Shifter Secrets: Shifter Romance Collection

by Juniper Hart

  “Olive? Olive, love, you need to wake up,” he spoke to her. He almost didn’t recognize his own voice as it wavered and trembled.

  Esme sat on the opposite side of Olive with her own rag. They cooled her down and spoke to her, trying to bring her out of it. Eventually, the flat expression across Olive’s beautiful face began to pull and twist into a face of anguish. She let out a groan. Even though Asher hated to see her in pain, he was relieved she was, at the very least, responsive. Over the course of several more minutes, Olive’s eyes finally opened, and she stared up to him.

  “I-I’m glad you’re okay,” she croaked, but then she lurched as a wave of pain coursed its way through her fragile body.

  “Don’t worry about me,” Asher asserted. “Can you tell me what you’re feeling?”

  She winced. “My stomach… It’s tight… Really, really tight.”

  Asher was mortified as Olive experienced another bout of pain. She was in premature labor. Asher flew from the bed, pacing about with his hands covering his mouth. This couldn’t be happening. She wasn’t far along enough for the baby to—

  His mind dismissed the idea before it could complete itself. Glancing over to the bed, he could see by the look on Esme’s face that she recognized what was happening as well. “I’m trained for this,” Esme spoke calmly. “I’ve helped my sisters and cousins with it many times.”

  “Trained for what?” Olive asked. “Trained for what?” she repeated, propping herself up on her elbows.

  “Darling, you’re in labor,” Esme answered.

  “But it’s too early!” Olive whimpered.

  Asher knew what he was going to have to do, and he knew that Olive wasn’t going to like it. Hell, he didn’t like it. “I’ll be right back,” he murmured, moving over to his bag and slipping on a pair of pants before stepping outside. Pacing to the far side of the deck, he did his best to keep his emotions in check as he pulled the phone from his pocket. Closing his eyes, Asher tried to sort through everything buzzing around in his head. But there wasn’t time to do that. If Olive and the baby were going to be okay, he was going to have to act first and think later. Turning on his phone, he made the call.

  The hours to follow passed at an excruciating pace. Olive wailed in pain, and they had to do their best to muffle her cries so they wouldn’t alert hotel staff. Esme was in control of the situation, whereas Asher sat behind Olive, holding her up and encouraging her as she went through unmedicated labor. He only ever left her side to get her a cold, fresh rag to help cool her down. When it was time for Olive to push, neither she nor Asher felt ready. It meant their child was coming into the world whether they liked it or not, and he would not have the immediate attention that he would desperately need.

  There was no stopping it, however, and Asher helped Olive brace herself for each push. She gripped his arms with such severity that Asher actually winced a bit. Nothing came from his lips but words of encouragement. Olive begged for the pain to stop, for Henry to be okay. A few times, Asher hid his face in her shoulder, busying himself with kissing her to hide the fact that he was crying. He had no idea what he would do if something happened to either of them.

  Esme held the entire situation together when Asher and Olive didn’t have the capacity to do so. When she announced she could see the head, Asher had to grit his teeth and squeeze his eyes shut. Terror was consuming him, scared that in a matter of minutes, they would be deafened by silence instead of the squeal of a newborn baby boy. He held himself together, though, knowing that now, more than ever before, Olive needed him to be strong.

  Then, there it was.

  The tiniest, piercing scream echoed throughout the room. Asher’s heart stopped as he looked up from Olive’s shoulder to see a tiny wiggling creature in Esme’s hands. He was covered in blood and guts, his thick hair matted by it.

  “You did it,” he whispered to Olive, closing his arms around her. “You did it. You did so well.”

  “Is he okay?” Olive cried to Esme.

  “I don’t know, but the fact that he’s crying is a good sign,” she assured her dear friend. Asher moved from behind Olive to help Esme. He had the honor of cutting the umbilical cord as Esme took warm washcloths and cleaned the baby. The little boy was so tiny, he couldn’t have weighed more than four pounds. It worried Asher sick, but at the moment, he was merely elated that his son was alive and crying. But his small chest dented with every sharp inhale, filling Asher with just as much worry as he felt relief. Esme swaddled the baby in a plush towel before finally handing him over to Olive.

