Made for Him

by Lynn Hagen

  Keeping an eye on Jude, Reese called the Den.

  “Maverick Brac,” the alpha answered.

  Reese explained who he was and what was going on. “We don’t have that kind of doctor here. I know this is an odd request, but—”

  “Give me your address,” Maverick said.

  Reese gave it to him.

  “Doctor Sheehan will be there shortly.”

  Reese sighed in relief. “Thank you for doing this for me.”

  “Tell whoever’s in charge in your town to get a damn doctor. You have too many nonhuman residents not to have one,” Maverick said.

  How did Maverick know about the nonhuman population? Reese didn’t bother to ask. He was just grateful help was on the way.

  “What the hell?” Aiden shouted from another part of the house.

  Reese rushed into the hallway and found his friend in the kitchen. There were two strangers standing there. One looked bored while the man with hazel eyes and sandy-blond hair looked around.

  “They just popped into the room,” Aiden said. “Give a guy some warning next time.”

  The hazel-eyed guy extended his hand to Reese. “I’m Dr. Sheehan. Maverick said you have someone I need to look at?”

  Aiden was still standing there with his canines bared and his claws out. Reese left him in the kitchen with the other guy who hadn’t introduced himself as he showed the doctor where Jude was.

  “He keeps complaining about stomach pain,” Reese explained. He hated feeling so helpless, but it wasn’t as though he could wave a magic wand and find out what was wrong. He just hoped it wasn’t anything serious.

  “And what is Jude?” the doctor asked.

  “Vampire.” Reese moved to the end of the bed as he watched the doctor examine Jude. He drew some blood and added a few drops to some small thingy he had in his hand. Reese hadn’t the first clue why the doctor was doing that.

  Preternatural beings didn’t get sick, although Reese had heard of this one bunny shifter who’d had a tumor in his head. He wasn’t sure what had happened to Hilton.

  After long, agonizing moments, the doctor stood and stuffed his things back into his bag.

  “Well?” Reese asked.

  The doctor placed his hands on Reese’s upper arms. This couldn’t be good. Reese tried to prepare himself for bad news.

  Dr. Sheehan grinned. “He should be fine soon.”

  “Soon?” Reese was utterly confused. “What’s wrong with him?”

  All sorts of crazy scenarios played in Reese’s mind. He couldn’t take the wait. He had to know what was wrong with his mate.

  “He’s pregnant.”

  Reese blinked several times. “Did you say pregnant?”

  The doctor slapped Reese’s arms and then took a step back. “Yep. The bunny died.”

  “Hilton’s dead?” That was the first thing that popped into Reese’s mind since he couldn’t wrap his brain around what Dr. Sheehan was saying.

  The doctor stared strangely at Reese. “No, Hilton is alive and well. I meant…never mind. Your mate is pregnant. Make sure he gets plenty of blood with his feedings. The baby is gonna need the nourishment. If you have any questions about how he should take care of himself during the next few months, call me. I can have Gabby talk to him.”

  Who was Gabby? Reese numbly nodded. “But we just had sex a few hours ago. How can you tell so soon?”

  “He’s going through the conversion,” the doctor explained. “His body is reforming to carry a child. And since most preternatural beings give birth in three months, the test I conducted can detect pregnancy right away.”

  Pregnant.

  Reese dropped down on the bed and scrubbed a hand down his face as the doctor walked out of the room. Jude had quieted down and was asleep. Reese let him rest while he dealt with his own issue. His mind was sufficiently blown.

  Pregnant.

  He couldn’t stop thinking of that word. He’d heard of men who’d had babies. It wasn’t unheard of in their world, but it was rare.

  Holy shit. Reese was gonna be a father.

  Chapter Four

  Jude came awake to a woozy feeling in his stomach and a headache from hell. He was also thirsty. The little bit of blood he’d taken from Reese when they’d mated hadn’t been nearly enough.

  “Take it easy, sweetheart.”

  Jude turned his head to the familiar voice. Reese lay next to him, completely naked, his eyes still closed even though he’d just spoken.

