Chapter Five
Evie jerked when a howl sounded from the woods behind the home she shared with her mate, Kye. She knew it was Luna, but the sound still made the hair on the back of her neck stand on end.
“It’s just Luna,” Kye reminded her, placing his hand on her knee. They were currently curled up on the couch, watching a movie. The full moon made the yard outside the front window glow softly. Even without her enhanced eyesight, she could see everything, and being at the end of the road to the mated cabins meant anyone who ventured out that way was there for a reason.
“I know.” She heaved a shaky sigh. “Knee jerk reaction, I guess.”
“Are you okay?” he asked, squeezing her knee softly.
“Yeah, I am.”
“No, baby, are you really okay?” It’d been three days since she had returned to the pride and mated with Kye. The things she did on that island shocked her still to that moment.
“Actually,” she smiled, turning to face him. The movie was forgotten when she looked into her mate’s eyes. They were finally where they wanted to be, and Evie wasn’t going to let her past define her future anymore. “I feel whole again. The time on the island forced me to deal with what happened to me. Am I going to have bad days? Probably. Am I going to continue to train? Yes. I’ve found myself, Kye, and I want you to understand that I am going to be okay.”
“I know you are,” he said, giving her the biggest smile. “I’m proud of you and what you did on that island. I just wish I’d been there to take you home.”
“You were healing,” she reminded him, shaking off the memory of seeing him shot in the chest. “I needed you here.”
“It goes against a male’s instinct to not protect his mate,” he shrugged, “but my mate is a badass, and I’m okay with that.”
“I love you, Kye.” She smiled, feeling her chest burst open from having his support. There was a time when he hadn’t been that way, and Evie was happy he’d learned to understand her need to train.
“And I love you,” he said, using his thumb and forefinger to hold her chin in place so he could take her lips with his own. “Do you want to go find the others? You haven’t seen any of them since you arrived home.”
“You know?” she pondered. “I think I would like to do that.”
“Grab your shoes and we will go to the main house.”
“It’s refreshing that we have our land back and things are peaceful.”
“Let’s hope it stays that way,” Kye replied, turning off the television.
Harold couldn’t sleep. He couldn’t eat. The thought of Luna out there in her wolf form agitated his panther to no end. The animal inside was clawing to get free, and he pushed the beast back as he entered the exam room to visit with Liberty and Talon.
“I can confirm that you’re about two weeks along and everything looks great, except for some weight loss,” he told her, taking a seat on the rolling stool. “This isn’t your first pregnancy, Liberty. So, like before, you know your body. Is there anything bothering you?”
“I’ve been tired.” She paused, glancing at Talon out of the corner of her eye. Harold eyed her pointedly, knowing she wasn’t telling him everything because her mate was sitting next to her. Finally, she took a deep breath and spit out her concern. “I’ve had really bad morning sickness.”
“What?” Talon asked, his hand landing on her shoulder. “Why haven’t you told me?”
“It’s really nothing,” she hedged.
“This is why you’ve been covering up the dark circles under your eyes with makeup, isn’t it?” Talon’s hands moved to her arms. He was fretting over his mate, and the healer had to smile. All males did that when their mates were with young. The alpha was a bit more attentive than most.
“I didn’t want you to freak out,” she argued. “I’ll be okay. This pregnancy is just a little different than it was with Ember.”
“I should feed you more,” he growled. “You’re not eating enough and Harold says you’ve lost weight.”
“Oh, God no,” she gagged. “Please, Talon. Food just makes things worse.”
“Liberty, Talon is right,” Harold urged. “You need calories. What is it that bothers you?”
“Salad, tea, chicken, biscuits,” she paused. “Well, everything.”
“How’s your red meat intake?”
“I don’t know.” She stopped to press a hand to her flat stomach. When she did, it growled loudly. “I haven’t had any in a few days, but since you mentioned it, I think I’m craving a big, juicy steak.”
“I’ll make you one,” Talon offered.
“Now, you need to go easy on the food,” Harold laughed. “You may be craving a steak, but eat it slow. If you’re nauseous, that could irritate your stomach, too. I suggest you start off with several small meals a day until you get your appetite back in the second trimester.”
“Okay,” she nodded, looking up at her mate. “Can you make me a steak? Medium rare?”
“Anything you want,” he offered, standing up from the chair. “Can I take my mate home now and feed her?”
“You sure can, but call me if you need anything,” Harold added.
The couple left, and once he shut the door, his home and office were silent again. Until he heard the wolf in the woods howl into the night.
Harold’s beast pushed at his skin, wanting release. He sat heavily on one of the waiting chairs in the front room of his home office and closed his eyes. A perfect picture of Luna came up in his mind’s eye and his panther roared in his head. The animal wanted her. Why? He didn’t know.
She couldn’t be his mate. She just couldn’t. Cross-mating was completely non-existent in the shifter community because they couldn’t procreate. Plus, she was a wolf and no one knew if she was actually telling the truth about not being feral.
But she hasn’t shown any signs of being feral, has she?
Harold’s mind was at war again, and his panther was restless. Pushing back his beast, he turned off all the lights and went to the back of the home to prepare for bed.