Blessed with an Angel [Grey River 5] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour)

by Maia Dylan

  Moving as quickly as she could, she held onto the handrail to avoid falling on her way into the backyard. Once she got to the bottom, she held on to the bottom of her rigid tummy which was way lower than it had ever been before, and waddled as fast as she could toward the back fence. She wanted to scream out to Kyle and Grant, but didn’t want to call attention to the fact she knew that Baxter held the two women next door.

  Angel was halfway across the yard when she heard Rowena screaming Xanthe’s name and then an almighty crash. Angel whimpered and spun in that direction. It was quiet for a moment and then Rowena was screaming again, but it was cut off and there was a loud bang as the door to the backyard next door flew open. Angel bit her lip and dropped as quickly as she could to the ground. She tried to make herself look as small as possible, something that she had been doing for most of her life and had perfected.

  She heard Rowena whimpering as someone ran through the backyard and then into the forest. Angel waited for Kyle or Grant to roar in anger or howl or something but there was nothing. Oh, Jesus, what the hell had happened to Kyle and Grant! Then all thought of everyone else flew out of her head as another contraction struck and this time she couldn’t keep her scream in. She concentrated on not pushing because she was still fully clothed and she needed to strip down in order to have her baby. Just as the contraction released her, she lay still for a moment, drawing as much oxygen into her body as possible.

  “Ma’am.” Angel’s eyes flew open and she screamed at the sudden male voice speaking from beside her. “Ma’am! I’m sorry, shush! Please don’t be afraid. I won’t hurt you.” Angel stopped screaming and pressed a hand to her heart. It was bloody surprising that it hadn’t actually burst in the last ten minutes. She looked at the man who knelt beside her wearing nothing but a pair of baggy shorts, and she knew exactly who he was.

  Chris’s older brother, Noah. In that moment, after she got over the initial shock of him turning up silently beside her, she looked him in the eye and had no doubt. He looked a lot like Chris, but it was more than that. She knew him on a level that told her something significant, but she just couldn’t concentrate on what right at that moment.

  “You’re hurt,” she gasped. Noah immediately shook his head.

  “Nah, it’s nothing, I’m fine.”

  She watched as Noah frowned as he stared at her in shock and then resignation. She didn’t know what on earth was going through his head at that moment, and to be fair she didn’t really give a shit! He was here and she needed help. “Right, quick as you can, pull off my panties and leggings,” she ordered as she bent her knees and lifted up onto her elbows so that she could see what was happening. In any other circumstances and on any other day the shocked look on his face that morphed quickly into the classic look that clearly read oh shit would have normally amused the hell out of her.

  “Noah! For Christ’s sake! I have had a really fucking bad day. I went to bed with what I thought was a sore back, but nooo, it turned out to be labor. Fucking back labor and this shit hurts! I went to get Rowena to help me only to find that the crazy bastard who has been after her had already arrived and was in the shop with her and Xanthe, and she had to say quarterback! Now, I have a small human being, who feels like he is the size of a small car, trying to get out my hoo-ha hopefully headfirst and I am still wearing clothes so would you please do me a solid and get my clothes off me?”

  * * * *

  Noah shook off the shock that had him hesitating and he moved to do as she asked. As soon as he touched her, his body started to hum a little, almost as if he were holding a live wire, but knowing that this might well be something more. Something that was eventually going to tell him that the Fates had fucked him over one more time and had actually fated a broken fuckup like him to a woman as beautiful and gutsy as the one in front of him. He held her hand and breathed with her as another contraction hit, and he was surprised that someone so slight could grip his hand so damn hard!

  Once she had settled back, her bravado slipped and her face filled with fear. “Shush, it’s okay, sweetheart, you’re doing great! I’m here, right here beside you and I am not going anywhere. We can do this, ma’am.” Noah had no idea where the soft and reassuring tone he heard in his voice had come from, but figured he might well be channeling Chris. He almost sighed in relief when she nodded.