  “What happened?” Jude recalled the fire, the pain in his gut, and passing out in his room. “How did I get here?”

  He had very vague memories of being jostled around, of someone poking and prodding at him. He’d been too out of it to focus on those memories, so he had to rely on Reese to fill in the blanks.

  Reese opened his eyes, and Jude’s cock hardened at the green in his mate’s eyes. He brushed his fingers over Jude’s cheek. “I’m sorry, but your house is totally destroyed.”

  Jude swallowed around the hard lump in his throat. There hadn’t been anything in the house that he’d held dear, but it was the thought that he’d lost it all this morning. He supposed he could stay with Reese, but that didn’t take away the pain of having his life turned upside down.

  He furrowed his brows. “I remember hearing a noise in the house. Something crashed, someone cursed, then I heard a door slam closed.”

  Instead of appearing sexy as sin with the sleepy look in his eyes, Reese looked wide-awake now. “Someone was in your house?”

  Jude nodded. “I took a bath when I got home. That was when the pain started. Well, it started on my way home, to be honest. I decided to go to bed in hopes the pain would go away. But as it intensified, I smelled the smoke and heard the noises.”

  Reese sat up. “Someone purposefully set that fire, Jude. There’s no other explanation. Unless you were in the kitchen and left something on.”

  “Right, because I cook in there all the time,” Jude said. “The only thing I go into the kitchen for is to feed, and that doesn’t require me to use the stove.”

  Jude sat up, feeling famished. They might be mates, but Jude found it hard to ask Reese to feed him. He couldn’t seem to get the words out of his mouth.

  And he felt a big queasy, too.

  As if reading his mind, Reese pulled Jude into his arms. “You’re hungry.”

  Jude saw the discomfort in Reese’s eyes. Did it really repulse his mate to let Jude feed from him? He wasn’t going to ask for something Reese clearly didn’t want to give. “No, I’m fine.”

  His mate cleared his throat. “The doctor said you have to feed. The baby will need the nourishment.”

  Jude frowned as he gazed at Reese. “What are you talking about? What baby?”

  Reese pressed his hand to Jude’s stomach. “The one in your belly, sweetheart. That’s why you were in so much pain.”

  Jude jerked back so hard he fell out of the bed, even though Reese had tried to catch him. Jude landed on his ass as he stared up at his mate. “You’ve lost your damn mind.”

  There was no way he was pregnant. Only Prince Christian’s direct male descendants were capable of carrying a child. As far as Jude knew, he had no familial ties to the guy. Then again, it wasn’t as though his mother had shared their family history. She had been cold and distant raising him after Jude’s father had died. It was as though she had given up and conformed to the coven ways.

  “The doctor did a blood test.” Reese scooted off the bed and lifted Jude into his arms. “I know it’s a lot to take in. I’m still reeling from the news myself.”

  A baby. Jude was carrying Reese’s child. That just…that couldn’t be…oh god.

  “Now feed.” Reese tilted his head to the side. “I want my son or daughter well taken care of.”

  Not his mate. Reese hadn’t said anything about Jude being well taken care of. Deep down, Jude’s gut told him that Reese had a problem with vampires. It was just a feeling he had, and Jude couldn’t shake it.<
br />
  Instead of going for Reese’s jugular, he grabbed the man’s arm and sank his fangs into his mate’s wrist. It didn’t feel as intimate, but then again, Reese’s hesitation wasn’t hard to figure out.

  When Jude was done, he licked the wound closed and struggled to get free. Reese set him on his feet and grabbed a pair of underwear to slide on.

  Jude saw his mate was hard, but after throwing some clothes on, Reese left the room.

  Jude sat on the bed and pulled his legs up, circling his arms around them. He shelved Reese for now and concentrated on the fire. His mate was right. Someone had deliberately set it. Had Ingmar sent someone to kill him? Since he hadn’t seen who had been in the house, Jude couldn’t say for sure.

  Another question that popped into his head was how his ex-coven leader and his mother had found out about Merk. Had Jude’s uncle called either of them while he’d held Jude captive? That was the only thing that made sense.

