Suzie couldn’t even answer him. Her eyes immediately filled with tears as his beautiful words and feelings surrounded her. She was unable to help herself as the tears of complete joy escaped her.
Damn hormones!
Drew?
What, sweetheart?
Can you help me?
Why, honey? What’s wrong?
When Suzie remained silent, Drew pushed himself away from his desk as panic filled him. He ran from his empty office to push open the connecting door to their home and rushed inside.
Where are you, Suzie?
In the bathroom.
Are you hurt?
No.
He could hear the frustration in their mate’s voice and sensed her anger through their bond. He took the stairs two at a time as he raced toward their bedroom, pushed open the door to the master bathroom, and searched it quickly. When he saw Suzie lying calmly in the filled tub, he relaxed immediately.
Walking over to the tub, he looked down at their beautiful mate and smiled tenderly. Kneeling down beside her, he reached out and rubbed her belly as it peeked out over the top of the warm water.
“Hello, sweetheart,” he told her softly, emotion filling him at the sight of her pregnant belly.
“Hi,” Suzie whispered.
“What did you need, honey?”
Suzie blushed adorably. Drew leaned forward and kissed her forehead lightly.
“I’m too big,” Suzie told him, frustrated. “I tried, but I can’t get out of the tub.”
At Drew’s immediate smile, Suzie lost her patience. She looked up at him with the most pitiful expression Drew had ever seen.
“I’m a beached whale,” she muttered.
Drew did his best not to laugh. He knew his mate would not appreciate it if he did.
“Suzie, you most definitely are not a beached whale,” he told her firmly.
“Drew! I can’t get out of the damn tub!”
“Suzie.” His voice was calm as he spoke. “You are incredibly beautiful.” He reached out and touched her cheek gently, rubbing the pad of his thumb across her cheekbone. “When I look at you, I see the woman who is nurturing our child. There is not a moment that I look at you when I don’t want to touch you and love you. Do you understand how much I want to be with you every moment of every day?”
“You’re just saying that because you don’t want me to feel bad,” Suzie told him calmly.
“You think I’m kidding?”
“I think you’re wonderful. And sweet.”
“Oh, baby. The last thing I am is sweet. Sweet doesn’t even come into this situation.”
Suzie looked up at him in confusion. She remained silent as he stood and stepped back to look down at her. When he reached up and started unbuttoning his dress shirt, her eyes dilated with desire. As he pulled the shirt from his body and began to unbuckle his belt, the sudden need she had for him filled her. She watched him with greedy eyes as he pulled the rest of his clothes from his body, standing beside the tub, completely naked, sexy, and aroused.
Before Suzie could speak, he climbed into the tub and settled over her carefully. He slowly pushed her legs open so he could nestle against her core. His cock bumped at her channel, finding its home within her warmth immediately. He slid inside her slowly, smiling as Suzie moaned with pleasure as he filled her.
“Do you believe that I desire you?” he asked her as he began a slow and steady rhythm of loving.
Suzie couldn’t answer, too filled with his love as his link to her opened wide and she was flooded with his feelings for her. When he held himself still, she was brought back to the awareness of his lovemaking.
“Do you believe that I desire you, sweetheart?” he repeated.
“Yes,” she whispered.
“You’d better.”
In that moment, Drew’s wolf took over, his eyes glowing golden as Drew allowed him to exert his dominance. The force of his thrusts deep inside of her made the water in the tub splash over the side. He didn’t care. He knew only that he had to show their mate that she excited him, called to him, and would always be everything to him.
His canines dropped, and he lunged for her shoulder, biting into the soft flesh of her creamy skin to reclaim her without a doubt. Suzie screamed as her orgasm was torn from her. Drew growled against her shoulder, pinning her with his teeth. His wolf demanded her desire, and he wasn’t disappointed.
Suzie wrapped her arms around his back, her hands morphing into claws and digging into the thick muscles there. Her own canines dropped, and she bit into his chest to assert her claim over him once again.
The mating knot formed and held as his seed expelled and filled her. Their souls joined once again. There was nothing Drew could say to explain to Suzie how much he loved her and wanted the child she was carrying. The emotions filled him, and he felt frustration at being unable to tell their mate just how deeply he loved her. He closed his eyes and leaned against her forehead, trying to sort out his words.
Drew?
Yes, honey?
I know.
She rubbed his back gently, giving herself up to his gentle touch. She didn’t need his words. She had his heart.
Suzie walked into Drew’s office, smiling at her two mates as they worked together to stock the supply cabinet. The soothing music that was playing in the background was just loud enough to mask her arrival. She knew it would only be a matter of moments before they scented her. She watched them silently, rubbing her belly soothingly as it tightened with another contraction.
