“I’m sure I’m sure. There was only just—the—one night,” she stammered.
“Well, everything appears normal.” The doctor pointed out the curve of the back, the webbed appendages that looked distinctly more like paws to Ty than hands and feet. Jess grabbed his hand and an electric arc shot up his arm. Ty glanced at her. She wasn’t looking at him. She was looking at the screen, but all the same it made the tightness in his chest ease. Jess sought him out for comfort and he was only too glad to give it to her.
“Well, look at that.”
Ty felt Jess move to sit up and stop herself. “What?” she asked.
“It looks like you’ve got more than one. Twins, possibly triplets.”
Ty’s jaw dropped.
Jess gasped. “You can’t be serious.”
The doctor pointed out on the monitor, tracing the image with her fingertip. “You can see just a bit here, and then another bit here...”
Jess tore her gaze away from the screen and stared at Ty. “I thought I could handle being pregnant. That was one thing. But if I end up having a litter, it’s all your fault.”
Ty grinned. Really, how could he argue? “You’re a twin, aren’t you?”
“Yes,” she hedged. “But there are no triplets in our family.”
“Well, if you’re a multiple birth, it does increase the odds,” Beck said as she clicked off the machine and wiped away the remnants of the gel on Jess’s stomach.
Ty sighed with relief. The annoying ringing in his ears that had been driving into his brain stopped. He brushed a stray strand of hair away from Jess’s cheek with the back of his finger, caressing the smooth curve. “Looks like I have even more reason to make sure you stay safe.”
“Staying safe as in staying safe, or staying safe as in you’re going to put me in a bubble?”
He raised a brow. “What do you think?”
“I think you’d like to try to keep me in a bubble, but the best you’re going to do is keep me safe.”
Ty chuckled. “You sound like an alpha female already.”
Chapter 13
Jess waited until the vampire doctor and her medical assistant were gone before she spoke to Ty about the thoughts that were buzzing around in her head like annoying mosquitoes.
How was she going to possibly pull this off without losing everything? As disruptive as twins or triplets might be, she couldn’t envision giving them away, or doing anything to jeopardize their existence. It just wasn’t in her.
She’d always wanted children. Just not two or three of them at once, and certainly not ones who could possibly become wolves. She shuddered. It might give a whole new meaning to teething. She pulled on her T-shirt and hoodie, the zipper sounding awfully loud in the quiet of Riley’s medical room.
“You’re awfully quiet. The idea of multiples have you scared?” Ty asked, his voice even and level, giving no hint to his emotion.
Jess narrowed her eyes and gripped the edge of the bed. “What part of this shouldn’t scare me? The part where my brother is now a monster? The part where we might be facing down World War III? Or the part where I get to wait until my—” She blew out a long breath and said bitterly, “My babies might have to grow up in a society that fears and ridicules them?”
His dark shaggy hair half covered his eyes, making them difficult to read, but he seemed relaxed enough leaning against the wall, his arms crossed over his chest. “What makes you think that?”
Jess felt the cool wash of air over her tongue as her mouth dropped open. “Are you serious? Didn’t you ever see the movie Teen Wolf? Small towns and unusual sorts usually don’t go together like peanut butter and jelly. The kids won’t be able to even go to school if they have tails, snouts and claws!”
He stared at her, his eyes hard. “You consider Riley a monster? If that’s the case, then you must think even worse of me.”
Jess sighed, pressing the tips of her fingers to her forehead. “It’s not that. Maybe monster was too strong a word.”
“Well, then, what is it? I’d really like to know.”
“People in Sinclair are barely adjusting to the idea that there are real, honest-to-God vampires in Seattle. You think they are going to just warm up to Werewolves?”
“First,” he said, approaching her and putting his hands on her shoulders, “who cares? And sec—”
“I care,” she said tightly. “Those people are my family, my friends, the parents of my students. They are not going to accept any of this. We’ll be ostracized, if not worse!”