  “Okay, but stop calling me ma’am. My name is Angel, and you’re Noah Carson, Chris’s brother.” Noah nodded. He had heard her use his name before, but now it made sense if she was one of his patients. Chris was a fantastic younger brother who was very proud of Noah and there were pictures of him in uniform in Chris’s office.

  “Okay, Angel.” Noah moved so that he could support her back, and reached over to hold her hand. “You squeeze my hand and scream to the world as much as you want, and you push for all you’re worth.”

  Angel arched up to grip her knees and Noah shuffled forward so she was supported better and marveled at how beautiful she was when she screamed her defiance to the gods. Taking the pain and working with it to bring her baby into the world. Goddamn, if this wasn’t the most beautiful moment of his life.

  He heard someone leaping from the porch and sprinting in their direction. Whoever it was aimed directly at him, but he refused to budge. Angel needed him to hold her and he’d be damned if he’d move until this contraction had ebbed off. He braced for an impact that never came. The human missile had veered to the right and ended up shoulder rolling to avoid hitting him.

  “Angel! What the hell—” He recognized Luke as soon as his scent hit him, and knew he was no threat to him or Angel. Angel’s next contraction rolled across her immediately after the last and she threw her head back and screamed.

  “Breathe through it, Angel,” Noah coached her as he held her hand, breathing with her and trying to impart as much calm as he could to her. Seconds later, Luke’s brothers crashed to the ground beside him. They all waited while Angel grunted and panted through the contraction and then she collapsed against the ground and Noah.

  “Baxter, he’s got Rowena,” she panted through gritted teeth, dragging air into her lungs. “She used the panic word, and I saw the fear on Xanthe’s face. He had Xanthe, and took Rowena when she walked in. I heard someone crashing down the steps and into the forest shortly after I got out here, but I didn’t get much further than here. Oh God, here comes another one!” She leaned up and Noah propped himself behind her shoulder again, taking her weight for her.

  “Baxter’s a bear shifter.” Noah reached around and gripped Angel’s knee so that he could ease her forward. She seemed to want to bring herself closer to her knees, so Noah helped as much as he could. “I thought I had him just outside of Grey River but the fucker set an ambush for me. By the time I came to and got out, he was already here. He took out Kyle and Grant, but both of them are alive, just hurt pretty bad. I left them back there about 100 feet or so from the edge of the property when I heard Angel scream. Chris, Ty, and Trent are on their way now.”

  “We’re here, brother,” Chris’s voice came from behind them as the three men barreled into the yard. Noah almost slumped in relief at hearing his brother’s voice. Chris fell beside Angel, who sobbed and held out her hand toward him. Luke jumped up to make room for him and turned to Ty and Trent. Noah didn’t have to be psychic to know that the three Greyson brothers were all vibrating with tension and a deep need to go after their mate.

  “Okay,” Ty spoke quickly. “Cassadee is going to contact Rowena and see if she can’t tell us where she is. You guys come with me. Let’s get to Grant and Kyle and see if we can’t find that fucker’s scent.” Then Ty ran into the forest with Wyatt, Luke, Chase, and Trent at his heels, heading toward where Noah had left Kyle and Grant.

  “Xanthe,” Angel groaned through gritted teeth. Chris was silent for a moment.

  “Cody and Brendan have just pulled up and are getting to her now,” Chris placed his medical bag beside him on the ground and knelt between Angel’s legs.
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  Noah returned his attention to the woman in front of him, who was now practically lying in his arms. Getting more comfortable behind her, and leaving Chris to deal with the business end of things, Noah realized his whole damn body was vibrating. He looked up and saw a knowing smug look on Chris’s face, and the flashing blue in his eyes told Noah that he was feeling the same damn thing.

  “Mate!” Chris’s voice came down their link and it definitely matched the look on his face. He didn’t respond. He would have liked to take a few moments to think about what that would mean, but a contraction hit Angel again and she bent forward with a deep guttural groan. Noah guessed that she was putting all her energy into birthing her baby rather than screaming.

