Chapter Eleven

The three couples had already been escorted to their exam rooms by the time Josiah and Sarah arrived at the hospital. The nurse who showed them to the waiting area explained that Delilah, Samuel, and Henry already had their ultrasound and were now seeing Noah about the amniotic fluid test he took. By the wide-eyed expression on the nurse’s face, it must have been the first time she dealt with a threesome expecting a baby.

Instead of sitting in the chairs, Josiah leaned against the wall. Sarah crossed the corridor and propped herself against the wall across from him. Her thoughts were scrambled. Missus Josiah Hallow. That was her name now. Not to mention, the hard, cold man that she once knew was now loving and gentle. What had changed?

That wasn’t the thing that confused her the most. Her heart had done a one-eighty. At first, she couldn’t stand Josiah Hallow. His arrogance, his non-stop cursing, the way he treated sex like it was an act for gratification only turned her off even though she couldn’t keep herself from dragging him to her bed to satisfy her.

She stared at him. He gave her that crazy grin she used to hate when she first met him. Now it turned her heart inside out. She hoped he smiled like that at her until the day she died. She couldn’t love anyone like she did him. She’d love him past eternity.

He cocked his head. “Are you okay?”

She nodded. She knew she didn’t need to. Her head did it without her consent. “Of course. Why do you ask?”

“You’re staring at me like you saw a ghost. Am I sprouting a couple tufts of fur?”

“No, of course not.”

“Then what’s bothering you?”

She bit her lip before she spoke. “What’s changed between us? We used to hate each other. Remember? I wouldn’t think our quickie marriage would change that. Do you even like me?”

Josiah strode across the hospital corridor to her. In one hand he tilted her head to him and caressed her face. The other gripped her hip and pulled her against him. “Yes, you’ve infuriated me. Being on my ass about cussing? It infuriates me. Refusing to move in with me until we were married even if it would save your life? Still infuriates me. But Sarah, when I look in your eyes I see everything I ever wanted. I see my babes. I see my home. Not the cabin I live in. Home. You are my home. I see the love I want so much it hurts. You are my life, my reason to breathe. I love you.”

She could barely catch her breath. His confession stole it from her. “I love you too, Joe. But what’s changed?”

He sighed. “I saw you chained. I saw your life on the line. I saw a town of werewolves bear down on you. I knew then I couldn’t let anything happen to you. I stood behind my words. You are mine. I will protect you and love you and be by your side until death parts us. Beast or man, I’m yours.”

She touched his cheek. “You almost died for me.”

He turned his face into her palm and pressed a kiss to it. “I’d do it a million times more if it keeps you and our children safe. I mean, if you want kids. We never talked about it.”

“With you as their dad? Yes. I want children. Lots of them.”

The deep, sweet kiss they shared sent shivers of delight through her. This man was her husband for eternity. He was a werewolf. They shared some crazy mating bond. But he was her husband. And she wasn’t going to let him go. Ever.

They broke apart when they heard a door open. Caleb and Meg walked out of the room closest to them hand in hand, each wearing a big smile. They stopped long enough to share a kiss before they strolled down the corridor to Josiah and Sarah.

“So?” Josiah questioned.

Meg looked at her mate. “The baby is healthy and right on track.”

Caleb beamed. “We’re having a boy.”

Sarah laughed. “You seem excited.”

“I am,” he answered. “I love my girls, but now I’ll have one on my side.”

Josiah chuckled. “Great. All we need is a mini Cay running around. You’re enough of a shi…pain in the as…rear end. Now we have two.”

Caleb busted out laughing. “You’re curbing your fucking language. This is priceless. You know I learned to cuss from you.”

Meg elbowed her husband in the ribs. “You could learn from him now.”

Caleb’s mirth turned to a scowl. “What the fuck?”

“You have two young children. Do you want them cursing a blue streak around camp?”

He growled. “No. But you have to watch it, too. You’re worse than me some days.”

Meg kissed him. “Deal.”

