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HURRICANE (Beasts of Prey Book 2)

Page 23

by LC Lehesaho


  "Have you had morning sickness? I swear in every movie, the chicks find out they're pregnant by vomiting like they hangover every day," I joke, trying to ease up the mood.

  Rose giggles, so I guess I succeeded. "No, I didn't have any. Only a little bit of dizziness, but that's it."

  "Ha, you lucky one." I almost spill out that I've been vomiting because of the withdrawals every day but Bear and Rose don't know about the problem I had, or still have, so I snap my mouth shut.

  "Guess I am," she gives me a perfect white smile.

  "How did you find out you were pregnant?" I ask, trying to keep up the conversation because Bear sure isn't talking, and well, Doc is always somewhat grumpy.

  "I went to the doctor ‘cause of the dizziness, and they took a blood test."

  I nod, surprised. "Hmph, okay. I didn't even know it can be seen in blood tests."

  "They said pregnancy can be seen very soon after conception in blood tests, much sooner than the original pregnancy test," Rose informs, turning her eyes to Doc, who is just making her way between her thighs with the lubed transducer, which I know doesn't feel nice. If there's something I hate the most in the world, it's the visits to the gynecologist. "How soon was it, Doc? Two weeks?"

  "Yes, the second week," she answers, eyes on Rose's private parts, and suddenly, I feel like I really shouldn't be here. I glance at Bear by my side, but his eyes are still glued to the screen, frozen to its place. Then the screen comes to life, and a bubbling sound fills the room.

  The black and white and grey screen ripples, and then I see it. My breath catches by watching the little godsend of creation. I've never seen anything like it. It's… incredible.

  Doc points at the little grey figure inside the black bubble. "There it is."

  Bear's hand squeezes my hand so hard I feel like my fingers are snapping in half, but I don't care. My heart rate skyrockets as I watch the tiny form, joy filling every inch of me.

  "Oh my god," I whisper, gripping Rose's hand in my other, unable to take my eyes off the screen. "It's your baby!"

  "It's so small," she says, stunned.

  "It is." Doc nods, moving the picture around. "Approximately two inches right now. That tapping sound is the heart rate of the fetus."

  "Holy fuck," Bear finally opens his mouth, voice strangled. "It's really... it's a baby," his eyes come to me, widened from the shock. "I'm gonna be a father."

  Letting go of Rose's hand, I jump on my brother's neck. "I know! Oh, my God! I'm so fucking happy!"

  We're going to have a little miracle in the house.

  ~

  Checking the clock hastily, I huff out a heavy breath. I still have almost half an hour to get ready before Puma comes back with Tiger from the shooting range. It was a goddamn struggle to get him to leave there without me. We had agreed to go together, which obviously was just a con to get him to go, and at the last minute, I pretended I was sick.

  I should've picked some other excuse, because Tiger almost lost his shit when I didn't let him stay home and take care of me.

  After a very heated argument, he left, banging the door on his way out. I feel sorry for Puma, who has to deal with that hot head, and I just hope he won't shoot my brother while raging around.

  The surprise trip I'm going to take him on will start in an excellent mood, for sure. But on the other hand, I like that he hasn't lost his fire when stepping into the world of relationship. I'd probably hate him if he'd become a lamb. No one likes steppingstones. At least, I don't.

  Going through my list of everything we need for a week, I conclude I got it all packed. Scrunching the paper in my hand, I roll it to a ball and throw it to Tiger's paper trash that he keeps beside his sketching desk. The past couple of weeks have been a roller coaster, emotionally and physically. Emotionally because the memories are jumping up every now and then, no matter if I am awake or asleep, but then Tiger—or someone else from my family—is there and helps me to forget the shit that happened. Or maybe forget is the wrong word. Accept is more like it. My feelings about Levi are still a dark, tangled web, but I know time will help me get over it.

  If there wasn’t a Tiger, I know I wouldn't probably ever date anyone again—or at least, trust anyone. After browsing my feelings from all the possible angles, the worst thing Levi did was that he made me trust him. I fucking ran to him. When we clashed with Tiger, I ran to him, trusting him to help me get on my feet. I trusted him never to hurt me, and he did it in so many ways I can't fucking count.