  “That’s it, Angel! I can see his head.” Chris’s voice rang with excitement. “On the next push we should be able to get his head clear, baby.” Noah frowned. Baby? Had Chris already claimed this woman? Not that it was of any of his business, but Noah felt a spike of sadness slam through him at the thought of the two of them connecting and committing to each other without him. Which was absolutely ridiculous.

  “Oh God, Chris, I don’t know if I can do this,” Angel sobbed and Noah felt a pain settle in his heart at her distress.

  “Angel, of course you can.” Noah tried his best to channel the soft and encouraging tone his brother had been using.

  “Noah’s right, baby, you are one of the strongest women I know! You want to meet your baby boy, I know you do, and I can assure you he wants to meet you, too.” Chris moved lower and Noah watched his hands working to help Angel birth her baby, and from the way she was tensing again, Noah knew a contraction had just hit her. He leaned into her, pushing her forward like she wanted and took her weight for her.

  “That’s it, Angel! Here he comes, baby, here he comes... I’ve got him!” Chris announced as Angel collapsed, sobbing uncontrollably against Noah. A few seconds later there was a small cry then a full-on wailing as the baby screamed his displeasure at what had just happened. Chris tore off his shirt, wrapped the baby in it, and then immediately moved to place the bundle on his mama.

  “Oh, my god, oh my god,” Angel cried as she wrapped her arms around the precious bundle and stared into the wrinkled little face. “Hi! Hi, baby boy, I’m your mama. Oh! You are so beautiful,” she whispered as she pressed her lips to his little forehead. Noah had to agree, he was looking at a strikingly beautiful baby, despite being fresh out of the oven and covered in...stuff.

  “Fresh out of the oven”—Chris’s laughing voice came down their link—“I dare you to say that out loud!”

  Noah sent him a small smile and shook his head. He might have only just met Angel, but he knew that she wouldn’t find that description flattering at all. He registered sirens in the distance in the final moments of Angel giving birth, but hadn’t paid it any notice. Now he felt relief when he heard another ambulance screech to a halt outside the house.

  “The ambulance is here, Angel,” Chris said tenderly, and Noah watched with a heavy heart as Chris leaned over and pressed a kiss to first Angel’s forehead and then the baby’s. “They are going to take you straight up to Labor and Delivery to get you cleaned up and I’ll meet you there, okay?” Angel’s head flew up and whatever Chris saw in her gaze had him reassuring her. “I promise, baby, I will only be a couple of minutes behind you. I need to talk with Noah for a moment and then we’ll come up and see you.” Angel nodded hesitantly and Noah knew she would rather have Chris go with her.

  “Go with her, Chris.” Noah used their link for the first time, in a very long time. “She’s scared and she needs you.”

  Chris was quiet as his gaze bore into Noah and he felt almost stripped naked by the intensity of it. “There is nothing I want more than to go with her, but I think you and I need to have a conversation first.”

  The next few minutes were filled with people moving quickly and efficiently to get Angel onto a stretcher and then they hustled her to the front of the house. Noah stayed back and out of sight. His head was spinning now that the adrenaline of the moment had faded, and it reminded him that he had recently suffered significant blood loss, still had three bullets in his back, and a system full of Jax. All in all, it was fucking surprising he was still on his feet.

  “Noah.” Chris moved toward him, and Noah couldn’t stop himself from taking a small step back. He saw the pain on Chris’s face and immediately regretted the move, but Noah was worried about whether or not the poison could be absorbed by Chris if he came in contact with his blood. Until he found out for sure, he was keeping his brother safe. Just as he always had and always would.

  Chris made a frustrated sound as he ran his hands through his hair, a move Noah knew very well. “Shit, Noah. You’ve been gone for eight months. Eight fucking months with no word from you! You closed yourself off from our bond, and like a dumbass little brother I kept talking to you. Did you even hear me at all?”

  “No.” Noah felt acid boiling in his stomach. He had never lied to Chris. Oh, sure he had omitted stuff, but what older brother didn’t? But bald face lied to his face? Never. Not until that very moment.

  Chris exhaled hard, as if Noah had actually punched him in the stomach. “Okay then, so you left and severed contact with me. Why?” The pleading in his voice and filling his eyes almost had Noah telling him everything, just to get Chris to feel better.

