Mountain Man's Secret Baby

by Lauren Wood

  Tara turned over and started crawling. She could feel the blood draining for her body, but she couldn’t just lie there and do nothing.

  Under the witches spell, the three men shifted. Now, four bears advanced the vampire, and his screams were horrible as they devoured him.

  The witch held up her amulet. “Reverse,” she whispered. “Reverse.” She knelt down next to her as the four bears shifted back to humans. “Shh. My name is Natalie.”

  Another woman scrambled by her side. “Brent,” she called out. She pressed a hand to Tara’s wound. “She’d dying.”

  Dying. Yes. She was dying.

  Brent looked at her helplessly. “Micah,” he said harshly. “Please.”

  The alpha nodded, and Tara saw Brent shift just before the darkness took her.

  Chapter Seven

  “Let me get this straight. You three faced the vampire leader and got your ass kicked. It took the empath witch and the alpha female to help you kick some ass?” Gratsky asked.

  Brent narrowed his eyes. “Not the point,” he hissed.

  “Right. Well, I will say this much. You three bring me the most interesting women,” Gratsky said with a sigh. “A newly turned bear. A witch. And now a human bit by both a vampire and a bear. I should probably consider asking for a raise.”

  “Is she going to be all right?” Brent asked tightly.

  “Will she live? Yes. Will she be a bear shifter? I don’t know.”

  “Will she be a vampire?” Jackson asked. Brent glared at him, and he shrugged. “What? You don’t care?”

  Honestly? Brent didn’t care. He didn’t give a damn how Tara woke up from the bed as long as she woke up, and she was happy. It didn’t matter whether she was a vampire, a shifter, or some freak hybrid of both.

  “Doubtful. To change into a vampire, you have to actually die. And since Tara here is still very much alive, there is no way she can be a full-blown vampire. Now whether the vampire bite mingles with the shifter bite remains to be seen. What’s really interesting is that Tara was fairly immune to de’Massier’s charms.”

  Brent’s head shot up. “What do you mean? Is that unusual?”

  “De’massier is a powerful vampire. To have someone immune to him is quite intriguing. It’s more than just your relationship with her. She’s resisted his requests from the very beginning. That means that there is something very special about your Tara Schmidt.”

  “What do you think it is?” Micah asked.

  Gratsky shrugged. “Most likely, it means that humanity is evolving. They’re finding ways to defend themselves against more powerful species. It’s a fascinating thought. But what I can tell you is that between your three mates, absolutely no one is going to mess with this pack.”

  “Sure. We have nothing to do with it,” Micah said sourly.

  Gratsky grinned. “You do deserve credit. How you got Stacey and Natalie to fall in love with you two is beyond me.”

  Brent tuned them out. He was watching the door to Tara’s room anxiously. Part of him wanted to be by her side right that very minute, but he knew she wouldn’t be happy to find her by her bed. She’d been perfectly fine in her life, and then he had to put her danger.

  And turned her.

  “I need to leave,” he said abruptly. “Keep me posted.”

  “You’re leaving?” Jackson stared at him. “She’s going to want to see you when she wakes up.”

  “I doubt that very seriously,” he muttered, and he slipped out the door. Deep down, he feared he would never see here again.

  * * *

  “It’s so romantic to wake up and find that your boyfriend isn’t there,” Tara said sourly. Brent’s head shot up from his desk, and he stared at her. “It’s even better when two whole days pass, and he doesn’t even send you flowers. Or a card.”

  “Tara,” he breathed.

  “It’s even better when a stranger has to tell explain things to you. You know, the part where the guy you were dating turned out to be the leader of the vampire clan and was trying to manipulate you. And the fact that you alpha female can shift at will. And that your second-in-command married a witch.”

  He lowered his eyes. She was pissed. Of course. She had every right to be angry. “I wanted to tell you.”

