Just like when Santos attacked me, I heard a voice inside my head that wasn’t my subconscious. I realized I could hear Simone’s thoughts and that fact scared me half to death. Since I found out the Rousseaus’ secret, they kept telling me that I wasn’t a normal human. I didn’t want to believe it, so I refused to give it any thought at all.
Now, however, thousands of doubts were beginning to assail me. Taking into consideration that I was being pursued by a mysterious alpha, my scent was unlike any other humans, my injuries took less time to heal than normal, and that I just heard what Simone was thinking, served to convince me that something about me was anything but normal.
For a few mind-numbing seconds, I just sat there and stared at Simone, eying her with curiosity. Simone was usually calm and assertive, but now she was displaying a behavior so unlike her.
If I even tried communicating with her telepathically, would she be able to hear me?
I was confused. Didn’t Marquis say that only members of the same pack could use such an odd way of communication? Had the Rousseaus accepted me as a member of their pack? But then, if they did, that didn’t explain how I was able to hear Santos.
“Are you sure?” I pried. “You don’t look like you’re fine.”
She sat on the chair next to the bed again, her two small hands resting on her abdomen.
“I have a lot on my mind,” she confessed.
“Yeah, so do I, but even I don’t look as rattled as you do.”
She smiled then, her eyes twinkling with amusement. “You are surprisingly calm in spite of this mess that’s been unleashed. We’ve been too worried this would be too much for you, but perhaps we are wrong. You seem to be able to handle things better than we thought.”
“But that’s not what’s bothering you? Or am I wrong about that?” I tried to make eye contact, but she wouldn’t quite meet my gaze.
“I’m not exactly troubled, just concerned.”
A sense of guilt washed over me. Ever since the Rousseaus moved to Wolf Creek Hollow, all they had time to do was take care of me. Protect me. I’d turned into their number one priority. They had no lives. All they had time to do was make sure I lived to see another day.
“Can I help with anything?”
“Talking to you helps.” And I knew she meant that. Whatever was troubling her was something she hadn’t discussed with anyone yet. Not even her husband.
I have to tell him.
A look of anxiety took ahold of her features. She looked spent.
“Is there—” I stopped when I noticed the way she kept rubbing her hands over her flat stomach. The action immediately brought back a sense of déjà vu. I recalled the time Rosa’s mother became pregnant with her third child. She used to lay her arms over her abdomen in much the same manor Simone was. “Oh my God! You’re pregnant!” I blurted before I could stop myself.
She jerked forward, her mouth wide open. “How on earth do you know that?”
Bingo! I hit the mark without even trying. “Well, I don’t know if you’ve noticed but you keep rubbing your belly. That’s a clear giveaway.”
Simone glanced down, removed her hands from her abdomen, then looked back up at me. “I had no idea I was doing that.”
“Why haven’t you told Marquis?”
“How do you know I haven’t?”
“Because I heard what you were thinking.”
She frowned. “What?”
“I don’t really know how to explain this, but when Santos was getting ready to...when he...” God, even talking about it was painful. “During the attack, I heard Santos talk...or more like heard his thoughts...or something like that.”
Her eyebrows rose. “Why haven’t you said anything to us about that before now?”
“Well, I didn’t want you guys to make a big deal out of it.”
“And how can we not?”
The look of shock on her face was a complete exaggeration. If she was overreacting about this, I was pretty sure the rest of the Rousseaus would too. Considering how on edge they had been lately, I was now seriously thinking I should have kept my mouth shut.
“See.” I pointed to her. “That’s exactly what I wanted to avoid.”
“I’m sorry, Marjie.” She sighed heavily then leaned back against the chair. “My hormones are acting up a lot lately.”
“Speaking of which, why haven’t you said anything to Marquis? Or the rest of the family? It’s a special occasion. It should be celebrated,” I said, hoping to redirect the conversation to something other than me.