  But on some days, I get the image of him as a boy who got brainwashed by a maniac sociopath. Then the web tangles more, and I don't know what to think. On those days, I wish I could've saved him. Get help for him—professional help with his mind. I could never say this to Tiger, or he'd probably kill me for being such a blue-eyed idiot, but I can't help it. My heart got a scratch from what I did.

  Quickly, my brain turns back to hate mode when I vomit my guts out, every goddamn day. Other withdrawals, like hallucinations and sweating, have eased up, but clearly, my body needs time to recover, just like my mind.

  That's why I planned our take off—to get some space from everything and focus on each other, like a honeymoon from revealing our relationship.

  "You need help to carry these into your car?" Dad's voice startles me, and I spin on my heels, hand on my chest.

  "Fuck's sake, you scared the shit out of me," I gasp out, panting. "How did you get in?"

  He laughs. "With a key."

  I squint my eyes at him. "Haven't you heard of knocking? You can't just walk into other people's apartments like that, Dad."

  "The last time I checked, I own this place, kid." He tilts his head, mouth curving up into a smile. "Besides, I knocked, but I'm not surprised you didn't hear it through this noise pollution."

  Then he taps the music volume lower—“E-Girls are ruining my life!” by Corpse—from Tiger's laptop, giving me an astonished look when there's mention about choking and fucking in the same sentence. I try to look thunderstruck by such obscenity and wave my hand towards the bags on the floor, drawing the attention away from my music choices. "Yeah, I could use some help." Then my brain realizes what he said first. My brows pop sky high. "My car?"

  "Yes, it came. You can go on your trip with that." Dad picks up keys from his pocket, throwing them to me. "And by the way, I changed one thing from the order."

  "What is it?" I ask skeptically.

  "You'll see," he says, grabbing all four duffel bags from the floor. "Based on your luggage, I'd thought you'd be gone at least a month."

  "Phew, I'm just prepared for everything." I tap the laptop shut, and take my water bottle and bag of candies with me before following Dad out of the loft.

  "How did the ultrasound go?" he asks while we pass Bear's door.

  My heart starts to flutter from memory, and I feel like I'm beaming. Probably am because my cheeks hurt from the grin on my face. "Oh, it was amazing. Doc said the baby is this small," I lift my hand and show the length between my index finger and thumb, "and I love it! Bear was shocked at first, but you should've seen his face! He was so proud!"

  Dad cocks an eyebrow. "Really? And Angel, I'm happy to see you so excited about the baby."

  "Yeah, he shined like the sun when we left," I tell him while we walk down the staircase and head to the yard. "He took Rose out to dinner after it."

  "I'm pleased he took it so well," he says, glancing at me with a questioning look. "Do you think they can make things work between them?"

  The way Bear reacted to the baby was heartwarming, but… letting out a sigh, I bite my cheek. "I don't know. He roots for the baby, and I know he is trying to be nice to Rose, but you can't force love. They've been seeing each other for a year already, so I don't think he will ever love her. I hope, but…"

  "What about her? Is she okay with it?"

  I shrug. "Rose knew how Bear is, and she still decided to do this with him, so I guess she is. They've never been exclusive, but maybe now things will c
hange."

  "I hope they will. It's too risky for Rose to live by herself right now when Crusador is still on two feet."

  "It is, and I think both of them know it too. It's going to be fine," I convince him, hoping I'm not lying through my teeth.

  "Yes, I think so too." Dad nods to Pietro, who opens the front door with a sunny smile on his face.

  "Hey, big guy. Are you ready for the trip?" I ask, wiggling my brows at him. He is in his regular attire for work, all black and looking like a G.I. Joe with all the guns and knives on him.

  "Sure I am, kid." He tousles my hair with his gigantic hand and follows us outside. "So, Tiger doesn't know?"

  "Nope." I smirk over my shoulder. "My turn to surprise him."

  Pietro's charcoal eyes narrow from the grin that spreads to his face. "Bet he will be. Though, the dude was quite pissed when he left."

  Dad cocks his head, gluing his eyes at me. "What did you do to make him mad? You two are unbelievable."