  “But you didn’t. That’s okay. I just thought that you should know that I’m alive and kicking. I thought I’d come by to say goodbye and tell that you I’ve leaving.” She waited a heartbeat which she watched his reaction. She was rewarded with the sad look in his eyes. “Except that I’m not leaving.”

  “You’re not?” he muttered.

  “So then, I thought I’d come by and say hi and give you a kiss, but I’m pissed at you. So that’s not going to happen.” Her eyes narrowed when he leaned back in his chair and regarded her with interest. She was not going to let him get the upper hand.

  “I couldn’t figure out why you’d stay away from me. I don’t really take you for the wham-bam-thank-you-ma’am approach. I think we both know that it was more than that. And you can’t be pissed about putting me in danger because de’Massier did that. Not you. And you can’t really be distraught over biting me because I’d be dead if you didn’t. But you’re a really hard guy to read. So tell me, Mr. Jenson. What’s going on through that head of yours?”

  “Marry me,” he said softly.

  Of all the words that she expected to come out of his mouth, those were not even in the top thousand. “What?” she whispered.

  He scooted his chair back and stood. “I love you, Tara. I’ve loved you from the very beginning. I didn’t have one single reason for keeping you close to me except that I selfishly wanted you. And for the first time since I met you, I finally realized that you’ve had no say in this. So I gave you a choice. You’ve had days to leave. And you’re still here. By choice. No one is keeping you.”

  She tried to hold her ground as he stalked her, but soon she was pressed up against the wall. “And you think that because I decided to stick around that I should marry you?”

  “I think that you stuck around because you love me. And I’m going to marry you before you have a chance to change your mind,” he said softly. His hands skimmed her arms, and she shivered.

  “Jesus, Brent. I do love you. But you have no idea what I’m going to become. When the full moon rises, I might be some weird bear vampire creature. I could be hideous.”

  “You could four heads and still not be hideous,” he murmured. “And I don’t care what you become. You’ll always be you, and I’ll always love you. Marry me.”

  “Once again, no flowers. No ring. No candlelight dinner. You know, at some point, I’d like to feel wooed and courted,” she pointed out. He frowned, and she reached up to stroke his face. “But nothing about this relationship has been traditional. So yes, Brent Jenson. I will marry you.”

  He captured her lips, and she held him close. For the first time in forever, she finally felt at peace. “I’ll spend the rest of my life courting and wooing you,” he whispered.

  “Oh, I know you will,” she said with a grin. “And I’ll protect you until the day I die.”

  Three weeks later, when the full moon lit the Woodland pack and everyone stared at her nervously, she watched as everyone else shifted.

  But her. As she stood in the middle of the woods, surrounded by the most dangerous creatures out there, she never felt more powerful. She didn’t need to be a bear or a vampire. She had the strength of both running through her veins, and the love of a man devoted to her.

  So she ran with the pack, human on the outside, and powerful on the inside. And she knew that this was where she was meant to be.

  THE END

  HE OWNS ME

  Colin Wilcox woke up to that screaming brat next door again. “Oh what the fuck, can’t she keep that little kid quiet?” He seethed.

  It had been another late night at the club for him and it was now only. “What the hell, 7 in the morning? This has got to stop.” He muttered.

  Thr
owing the pillow over his head he tried to go back to sleep. But each time he was on the verge of sleep the kid would yell out again. Finally having enough of it, he jumped out of bed and threw on his sweatshirt.

  Stomping to the apartment next door he pounded on it. He heard the kid scream inside, and heard a voice call out. “Just hold on please.”

  By the time she opened the door he was angry and ready to fight. Looking down he saw a 5’ 5” girl. She looked nerdy with those glasses on; all they were missing was the tape in the middle of them. Colin lost what he had been going to say.

  “Can I help you?” She asked. On her hip was the source of the noise. The little boy was not happy, he looked cranky and tired. “I’m sorry did we wake you up? Little John has a bad fever.” She apologized.