“I wasn’t exactly sure until a week ago,” she replied.
Far from demonstrating an excitement I was expecting to see, but found her lacking, she didn’t appear to be completely enthusiastic. In fact, she seemed downright scared.
“It’s not that I disagree with you. The fact that I am expecting is a miracle in itself. You know well how our kind has trouble conceiving and this child—” She cradled her still-flat abdomen in both hands. “—is a blessing. I’m just worried how the news will affect the family.”
“You make it sound like they won’t be happy to welcome another family member,” I commented solemnly.
“That’s not it. I know they will be happy for us. I...” She looked away. “With everything that’s going on, I’m afraid Marquis will want to send me away.”
That certainly cooled off my excitement. “Why would he do that?”
“To protect us.” Simone glanced down at her stomach and sighed as if she’d just recalled a sad memory. “He won’t want me getting in harm’s way even though I’m fully capable of protecting myself while pregnant. Our bodies are adapted to fight if need be. Pregnancy changes very little. But Marquis...he’s hardheaded like Kyran. When he gets something stuck in that head of his, there’s usually no way of convincing him otherwise.”
“Well, there’s no denying they’re brothers,” I added with a shake of the head. Kyran was definitely one stubborn werewolf. “You’re going to have to tell your husband sooner or later.”
She looked up at me and smiled. “I was hoping for later.”
“We might not have a later,” I added sadly. My days were numbered, and unless the alpha was captured before he found a way to get to me, my life would be over.
She nodded in accordance with me. “I can already sense the developing changes in my body. It won’t be long before Marquis does as well. I’m actually kind of surprised he hasn’t yet.”
With all the responsibilities he had on his shoulders, I doubted he was looking for any obvious signs of pregnancy in his mate.
“I want to tell him, but it never seems to be the right time for it. And I’m afraid that by delaying, it will only make things worse. In a couple of weeks, I’ll start showing.”
Even something as simple as a conversation was time consuming nowadays. Every single conversation the Rousseaus had revolved around me. I was interfering in their lives. They couldn’t make a decision without taking me into consideration first.
This reality was by no means flattering. I felt like an outsider. Like some inconvenient pest that kept demanding without giving anything in return.
How much worse could I possibly feel?
“I really think you should tell him. Soon,” I said. “Time is of the essence.”
Her fingers intertwined above her abdomen. “In the meantime, could you please keep the secret for me? I want to wait until I know he’s calmed enough not to immediately force me out of the house and away to my family’s.”
Hearing Simone mention her family, I wondered why they weren’t an active part of her life. In fact, she’d only mention them a handful of times during the few weeks I’d known her.
“Won’t your family be traveling to Wolf Creek Hollow?” The Rousseaus had spoken about the contacts they were expecting to arrive shortly. They had said very little about potential family members showing up as well.
Simone’s expression went from pensive to melancholy in about a second. I knew ri
ght away I’d hit the wrong nerve.
“My family won’t be heading this way. I’m sorry to say they don’t support my relations with the Rousseaus. I mated, but against my father’s wishes,” she admitted.
That’s the first I heard about Simone’s marriage to Marquis not being preapproved by her side of the family.
“I don’t understand...he didn’t approve of Marquis?” I couldn’t help but ask.
“Not Marquis.” Her response came out so low I could barely make out what she said.
Unsure of whom she meant, I stared at her for a second without saying a word. The look on her face was full of compunction and, as I took a moment to analyze what she had just said, it finally dawned on me who she was referring to.
My heart sank. “Kyran?”
She dipped her head. “The genetic defect. I’m afraid my family felt very strongly about it. They didn’t want my children to inherit it. Since it runs in the Rousseau family there’s a high probability that Marquis’s children will be born with that defective gene.”
A million and one things popped into my head, but when it came down to coming up with something sensitive to say I just couldn’t. She had chosen love over duty. The man in my dream had done the same.