  Propped up against a mountain of pillows, Olive took her son in her arms. Her hair was wild and frizzy, some strands sticking to the sides of her drenched face. Her eyes were glued to the baby. Henry’s complexion was red as he cried, his arms fighting against the towel to be freed. Olive softly shushed him, tapping his back lightly.

  “This is unreal,” she breathed. “I… I can’t believe it…”

  Neither could Asher. He was speechless as he gazed at the two of them. Never had a sight struck a chord so deep within him. It was beautiful to see his mate hold their child for the first time—beyond beautiful, beyond words. He drank in every small detail, wanting to remember every little sight and sound.

  Henry began to calm as Olive held him. While that should have relaxed Asher, it didn’t. Just because he was breathing by no means meant he was okay. Asher moved to sit next to them. Even though he longed to hold his son himself, he could wait. He enjoyed seeing him and Olive together. Glancing up at Olive, he pressed a long, deep kiss to her plush lips.

  “I’ve never been so proud of anyone,” he whispered into her skin.

  Before Olive could respond, there was a knock on the door.

  17

  “Do you think it’s the staff?” Esme asked, staring at the door.

  Olive was far too consumed by her son to care about who could have been knocking. She was already madly in love with the little one. His face was swollen and chubby, making it hard to distinguish his features quite yet, but she knew that he was going to have Asher’s straight, pointed nose, at least. Henry had already drifted to sleep in her arms, his breathing uneven but constant.

  “I know who it is,” Asher announced, standing up straight.

  That caught her attention, and she turned to give Asher a quizzical look. In response, his expression was apologetic. What exactly was going on? Going over to the door, Asher opened it in a way that obstructed Olive’s view. She couldn’t see who was outside.

  “Thank you for getting here so quickly. It’s sheer luck you were nearby.”

  “Now can you tell me what exactly is going on?” a gruff voice asked.

  It was only then that Asher opened the door fully, giving Olive the view of his brother Sebastian. Her jaw dropped, and she instinctively clutched Henry tighter. “What is he doing here?” Olive bit.

  Sebastian didn’t hold the same resentment that Olive did. His face was plastered with awe and revelation as he uttered obscenities under his breath. Asher let him inside before closing the door. Olive and Esme stared at him, both seeking answers.

  “Okay, as I told you before,” Asher told Olive, “Sebastian is the only other person I trust. Even after everything we learned, I still trust him. He would never betray me or do anything to put Henry in danger.” Then he turned to his brother. “Bash, I think it goes without saying why I hadn’t told you this before. I love you and trust you, but the only reason I’m bringing you into this now is that my son was born too early, and I truly have no idea of what to do about his care.”

  Gradually, Sebastian paced closer to get a good look at Olive and Henry. “Well, this is far more than what I had been expecting,” he muttered before looking back to his brother. “How premature is he?”

  “Eight weeks,” Olive answered with a frown, concerned eyes returning to her son. He was going to be okay, wasn’t he?

  “Ash,” his brother muttered. “He’s going to need the help of the others. I don�
�t know exactly what you wanted me to do, but I assure you that he needs the midwives.”

  “Is there any way we can do that discreetly? I want as few people to know as possible.”

  “Well, Father—”

  “Especially Father.” Asher filled Sebastian in on the conversation that he’d had with his father the night he had gone to the estate. After he was done, Sebastian shook his head.

  “I understand your concern after that, but don’t you think Father would be more than pleased to find out the child was in our family? It would feed into his narrative that we are destined to reign.”

  “You didn’t see that maddening look in his eyes,” Asher said, shuddering at the memory. “He didn’t care who that child was, only that he wanted it dead—and dead by his very own hands.”