Another door opening turned the attention from the conversation to the end of the corridor. Delilah, Samuel, and Henry slipped quietly from the room. Each man had an arm around the little mother. They all seemed puzzled as they stared at each other.

“What did you three find out?” Meg asked.

“Our little guy is growing. He’s the right size, healthy as a horse,” Henry answered.

“So why do you all looked stunned?” Josiah asked. He paused. “You know who the father is, don’t you?”

“Yeah,” Samuel replied. “That’s what’s getting to all of us. We’re both the father. Our perfectly healthy little boy has a strand of human DNA from his mother, a strand of werewolf DNA from me, and a strand of Heka DNA from Henry.”

“What the fuck?” Caleb repeated.

“Language,” Meg chided.

“Even I’m going to let that one go.” Sarah shook her head. “I’m thinking the exact same thing. How does that happen?”

Delilah shrugged. “I guess that’s why I was driven to race home and have sex with Henry right after I had sex with Sam. We’re all mates, and during the full moon, we mate. I guess I have to sleep with both of them to procreate.”

No one had a chance to say anything before the last exam door opened. Micah and Eve shuffled out of the room. He had his arms wrapped tight around her. They looked more lost and confused than Delilah, Samuel, and Henry had.

“Oh, shit,” Josiah said. “Please tell me everything is okay.”

“We’re not having a baby,” Micah announced softly.

The entire group cursed. Even a profanity slipped from Sarah’s lips.

Micah continued. “Guys, it’s not that. It’s not one. It’s three. Two girls and a boy. All healthy and squirmy. We’re having triplets.”

Tear-filled eyes quickly turned to laughter and cheers. Josiah, Caleb, and Samuel managed to tear Micah away from his mate to give him bear hugs. Eve still looked shell-shocked.

Delilah wrapped an arm around Eve. “Is everything all right?”

“Not really,” Eve answered. She looked at Micah. “Can we do this? Are you okay with it?”

Micah chuckled. “Baby, we can do this. And yes, I’m okay with this. Hell, I’ve only known I’m going to be a dad for a few days. We’ve tried for so long. Now we have three little people to love.” He pulled away from his brothers and tugged her into his arms. “My job for the coming months is to pamper you and to kiss you and to protect you and my children.”

“Leave it to Mike and Eve to have a litter,” Caleb joked.

Josiah rolled his eyes as he threaded his fingers between Sarah’s and squeezed her hand tight. “Let’s go home and tell Momma the good news about her grandchildren. Between losing Edith, Edna, Sharky, and Amos, it should lift her spirits quite a bit. We’re going to keep her very busy soon.”

The laughter and chatter filled the halls as they wandered through the hospital to the parking lot. Even Eve perked up and was talking with her sisters-in-law. When they reached the truck, Sarah hugged each of the other women before she accepted Josiah’s hand to help her inside. He hopped in the driver’s seat and fired on the engine to lead the others home.

She scooted across the bench seat of the truck and cuddled against him. He wrapped his arm around her to hold her close.

“That was some amazing news for your family to get today,” Sarah said.

“Our family, beautiful,” Josiah reminded. “My family is your family. And yeah, it was. Going from one kid around the place to five in one shot. It’s incredible.”

“I’m not sure I fit in.”

“You will. Do you cook? Wow. We’re married, and I don’t even know that. Anyway, my understanding is that you should go to the kitchen and help bake or cook or whatever they do in there. A new, lonely sister goes in there. She leaves best buddies with every female in camp.”

Sarah sighed. “You think we’re married. We had a ceremony. That was it. Oh, and some piece of paper that says it’s a marriage license but can’t be because we didn’t apply for it.”

“One that had our full names on it even though Grop didn’t know those. It’s good to know that your middle name is Elizabeth.”

“And yours is Zane.”

He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. “My dad’s name. And it is legal. For shi…kicks and giggles, Eve researched it. It didn’t take her long. Eve is scary when it comes to hacking. Our names and marriage are listed in the Pennsylvania state records. You are legit Missus Sarah Hallow. Unless you like your last name better. If you do, we better get a hold of Grop because the creepy little gnome changed it to Hallow.”