  “I’m just not meant to be here, Chris.” Noah didn’t lie this time. He truly believed he wasn’t worthy of returning to Grey River. Working as an Enforcer and taking out shifter assholes that break their laws was his penance. “I can’t be here.”

  “What about Angel? I know you felt the Quickening, the same as I did.” Chris stepped right up and got in his face and Noah almost smiled. Chris was the healer, not the fighter of the two brothers, but for his mate, he would stand toe-to-toe with a killer, and that was exactly what Noah was. “Are you just going to turn your back on our triad? Everything we hoped for and prayed for growing up is right in fucking front of us for the taking. Are you gonna reach out with me, and grab a hold of her and never fucking let her go?”

  Noah took a deep breath. He had known he would have to have this conversation with Chris, and say the things he was about to, but he never imagined how much it would hurt. “No, Chris, I am not going to claim that woman with you.” His mind whirled with a reason he could give that would have his brother turning away from him, too. It would be best just to make a clean break. “She’s already had a child with another man. She’s obviously pretty, shall we say, free with her affections.”

  Disgust and anger filled Chris’s gaze and Noah couldn’t blame him, he was fairly disgusted and enraged at himself. But it wasn’t enough. Chris was stubborn and would keep on trying to get to him.

  “Besides, why would you want to raise another man’s bastard?” Noah cringed inwardly as everything within him rejected those words. But he had to stand strong. He had to be strong for Chris…and their Angel. He watched Chris jerk back as if Noah’s words had a physical effect on him.

  “Fuck, Noah,” Chris sneered, “I never took you for a bigoted, small-minded idiot, but I guess I was wrong. Get the fuck out of Grey River. Forget you ever had a home here. Forget you ever had a brother. And you sure as hell better forget you have a mate, because as of right now? You don’t!” Then he spun on his heel and moved quickly across the yard and over to the shop next door. No doubt to help this Xanthe.

  Noah felt numb, and he was actually thankful for the needle full of shit Baxter had pumped into his system. It was no doubt dulling the pain of what he had just destroyed.

  “Noah!” He turned at his name and swayed a little on his feet. Jack Casey came swiftly out of the darkness of the forest and moved toward him. As he got closer, he frowned. “Dude, what’s happened? You look like you’ve just heard someone shot your best friend.”

  “Yeah, I did, and the pisser is, it was me that pulled the trigger.” Noah’s voice was weak and a look of confusion that quickly
turned to alarm crossed Jack’s face when Noah started to sway. “I lost him and my Fated Angel, all with one foul lie.” Noah wanted to grimace, but wasn’t actually sure his face worked anymore. Then the spots that he hadn’t noticed forming at the edge of his vision began to close in and he dropped to the ground unconscious.

  Chapter 2

  “Hey, beautiful boy,” Angel crooned to Mateo, who was wailing at the top of his lungs and announcing to the world that he was hungry and someone had better feed him or he was going to go nuclear. From the color of his little round red face, Angel guessed the time for that was fast approaching! Quickly and efficiently she put him to her breast and he latched on like a pro. Mateo was almost ten weeks old and was such a beautifully placid baby. Well, until he got hungry then he was anything but!

  “Angel, you up for a visitor?” Rowena called from the bookstore downstairs. Coffee and Quills had been open for a couple of weeks now and was going so well! Better than she and Rowena had ever anticipated.

  “Sure, as long as they don’t mind that it’s feeding time!” Angel called back as she drew a modesty throw over Mateo, then she gazed down at him as he drank steadily and felt her heart simply fill to overflowing with love for him. She had never realized the effect having a baby would have on her. “My cup runneth over,” she whispered softly as she stroked the downy soft dark hair on his little head.

  “I feel the same damn way,” a familiar voice spoke softly from the doorway and Angel felt heat rise in her cheeks when she gazed up at Chris. Her heart beat a little faster at the sight of him. He was so good-looking, with dark hair and beautiful dark brown eyes that she got lost in every time she looked at him.