“You won’t.” His shoulders straightened. “Be awful,” he added. “You’re going to be a great mom. You’re smart and you’re kind. Those are the two biggest things a mom needs to be.”
She snorted. “So you’re like an expert on mothers? What, was yours so perfect?”
His jaw tightened. Darn. She’d hit a nerve. She hadn’t meant to. Grumpy had become her new state of mind.
“I mean—”
“I didn’t know her very well. She died when I was young,” he said, his voice low and thoughtful. “But my brother says she was those very things I described. She defended me to her death.”
Wow. God, Bennett felt like a bitch. “Sorry.” She wanted to ask more questions. Had someone attacked his family? But she’d been rude enough.
“You don’t need to apologize. How would you know?” He stood then and sat on the desk in front of her. He took her hand in his and squeezed gently. “I’m going to be here for you, Bennett. I will be whatever you need me to be. I will take care of you and the babe, luv. You’re never going to have worry about anything.”
She pulled her hand from his. “Whoa. Calm yourself, dude. I don’t need any help.”
That was pretty dumb. She was clueless about parenthood. Her mom had done her best but perhaps hadn’t been the greatest role model.
“You will need help, though,” he said. “And I’m the father. I will do whatever is necessary to protect you both.”
What was with all the protection crap?
“I’ll make some calls,” he said. “We’ll get you the best care possible.”
“Uh. You’re not such a good listener, are you? I got this. I have a doctor. Well, she’s not an obstetrician. But Casey says she has a doctor friend who can help.”
“Is it Jacinda?”
Bennett nodded. How did he know that? Had he dated her? He’d pretty much dated all of Dallas, New York, and Los Angeles. Not that she read the tabloids, but it was hard to miss his exploits on the entertainment shows. People loved the bad boy fashion designer who had a different girl on his arm every day.
Yep. And you’re having his baby.
If she had a million dollars, she’d give it away to know what was going through his head. He had to be just as scared as she was.
“You okay?” He snapped his fingers in front of her face.
And just like that, she went from concerned to pissed off. “Get your hands out of my face, asshole. Yes, it’s Jacinda. I’ll go to the doc, but the rest of this crap you can stick up your ass.”
She rose to leave and then grabbed the chair when a wave of dizziness hit her. Damn, pregnancy sucked.
His arms touched her shoulders, helping her to balance. She hated that his touch sent spirals of need to her—
No. Stop it.
“Fine. Do what you want, but I’m driving you home.” He was all authoritative, and she was dizzy as shit, so she wasn’t going to say no.
“Whatever.”
The next day in Doctor Jacinda’s office, Casey was on one side of the table, glaring at Linc, while he stood on the other waiting for the gynecologist and the sonogram. It was all Bennett could do not to giggle, which was weird since she was scared shitless.
Her best friend was furious with Linc for knocking her up. Bennett had never seen her friend so mad. She wouldn’t have blamed Linc for staying behind just to save himself from Casey’s wrath.
Yet here he was.
So fucking hot.
No man had ever made jeans and a T-shirt look so good. He filled the room with his presence.
“I’m sorry,” Linc said softly.
She glanced up to see he was staring at Casey.
“You hooked up with my best friend. Out of all the women you could sleep with, you had to choose her?”
“To be fair, it wasn’t all him,” Bennett said. “I kind of seduced him.”
“That’s not the point,” Casey said. “He’s out with a different woman every single night. Now look what you’ve done.” Casey pointed down to Bennett’s stomach.
“You know better than anyone I don’t sleep with most of the women I date. You know that crap is for publicity.”
All of that was news to Bennett. She’d just assumed he was a man whore.
Casey patted his hand. “It’s okay. I believe you.”
He’d been really angry with Casey, but he glanced down at her hand on his and smiled. “And I told you, there’s no way it could happen.” He’d calmed down a bit. “We used condoms…” He shared a glance with Casey, like they both knew what he meant but didn’t want to say it. “Besides, that night was…”
“A little crazy for all of us,” Casey added. “I get that. But she’s my best friend.” Casey’s hand went to her hip, but before she could say anything, the door opened, and the doctor entered. She didn’t look much older than Bennett, and she had a kind face.
She held out her hand. “Hi, Bennett, I’m Dr. Henderson. You can call me Jacinda.”
Bennett smiled nervously. “Hi. You know my friend, Casey.”
The doctor shook hands with Casey, then gestured at Linc. “And this is…?”
“This is my, uh…Linc.”
Eloquent as always.
What was she supposed to call him? Her friend? Her fuck buddy? The father?
“I’ve known Linc for years,” Jacinda said and bumped shoulders with him.
What was that?
“And as for what to call him,” she continued, “you guys will figure it out. There’s plenty of room in this modern era for whatever kind of family unit you two find works for you. I’m just here to help you confirm you’re going to have a beautiful baby and when it will be. Are you ready for that?”
“If I say I’m not?” Bennett said.
“Then you can wait a few months and find out anyway, but I promise, this way’s a lot easier.”
Bennett laughed and squeezed Casey’s hand. Her friend had said this doctor had a good sense of humor.
“I’m ready,” she said.
