A Secret Baby for the Shifter (Stonybrooke Shifters)

by Leela Ash

  “Her water broke,” Leah said in a loud whisper. Tom immediately left the scene, scurrying around the house to get the diaper bag and suitcase of clothes they had prepared months in advance.

  Janie closed her eyes, silent tears streaming down her face. What she wouldn’t give for the man holding her suitcase to be Dean.

  But that was all but impossible. From the media coverage, it seemed that he didn’t seem to care one way or another that she was gone. Sure, he hadn’t been rumored to be dating anybody, in the throes of his nasty divorce, even if he was, his PR department would take care of the publicity. Still, it would have been nice to see at least some indication that he missed her.

  Another contraction nearly brought her to tears, and soon, Leah was ushering Janie out of the house and into the big SUV parked in the driveway. Tom was already behind the wheel, the picture of panic incarnate. If Dean had been driving, she knew she would have felt safe and cared for no matter what happened. He wouldn’t let on that he was scared even if the world was on fire.

  “Easy does it,” Leah said, helping Leah into the back seat and sitting beside her.

  They sped off to the hospital, where Leah was quickly admitted.

  “Are you all right?” Leah asked. “Do you want anything? Should I call your mother?”

  Dean. All she wanted was Dean. She was having their child alone, without him, and he had no idea. What was going to happen to her? Would she ever be able to tell him?

  Labor was agonizingly painful, but after twelve long hours of excruciating pain and tears shed, both for her own pain and the pain of not being able to share the experience with Dean, something miraculous happened.

  A tiny wail erupted into the room and soon, she was holding an 8lb. 8oz. baby boy in her arms. She had expected there to be more in there, she’d read horror stories about litters of pups being born to human mothers that left doctors astonished, but as soon as she looked at her baby she knew he had been her only.

  “He’s beautiful,” Leah gasped when everybody was finally allowed in to visit. “I can’t believe it. What are you going to name him?”

  Janie’s voice shook, but she said the name as firmly as she could muster.

  “Dean.”

  19.

  “You have no idea how close you are to losing the company,” Dean’s lawyer sighed. He’d just had a private meeting with Kiera’s lawyers and Dean groaned loudly.

  “Then you’re not doing your job!” he barked.

  Dean stormed out of the room, bitter and disillusioned. Not only did he have Kiera breathing down his neck, just a few steps away from single-handedly destroying his empire, but the private detective he’d hired to keep tabs on his mother hadn’t been able to find any trace of Janie. He’d been looking pointlessly for months to no avail.

  For some reason, he just couldn’t stop thinking about her. It was the first time a woman had so completely consumed him. Even being married to Kiera hadn’t been this emotional. He’d mostly let himself get away with his own fantasies. Finding a woman who could tolerate his uncompromising attitude and give him the family he so desperately wished for. He wanted a family. A family that loved and cared for him, unlike his own parents. But now, all of that had gone to hell. He would never lay hands on another woman again. Not if he felt anything toward her. A family was out of the question now. Suddenly, the phone in Dean’s pocket rang and he answered quickly.

  “What do you want?”

  “Dude! You’ll never guess!” Larry exclaimed. Dean frowned.

  “Never guess what?” Dean asked with a tired sigh. He couldn’t handle any more disappointments right now.

  “I just got something juicy, dude. Something really juicy.”

  “On Kiera?” Dean asked, his heart tremoring with excitement.

  “On Kiera.”

  Larry sounded giddy and Dean grinned to himself.

  “What is it?”

  “Come to my office tonight. As soon as you can. We’ve got to get this out to the media. Like now. But I want to see what you think first.”

  “Of course,” Dean said, already worming his arm into the sleeve of his jacket. “I’m on my way.”

  ***

  Dean’s eyes widened and he grinned smugly. Yes, this was a wealth of information indeed.

  “How did you find this?” Dean breathed, his eyes scanning the files in delight.

  “I have my ways,” Larry said proudly. “Unfortunately, I can’t reveal my sources.”

  “Perfect.”

  Somehow, though, even though this was going to take care of all of his problems, he still couldn’t help but feel sad. Janie had been gone from his life for a year, and when she left, she had taken part of him with her.

  “Larry, do you think you could do me one last favor?” Dean asked, hating himself for this pathetic, desperate drive to see Janie again.

  “Sure, dude,” Larry said distractedly, clicking at folders on his computer so that Dean could see, in detail, all of the ways his ex-wife was going to stack an even longer jail sentence onto herself. “What is it?”

  “I need you to help me find somebody.”

  “Your mom?” Larry asked, his eyes flickering briefly to Dean. They had gone down that road before as well, when the private detective had been out of the picture.

  “No. A former employee of mine. She’d been harassed by Kiera and the bear shifters more than once. I want to make sure she’s all right.”

  That was half a truth, but Dean knew Janie well enough to know that her disappearance had been her own doing. Still, nobody else had to know that.

  “Of course,” Larry said. “Just give me the information and I’ll do my best.”

  “Thanks,” Dean said, lowering his eyes to the floor. If Larry could find Janie, maybe he could also find answers. But it had been a whole year. What all might he find?

