We luckily didn’t have to wait long—about fifteen minutest or so—before we were called back into one of the patient rooms.
“What’s wrong?” I asked her as she froze outside the door of the room.
“It’s just, being in a place like this brings back memories. Some good, others painful.”
“It’s okay. It’s not the same as before. I’m here with you and I won’t let anything happen to you both. I promise.”
She nodded her head and finally stepped forward. I let go of her arm to let her go first, but once inside the room, my hand found hers, like two pieces of a jigsaw puzzle.
“Hello, Juliette. I’m Clarissa, your sonographer. I’ll be administering your ultrasound today.” She turned to me and smiled a warm smile. “I’m assuming you’re the father?”
“Yes, Ma’am.” I couldn’t help the stupid grin that made an appearance. I was proud. I’m no longer just Beau an Alpha werewolf, now I’m also a father.
“I thought so.” She winked before setting up the equipment. When she turned back to look at us, her smile was abnormally large. “Excuse me if I’m overstepping, but I bet you that your baby is going to be just beautiful.”
“Why do you say that?” Juliette asked curiously, and I admitted, I wanted to know as well.
“I can just tell. You both look like models—that little one has some killer genes.”
“That’s too sweet, thank you.” A slight blush spread across the tops of Juliette’s cheeks.
I squeezed her hand a little tighter in mine and my heart soared when she squeezed back. I pulled up a small stool beside the leather patient bed and sat, all the while Juliette’s hand resting firmly in mine.
“You ready to get started?” Clarissa asked.
Juliette nodded as Clarissa began giving instructions. “Okay, I need you to roll up your shirt to just above the belly and lie back for me.”
Clarissa continued on, explaining what was going to happen, but the words became a blur in my mind. I could only focus on Jules’ rapid breathing and beating heart. I knew she was scared, and that she would be until we heard the news that our child was okay, that nothing was wrong.
“Now this will be a little cold at first,” she spoke, squeezing a clear gel onto Juliette’s stomach. It only took a few seconds of her moving the sensor-thing around before a beautiful thumping noise pierced the air around us. “That’s your baby’s heartbeat.”
For a big tough guy, hearing the heartbeat of my very own child made me all emotional. I couldn’t help it. Resting peacefully inside this beautiful amazing woman was a piece of both of us.
I looked over at Juliette’s bright aqua eyes and saw that she had full-blown tears flowing down her face. I pulled her tightly against me, and she buried her tear stained face into the crook of my neck.
“Told you everything would be okay,” I whispered into her ear.
“The heartbeat is normal and so far everything looks to be checking out perfectly,” Clarissa said as she looked over the sonogram. “Would you like to know the gender of your child?”
Juliette pulled away and looked up at me. “It’s up to you, B.” Her voice was no more than a whisper.
I reached over and grabbed a tissue from the counter filled with medical instruments, then proceeded to wipe the moisture from her cheeks.
“If it’s okay, I’d love to know.” I tossed the tissue away and rested my hand gently on the nape of her neck, rubbing small circles on her shoulder.
“We’d love to know.” Juliette nodded at the woman as she looked back into my eyes. Hers twinkled with happiness and mine with contentment.
Clarissa pointed to the screen, noting the baby’s body parts—the head, feet, hands and legs. “Right here,” she said pointing to in between the two legs, “there isn’t any boy parts so I’m ninety-nine percent sure that you are having a baby girl.”
With that news, Juliette broke down even further. I pulled her tightly against me, wrapping my arms around her, barely processing the little tidbit of news we’d just heard.
“Would you like a moment?” Clarissa mouthed silently to me.
Without saying a word, I nodded my head and she slipped quietly from the room.
“We’re gonna have a daughter, B.”
Our eyes met, and I had to take a deep breath. I rarely ever became emotional, but I was barely holding myself together. Juliette being in my arms made it that much harder. I felt as if my wolf was prancing around inside of me—in pride.