  “Are you sure that wasn’t your own fears projecting onto what he was saying?” Sebastian challenged. “I’m in no way defending him; I’m just saying that he doesn’t realize it is a possibility.”

  “It’s not something I’m willing to chance.”

  “Are you willing to chance your son dying because he didn’t get the care he needed?”

  The question was so blunt that it knocked the wind out of Olive. Her fingertip stroked Henry’s cheek. Would he really die if they didn’t return to the estate? It seemed so vicious how full circle this was becoming. The very people they were trying to protect Henry from were the only ones that could help him.

  Asher sat next to Olive once again, placing an arm around her. “What do you think?” he asked in a whisper.

  She shrugged. “All that I know is that I’m scared senseless… I don’t want anything to happen to him…”

  “I can arrange for there to be guards with the three of you—”

  “Four,” Esme chimed in.

  “Alright, four. Men that I trust well enough to do what they’re told. That way, it can give you some peace of mind. I think the best way to protect the child is to get word out of his existence. It’ll take the wind out of Father’s sails. How can he kill a child that everyone knows of? It’ll turn everyone against him.”

  What he was saying made sense to Olive, but she looked to Asher for confirmation. He knew better than she did about it all. Even though the last thing she wanted to do was return to the family estate, she knew that it could very well be Henry’s only chance to survive and become the healthy baby boy he needed to be.

  “Are you alright to travel?” Asher asked Olive.

  The answer was no. Her body was depleted, she was lightheaded and dizzy from blood loss, and never had she known exhaustion quite like this before. However, there was absolutely no way she was leaving Henry’s side. She nodded.

  Words didn’t begin to describe how anxious Olive felt about going back to Asher’s family estate with her son. The long travel time between the West Coast and the East Coast was nerve-racking, knowing that each minute counted when it came to getting the care Henry needed. While she knew babies slept a whole lot, he hadn’t seemed to stir since he had first drifted to sleep. The longer he slept, the more knotted Olive’s stomach became.

  They chartered a private jet, since it was the most feasible way to get there in the shortest amount of time. Olive and Asher were about to lose their minds. When they arrived, a town car was waiting for them as Asher had arranged for it ahead of time.

  It was rare for Olive to take her eyes away from her son. She was obsessed with watching the rise and fall of his chest, concerned that each one could be the last. They were riding on borrowed time. Even though Asher tried to calm her, there would be no chance of it until she knew that Henry was going to be okay.

  The car came to a stop, and Olive finally lifted her head to glance out the window. There they were, parked right outside of the estate. The stone mansion was intimidating to Olive, feeling as though the house itself could swallow her whole and never spit her out. Months and months of nightmares flashed before her eyes and sent a shiver down her spine. None of her dreams were coming to fruition, however. Henry was already born and in the security of his mother and father. Olive had to tell herself that Carlyle couldn’t hurt Henry, that he wouldn’t dare to, now that he was born and now that people would soon catch word of his birth.

  “Wait here, and I will text you when to come in,” Sebastian instructed Asher before climbing out of the car.

  They all waited with baited breath, eyes peeled for anyone lurking nearby. It was going to take some time for Olive to adjust back into a life where she didn’t feel the need to hide and watch her back. Then again, with the attention that would be on Henry, she doubted that the need to stay alert would ever fully go away.

  A great deal of time passed before Asher’s phone finally buzzed in his pocket. Letting out a shaky breath, Asher announced, “It’s time.”

  Lifting Henry from the car seat, they all stepped out of the car and headed reluctantly into the mansion. Olive’s heart was in her throat, and she was choking on her own racing heart rate. Her arms clutched Henry to her chest while still being mindful of how delicate he was. Asher led the way through the massive foyer and down a hall. She was positive that, without guidance, she would have been lost in there in no time.

  The realization that she was about to come face to face with Carlyle Tallant was beginning to sink in. Olive couldn’t get his face out of her head from the nightmare where he had carved her to get the baby. How pleased he had looked. Going to meet him didn’t seem like a good idea, but she forced herself to stay focused on Henry. He was all that mattered.