“Nobody has to know.”
She threw him an incredulous look. “So now you expect me to lie to my family, to my friends—worse, make my children lie?”
All the softness left his face. Ty dropped his hands and stepped back from her, leaving her feeling even more alone. “No.” He shook his head, putting his hands in the pockets of his jeans, and turned away from her. The distance between them in the room was only a few steps, but it seemed like miles to Jess.
“This is just as hard for me as it is for you.”
Staring at his broad back, she said, “I have a hard time believing you’re suffering from doubt and fear the same way I am. You’re bigger than life, so strong, so sure of yourself.” How was it possible? But then he was also the only one of his kind—well, two of his kind, with Riley in his pack.
He glanced over his shoulder at her. “Usually a Were doesn’t take a mate who isn’t familiar with our way of life. It’s part of the reason we stay close to our pack. When you grow up surrounded by those just like you, it’s hard to see how there’s any difference. Being a Were is who I am. I can’t change that, Jess, nor can you.”
An uncomfortable lump welled up in Jess’s throat. She didn’t want to change him—and yet him being different made all of it so much more difficult.
Doubt crowded into the clearness of his eyes and the silence stretched between them. “If I were an ordinary man, would you hesitate like this?”
Jess was ashamed to shake her head. He turned away from her, his muttered curses barely audible, the shaggy edge of his hair half hiding his strong profile.
Jess slipped off the edge of the bed and stepped toward him, putting her hand on his broad back. The bunched and hard muscles flinched at her touch. “There’re a lot of things I really like about you, Ty. But then there’s this one big thing that really could screw up my entire life and that of my kids. I’m not sure how to cope with that just yet. But maybe if you help me, together we can get through this.”
He turned his head slowly, gazing at her, his dark eyes drawing her in. “Why do you even want to be with me?”
Her heart skipped a beat and then picked up double time. There was no doubt of the magnetism he had; it drew her the way little kids were drawn to candy, but was that enough for her to base a life on, the lives of—it still boggled her mind to think of it—two or three children? Why did her stomach flip a somersault every time he looked at her just so? Why did her body seem to respond to even the slightest touch like a match to a gasoline-soaked bonfire?
Jess stared into his handsome face. And it was then, just like when he’d held her hand while she watched the monitor, all quiet strength, that she’d discovered perhaps this was more than just a complicated one-night stand gone sideways. Perhaps she actually did love him. “Maybe it’s because I see something in you no one’s ever seen before.”
His full mouth curved into a half smile that reached right through her, warming her like a beam of sunlight. “I can deal with that.”
Jess bit her bottom lip and his eyes dilated the moment they strayed to that spot. She knew that look and her breasts grew heavy and sensitive at the thought of what he was truly capable of. “We’re in my brother’s hospital room,” she reminded him softly.
His smile grew wolfish. “We ca
n close the door.”
Jess gave a husky laugh. “That’s not going to solve anything.”
“Oh, you’d be surprised.” He bent down, bringing his face close enough to hers that she could nearly count the individual whiskers in the stubble of his upper lip. Her breath caught. He was far more seductive up close and personal. The second she inhaled the scent of him again, a mix of the great outdoors and primal male invaded her space. His mouth grazed hers in a light kiss, a mere brush of his lips against hers, but it was enough to make a zing of yearning fizzle and snap along every nerve in her body as her mind supplied all the carnal memories of precisely what it was like to be with him. The firmness of his biceps, the crisp hair that narrowed down the plane of his abs, the slick warm sensation of his tongue on her skin.
Her fingers traced over the bristled edge of his jaw as the kiss deepened and she leaned into him to ease the ache in her breasts. Without a word he seemed to know precisely what she wanted, just like he had with her coffee. His hand slid up along her ribs, cupping the weight of her breast in his palm, his thumb circling along her rigid nipple with aching slowness that only made her need escalate.