Jacinda clapped her hands together. “Okay. Before we do the sonogram, I’m going to listen for the heartbeat. Lie back, please.”
She took out a small, handheld machine that had a wand attached. She placed the cold tip of the wand on Bennett’s lower belly.
There was a weird whooshing sound and then a fast thump thump, thump thump, thump thump.
“There it is, nice and strong,” the doctor said.
A heartbeat.
No denying it now.
Shit just got real.
Linc grabbed her hand and squeezed gently. He glanced down at her with the strangest look in his eyes, almost as if he were in awe.
“All right, Casey, I need you to come to the other side of the table so we can do the sonogram.”
Casey mouthed, “It’s going to be okay.”
Bennett didn’t know about that.
The gel the doc had squirted on her belly was cold.
Linc rubbed his thumb across her knuckles, and the action calmed her nerves.
The doctor turned on the machine and slid the silver ball across her belly. There was a clicking noise as she made measurements. The doc bit her lip and frowned.
“Is something wrong?” Bennett asked.
“Nothing at all. The baby is healthy.”
But that didn’t look like a nothing-at-all kind of face.
“Eight weeks since conception?” the doctor asked.
Bennett squeezed Linc’s hand hard. To his credit, he didn’t wince.
He was staring at the doctor with an intense focus. “If there’s something wrong, you need to tell us right now.”
Jacinda gave a gentle smile. “There’s nothing wrong that I can see. Let me get these photos printed out for you and we’ll have a more detailed conversation. I need to plug a few numbers into the computer, and then I’ll have a due date for you.” She handed some tissues to Bennett. “Casey, why don’t you come with me to give them some time alone?”
Ca
sey looked like she was about to argue, but then she caught another of those weird looks from Linc.
“Just give us a minute,” he said.
Casey finally seemed to resign herself to leaving the room and exited with the doc.
“What was all that about?” Bennett asked.
Linc shrugged. “Here, you missed a spot.” He took the tissues and wiped the goop off Bennett’s belly. His touch sent all kinds of shivers through her.
“The doctor had a weird look on her face,” she fretted.
Linc took both of her hands and helped her sit up. “There’s something you need to know. About my, uh…medical history.”
“What is it? Are you sick?”
He shook his head. “No. Far from it, actually.”
“So what is it?”
He took a deep breath but didn’t say anything.
“Jesus. Listen,” she said. “You hesitating like this is making me more nervous than whatever it is you need to say. I didn’t freak out—uh, much—when I found out I was pregnant. I can’t imagine whatever you have to say can be any bigger. So bring it on.”
He pursed his lips. “There’s no easy way to say this.” He turned away for a second and ran his hands through his hair. He’d done that when she’d told him about the baby, too.
He was always so confident and self-assured. What could trouble the most alpha man she’d ever met?
“You need to know now, before the doctor comes back in. Because when she tells you the due date, you’re going to be shocked.”
“Dude, did you take crazy pills this morning? I could tell you the due date on my own. We know when you knocked me up.”
“Right, right.” He shifted so he could sit on the edge of the table, but he didn’t let go of her hands. “How open-minded are you?”
She had no idea where this was going, but a knot formed tight in her chest, which had nothing to do with the breakfast tacos she’d inhaled earlier.
“I consider myself pretty open-minded. I slept with you, didn’t I?” she joked.
He grinned briefly, but then he was serious again.
“Have you ever wondered if werewolves, witches, and vampires were real?”
She had to stifle a laugh. The poor guy. The news of the baby had broken him. He was having a nervous breakdown.
“Linc, I didn’t bewitch you or something. I mean, that night of the wedding I was hornier than I’d ever been in my life. But I didn’t roofie you or anything so you could get me pregnant. The last thing I wanted was a baby.”
He took a deep breath. “Yes, I remember you told me any guy with a dick would do. That’s not what I’m talking about.”
She tried to take the question seriously. “Do I believe in those things? No. I mean, I guess anything is possible, but you’re talking about fictional characters.”
“Sort of. I’m talking about the basis for fictional characters.”
She looked at the door. Where was the doctor, anyway?
“The basis? I don’t see where you’re going with this,” she said.
“You’re expecting a nine month pregnancy. But the thing is, that’s for human babies.”
Hold on. Was he putting on some act so that she’d kick him out of her life? No. That absolutely wasn’t going to happen.
“What the fuck is wrong with you?” Hell. She’d promised herself she’d stop saying “fuck” for the baby’s sake, but desperate times called for graphic language. “I understand if you don’t want anything to do with this. You don’t have to pretend to be crazy. I can handle this on my own. To be honest, I’d prefer to handle it on my own.” Jerk.
“I’m a werewolf. That’s why you shouldn’t have been able to get pregnant. I can’t get humans pregnant.”
Great. He was doubling down on crazy.
“Asshole.” She shoved him hard, but he didn’t budge.
Before he could explain further, the door opened and Casey and the doctor returned.
“Did you tell her?” Casey asked.
“I tried. She doesn’t believe me.”
“Can’t say I blame her,” Casey said as she sat next to Bennett on the other side of the table.
