by KD Jones
Damen put his hand on Ivan’s shoulder and gave it a comforting brotherly squeeze. “We won’t let anything happen to your child.”
“I can’t tell everyone yet…”
“Eventually you will have to.”
“I know. Mom’s going to be furious with me.”
“Not to mention the rest of the family, but they all will forgive you and be there to help you with the baby. Is it a boy or girl?”
Ivan smiled. “A boy.”
“A nephew that I am looking forward to meeting soon. I have another question for you?”
“Yeah?”
“What is going on between you and Dahlia?”
“Nothing.”
“Bullshit, brother. The two of you can barely take your eyes off each other. Last time I visited, you both looked like you were ready to tear each other apart, now the two of you look at each other with barely concealed lust.”
Ivan knew his brother wouldn’t let up until he had an answer but the truth was, he didn’t know what was happening between him and Dahlia. The timing for it was off for sure. “My inner bear wants to claim her.”
“Wow, you really did fuck it all up. When did you start to have feelings for her?”
“The day she was hired at the scout shop. I had just found out about the pregnancy. I tried to fight the attraction but it’s been an uphill battle. I pushed her away too, like I did everyone else. I didn’t know how else to handle the situation and I was afraid if I told anyone, Jeanne would run.”
“I won’t say anything, but I think you should tell the family. We will support you and you need all the help you can get if Jeanne’s father does find out. Some of those stories about Edward Lance are true. I have people who have come to me with their tragic encounters. Every time a lawsuit is raised against him, he easily squashes it. Complaints to the authorities fall on deaf ears. We don’t have enough shifters in law enforcement yet, but we’re getting there.”
“I’ll think about it.”
“Also, the top priority for you is to tell Dahlia. If she really is your bondmate, she deserves to know what’s going on with you.”
“What if she won’t forgive me?”
“That’s a chance you’ll have to take. No one promised love would be easy.”
“I didn’t say anything about love.”
“Brother, you don’t have to. It’s all over your face.” Damen left him there feeling like his soul had been bared. It was not a pleasant feeling at all, but at the same time, a little of the weight he had on his shoulders was lifted. At least one person in his life knew what was going on and supported him. Would he be able to let the others in? Could he tell Dahlia the truth?”
Chapter 10
Dahlia spent hours watching the Vedar family celebrate the baby announcement. Mara pulled her to the kitchen to ask her to help plan a baby shower. Dahlia didn’t know the first thing about babies or baby showers, but she promised to help any way she could. Now it was dark and time for her to go home. The problem was, Mara had picked her up but she hated to drag her away from time with her family. Mara seemed to know what was bothering her.
“Oh dear, I’ve kept you up late, didn’t I. Let me get my keys and I’ll take you home.”
Luka spoke up. “I can take her home on my motorcycle.”
Dahlia wasn’t so sure about riding a death machine on two wheels. “I appreciate that but…”
“I’ll take Dahlia home,” Ivan announced. He didn’t really give her a choice as he grabbed her coat and helped her put it on.
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
She hugged Mara and Andy but when Luka went to hug her, Ivan growled and pulled her gently forward out the front door. Some of the men were chuckling when they left except for Damen. He had a serious look on his face that sent shivers down her spine. Something was up.
Dahlia smiled when Ivan opened the door for her and she hopped in. She turned to see a curious expression on his face. “What?”
“Nothing…I just forgot how tall you were.” He shut the door and jogged over to the driver’s side. He got in and started it up.
“I like your truck.”
He looked at her in surprise. “You do?”
“Yeah. My parents died when I was little but I remember riding in my father’s truck… it was similar to this one. We went fishing and loaded out stuff in the back and those time were some of my favorite.”
“How old were you when they died?”
“Ten.”
“I remember you saying that you lived with family after that, right?”
“I was moved from one aunt to another, from place to place. Seven years of that and I had enough of it. I got a part-time job and saved up enough money to have the courts declare me independent. I moved out and never looked back.”
“To be on your own at seventeen must have been lonely.”
“I didn’t get what most teenagers did—prom nights and beach vacations. I had to work and support myself. Rarely did I do anything crazy. I never really had a lot of friends, so sometimes it was lonely. ”
She was surprised when he reached out and took her hand. That simple gesture of comfort was all she needed to want him desperately. On impulse, she unbuckled her seat and slid over to him.
“What are you doing?”
“Something crazy.” She nuzzled his neck and licked his warm skin. He growled in response.
“Damn it, Dahlia, I’m going to wreck this truck.”
“Then pull over,” she answered, nibbling on his very manly chin. Everything about it was extremely manly. She almost lost her balance when she felt the truck jerk to the right. Looking up she smiled, seeing the familiar necking site of the teenagers. A few cars were parked and the windows fogged up. Ivan pulled up to a very private spot under a few trees. The parking area was on a clifftop overlooking the lake.
“It’s so beautiful here.”
He turned off the engine and unbuckled his seatbelt. “Not as beautiful as you are.”
“God, I want you.” She climbed in his lap, straddling him and kissed him. When he took over the kiss she quivered in his arms.