  Jude looked around the room and was thankful the windows were covered. At least his mate had that much consideration for Jude’s safety, but he still wanted to know why Reese gave him the cold shoulder.

  He wanted answers, and Jude wasn’t going to just sit on his ass and wonder what those answers were. He marched to the door and slung it open then slammed it closed, hissing at the sight of the sun bathing the rest of the house.

  It seemed, for now, Jude was a prisoner in this room. But as soon as he could leave, he would demand Reese give him answers. Jude would be damned if he’d live through his mating with Reese treating him this way.

  * * * *

  Reese was so twisted up inside that he didn’t know what to do. He’d told himself that he could handle being mated to a vampire, that it hadn’t been Jude who’d killed Thomas. But as soon as Jude had fed from him, all those memories had come flooding back.

  And the feeding just now had been different from last night. Reese wasn’t sure why, either. That didn’t make any sense to him at all.

  “Lay your troubles on me,” Aiden said as he took a seat at the table. He had cooked, and the food smelled good, but Reese wasn’t hungry. He had too many things to work out in his head, which made his appetite nonexistent.

  “Don’t you have a home to go to?” Reese would never kick the bear shifter out. Just like Reese, Aiden had no one. He spent more time at Reese’s than his own place, and that usually comforted him. Reese didn’t like being alone. Neither did Aiden.

  “Your house has food,” Aiden teased. “Besides, I like your kitchen better.”

  “We’re splitting the bill on the next grocery store trip.” Reese used his foot to snag the closest chair and rested his feet on it. “And the doctor said Jude is pregnant.”

  Aiden nearly choked on the eggs he’d been eating. Reese got up, just in case he had to pound on the guy’s back. He knew that feeling of shock. Reese was still reeling from the news.

  He took a seat when Aiden looked as though he wouldn’t keel over and die.

  “What’re you gonna do about it?” Aiden took a drink from his glass of orange juice.

  “What do you mean what am I going to do?” Reese looked incredulously at Aiden.

  “Jeez, not about the baby,” Aiden said. “I meant the trouble he’s in and your feelings toward his kind.”

  “Oh, because you made that so damn clear.” Reese scrubbed a hand over his head. As much as the knowledge that he would soon be a father still shocked him, this had to be just as hard on Jude. He’d gone from being alone to finding his mate, losing his home, and getting pregnant.

  That was too much for any guy to handle. Add in the fact that he’d had to kill his own uncle and his ex-coven might be after him and Reese was surprised his mate was still glued together.

  “The trouble he’s in isn’t his fault.” Although Reese didn’t elaborate. Jude already seemed to be struggling with what he’d done and didn’t need others prying into his business.

  And Aiden would pry. That was just the type of guy he was. Not in a menacing sort of way. Aiden was just like Reese, always ready to help those in need.

  “And as far as him being a vampire…” Reese shrugged. What was he supposed to say? Jude was his mate and carrying his child. There was no way Reese would walk away.

  Aiden pushed his plate aside and folded his arms on the table. “Look, I’m behind you one hundred percent. A bloodsucker killed your little brother. I know that anger that dwells deep inside you. I’ve been there. I’m still there. But this is your mate, Reese.”

  Aiden knew the pain because a demon had wiped out his family. Reese recalled that night as if it had happened yesterday. The blood, the carnage, Aiden’s cry, which would have shattered anyone’s heart. All that was still fresh and painful, just as Thomas’s death was.

  “All I’m saying is that you only get one mate. Work through your shit and treat him right.”

  “And if you found out your mate was a demon?” Reese asked.

  Aiden’s jaw clenched as he got up and took his plate to the sink. He kept his back to Reese, which told Reese his friend was trying to get his emotions under control. They normally didn’t talk about their losses, kept the subject well hidden.

  But finding out Jude was his mate had brought the painful subjects to the forefront.

  Reese got up and joined Aiden at the sink. “I wasn’t trying to be a dick. I’m sorry.”

  It had been a decade since Thomas’s death, but only five years since Aiden had lost everything. Reese didn’t think there was enough time in the world to help the bear shifter heal. And over the past few years, Aiden had sank deeper inside himself, avoiding people as much as possible. That had only created anxiety issues for the bear shifter.