In all fairness, I felt saddened by the fact that she had probably been put in the position where she had to choose in the first place. I couldn’t imagine it being easy. I couldn’t imagine what Kyran felt at knowing he had been put in that spot too. Didn’t Simone’s family know it wasn’t Kyran’s fault that he had inherited such a malignant trait?
“Does Kyran know?”
She lowered her gaze to the hands resting comfortably just above her belly. “He was against our relationship at first too. Not because he didn’t like me, but because his presence put our mating in a precarious position.” Simone looked up at me again. “I love Marquis. Eventually, my love for him was more powerful than any duty I had with my pack. It might sound selfish, but in our world when we fall in love—when we bond, there’s nothing that can put a stop to how we feel.”
“I know Kyran’s parents chose to keep him because they loved him. Kyran’s siblings still protect him because they love him. Even with his defects, he still makes for a remarkable specimen. He has great qualities and in spite of all our doubts...he’s found a girl he can love.”
Love? Could there be such a thing between Kyran and me? Did we have a future? Things looked bleak at best. With Kyran’s bloodlust in the way, I couldn’t see how we could make it work, but that didn’t stop me from hoping we could.
“How can someone who looks so human be so different?” I wondered out loud.
“We ask ourselves the same question about you.”
What was it about me that had an entire community of werewolves all riled up? What mold did I break when I was born? What laws of nature were broken the day I was conceived? How different was I really from “normal” humans?
My phone jingled, indicating I’d received a text and interrupting my thoughts. It came from Kyran. I flipped my phone open, read the message, and replied to let them know we were on our way down.
“The boys are waiting for us by the front entrance,” I informed Simone.
“I’ll go get the nurse.” Simone popped to her feet. “I’ll be right back.” She walked out the door a moment later.
After a few minutes, the nurse came in pushing a wheelchair. Dr. Phillips recommended that I start out slow, putting pressure on my leg for short periods of time and then progress as I began to tolerate the discomfort better than I currently was.
Four days ago, I couldn’t move my leg without crying out in pain, so I was progressing. Slowly, but surely.
Simone rolled my suitcase behind her as the nurse wheeled me down the hall to the elevators and from there to the first floor lobby. A few minutes later, we were outside the building. Simone loaded my suitcase into the trunk of Marquis’s black Audi while Kyran and Alexis helped me into the back passenger seat.
Once comfortably settled on the seat, Kyran slid in beside me, while Alexis climbed in the driver’s seat. Simone sat on the front passenger side.
“Are you buckled up?” Alexis asked as he glanced back at me through the rearview mirror.
I reached for the seatbelt but Kyran took it out of my hands and buckled me in himself.
“You know, I’m fully capable of managing small tasks,” I protested.
Aside from a frown, Kyran added nothing to my objection. He simply tugged on the strap of the seatbelt before settling back on the seat.
I turned to Alexis and said, “Done.”
He turned his attention ahead and added, “All right, let’s go home.”
Home? The Rousseaus’ house would be home for now. For how long? That was difficult to calculate. The way things were going, I had the feeling whatever time I had left in Wolf Creek Hollow would be short.
“I hope you’re hungry because Gage and Josephine are surely making enough breakfast to feed at least twenty people,” Simone said as Alexis pulled out of the hospital lot.
“How is your leg today?” Kyran asked, leaning in closer as he spoke.
I was actually somewhat surprised he was attempting to start a conversation. He’d been so quiet and distant thus far.
“Better.” I reached down and rubbed my knee over the leg brace’s restraints, wincing when even such a seemingly innocent action forced a wave of pain to shoot up my thigh. “It still hurts, but Dr. Phillips says it’s healing beautifully and I should be able to get rid of the leg brace within a week.”
Kyran stretched out his arm behind my head, drawing me closer to his solid body as his arm slid down my back. I leaned against him, basking in the warmth emanating from his hard body. Being so close, I couldn’t help but recall the sweetness of his kisses the day before.