Ivan had one hand in her hair, holding her right where she was so that he could plunder her lips. His tongue was right there invading her… conquering her. His other hand was on her hip and when he thrust up with his own hips, she could feel his hard arousal pressing against her. Her polar bear growled with need and his polar bear answered.
The kiss deepened and his hands traveled her body igniting a fire in her core. The skirt she was wearing was in the way so when he began to slowly raise it up, she moaned, “Yes.”
Not that he’d asked anything, but it was good she told him she was all aboard for what was happening. Her nipples were hard and he plucked them, teasing them. As good as that felt, she needed his touch in a different area. She rose up and ground against him. His arousal pressed in just the right place, against her clit. Even with his pants on and her panties as barrier, it was making her lose control with need. She ground against him over and over.
“Baby, we have to go slower.”
“No. I want this… need this.” God did she ever. Months of fighting with him and fighting her attraction for him left her in a state of arousal all the time. She nibbled his lower lip and ground harder.
He growled again and began to thrust upward even harder. His hands cupped her ass and worked her body against his.
“Oh…my…God!” She arched backward, as much as she could with the limited headroom and felt her whole body as it exploded into a million little pieces.
“Dahlia!” Ivan called out her name as he came in his jeans.
She leaned against his chest and listened to his heartbeat, and felt like everything was finally starting to fall into place. Then an annoying sound interrupted their private moment.
“What is that?” She hated moving but lifted up and then back over to her own seat as Ivan fumbled, pulling out his cell phone from his back pocket.<
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“I have to get this. I’ll be right back.” He got out of the truck and walked a little distance away.
She couldn’t help but wonder who he was talking to. Feeling sticky, she opened the glove compartment to see if there were any napkins or tissues she could wipe her thighs off with. Something fell out onto the floor. “Oh.” She leaned down to pick it up, planning to put it back in the compartment but was curious. She leaned forward to angle the dim light over the front of the pamphlet and read the title out loud, “Baby Names and Their Meanings: A Guide to Helping New Parents Pick the Right Name for Their Baby.” Why would a single guy have a book for baby names in his truck? A sinking feeling came over her.
The door opened and Ivan got back in. “Sorry about that.”
She turned to face him, holding the pamphlet up at him. “What the hell is this?”
His face handsome face went from smiling to frowning. “Where did you get it?”
“In the glove compartment.”
“Damn it!” He reached out to touch her but she jerked away from him.
“Tell me why a single man has a baby name pamphlet.”
“It’s… for Cosmo.”
Her inner bear whined. Their mate just lied to them. “Bullshit.” She didn’t wait around for him to tell her more lies. She opened the door and jumped out.
“Dahlia! Wait honey! Come back!”
She ran fast, growling and ripping at her clothes as her shift took over. Ivan was running after her but she was faster. Her bear bounded down the cliff heading for the lake. She was also from the monthly clan gatherings that she was the better swimmer, so she knew he wouldn’t catch her. She heard one more hoarse call of her name before she dived into the cold waters.
“Dahlia!”
Chapter 11
Four days later
Ivan paced outside of Dahlia’s apartment building once more, waiting for her to come home. She had been gone two days now without a word to anyone. When Dahlia didn’t show up for work, Cosmo cornered him and he spilled the beans, telling him everything; about Jeanne and the baby and then how Dahlia found the pamphlet. His twin punched him for Dahlia’s sake. Then he called in the rest of the family to their mother’s house and forced him to come clean.
His brothers Niko and Ryder used their contacts at the sheriff's office to look for her on the down low. No sign of her for days. He was going a little bit crazy. It didn’t help that Jeanne was getting more bitchy and demanding. He lost it one night when she complained about the food.
“If you don’t like it, don’t eat it.”
Then, when she wasn’t getting a response she wanted from him, she rubbed her extended belly and teased him with letting him know how their son was kicking like crazy. That was cruel of her, considering she rarely let him feel the baby kick. It tore at him but he kept reminding himself the once the baby arrived he would have plenty of time to bond with him.
What was the worst was being in the same room with her at all. Her presence alone had his inner bear roaring for Dahlia. The comparison of the two was startling. Jeanne was short with dark hair, and the eyes he once considered beautiful had no kindness or passion in them. Weak eyes compared to Dahlia’s honey brown.
Where Jeanne was whiny and harsh, Dahlia exuded strength and softness. Dahlia offered a calmness that allowed him to be himself, while he had to keep his inner bear hidden around Jeanne. Even when he was fighting with Dahlia, there was no real threat. He felt constant fear when around Jeanne that she could, in a heartbeat, take his son from him.
He finally had to face the truth: he was in love with Dahlia. Had been from the first time she fell out of the scout shop and into his arms. She was his match in every way, not letting him get away with any crap. He needed her to keep him on his toes. What worried him was whether she would forgive him.
Every night he told Jeanne he was working, but in truth he was waiting for Dahlia to return. He did something unusual for him… he prayed that she would come home to him. His family, though still angry with him keeping such a big secret, was amazing. They helped him look for her and they were also getting things together in preparation for the baby.