“Hi,” she called to them softly.
Both men turned toward her at once, smiling immediately at the sight of their mate. They put down the packages of gauze and bandages and looked at her with open love in their eyes.
“Look, Drew. We did that.”
Carter indicated her pregnant belly with such pride, Suzie had no choice but to love him just a little bit more.
Drew smiled at the roll of Suzie’s eyes. He walked over to her and reached out to touch her belly tenderly. When he felt the tightening of the muscles of her abdomen, he was immediately alert.
“Are you having contractions, honey?” he asked her calmly.
“What? She’s having contractions?”
The panic in Carter’s voice made Suzie laugh. When Carter walked toward her and covered her belly with his left hand, she couldn’t prevent the moan that left her as another contraction began—this one much stronger than the last one.
“How far apart, Suzie?” Drew asked her gently, trying to keep her calm.
“I’m not sure,” Suzie answered honestly. “The contractions started about two hours ago, but they were pretty mild. For the last half hour they’ve been closer together and getting stronger with each one.”
Drew nodded and turned toward Carter, seeing the worry in his triad partner’s eyes. Taking Suzie’s hand in his, Drew led her to the room he used for medical procedures. Carter was by his side as he helped Suzie to undress and steadied her as she settled on the birthing bed.
“I need to examine you, honey,” Drew told her calmly.
“Okay.” Suzie’s eyes were wide as nerves and fear began to fill her.
“Don’t worry, honey,” Carter told her, his deep voice even and calm. “We’re going to get through this. Pretty soon you’ll be holding our sweet daughter in your arms.”
Suzie nodded and lay back, knowing her mates would help her give birth to their daughter. She was determined to stay calm, but the pain that suddenly seized her was so great, every intention she had of staying calm and in control flew right out the damn window.
“Why is this happening so quickly?” she asked as fear filled her.
Drew examined her as gently as he could. What he found gave him a moment of panic. Suzie was right. Her labor was intense and progressing at a rate that was unbelievable.
“Suzie, you’re fully effaced and dilated,” he told her with as much calm as he could. “I can already feel the baby’s head entering the b
irth canal.”
Carter felt a rush of worry at Drew’s words. When Suzie started to moan and pull on his arm, he drew her up into the cradle of his arms as he sat behind her.
“I think I need to push,” Suzie told them, panting. “Drew, do I need to push?”
“Go ahead, honey,” Drew encouraged her. “Your body knows what to do. Let it do what nature has intended it to do.”
Carter sat behind their mate and held her as she leaned forward and pushed with all her strength. He sent her soothing feelings to try to help calm her as she fought to bring their daughter into the world. Her whimpers of pain were killing him. He had never felt so helpless in his life. His awe of Suzie and the miracle she was fighting to give them increased with every moment that passed and each push she executed. He didn’t know where she drew her strength from. He knew she had to be exhausted but she continued to push every time another contraction took hold.
“You’re doing really well, Suzie,” Drew encouraged her. “Just a few more pushes, honey.”
“Drew, I can’t do this,” Suzie moaned, exhausted from the ordeal.
“Yes, you can, sweetheart,” Drew told her firmly. “You have to. Our baby needs you to help her come into this world.”
Suzie screamed as pain filled her. There was nothing she had ever done in her life that was as hard as this was. She focused and pushed, her eyes never leaving Drew as she worked through each contraction. She was covered in perspiration and was weak from the exertion.
She leaned into Carter and accepted the cool cloth he passed over her face as she took a moment to breathe between contractions. The reprieve didn’t last long. Another contraction gripped her, and she moaned with the effort to pull herself forward, grateful when Carter’s strength held her up.
With one final push, their daughter emerged. She was absolutely beautiful. And vocal.
Carter smiled as he looked at the sweet baby. As Drew bundled her with a sterile sheet and laid her gently on Suzie’s chest, Carter realized there was nothing as wonderful as the miracle of their family.
“She looks just like you, Suzie,” Drew whispered.
Suzie looked at her daughter in awe. She touched her cheek lightly, smiling at the way their daughter turned into her hand.
“I think she looks like her fathers,” Suzie whispered, never taking her eyes off their baby. “I love her already.”
Carter reached out and touched their daughter’s head, smiling when he saw Drew reaching up and doing the same.
“Me, too,” both men said at the same time, smiling at their oneness.
Suzie sat in the living room, holding their daughter Elizabeth to her breast as she nursed contentedly. Drew and Carter said Elizabeth looked like her, but Suzie saw her fathers in their baby’s features. She was a beautiful child whose temperament matched her face. The feelings of calm and peace that surrounded all of them made Suzie count her blessings every day to be so gifted.