But the moment we pulled apart, I let my feelings out just a little. My lips brushed softly over hers and her body shuddered against mine. I deepened the kiss, only for a moment before whispering to her, “I hope our little girl is just like you.”
“Wow… A girl!” Juliette exclaimed while I drove us back to the reservation.
My brain was working on overdrive trying to process the newly learned news. I was so elated that we were going to be having a daughter, but I also couldn’t help but think about the test results and how the unthinkable had happened.
One night with Juliette—a human woman—resulted in a pregnancy, with a baby girl. This was like an incredible anomaly in the werewolf world and it had happened to me. What were the odds?
***
We hadn’t been back at the reservation long before Juliette had taken off to meet up with Saylor and Eve, to tell them the good news. Right before she left, she had walked right up to me and handed me the journal of letters.
It’d taken me awhile to gather up the nerve to read it but when I opened it, I couldn’t put it down.
The raw emotion that she portrayed in each word spoke to me. At times I would get so angry at what I was reading. Partly because of the grudge I still held against myself for leaving her, other times because of the way she had been treated in her time being locked away. Then moments later, I’d find myself laughing at her spirit and personality. There were even times I’d wanted to cry but suppressed the urge and continued to read.
When I reached the end and read the final entry that she had written just days before, in my very living room, I let the few tears that threatened me escape.
Closing the book, I stood. I had to go speak with Harlow. I had more questions that needed to be answered than answers themselves.
***
“So actually it took me no time at all to figure out the whole genetic aspect of it. One look at the baby’s test results and I knew that I had seen this before.”
“Explain.” I stood tall, my shoulders back and my long hair tied into a ponytail. The timbre of my voice was firm yet polite while I waited for Harlow to speak.
“Your child is full werewolf, Sir.”
“I don’t understand. Juliette is full human. How can our child be full werewolf?”
“That’s the thing I was trying to say. Juliette isn’t full human. In fact, it’s the other way around—she is a full Were. That is why every test result shows abnormalities and inconsistencies. She was tested as if she was a human but I can assure you that she is not.”
I leaned down and sat in one of the dining room chairs in Harlow’s home, rubbing my temples as if it would magically help the sudden headache that was coming on go away.
“If she is exactly like us, how can she not phase? When I’m near her, I don’t smell a Were gene in her blood and she certainly doesn’t have the wolf abilities that we have or she would have been able to get herself out of some sticky situations fairly easily.”
“I don’t know, Alpha. I truly don’t know.” Harlow sighed, just as frustrated as I seemed to be. “I can do some research, and we can meet up in the next couple days. I’ve never come across a situation quite like this before, a full Were that has never phased—at her age. It’s pretty much unheard of,” she thought out loud.
“That seems doable. Juliette and I have a lot to do anyways to prepare for our daughter’s arrival in the next few months.” Again my stupid silly smile found its way to my face. Something I learned happened ev
ery time I thought of Juliette and my child.
“A little girl!” Harlow exclaimed. “Incredible! She’s truly a blessing to us all.”
I laughed at her sudden excitement before giving the small woman a hug and leaving.
MILES
“That bitch!” I yelled, yanking the lamp off the desk of the hotel room and tossing it against the wall, pieces breaking off and scattering to the ground.
I’d been in hiding ever since I discovered that Miguel had been arrested and Juliette had been found. I felt something was wrong when I’d noticed a car following me just days before.
I had staked out Juliette’s apartment, but she hadn’t returned there. I needed to find her; I wasn’t done doing what I needed to do. I needed to get back my research that had been stolen. But most of all, I wasn’t done getting my revenge for everything she’d put me through all those years ago.
I was sixteen when my parents decided to become foster parents. They liked the additional money coming in and I didn’t blame them. It was nice to get some finer things now and then.