A little over three weeks and his son would be here, in his arms. Then he would finally be free of Jeanne and her attitude. His cell phone beeped, letting him know that he had a text message. It was his mother, wanting him to stop by.
He looked once more at the dark window of Dahlia’s apartment and sighed. He headed to his truck and climbed in. Please God, let her come back to me.
*****
Dahlia was exhausted. She hadn’t ever before been in her polar bear form for this many days in a row without changing back to her human form. She stayed away from town, keeping to the outskirts and the lake area. She caught sight of Ivan and his brothers a couple of times, but she stayed hidden and downwind so they wouldn’t detect her. She may be a smaller polar bear, but she was faster, a better hunter, and knew how to keep from being seen when she didn’t want to be.
Now her bear was tired and if she didn’t shift soon, it would only get harder and harder to shift back to human form. She didn’t want to go back to her lonely apartment. There was only one other place that always made her feel safe, always felt like home.
She shifted back to her human form and knocked on the back door of the farmhouse. The door opened.
“Dahlia! Oh my dear, come in.” Mara hugged her and pulled her inside the kitchen.
She looked down at her feet and noticed that she was creating a puddle on the floor. “Mara, I’m sorry about the mess.”
“Don’t you worry about that.” Mara walked over to her laundry room and came back with several towels. She handed one huge towel to Dahlia to wrap around her body and then placed a towel on the floor for her to stand on.
“I can clean that up.”
“No you will not. You will go upstairs and take a hot shower. I’ll bring you something to eat and you can get some rest.” Mara didn’t leave room for her to argue as she wrapped an arm around her shoulders and led her to the stairs. They walked up the steps side by side. “You had us all so worried about you.”
Dahlia shrugged. “I had to get away. I couldn’t take the lies…”
Mara stopped at the top of the stairs and hugged her again. Dahlia tried to be strong but she broke into tears. “He… lied.”
“I know, honey. I’m so sorry for my son acting like a complete idiot.”
She snorted, half laughing. “You don’t know what he lied about.”
“I do. He finally came clean with the family.”
“What did he say?”
“Let him tell you.”
She shook her head. “I don’t think I can face him right now.” It hurt too much.
Mara showed her to a bedroom and she entered without thinking about it. “The bathroom is across the hall. Take a shower. There’s a t-shirt in the dresser you can wear to sleep in. I’ll be right up with nice warm soup.”
“Thank you Mara, it’s so kind of you to take me in like this. I just couldn’t go home.”
“Dahlia, you are family to me and you are welcome to stay as long as you like.”
She grabbed the t-shirt from the dresser and walked across the hall to the bathroom. The hot water felt good to her but it didn’t warm her on the inside. She dried off and put the t-shirt on. The smell of delicious gumbo made her stomach growl. She entered the bedroom again and found a bowl of soup and a glass of fresh water waiting for her. By the time she finished the soup, she could hardly keep her eyes open. Not sleeping in days did that to a person.
Mara had kindly pulled the covers down for her. Laying down on the bed and pulling the covers up over her, she snuggled into the pillow and inhaled deeply. Her polar bear growled with need, recognizing the scent. This was Ivan’s room, his bed. She should get up and go to a different room, but her body was simply exhausted and wouldn’t budge. She fell asleep with Ivan’s image in her mind.
Chapter 12
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�Mom? What’s going on?” Ivan asked as he entered the front door. He saw his mother at the kitchen entrance and inhaled. Dahlia. He looked up the stairs. She was here.
“Wait, Ivan.” His mother rushed to keep him from going up the steps.
“I need to see her.”
“I know, but be prepared. She’s exhausted and devastated. You lied to her and crushed her heart.”
“I didn’t mean to do that.”
Mara cupped his cheek just like she used to do when he was little. “I know that. Take it slow and easy with her. Tell her the truth, all of it, because she deserves to hear it from you.”
“Thanks, Mom.”
“I’m still mad at you myself, but I will always be there to help you if you let me.”
He kissed her forehead then walked up the steps. Each movement felt like he was going to face the firing squad. It was no less what he deserved. All he wanted was to take Dahlia in his arms and love her, but that would have to wait.
Smiling at the door of his childhood bedroom, he was pleased his mom put her in there. He opened the door and entered the dark room silently closing the door behind him. His eyes adjusted and he was able to see her body lying on his bed, sheets kicked off and her long silky legs exposed. His cock stirred immediately.
Ivan sat on the edge of the bed and gently touched Dahlia’s cheek with his fingers. There were dark circles under her eyes—eyes that slowly blinked open. She saw him and jerked away from his touch.
“Ivan, what are you doing here?”
“This is my mom’s house, my bedroom, and my bed.”
“Then I’ll leave.” She started to get up but he put his hand on hers to stop her.
“Please Dahlia, let me explain the situation.”
She crossed her arms over her chest. “What’s there to explain? You have a girlfriend who is pregnant with your baby.”
He kept his eyes on her face and eyes, watching her emotions. “She’s not my girlfriend. Jeanne was someone I had a fling with. We parted ways amicably but then she showed up a few months later, pregnant. We haven’t been together sexually since parting ways. She planned on getting an abortion but I convinced her to have the baby for me.”