  20.

  “Janie! Come quick! You’ve got to see this!”

  Janie rushed down the stairs as carefully as she could, holding baby Dean against her shoulder. She had just fed him and he hadn’t burped yet.

  She finally managed to walk into the living room where Leah was sitting on the edge of her seat and sat down with the baby propped up on her shoulder.

  “Look!” Leah exclaimed. “It’s Resner’s ex-wife! The skank!”

  Janie laughed and peered at the television set, shocked to see Kiera being led away in handcuffs. Information from her personal computers had been leaked to the police, and she was going down for fraud and drug trafficking, among other things. The best part was a video of Kiera cheating on Dean during their marriage with one of the bear shifter men she had seen with Kiera at the restaurant. Scandal was on every television channel, with Kiera in the center of it all. Her makeup was smeared and she looked old and tired. It was hilarious, in a way.

  Following close behind Kiera in handcuffs was the whole crew of bear shifters, each of them glaring down at the ground as they were led into a van in shackles.

  “All of them were caught?” Janie whispered, her heart racing with excitement. “They’re going to jail?”

  “All of them were caught,” Leah said, smiling broadly at Janie. “I think you have a plane to catch.”

  The next few hours were a whirlwind of activity as Janie packed the few belongings she had managed to bring with her to Leah’s house, and the many, many others that she needed in order to care for the baby, and boarded the flight back to Stonybrooke.

  Janie’s heart tremored at the thought of going back there, but she couldn’t keep little Dean a secret any longer. There was no longer any danger to her. They were free.

  Once she finally arrived to Stonybrooke, she checked into the same motel she’d lived in before she had abandoned Stonybrooke and picked up the phone, cradling the baby in her arms.

  “We’re going to call your daddy,” she whispered down at the baby. He looked at her with dark, mysterious eyes, and Janie kissed his hands. She was just stalling now.

  “What? W
ho is this?”

  Dean’s voice was all business and impatient, and she remembered how surly he could be. It almost made her hang up right away.

  “Well?” Dean demanded. And then, after a beat, so quiet he barely heard him, “Janie?”

  God, his voice sounded good in her ears. She immediately started crying.

  “Who is this? What’s wrong? Are you all right? Do you need help?”

  “It’s Janie,” she breathed.

  “What?” Dean said, his voice suddenly soft and incredulous. “Janie? Are you all right? Where have you been?!”

  “I’m sorry,” Janie whispered. “I’d love to meet you at the diner. I think we should talk there.”

  The diner. It slipped out of her mouth like an answer to an unasked question. Where would she be safe to tell this dangerous, powerful man that she’d been hiding his child from him all this time? A public place. A place where someone Dean respected might protect her if things went wrong.

  “When?” Dean asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

  “An hour?” Janie guessed. She hadn’t walked there before, but with the baby and all their gear, it might take a while.

  “All right,” Dean said. “I’ll be there in an hour.”

  With trembling hands, Janie packed up the baby’s things and secured him in his little stroller. With her stomach doing flips, Janie walked all the way to Maurice’s diner. He wasn’t there yet, so she waited apprehensively at one of the booths, debating whether or not to keep the baby out of sight. But he’d been hidden for too long.

  There was commotion at the door and Janie turned. A beautiful black wolf had suddenly appeared, standing outside the door to the diner. It scratched its paws against the door and Maurice chuckled, shaking his head.

  “Human forms only, Dean! You know the rules.”

  Dean. Janie’s heart panged painfully in her chest.

  Dean howled in agitation and shifted back into his human form. Maurice shook his head and disappeared behind the counter, reappearing with a pair of pajama pants.

  “Where did you go?” Dean exclaimed, rushing to Janie’s side. “I’ve been worried sick. I thought…”

  Dean trailed off when he saw the baby, before looking into her eyes as if he finally understood.

  “Is this…”

  Dean moved forward and placed his hand on the baby’s head. His voice was wrought with emotion for the first time since she’d met him. “My pup!”

  Dean’s eyes lit up and he lifted the baby delicately, cradling him against his broad muscular chest. He was awestruck by the child and studied the baby’s perfect features for the longest time before looking back up at Janie.

  “What’s his name?” Dean asked, smoothing the baby’s soft hair, a small smile creasing his lips.

  “I…I named him after you. I didn’t know how long we’d have to hide. I thought we might never get to see you again.”

  Janie sobbed into her hands and soon, Dean was standing beside her, his strong energy comforting and protective.

  “You left because…”

  Janie nodded, her eyes still brimming with tears. “I wanted to tell you for so long…I knew when I saw the news that it was finally safe.”

  Suddenly, Dean’s lips were on hers and they were kissing passionately and with reckless abandon right in the diner, the baby nestled safely between them.

  “Come home with me,” Dean said, his eyes urgent. He took her hand and Dean turned to Maurice with a bright smile. “To my home. I want you two to be my family.”

  “I want that too,” Janie whispered, her eyes brimming with hot tears.

  “I’m a dad!” Dean shouted at the top of his lungs. The few people in the diner applauded and Dean beamed at Maurice.