The short time they had been parents had made them bond even closer—if that were even possible. They had fallen into a pattern of taking care of their child that was so comfortable, Suzie could barely believe how natural it was.
Her men loved their little girl with a fierceness that made Suzie smile. Both of her mates were natural caregivers and held their daughter often, preferring to keep her in their arms rather than in her cradle. They were amazed by her soft noises and felt like kings when they made her laugh. Suzie had no doubt in her mind that their little Elizabeth was going to be able to wrap her daddies around her little finger.
“How’s my Suzie and my Lizzie?” Carter asked as he came into the living room and knelt before them. He reached out and touched his daughter’s head gently, leaning forward and kissing the soft fuzz of his daughter’s blonde hair before reaching up and touching Suzie’s face lightly.
“Are you still calling our daughter Lizzie?” Drew’s amused voice called to them as he came into the living room and leaned over the top of the couch to place a kiss and a quick bite on Suzie’s shoulder.
“Lizzie is a good name,” Carter protested.
Suzie laughed as Drew took the baby from her arms and placed her gently against his chest, patting her back lightly. Carter stood beside him and leaned against their baby, nuzzling her face sweetly.
“Yeah, it is,” Drew said softly. “She’s amazing.”
“I think her fathers are pretty amazing, too,” Suzie told them, smiling when they looked at her with complete love. She stood and walked over to them, tugging her shirt back into place.
“There’s no need to cover up all that gorgeousness, honey,” Carter called to her, reaching out to spread her shirt open so he could touch her breasts lightly. “Come here.”
Suzie smiled as he reached down and lifted her in his arms, holding her firmly against his waist as she wrapped her legs around him. When he growled, she couldn’t help but chuckle.
“You’re so easy, my Carter,” she teased him.
“Hold your breasts for me, Mate,” he told her, his eyes glowing golden as his wolf pushed forward to share in the need for their mate.
Suzie did as he asked, sighing as his mouth surrounded her nipple and suckled strongly. She carded the fingers of her left hand through his long hair and held him against her tightly, loving the intimacy and caring that both men shared with her daily.
Drew stepped closer, sharing his embrace with her as he held their daughter. “You’re beautiful in motherhood,” he told her tenderly.
Carter released her breast and pressed her tighter against Drew’s side, needing the connection with him and their daughter. The family unit that they formed was one he had never expected to ever have after losing Suzie that awful night so many years ago.
Turning, they walked over to the couch together. Carter lowered Suzie so that she sat comfortably on the center cushion, settling happily between them as they took their place on either side of her. Drew placed their daughter in her arms, smiling as Elizabeth rested against the warmth of Suzie’s bare shoulder. Both men wrapped their arms around her, snuggling their baby between them.
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen a more beautiful sight,” Drew whispered.
“I agree,” Carter told him softly. “Thank you for giving us such a wonderful family, Suzie Q.” He leaned forward and kissed her temple lightly. “You’re our miracle.”
“I’m not,” Suzie protested, giggling softly at their words.
“You are,” Drew growled. “You hold our hearts. You hold our souls.”
“And you hold the key to our future,” Carter told her calmly. “Without you, Drew and I were ready to give up on life. With you we’ve finally become a part of a reunited triad and have created this beautiful bundle of love.” He reached up and touched their daughter’s head gently, petting her soft hair.
“You make us happy, Mate,” Drew told her, his voice filled with the love he had for her. “We really need to think of a word that better expresses how deeply we love you.”
Suzie looked at her mates and smiled as they surrounded her and their baby with their arms and their love. In all the years she had spent alone, sure that she would never be happy, she could never have imagined how her life would turn out.
She would always be thankful for the two amazing men who had saved her with their love.
THE END
WWW.LYNNETTEBERNARD.COM
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Lynnette Bernard is a fan of Broadway, the ocean, science fiction, romance, music, movies, books, and babies. She has two babies of her own that were the perfect children, who have turned out to be outstanding adults. She is a staunch advocate of “happily ever after” and changes the endings of any movie that she sees or book that she reads that doesn’t follow that rule. She has the hots for cowboys, shifters, vampires, and really nice guys and lives her fantasies about them through her writings. The cowboys of Colorado will always hold a special place in her heart.
E-mail her at [email protected].
For all titles by Lynnette Bernard, please visit
www.bookstrand.com/lynnettebernard
Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
Dedication
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Epilogue
About the Author
Susannah's Saviors [Beckett's Wolf Pack, Triad Mates 3] (Siren Publishing Ménage and More) Page 37