  I throw my hands in the air, bursting out a laugh. "I had to get rid of him so I could pack our stuff. It's not my fault he is so short wired." Then my eyes catch the sight in the yard. "Dad! What the actual fuck?" I wave my hands towards the eye-catcher in the middle of the yard, steam coming out of my ears. "My Jeep was supposed to be green!"

  "Talking about short-wired…" I see him giving an amused look towards Pietro before walking to the car. "Your last Jeep matched so well for you, so I thought why break the pattern? Pink hair, pink car."

  Pietro has the audacity to laugh when I stare at a very pink Jeep Wrangler. Newer model than my last one, and even pinker, if possible.

  "Unbelievable. Unbelievable." I huff, shaking my head. "What happened to 'choose whatever you want, Angel'?"

  Opening the trunk of it, Dad looks at me with a crooked grin. "You did choose what you wanted. I just remodeled it." Throwing the bags in, he nods towards the car. "Well, honest opinion. Do you hate it?'

  I gape at the car, which is not even pink, pink. It's a bright magenta, shining like a goddamn kid’s toy. But for its defense, there are black details, like the bull bar and the extra light accessories on the roof. And truthfully, now that I look at it…

  "Fine, it's not that bad," I admit. "It's kinda cute." The revving engine draws my attention to our long driveway, and a yellow Convertible Camaro comes into sight, speeding towards the yard. "Ah, prepare yourself, people. Ten bucks bet Tiger is still nuts."

  "We don't have to make a bet," Dad shakes his head, letting out a sigh. "We all know he is if you made him leave that way."

  Puma parks his car next to the Expedition, which will be Pietro's ride, and before the car is even fully stopped, Tiger jumps out.

  "You were supposed to be sick. What the hell you're doing outside, baby?" His tone is smooth, but the sinister gleam in his eyes revealing his true mood.

  Dad kisses me on my forehead, petting the top of my head. "Have a relaxing trip, Angel." His voice leaks with amusement, and then he nods to Pietro before leaving back inside. "Keep me updated."

  Tiger's gaze swiftly turns from me to Dad and Pietro, his brows furrowed. "What's going on?"

  "I'll go wait in the car," Pietro states, keeping his poker face on, but I see the corner of his mouth twitching. Puma throws me a double thumbs up while walking past us towards the front doors, escaping from the upcoming warzone—which I hope I can prevent.

  Tiger's whole body is rigid as he stares at me, daggers shooting from his eyes for keeping him in the dark.

  "Okay, so." I lift my palms, hoping for peace. "We're going on a trip, and yes, I'm sorry I conned you by pretending to be sick. But I had to pack, and you were on the way—"

  "The fuck? On the way?"

  "Hold your horses, cowboy. Let me finish," I say, trying not to laugh at him fuming. "As I was saying, you were on the way for me to pack without letting you know about the surprise."

  He squints at me. "Surprise?"

  My mouth twists into a wide smirk. "Yeah, kitty. After you." I make a bow towards my new vehicle. "Jump into my spectacular ride, and let's go."

  CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX

  "Where are we going, worm?" I ask, eyeing Cobra's beautiful side profile as she drives her new Wrangler with a beaming smile on her face. Like always, I can't be mad at her for long.

  She truly made me lose my marbles before I left for the shooting range with Puma, but only because I didn't want to leave her alone when she said she felt sick.

  Bullshit.

  I didn't see it coming that she fucking tricked me, and she's undoubtedly going to pay for it.

  But looking at her now, almost wiggling from excitement from whatever she's been planning, I melt. The saying happy wife—happy life is really accurate, though she's not my wife, but still. She could be.

  "I'm not telling." Cobra glances at me before taking a look from the rearview window. Pietro is driving behind us with another guard sitting in his passenger's seat, and it eases the stress from my head. I know we can handle a lot, but back-up for the worst- ase scenario is always salutary. I'm not very eager to let Cobra out of the mansion in times like these.

  She's been home over two weeks, and everything has gone in a better direction, but Silas and his fucking minions are still running free, so I don't want to take unnecessary risks.

  "But you packed? For what? Are we staying somewhere?" I try to pull the information out of her, but she gives me a wicked smirk and wiggles her brows without saying a word. "Fuck you, baby girl. I don't appreciate that you keep things from me."