  Aiden didn’t even go into town if he didn’t have to. Most of the time Reese went grocery shopping for his best friend, which made him feel for the guy.

  “Talk to Jude,” Aiden said. “Tell him about Thomas. Let him know that it isn’t him you have a problem with. He deserves to know, and he deserves to be treated right.”

  “Remember those sage words when you find your mate.” Reese walked out of the kitchen and toward the hallway. He stopped at his bedroom door. Aiden was right, of course.

  After taking a deep breath, Reese walked into his bedroom to find Jude curled up on the bed, staring at the wall. He looked so hopeless that Reese wanted to fold the man in his arms.

  He quickly closed the door when Jude slammed his eyelids closed. “Sorry. I’ll have the rest of the house taken care of so you aren’t stuck in here.”

  Jude sat up and brushed the hair from his forehead. Reese wanted to run his hands through the thick strands. This was his mate, his one chance at happiness, and Jude was carrying his child.

  He deserves to know, and he deserves to be treated right.

  “We need to talk.” Reese sat on the bed, and Jude scooted close to him. As twisted up as Reese felt, he couldn’t stop himself from touching Jude in some way. He took his mate’s hand and told him about Thomas, how his brother had been killed by a vampire, and how that affected Reese even ten years later.

  Jude snatched his hand from Reese’s and moved away, scooting closer to the nightstand with a look of horror on his face. “You must hate me,” he whispered as he clutched his stomach.

  Reese wasn’t even sure Jude realized what he’d done, as though it was a defense mechanism for the growing baby inside him.

  Their baby.

  “Not you.” Reese shook his head. “Never you.” He pressed a hand to his chest. “I just have to…” He shrugged.

  “I’m so sorry that happened to him,” Jude said. “At least now I know why you looked as though you’d rather chew nails than let me feed from you. And to be honest, it’s not something I’m used to, either. Since leaving my coven, I’ve survived off bagged blood.”

  Reese frowned. “Why?”

  “Because I’m too shy and awkward to take what I need, and I’ve never bedazzled anyone. I’m not even sure I know how” Jude confess
ed. “When I was held in that barn for two weeks, my uncle starved me. I became ravenous and attacked the guy who had kidnapped Roy and brought him there. I drained him.” Jude looked away. “So I understand your hatred of my kind. We must seem like monsters to you.”

  They had for the longest time. That was all Reese thought of them as. Monsters. But Jude wasn’t a monster. He’d merely been trying to survive. Reese knew all too well how that felt. After Thomas’s death, he’d crawled inside himself, lashing out, starting fights, hurting those who may or may not have deserved his wrath.

  “I’m not exactly an angel,” he said. Even before his brother’s death, Reese had been a hothead. “Rhinos aren’t known for their gentleness or good temperament.”

  His gaze lowered to Jude’s stomach, and Reese’s chest tightened. He never thought he would have children considering he was gay. Reese never thought that was in the cards for him. But the more he thought about it, the more excited he became.

  And downright terrified. What did he know about raising a baby? And his son or daughter would be half-vampire and half-shifter.

  “But you’ve been nothing but nice to me,” Jude said. “Well, except for earlier when you gave me the cold shoulder.”

  “I had to learn how to suppress my anger,” Reese said. “It took years of practice, and I still slip up sometimes.”

  Jude bit his lower lip as he scooted closer. He took Reese’s hand and laid it on his flat stomach. “Crazy, huh?”

  Reese shook his head as he rolled his eyes. “I’m still trying to wrap my head around it.”

  “Me, too. It doesn’t seem real.”

  Unable to stand the distance any longer, Reese picked Jude up and settled his mate on his lap. “We’ll work this out. I still harbor a lot of anger for what happened to Thomas, but I’ll work on that.”

  Hope shined in Jude’s dark eyes as he nodded. “What about my house?”

  “I’m pretty sure it’s a total loss,” Reese said. “So that means you’re moving in with me.” He couldn’t stop rubbing Jude’s belly. “We’ll set up the spare bedroom as a nursery.”