastic. He had to see her, had to speak to her.
He picked up his cell phone and hit call on Rachel’s number. His heart skipped a beat when the call was answered.
“Yeah?”
It was a man’s voice and Bastian felt jealousy surge within him. He told himself to relax. There was no guarantee this was a man Rachel was dating. It could just be a friend, or her brother. Thinking that made Bastian realize how little he knew about Rachel—he didn’t even know if she had a brother or not.
“I’m looking for Rachel,” Bastian said.
“You and me both, pal,” the man said. “I’m her landlord. She’s skipped town, didn’t bother letting me know and left me with half of her stuff to move. Including this cell phone. I kind of hoped you might be her. Stupid, huh? You hear from her, you tell her to call me, okay? Hang on. I’ll give you my number. It’s three seven…”
Bastian had heard enough. He cut off the call and stared down at his cell phone like it contained the answers he needed to find. Rachel had skipped town. But why? And where had she gone? He racked his brains, trying to work it all out. The only theory he could come up with was that Rachel had wanted to tell him about the pregnancy and then changed her mind for some reason.
Bastian thought for a moment and then he moved through to his office. He sat down at his computer and fired it up and began to type out an email. In the email, he described Rachel as best as he could and instructed the people who would receive it to be on the lookout for her. He made it clear she wasn’t to be hurt and then he sent the email to his most trusted pack members across the state. He was well aware that Rachel might have left the state, hell, even the country, but he had to start looking for her somewhere.
7
Two Years Later
Rachel laughed as Stephanie blew a raspberry in her highchair. The baby giggled at the noise it made and did it again, clapping her hands together in delight. Rachel stuck her tongue out and blew a raspberry back at Stephanie, which sent the baby into fits of giggles again.
Rachel played the game with Stephanie for a bit longer, and then she turned around and went to the kitchen counter to pour herself another cup of coffee.
“Come on now, princess. Eat your breakfast,” Rachel said to Stephanie as she picked up the cup and blew on the coffee. “Lena will be here soon and she might take you to the park if you’re a good girl.”
Stephanie made a cute little sound that may or may not have been her attempting to say Lena’s name. Lena had been Rachel’s nanny since Stephanie was three months old and Rachel had gone back to work. Rachel trusted Lena and she loved the bond she shared with Stephanie.
Rachel stood leaning against the counter, sipping her coffee and watching as Stephanie nibbled on the piece of banana in her hand. The doorbell rang and Rachel hurried from the kitchen and walked down the hall. She pulled the door open and smiled at Lena. Lena was twenty-four and she had straight, red hair and a mischievous smile that made her look younger than her years. Her smile was infectious and Rachel felt her own smile widen when Lena grinned at her.
Rachel greeting Lena and led her down the hall to the kitchen where she greeted Stephanie with a wide smile and an excited “Hi!” which got her a wave.
“Anything I need to know?” Lena asked.
Rachel shook her head.
“No, all good. Her clothes are laid out in the living room, and as you can see, she’s almost done with breakfast.”
Lena walked over to the highchair and scooped Stephanie out of it as she finished the last of her banana.
“Are we going to have fun today, little miss?” she asked.
Stephanie’s smile suggested they would.
“I might take her down to the park today if that’s okay?” Lena said.
Rachel nodded and laughed.
“You ask me that every day and every day I tell you that you can take her wherever you want to, Lena,” Rachel said.
Rachel had been in Dallas now for two years, and for sixteen months of that time, she had had Stephanie with her. She no longer looked over her shoulder every time she went outside, and by the time Stephanie had been born, she had been settled into her new home and her new job and she was no longer paranoid that Bastian would try to find her. It always made her laugh when Lena asked her permission to take Stephanie out. It was almost like she knew that there had been a time when the idea of it would have horrified her.
“It never hurts to check,” Lena smiled. “So how’s work now that you’re the big shot?”
Two weeks ago, Rachel had been promoted to the office manager in the office where she worked under Dr. Monroe. It basically meant she was in charge of all of the other receptionists.
“I would hardly say I’m a big shot,” Rachel said, but she couldn’t stop herself from smiling. She was proud of her promotion. “It’s going well. The other receptionists actually listen to me, so that’s a bonus. And nothing has gone wrong yet.”
“Speaking of things going wrong, you’d better get going unless you want to be late and abuse your position of being the boss,” Lena grinned.
Rachel laughed and checked her watch, seeing that Lena was right.
“Yeah, I should go. I don’t want to start abusing my position for at least another week or so,” she grinned.
She moved closer to Lena and kissed Stephanie on the cheek.
“Bye, honey. Be good for Lena, okay?” she said. She turned her attention to Lena. “As always, give me a call if you need anything. Otherwise, I’ll see you at around half past five.”
“Have a good day,” Lena said.
Rachel headed for the door to the kitchen, waving at Stephanie and getting a cute little wave back. As Rachel left the house, sh
e heard Lena chatting away to Stephanie and she smiled to herself. She had been nervous about getting a nanny at first, but she knew she had no real choice except to go back to work and she had had a good feeling about Lena right from the start, a feeling that had proved to be right.
Rachel left her garden and turned left. She only lived a five-minute walk from the office and she only bothered driving there if the weather was particularly bad. Today was cool but nice enough. Rachel enjoyed the walk to and from work, getting a bit of fresh air before being confined in the stuffy office and then getting to cool down a bit after a long day in the stifling warmth.
She crossed the street and spotted a man walking in front of her. Her heart lurched as she took in his height, his build, and his close-cropped dark hair. It was Bastian. She ducked into a shop doorway and watched him as he kept walking. She could feel the sweat breaking out on her body. How had he found her here?
Rachel gasped and ducked back out of sight as Bastian turned and checked both ways before crossing the street. Her heart slowed down and she gave a shaky laugh. The man wasn’t Bastian. Now that she had seen his face and saw that he looked nothing like Bastian, she realized he was a little bit too short to have been Bastian anyway.
She left the shop doorway and started walking again, asking herself why she was suddenly back to jumping at shadows after two years. She supposed it would always be with her, the need to check the face of every man on the street who looked about the right size to be Bastian, but it didn’t usually affect her so much. She figured it was because she had made the mistake of thinking of him that morning when Lena had asked her about taking Stephanie to the park.
Every now and again, Rachel found herself thinking of Bastian, and for the rest of the day, she was always a little jumpy like this. It was ridiculous and she knew it. Bastian would never think to look here for her, and besides, it had been two years. There was no way he would still be looking for her, and that was assuming he had even tried. Maybe he hadn’t even bothered to call her. Maybe her name didn’t even ring a bell with him. She half wished she had kept hold of her old cell phone for a day or two after fleeing from Fredericksburg, just to see if Bastian even bothered to try to call her or not. If he hadn’t, it would have eased her mind a lot quicker than just waiting it out had done.