  She bursts out a cute snort, ridiculous even. "My gosh, Tiger! It's a surprise! Take it easy. I'm sure you'll like it." She presses the button on her door, opening the window to a crack from my side. "Have a smoke and chill. Just make sure you don't drop ashes inside my car, or you'll lick it off."

  "Have you always been so fucking mouthy?" I cock an eyebrow but do as told and pick the pack out of my pocket, tapping one cigarette out of it.

  "Yes, but you've been ignoring the warning signals about my true delightful personality all these years while looking at me through heart-shaped glasses, and now it's too late for you to back down. You're stuck with me forever." Cobra bats her long lashes at me, an angelic smile curving up her lips.

  I lean over the console, giving her a slobbering lick all the way from her jaw to the cheekbone. She wiggles further away from me with an eww wail, wiping her cheek.

  "Now, see who's stuck with who, worm, huh?" I chuckle at her eye-rolling.

  After lighting the cig up, I bounce the lighter in my hand and take in the surroundings. We're still in Shangri-la, so there's not much to guess about the destination yet. "So, Pietro and Martin are staying with us?" I ask, all casual.

  Cobra tilts her head with an amused look. "You still think you can lure me to spill the secret?"

  I shrug. "I can always try."

  "Don't waste your energy on that, ‘cause I bet we can use it for something else later."

  ~

  Slowly lifting my gaze from the axe in my hand to Cobra's face, which shines bright like the sun, I can't but let out a sigh. "This was your idea of me using my energy?"

  She bobs her head, grinning. "Yeah, I know you dreamed about something else, but I think you can wait till later, considering we had sex in the shower this morning, twice. I'll go make us something to eat while you chop wood for the fireplace, okay?"

  I let my eyes roam down her body, making her very well aware of what I think of waiting. The navy blue oversized hoodie reaches her thighs, hiding her gorgeous body, but the black leggings lick her legs like a second skin. I know what they hide. My handprints on her hips, road rash on her knees from the bamboo carpet in my living room, and the hickeys I've left on her skin, all over it. The only one on sight is the bruises on her neck.

  How did we get all those marks on her makes me hot all over—no matter where or when, I'm ready for her. Obviously, because she's my goddess, always been and always will be.

  "Tiger," C
obra calls me, placing her hands to her hips and kicks chips of wood with her Converse. "Stop fantasizing about me and start to channel your inner lumberjack."

  The movement behind her makes me zoom my eyes there, my adrenaline spiking. As soon as it jumps up, my brain catches who it was. Pietro picking up luggage from their car. Still, tickles on my skin stay, and the hotness I was wearing before turns to cold chills of foreboding.

  "You sure, baby, this is a good idea?" I ask, unable to hide the nervousness from my tone. Even though Pietro showed me every surveillance camera in Hayes's cabin's area and we're only less than an hour away from the mansion, I'm still edgy about staying here.

  Cobra closes the distance between us in the woodshed, lifting her hands on my shoulders. Her big hazel eyes are full of warmth as she looks up at me. "Yes, I'm sure. Stop stressing out, love. We have one of those gorillas awake at all times, and there are cameras everywhere. I need this with you, okay? It's only a week, and if you don't want to stay that long, we can leave whenever you want, but not until you've stayed here with me for at least one night. If you still want to get back home tomorrow, we can go."

  I brush a pink strand to the back of her ear with my knuckles, breathing in her familiar scent—vanilla. She threw a middle finger to her demons and got back to the same old shampoo. I don’t think I've never been prouder.

  My baby is unbreakable.

  "Okay, let's stay—for tonight. I don't promise the whole week," I say, brushing her forehead with my lips. The scent of her soothes my senses, making everything else disappear around us.

  "It's cool. I don't want to make you uncomfortable, ‘cause the whole point for this trip was us to have fun together." Her fingers caress the back of my neck, making calming circles on my skin.

  "I just fucking love you, Cobra." Before she can say anything, I press my lips on hers. The sweet taste of her is the best I've ever had. The way she answers to the kiss like she can't get enough of me is a drug to my system. Every time we kiss, she devours me like I'm the best she's ever had.

  I hope I am.

 

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