“You guys, this is not a funny joke. I’m already kind of nervous about all of this. You aren’t helping.” She again shoved Linc, who finally moved. She sat up and slid her legs off the side of the table.
The doctor motioned for Linc to sit down on the chair in the corner.
“There are things you need to understand,” the doc said to Bennett. “I need you to take a deep breath and then listen carefully. Look at me, please.”
Bennett stared into the doctor’s dark brown eyes. She could have sworn they turned kind of an amber color.
Maybe I’m the one going nuts.
“Stay calm,” the doctor said.
“Okay, you telling me to ‘stay calm’ isn’t exactly helping. What the hell is the matter with all of you?”
“What Linc told you is true. He is a supernatural being, and because of that, your gestation period is a little shorter than normal.”
Something had happened to her head. This was all a bad dream.
A weird wave of calm came over her. That was what this was. A bad dream. The wedding. The sex. The pregnancy.
The doctor snapped her fingers. “Look at me. Did you hear what I said?”
“Something about my digestion.” Bennett’s tongue felt heavy. “Am I having a stroke?”
The doctor put her hand on Bennett’s shoulder. “You have about sixty days left in the pregnancy.”
Bennett yawned. She should be panicking, but she felt so tired…
“What is wrong with you people?” she said. “I’m not so good with the math, but even I know that isn’t right.”
Casey grabbed her hand. “Bennett. The father of your child is a werewolf. Well, technically he’s some weird Irish version, but potato, potahto.”
Bennett cocked an eyebrow. “Yeah, and all of our friends are actually ghouls and goblins, too.”
“Well…” Casey looked at Linc, who nodded at her, as though he was telling her to go on. “Actually, Nick is a sort of vampire-werewolf crossbreed, a Greek version. Doc here is a witch who can temper the emotions in a room. And I’m human, but I’m thinking about letting Linc bite me in a few years. It’s a lot to take in. Believe me. No one knows this better than I do. But you’re going to have a baby. And we can’t keep this a secret from you because—Bennett?”
She pitched forward, but Linc caught her and cradled her in his arms. “It’s all right, love. I’ll keep you safe.”
She glared at him. “You’re a monster. I’m having a monster’s baby.”
And then she blacked out.
Chapter Four
Linc sat beside his bed and watched Bennett sleep.
She was so beautiful.
She was the mother of his child.
And she was fucking pissed off.
He didn’t blame her. This was all kinds of wrong. He’d used a condom so she wouldn’t have to worry, but the truth was that he shouldn’t have been able to get a human pregnant. The magic that made him supernatural made it scientifically impossible. Which left one likely explanation. They’d know more after some of the blood work came back, but he guessed that Bennett might not be all human.
Funny how a life could change in less than a heartbeat. The crazy thing was, he liked Bennett. A lot. He was already intensely protective of her and the child. That was a part of his nature as protector, but that was all he could be.
He’d take care of her and the child. Make sure they never wanted for anything, but he could never be more to her than her child’s father. But he’d die before he saw anything or anyone hurt Bennett or their child.
As for the baby, he would be the best father possible. His father had always been involved with pack or council business. He’d been a harsh man who thought Linc’s choices were unseemly for the prince of the pack. It hadn’t mattered that Linc had beaten down every wolf that
had challenged his father’s authority.
His father hadn’t believed Linc had what it took to be a true leader. And maybe he’d been right when it came to the pack. But Linc had proven himself a successful leader in other areas of his life, especially with the council and Nick’s army of supes. Now he’d be a good father to his baby. And God help whoever tried to stop him.
Bennett’s eyes fluttered open. “Hey,” she said.
He grinned. She’d gone a whole five seconds without calling him an asshole.
“How long have I been asleep?” She glanced around the room. It was decorated in his modern aesthetic, clean lines and no clutter. Definitely not the kind of comfortable place he figured she’d need.
He’d change that. Give her whatever she wanted. He’d make this place as comfortable as he could for her. He wanted her to feel at home.
“You’ve been out for a few hours, lass.”
She put a delicate hand across her mouth and yawned. “Have you been here the whole time? Don’t you have a fashion empire to run or something?”
“I had to make sure you were all right. What do you need?”
She shrugged. “All of this is…weird. I’m sorry I called you a monster. I mean, I saw the baby on the sonogram. It didn’t have a tail or anything.” She sighed. “We have a lot to talk about,” she said cautiously, “but I still have to get my head around this. And I have about forty thousand questions for you about the…”
“Weird stuff?”
She bit her lip. “You won’t hurt me or the baby, right? Like when the moon changes and stuff? That’s all I need to know right now.”
“No, it’s not like that at all. Everything in the movies and television is wrong. I’ve had a few hundred years to learn to control my beast. I don’t change with the moon. Hell, I can go years without changing.” And he had when he’d been imprisoned a hundred years ago, after one of the battles he’d fought during the Supernatural wars. Though lately, he’d been changing twice a month to run on a ranch he’d bought north of Fort Worth. It was a great stress reliever.
She held up a hand. “Okay. I think the only way I’m going to make it right now is if you just let me ask questions a little at a time.”
“Ask away.”
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