  All of his anger evaporated quickly. “No it’s okay. How old is he?” Colin asked.

  He studied her more she had this brown hair that was silky looking, it held down past her shoulder. Looking behind her he saw it went about half way down her back. He’d always loved girls with long hair. The geeky look of this girl made him want to sweep her off her feet.

  “He’s only 3 years old.” She answered.

  “Wow you seem kind of young to have a 3-year old.” He commented.

  “No he’s not mine; he’s my nephew his parents died last year.” She said.

  “Oh I’m so sorry. Where are my manner’s my name is Colin, I just moved in next door.” He held out his hand.

  She moved trying to situate the wiggling body of John who she was still holding. “My name is Judith, nice to meet you. I’d invite you in, but he’s not in the mood for company.” She shrugged her shoulders and began to close the door.

  “Sure I understand.” Colin watched as she closed the door and went inside. He would have been willing to go in and sit with her. If only to stare at her beauty! Or that body! He laughed as he thought the words.

  Going back to his apartment he thought how lucky he was that he had a neighbor that looked like her. She had to stand around 5’ 5” tall he was just a bit shorter than his 5’ 8” frame. She was pert, her long brown hair framing her face and upper body.

  “Maybe this move was a good one after all!” He smiled as he thought about this woman with the huge 44DD breasts! Sure the whole package was great, but he’d always been a breast man. So the first thing he had noticed around little John’s body was her chest.

  Colin smiled that she had so many things that he honestly found attractive in a woman. “All except the kid!” He thought with a grimace.

  Little John had woken her up early, his body was warm. Unfortunately, she knew that he was teething, and that meant crying and screaming for a few days. Judith could only hope that the tooth would break through quickly.

  In between his screaming she had heard something it sounded like her doorbell or knocking. “Hold on a minute.” She yelled out and head for the door.

  She opened it to find some odd guy standing there. He was scruffy looking. His medium length hair all messed up, like he just woke up. His eyes were still puffy from sleep. “I’m so sorry did we wake you? Little John has been up for a few hours he has a fever.”

  Judith felt bad about keeping anyone else awake. She was already delirious from her own lack of sleep. Putting someone else through it just seemed stupid.

  He had told it was okay. The last guy who used to live next door would have called the cops and reported her for child abuse. Judith was relived it hadn’t been him at the door.

  “I’m Colin your new neighbor.” He introduced himself to her. Oh so the other guy moved, she thought.

  “I’m Judith.” She had told him her name.

  He asked about Little John and she had kept the story short. It was a horrible story and one that she often had nightmares about. So she was thankful he hadn’t asked how Little John’s parents had died. With her lack of sleep and the way her emotions ached, she was liable to break down crying in front of him.

  “It was nice to meet you.” She said as she closed her door. Judith felt bad for not being neighborly. But the fact that she had thought about her aunt and uncle and their death was enough. Unfortunately, he had the usual reaction when she introduced any guy to Little John.

  They wanted to know if it was here’s and if so, how young had she been when she had him. People were usually shocked to hear that she was actually 27 years old. There had been a few times that the guy at the local liquor store had cared her.

  Sighing she thought that was a lifetime ago. Last month her life had changed in one night.

  It had been 2 in the morning. Her phone had rang, and she had a bad feeling. “Hello.”

  “Hello is this Judith Sims?” The voice on the other side of the line had asked.

  “Yes it is. Who is this?” She had asked cautiously.

  “It’s the Portland police department; we need to have you come down to the Hospital.” He had said.

  “Why what’s wrong?” Her heart had beat rapidly.

  “Ma’am we can send someone to pick you up if you are unable to drive.” The man had said.

  The next thing she remembered was hearing the doorbell. Her mind had flashed through the only events she could think of at that second. What would prompt a call like this?

  “Ma’am we need you to come with his.” She had been looking up into the face of a Portland police officer.

  “Please tell me what happened.” She had requested.