I’d been seventeen when Juliette had come to live with us. There was something about her. Her purity, her innocence. It called to me. She followed my around like a lost puppy, always wanting to ‘play,’ but I knew better. I knew what she wanted, so I gave it to her. It was right after I’d turned eighteen that she’d gone to my parents, telling them I touched her in her ‘no-no’ places. They acted as if they didn’t believe her, but I could see how they looked at me different after that.
Juliette had been sent away, but the investigations soon followed. Turns out she’d gone to an adult in the group home she’d been sent to after ours, telling them the same thing. My parents and I had come up with a cover story and we made sure to relay it precisely to officials—over and over again.
Long story short, I got lucky. The investigation was dropped and I wasn’t arrested, but by then the damage had been done. My name had been tarnished and my parents stopped speaking to me after being banned from fostering other kids.
Juliette had won.
Shortly after, I’d changed my name to Miles. Close enough to my real name but different enough that my past wouldn’t be connected to it quite so quickly. I needed a chance to start over and I had, but then Juliette walked into my hospital.
Miguel had called from jail and had tried to convince me to turn myself in. He said there was a whole group of people out there helping Juliette and I didn’t stand a chance. He said that the men who rescued Juliette had threatened him, said anyone who came within breathing distance of her or the fetus would pay.
I laughed wickedly recalling the phone conversation. I wasn’t scared of anyone, but I was damned well not planning on spending the rest of my life in prison, especially at the hands of Jules. I would finish what I started and Juliette Mitchell would pay—once and for all— for everything she’d done.
JULIETTE
“Beau. Please… Don’t make me.” I sat in the passenger seat of Beau’s truck, trying not to panic or throw a temper tantrum, as he drove in the direction of his mother’s house. “What if she hates me?” I hated feeling insecure, but I couldn’t help it.
I’d never met a guy’s mom before—basically because I rarely dated anyone. Not like I was dating Beau or anything, but I was unexpectedly pregnant with his love child. That was reason enough to be scared.
Making this moment perfect meant everything to me. This woman was my daughter’s grandmother.
“Juliette, breathe! I know my mom—she’ll love you. You know, I haven’t told you this, but I told her about you.” To say I was surprised was an understatement. “It was a few or so days after the detectives closed the investigation about your disappearance. I actually don’t know why I told her but it came right out of me. I’ve never seen my mom so happy before. She told me she wanted to—and these are her words—meet the amazing girl who captivated her baby.’”
I couldn’t help the giggle that escaped me at this newfound soft side of him I’d been seeing lately. I really liked it.
“Does she know about me, ya know, being pregnant?”
“I actually haven’t told her that little part, yet. I figured that we could tell her together.”
The smile he gave me made me want to just slap it off of his too handsome face.
“Are you freaking kidding me, Beau?” If I’d thought I was scared before, the little bit of info he just mentioned pushed me over the edge. “I mean, the minute she sees me, she’ll know. I’m a freaking house!” I sent my harshest glare in Beau’s direction. Damn, he’s hot but he’s a total idiot. “You don’t just show up and go, ‘Surprise! I’m your son’s baby mama!’ She’s going to think I’m some girl that sleeps around. Lets just turn around. We can do this another day. Perhaps, after I pop out this kid.” My anger was finally turning back into fear and it was taking everything in me not to turn into a blubbering mess.
“Look at me.” Beau pulled the car off to the side of the road and shifted in his seat to face me. “Yes, finding out that her son is gonna be a father and that she’s going to be a grandma is going to throw her for a loop, but she knows about you, she knows what you have gone through. She will not judge you, Jules. She will love you and she will spoil our daughter rotten when the time comes. I understand now that not telling her wasn’t fair to you, and I’m, once again, very sorry.” His eyes conveyed the truth in what he was speaking. “I know we’re still trying to figure everything out between us.” He motioned back and forth with his hand. “But please understand, I have your back.”
“Okay.” My heart lurched at his words and I quieted down, watching him pull back onto the road. The rest of the car ride was silent, both of us lost in our thoughts.