Seeing him now, and comparing him to yesterday, he really seemed like two different people. He was pensive during his visit last evening, but today he was just dark. I guess there was no better way to describe his overall demeanor.
I glanced up at his silver eyes, suddenly relieved with the gentleness I saw behind them. Whatever was going through his head, he must have set it aside. I wanted to read his thoughts so that I could know in full detail what he was thinking, but I couldn’t control my newfound talent. It came and went without warning.
Kyran reached out to smooth his fingers over my cheek. I squeezed my eyes shut, enjoying the feel of his soft caress.
“I missed this,” he whispered in my right ear. “I’ve missed you.”
“So have I,” I whispered back, opening my eyes so that I could gaze up at his handsome face. His orbs observed my reaction with interest, his lips splitting into a grin.
From the corner of my eye, I spotted Alexis tossing a curious look in our direction. It quickly turned into one of disappointment. That annoying sense of guilt washed over me again. I hated how it seemed to make an appearance at all the wrong moments.
I pulled back from Kyran, and turned my face away from them both. As much as I loved Kyran, I couldn’t flaunt my feelings for him in front of Alexis because I knew it hurt him. His interest in me was evident. I didn’t have to read his thoughts to know he had developed feelings for me as well.
My actions weren’t well received by Kyran. Discontent was quickly readable in his expression and he wasn’t shy about letting me know it.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“Maybe we should wait until we’re alone,” I whispered, hoping our conversation wouldn’t be heard in the front of the car, but knowing that was wishful thinking.
“Why? Because he’s here?” he accused.
“Let’s not get into that, please.” I could feel the beginnings of a heated blush. I was instantly mortified by the awkward exchange between us. “You’re being unusually difficult this morning.”
Kyran pulled back even farther. Only this time, his expression shifted to one of shame.
“I’m sorry, Marjorie.” He took m
y hand in his. “I didn’t mean to be so insensitive.”
Insensitive wasn’t the exact word I’d chosen to describe his behavior, but seeing as he apologized, I thought better of protesting.
“Okay,” was all I could add. I didn’t know what was troubling the Rousseaus but I found it useless to ask. We’d be arriving at the house soon and hopefully, once inside, I could come to understand what the motive for their sullen mood was.
Chapter Three
Marquis and Josephine were waiting for us by the front door when Alexis pulled up to the garage. They seemed in a much better mood than Simone, Alexis, and even Kyran were. Marquis even smiled as he helped me out of the car.
I, on the other hand, was terrified. Now that we were at the house, I wanted nothing more than to go home. To my house. I didn’t want to hear what they had to say anymore. In spite of everything I’d said to Kyran the night before, deep down, I didn’t think I was ready to hear the truth. I was frightened. Uneasy. Unsure.
Though nervous, I tried my best to pretend that I wasn’t calculating how long it would take me to get home with as bad of a limp as I had.
“Hello, Marjorie,” Josephine greeted me with a hug once I was out of the car. “I’m glad that you’re here.” She pulled away and smiled after I returned the embrace.
“It’s nice to be out in the real world for once,” I replied. I turned my attention to Marquis and said, “Hello, Marquis.”
Though he appeared to be relaxed, the unsteady look in his eyes confirmed he, too, was nervous. “Let’s get you inside and off that leg, shall we?” Marquis gestured to the house behind him.
I followed the direction of his hand to the house and found the evident marks of a recent battle in the form of a couple of broken windows and claw marks on the outside of the walls.
“What happened here?” I turned to Kyran. “Invaders?”
“Two very unfortunate betas thought they could overrun our house, cause a ruckus, and disturb our peace with minimal consequences,” Marquis took it upon himself to say when everyone else turned away. “They have since been taken care of. However, we haven’t gotten around to boarding up the broken windows until professionals can come in to repair the damages,” he added. “It has been a busy couple of nights.”
Dark Side of the Moon Page 3