A knock at the door interrupted them and they both looked up to see Crawford standing there. Ty pulled away from her, not quickly like a guilty man would, but with slow confidence that said she was his and he was unapologetic.
“Uh, sorry. Commander said to show you to your quarters while you’re here.”
“Told you we should have shut the door.” Ty offered her his hand. “You said you have a room?”
“Apartment,” Crawford corrected with a half smile. “This way.”
It was only a five-minute stroll and an elevator ride from the medical complex to the living quarters. Jess stepped out of the elevator into a seemingly endless hallway of identical doors. “Kind of looks almost like a hotel,” she murmured.
“Kinda functions like one, too. One of the perks of being part of the clan,” he said as he approached a door and slipped a white key card into the reader on the door. “Here we are.”
He swung the door open and let her walk in first, Ty directly behind her. She had felt his heated gaze lingering on her body the entire way up to the apartment and it made the air crackle with the chemistry between them.
Jess barely glanced at the soothing color scheme, which extended from the medical clinic to the apartments of the complex, as well. Sage-greens, creams and pale sandy colors seemed both welcoming and comforting to Jess, but it still wasn’t home. Thinking about having Ty in her bedroom again made a delicious shiver shimmy down her spine and curled her toes.
He lightly brushed his hand along the small of her back, a seemingly innocent gesture, but her mind instantly recalled the small bites he’d given her there before. She glanced at the small living room, which opened up from the entryway, with a big comfortable-looking couch they could cuddle on, a lounge chair and a big-screen television. It was sparse without any of the touches that would make a place a home, like a well-worn quilt to cuddle under or pictures of something other than random landscapes on the walls, but it would certainly give them a little privacy away from prying vampires and brothers.
“You need anything, you can pick up the phone and dial the operator,” Crawford said as he handed each of them a key card. “They should be able to connect you with Beck or Achilles.”
Ty nodded. Jess turned and glanced back at the vampire. “What about coffee?”
Crawford chuckled, nodding toward the kitchen. “There’s a coffeemaker in the kitchen, but if you want something else brought up—like maybe dinner—just dial room service and they’ll fix you up. Usually most of us don’t have much reason to stock the fridge.”
She supposed they didn’t, if they survived on blood. Jess’s stomach balked at the thought. “Thanks,” she managed before Ty firmly shut the door.
She turned, facing him, and leaned against the door. “He’ll think you were being rude.”
Ty hemmed her in with his large arms and bent his head close to hers. “He’ll get over it. Now, where were we?”
His warm breath spiraled over her skin, which tightened, growing even more responsive. He kissed the juncture of her neck just above the collarbone, his teeth grazing her sensitive skin.
Jess gasped as little pangs of need sparked in her system, igniting a blaze within her. Heat shimmered, melting her from the inside out. She caught his bottom lip between her teeth and suckled on it. Ty growled and pressed her against the cool flat door with the heat of his body. The ridge of his erection firm against her belly amped up her response another level. He was the kind of guy she didn’t have to be slow or sweet with. If wild and wanton was what she wanted, he’d give her that and more.
The high emotion of the day, all the fear, the shock and anger, morphed into a hunger to feel him against her, in her. Suddenly her clothes were far too confining. She shoved him back, breaking their kiss long enough to yank both her shirt and hoodie over her head in one fast motion, both of them breathing hard.
His eyes were bright and fevered with desire. “Gods, you’re gorgeous.”
Jess laughed, deep and throaty. He made her feel gorgeous, desirable, free to do as she pleased. “And you have too many clothes on.” Sure, it had been his line before, but she seriously doubted he’d care if she used it on him.
* * *
Ty was only too happy to accommodate her. She pulled down the zipper of his jeans while he pulled his T-shirt over his head and flung it to the floor. The silky skin of her breasts just above the satin edge of her bra brushed his chest in a way that just made him plain stupid. “Anything else I can do for you?” he asked as he peeled off his jeans and stood bare-assed naked and erect, awaiting her command.