  When they approached an open door, Asher locked an arm about Olive’s waist as they entered the room together. It was a vast parlor with five people, excluding Sebastian, sitting in attendance. Right in the middle of everyone, in a chair of his own, was Carlyle Tallant.

  The room was rocked by so many gasps, Olive was surprised there was any air left in there at all. Sebastian had thought this through. Even Carlyle finding out about Henry was brought into the public’s eye by others being in attendance. She wondered if that meant there would be repercussions for him later. If so, Olive was that much more grateful, knowing Sebastian had taken on that risk to protect his nephew.

  “What is the meaning of this?” Carlyle murmured, staring at them with a flat expression.

  “I thought you would like to meet your grandson,” Asher called over to him.

  “Grandson?”

  Asher only nodded. Carlyle gawked for a while, and the others whispered amongst themselves.

  “Come closer,” he beckoned. Olive shot Asher a nervous glance before they both paced forward cautiously. Carlyle leaned forward and lifted his chin to get a better look. “How long have you known about this, Asher?”

  “Only about a week,” Asher informed him. “I think you and I both know why I hadn’t come to you sooner about this.”

  Carlyle’s eyes narrowed at his son, as if he was offended that he would bring such a thing up. “He’s rather tiny, isn’t he?”

  “He’s eight weeks premature. That’s why we’ve returned. To get the help he needs from the midwives. And only for that.”

  The tension between the two men was palpable, and all the others were picking up on it. Who were they? Random people that Sebastian had gathered, or were they noble as well?

  Carlyle’s jaw twitched just as Asher’s did when he was consumed with emotion. When Carlyle closed his eyes and then reopened them, he had flushed away all his resentment and anger, replaced with a look of mock sincerity.

  “Surely you don’t plan to leave so soon, Asher. After all, this is tremendous news! We have to celebrate and understand how this came to be. Not to mention, he should be around his family. What is life without it?”

  “Actually, we’ve come to understand how his conception happened,” Asher announced. “I don’t think it will exactly happen for others, unfortunately. We discovered that Olive’s biological parents were of witch descent. Her friend Esme here helped us realize that the curse only affected bree
ding among dragons, as well as humans. So, unless other dragons are going to seek out witches, which I don’t think is likely, Henry may be the only new dragon for the next five hundred years.”

  The relief on Carlyle’s face was genuine then, relaxing in his seat. “This is quite the revelation… Does it not speak volumes of our bloodline? Why, it must be written in the stars for the two of you to have met and gifted me with my first grandchild,” Carlyle oozed. Even though Olive could tell he was only thankful for the peace of mind it brought him—knowing that Henry’s existence would more than likely play in his favor— she too felt more at ease.

  “Sebastian, send for Tallulah and Meredith. They will be able to assess Henry and know what kind of care he needs.” Carlyle stood from his chair and closed the gap between Asher and himself. Opening his arms, he produced a smile and hugged Asher. “Welcome home, son.”

  Epilogue

  Six Months Later

  As usual, it took more time to get Yvette to let Henry go than it did to pack up the countless toys and supplies they came with. His pale face was covered in pink lipstick, but he was all smiles and giggles.

  “You guys must come again. Maybe Wednesday?” Yvette cooed as she followed them to the car.

  Olive let out a musical laugh. “Mom, today’s Tuesday.”

  “I know, I know. I just can’t get enough of him. I could just bite those fat little cheeks!”

  “Please don’t bite my son,” Asher called over with a chuckle of his own. “I’ll have to bite back.”

  “Careful, Oli, I think your man is hitting on me.”

  “Bye, Mom,” Olive said, still in a fit of laughter as she hugged her mother goodbye and climbed into the passenger seat of the SUV. Henry played happily with the toys dangling from the handlebar of his car seat as Asher pulled onto the road. “Maybe it’s time to force a little distance between her and Henry. She’s going to take him one of these days and never give him back.”