A good twenty minutes later, we pulled up to a white, cute two-story home in the middle of a suburb. Vibrant green grass surrounded the landscape and a small stone path led from the driveway to the front porch. A pot of various flowers sat on the porch and a small cross hung from the front door.
Before I could fully take in the scenery, the front door flew open and a small petite woman whom I assumed was Beau’s mom came bounding up to the truck.
She had straight shoulder length brown hair and bright brown eyes, and was wearing a pair of white capri pants and a black flow-y blouse. Beau climbed out of the car and enveloped his mother in a hug. It made me giggle to see such a big guy melt into his tiny mothers arms.
I climbed out from the passenger side, straightened out my mint green pastel dress, and walked around to the other side of the truck to meet his mom, breathing in and out to stay calm. When his mom caught a glance out of the corner of her eye, she stepped out of Beau’s embrace and pulled me into a tight hug.
“You must be Juliette, I’m so honored to meet you.” Pulling back to take a good look at me, her eyes grew big when she finally settled on my expanding stomach. “Oh my goodness.” Catching me even more off guard, she bent down to the belly, placing her hand on the front. “I can’t wait to meet you, little one!”
I stared at Beau in complete shock. He had a huge smirk spread across his beautiful face and I felt my stomach do flip flops—and that time it wasn’t cause of our baby.
“I-i-it’s very nice to meet you too, Ms. Lancaster,” I stuttered, my nerves still very much on edge.
“Darling, feel free to call me Laura.” She smiled. “Come inside you two, I made you some cookies.” His mom grabbed me by the hand and dragged me in the direction of the house.
Once inside, we were led into a kitchen with a large island counter top. A big platter of cookies sat smack dab in the middle. The smell of melted chocolate wafted around us, making my stomach grumble. As we all took a seat on the bar stools placed in front of the counter top, it was Beau who broke the silence as I shoved an entire cookie into my mouth, giggling as Laura smiled at me. I couldn’t help it, I was always hungry.
“I missed you, Mom.” The big goofy smile that I’ve come to know and love spread across his bo
yish face. His curly hair sporadically standing up.
“Oh my boy, I know. It’s been much longer than I’d have hoped but I understand your reasoning. I’m just glad you were finally able to bring this sweet girl by.” His mother winked at me and it instantly helped to ease the little bit of nerves that were still bouncing around. “But to address the elephant in the room, I’m assuming the baby is yours?” Laura pinned Beau with her questioning gaze.
“Yes, the baby’s mine.”
“Oh my goodness… My baby’s gonna have a baby!” She smiled and came around the counter to hug him, planting a kiss on his forehead as her eyes sparkled with excitement. “How did this happen? Wait. Don’t answer that, I know how it happened. I don’t need details. But why didn’t you tell me sooner, son?”
“I actually haven’t known for long. A couple weeks, tops. I would have told you but Juliette and I have had some things to work out between us and it wouldn’t have been right for you to hear over the phone.”
I cut Beau off before he could continue. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know he hadn’t told you. I yelled at him on the way here when he told me.” I half smiled at Laura, hoping that she wouldn’t stay upset with us.
“Oh darling, it’s okay, I don’t blame you. But this young man here—” she glared at her son, “—knows better.”
“Gee thanks, Mom.” Beau smiled awkwardly, giving me an apologetic look.
“I just want to know why you haven’t proposed to this girl yet. I raised you better than that.” She pinned her eyes on him and it was the first time I’d actually seen him squirm under pressure. How cute! I had to use all my will power to keep from busting out laughing.
“Uh… We aren’t actually together like that, Mom,” Beau responded.
“He’s right, Laura,” I interjected jumping to his rescue. “We’re just friends. We aren’t actually dating or anything.”
“Okay. Whatever you say.” She raised her hands in defeat as she placed some cookies on a plate and dragged me off to the living room.
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