  “I’m sorry but I can’t you’ll have to wait until we get to the hospital.” He had told her.

  Judith found out too soon that it had to do with the only family she had left in the world. Her Uncle John and Aunt Sally had died. Their little son, 2 –year old John Jr. was still alive but just barely.

  Judith had cried for hours sitting beside his bed and praying for him to be saved. She sat by his bed off and on for most of the two weeks. Judith didn’t want him to see a stranger when he first woke up. At least if he saw Judith he would feel a little safer.

  She didn’t know if he was aware that his mom and dad hadn’t made it or not. The paramedics said he had been awake for a few seconds at the crash site. But what he might know they really couldn’t tell her.

  At two-years old he had just barely begun to talk. He could say ‘love ya’ and ‘mama’ and a few other words.

  He woke up crying out “mama.” Sally’s heart had broken at the news she might have to tell him.

  “Little John I don’t know if you’ll even understand me or not. But mama and papa will not be coming back. I’m sorry, but you have me now. I’ll raise you for them. I’ll keep their memory alive in your heart and mind.” She had told him.

  She really tried the best she could to keep it all together for them both. But she knew that she was going to have to take off work again. They had given her a tough time the last month. “Judith you’ve called off too many times. You’ve used all your sick days. If you call off anymore we won’t be able to pay you. We may have to fire you and find someone who will work.” Her manager had told her.

  Even when she tried to explain her new responsibilities he hadn’t listened. Instead he had rolled his eyes and looked at her and said. “That’s not my problem.” He had said.

  “What happened to the days of compassion?” She had said as she walked out the door.

  Colin wasn’t able to get back to sleep when he went home. He kept thinking about Judith next door and how attracted he had been to her. It had felt like an electrical current ran between them. He had been taken aback at first.

  But now that she was over there and he was her, he wanted to go back and visit her. She had made it clear that it was not a day she would accept visitors.

  “She’s so geeky though. And I’m not the age to take on a baby.” Colin plopped down on the couch and turned on the television.

  He wanted to get his mind off of her and this feeling of strong attraction he had. Maybe some good old bike racing will help cure that! He turned on ESPN and hoped th
ey would be running a good program.

  After several minutes it was obvious that none of the channels kept the thoughts of Judith out of his mind. “Hell with this I’ll go for a ride!” He went and put on his leather jacket and boots.

  Going out the door with the thoughts of the wind hitting his face he felt better. He always loved getting out on the highway and just opening up a bit. A nice long ride might be a good idea today.

  Colin opened the throttle and worked his way smoothly through the traffic. He had to concentrate, one thought that was off, and he would be under a car. But soon enough he was through all of it and on his way to the open road.

  He smiled as he opened the throttle all the way and his bike took off. As long as there were no pigs hiding out he would be good. His mind would be perfectly clear when he decided to stop.

  Colin loved the air as it pummeled his face and body. At 24 years old he still felt like he was just out of college. Well that was if he had gone to college.

  He had attended a few classes, but found that studying just wasn’t for him. He would much rather spend his time in the biker bar and fighting. Too many times he had carried the hangover he’d gotten the night before to his class room.

  It didn’t take long for Colin to get kicked out of the college. He might have been able to talk his folks into another college. But he decided it wasn’t worth it. The same things would happen at any other school.

  Instead he had searched out the biker gangs in the area and visited them. He liked the Portland Pistols. The name sounded a little gay at first, but they had been the best fit for him right away. Colin had found the leader one who would listen to new ideas. He had plenty of them on how to make this club the best one in the area.

  “All it takes is dealing in the right goods.” Colin had told Dave one night. “Take it from me if we get the right things to sell, the demand will come.”

  He knew they handled weapons and drugs at times. At least that is what he learned from watching television. He’d also heard a few of the bikers he met tell some great stories. They may have been adding to the tales they wove. But Colin really thought that his ideas would be able to get the Pistols the power they need to run Portland.