She gave him a sultry smile that made him hot and hard all over in an instant. “Oh, yeah. I’ve got plenty of ideas.” She walked past him, grasped the edge of her jeans and shoved them in a maddening slide over the curve of her hips, then gave a little shimmy of her butt until they slid the rest of the way down her long legs to pool at her feet.
Ty about swallowed his tongue. She stepped right out of the jeans, leaving them and her shoes in the middle of the entryway as she sauntered down the hallway in just her leopard-print bra and panties. Hot damn. He hadn’t seen those before.
Ty gathered his wits and followed right after her into the dark. He watched her fingers quest after the light switch and flipped it on for her, their fingers skimming one another.
She turned, her fingers twining between his until their palms met. His free hand traced along the feminine flare of her hip and the indention of her spine before grazing over the peachy soft curve of her bottom. Her lashes lowered halfway down, giving her the look of a siren, as she made soft sounds urging him to go further, do more.
He teetered on the brink of insanity, too aroused not to be wild with her, but cautious enough to know where the line between man and wolf lay. His muscles quivered as he restrained himself, tuning in to her scent, her breath, the movement of her body, all of it an addictive melody he wanted to hear over and over for the rest of his life.
The lacy little scrap of leopard print never stood a chance against a predator like him. One swift tug and it tore, leaving him free to delve into the succulent softness of her with first one finger, then two.
Jess arched against him, groaning and rocking against his hand, her hands gripping his shoulders for support. Her nails dug deep, scoring his skin, and Ty captured her mouth with his. Gods, she was just as slick above and below, both hot and wet and driving him to the edge.
She gasped as he withdrew and used both hands to grasp her bottom, lift her and spread her wide as he thrust into her.
Jess wrapped one leg around the base of his back. His hand slid over her creamy skin to her thigh, helping her balance, holding her there, pushing her just a little further unti
l her head tilted back as she cried out.
Ty kissed the arch of her neck, both salty and sweet. Their skin was slick with perspiration and her body softened as she relaxed. Jess tipped her head, resting her forehead on his chest.
“How about next time we actually make it to the bed?” His words stirred the tousled wisps of her golden hair.
She tilted her head and looked at him, her eyelids half-closed with that satisfied sleepy look to them. “Only if you carry me. I’m not sure I have any bones left.”
He chuckled as he scooped her up into his arms and carried her into the dark of the bedroom. While it was unlit, there was still enough ambient light from the hallway to make it easy for his preternaturally sharp eyesight to see the details of her face. She was already asleep, her body lax and sweet in his arms.
The soft rhythm of her chest rising and falling made it all the sweeter. She trusted him enough to fall asleep in his arms. And there would be plenty of time for them to enjoy one another later when this was all over.
Ty flung back the comforter and sheets and laid Jess down, her head indenting the pillow. She curled up on her side, her smooth bottom facing him. He climbed in beside her, curving himself around her, his arm tucking around her waist.
Until now he hadn’t dared to think long-term when it came to Jess. There’d been too many things standing in the way. But lying like this with her made him crave more than just living in the moment. He wanted the knowledge that he could lie beside her like this every night. To know that he’d watch his children grow with her beside him. Marriages in the pack weren’t unusual, but neither were they common. In such a tight-knit community, everyone knew his or her place and how they fit within it. Everyone knew who belonged to whom and those relationships were often binding no matter what the pack member’s form—wolf or human.
But with Jess things were different. Hell, everything was different. None of the rules he’d always lived by applied. She was a breath of fresh air, but also an enigma to him. How could he possibly convince her to live with him for the long term? Certainly he could offer her marriage. Her brothers and the community she lived in would expect it. But Ty wanted to do more than that. He wanted a way to express to her how much she meant to him on all levels. Not just as a mate. Not just as alpha female of his pack, or mother of his children. He wanted her to know beyond a shadow of doubt that she mattered to him as much as the air he breathed.
One Night With the Shifter Page 16