  “And a wonderful dad you’ll be,” Maurice said, smiling kindly at Dean.

  Dean called for his limo and as soon as they were outside, Dean let out a celebratory howl. To their surprise, the baby in his arms joined in with a soft little whine of a howl and they exchanged shocked looks.

  “He’s never done that before!”

  “That’s my boy,” Dean said, nuzzling the soft hair on top of the baby’s head.

  The limousine arrived shortly after and Janie found herself back in the comfortable little manor that Dean owned. The baby had fallen into a comfortable sleep against his father’s chest and Dean laid him carefully in the stroller.

  They pushed the baby to the bedroom across from Dean’s and went into Dean’s room to talk.

  As soon as Janie opened her mouth to speak, Dean’s mouth was hot against her. Janie moaned in pleasure; nobody had so much as touched her in the past year, except for the baby, of course, or the hug goodbye she had gotten from Leah. It left her extra sensitive to Dean’s touch, and every little brush against her skin left her tingling and wanting more.

  Their bodies were quickly entwined on the bed.

  “I thought you’d left me,” Dean said softly, burying his face in the sensitive nape of her neck and kissing her sensually. Janie’s body shivered in delight.

  “Not forever,” Janie whispered. “Just until it was safe for you…for us.”

  “This is a hell of a surprise,” he said, shaking his head and reaching his hand between her legs. He cupped her middle in his hands and stroked, sending a surge of heat coursing through her body that dampened his fingers and made Janie moan.

  “Stonybrooke is safe for now,” Dean whispered, kissing Janie’s temple and carefully sliding her clothes off. He quickly stripped himself after and found his place above her, looking down with eyes darkened with desperate need. “You and our pup will be safe here with me. The divorce has been finalized. You can marry me. We can have more children. Children I can witness the birth of.”

  Janie’s heart hammered hard in her chest, and she embraced Dean tightly. He chuckled, kissing her all over, and then suddenly pushed the tip of his cock inside her. Janie shivered in pleasure at the sudden feeling of his member and looked fearfully into Dean’s eyes.

  “How many do you want?” Janie whispered.

  “As many as I can get.”

  Their words were silenced by a languid, passionate kiss that left no more questions lingering on Janie’s mind. Dean slid himself inside of her swiftly, and she closed her eyes, relishing in the hot pleasure of his body. They stayed like that for a moment before Dean finally began to thrust, slow, steady, and hard.

  Janie cried out immediately, each new thrust intensifying the pleasure she was receiving. Dean grinned, his cock swelling inside of her with a new rush of arousal. It was the most intense sexual experience that Janie had ever had, and she wrapped her arms around Dean’s muscular torso as he distributed his power in steady, careful streaks that left her panting for more.

  He was slow with his distribution at first, until Janie began to writhe beneath him, her body silently begging for more. It was then that she seemed to sense the wolf within him grow serious, and knew just what it was that had claimed her. She had probably been his from the moment they’d met and didn’t even know it yet. The thought was thrilling and she laid back against her pillow as Dean began to surrender control to the wolf, who knew instinctively how much was too much.

  Their bodies embarked on a sensual dance as his cock pried her apart with hot, broad strokes again and again, until each of them were on the border of their self-restraint. Dean gritted his teeth, his jaw masculine and powerful as he gazed down at her.

  “Take me,” she whispered.

  Dean growled, his body suddenly taking on a new force; one that was impossible to ignore. Janie’s body quaked beneath him as Dean’s cock thrust into her with a newfound power, until Janie was gasping for breath.

  Her orgasm came with a sudden crash and she cried out loudly, her body contracting tightly around Dean’s impressive cock. They both hissed in pleasure as Dean unleashed the flood of his longing inside of her, the eruption of which sent him on one last torrent of powerful thrusts, until every last drop had been empti
ed inside of her.

  They lay together on Dean’s bed, panting, and studied each other from across the pillows.

  “I love you,” Dean said. “And I vow to take care of you and our children for as long as I live.”

  Janie smiled, and placed Dean’s hand on her stomach.

  “Maybe there’s another one in there already,” Janie whispered. “I love you too.”

  They spent the rest of the night dreaming about their future together, with baby Dean sleeping soundly in the room across from them. It was the first time he had ever slept through the night.

  It had been rocky, but there was no question in either of their minds. They were meant to be together, and together, they would raise a beautiful family.

  THE END

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  Leela Ash

  Copyright ©2015 by Leela Ash. All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic of mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Thank you so much for your interest in my work!

  CHAPTER ONE

  It was another day in the Wall Street boys club; a term I don't use lightly. The stock world is a testosterone driven arena where men assert their masculinity by driving through deals and collecting commissions. I guess with no more lions to kill or Spartans to battle they've gone from swords to the mobile devices they wave around like old west "shooting irons".

  For those of us who were born without "Y" Chromosomes things are different. Men who push hard are deemed "tough businessmen", but when we do it we're called "bitches." We couldn't even expect support from the few women who had made it. They were too busy watching their own backs to worry about some lowly junior stockbroker in a skirt.