Sarah smiled at him. “I like Hallow. I’m going to keep it.” She paused for a moment. “You were talking about kids earlier.”

She could see his brow furrow as he concentrated on the road. “Yeah. You don’t want kids?”

“I do. What if we tried after my fight? I have no desire to get back in the cage for a while.”

“Don’t feel that just because my sisters are pregnant that you need to get knocked up. Trust me. My mother is going to love you the first time you ask her to sit and read the Bible with you. None of us have done that since Abraham was five.”

“It’s not that. I love children. That’s why I became a teacher. I love you so much. I didn’t know I could love someone as much as I do you. It scares me how fast this has happened, but I don’t want it to stop. I don’t know if it’s the crazy power that brought us together that makes me feel this way. I just know I want to start our family. I want to have a baby with you.”

“We are more than likely on the verge of a war. You know that, right?”

“I won’t let anything happen to you or our child. I know you’re the werewolf. But I’ll fight to keep us safe no matter what it takes.”

She could hardly breathe as she waited for him to speak. She sounded desperate in her own head. Only a couple of weeks ago she pushed him away. Now she just proposed carrying his child. He must think I’m a lunatic.

He never took his eyes off the road, but his grin seemed to spread from ear to ear. “I’ll take you up to the North Cabin the first full moon after the fight. Just you and me. We’ll call it our honeymoon.”

“What’s the North Cabin?”

“It’s a cabin at the northernmost edge of the property we own. It’s next to a lake. Not far from Canada. It’s isolated so I can beast out at night. During the day we sleep and work on getting pregnant. That’s the only time I’m fertile, remember?”

She kissed him on the cheek. “Trust me. I remember. I like the sounds of that plan.”

He pulled his arm free from around her shoulders and patted her knee. Then he slid his hand to the vee of her legs and rubbed her jeans with his fingertips. She gasped as lust filled her. With as much sex as they had in the past day could she really need more?

Her body answered for her. Yes, it needed much more.

His voice was rough as he spoke. “And in the meantime, when we’re not training, we can practice making that baby.”

She moaned as she tossed her head back against the seat. “Yes, please.”

Josiah pulled to the side of the road and grasped her thigh to pull her to him. She straddled his lap without his command and tugged her shirt up over her breasts.

“Do you want to get someplace more private?” he questioned as he nipped at the peaked nub that pressed against the lace of her bra.

She heard the honks of the cars passing as she cupped his face and raised it to hers. He grabbed her ass and pulled her tight against the thick ridge pressing against his jeans.

She breathed her answer just before she parted his lips with hers. “No.”

»»•««

She was really starting to love mornings in this bed.

Sarah snuggled deeper into the covers. She could hear water running in the other room. Any moment now her husband would crawl back into bed with her.

The trip home took longer than they had planned. The two of them lost track of time as they pleasured each other on the side of the road. The Sarah she knew before would have been disgusted by her behavior. She liked the new her, the carefree, wanton woman who loved the eldest Hallow. There was no turning back to the prim, proper school teacher.

They were so consumed with each other they had no idea how many cars passed, if any did at all. Except the last one. They caught sight of the flashing lights as they shared a final kiss. She scrambled off his lap and dressed as fast as she could while he tucked himself in his jeans and straightened his clothes. Sarah swallowed hard. She had never been arrested. The closest thing she’d experienced to jail was the cell she was kept in while at Atticus’s house. Her heart raced. Her skin grew damp with sweat.

And somehow Josiah talked them out of whatever the state trooper had in mind. They were slapped with a warning and sent them on their way. She couldn’t breathe. All he did was chuckle as he drove home.

Once they got back, Josiah was called into the office in the family building to go over the coroner’s reports for Sharky and Amos and to plan their funerals. He left her in the hallway outside the gym with a deep, long kiss before he disappeared with his brothers. She glanced through the window at the hanging bags and mats. She had a fight coming. She should practice.

Instead, the smell of baking cookies led her through the dining room into the kitchen. Meg, Eve, Delilah, and Momma were baking and invited her to join them. Josiah had been right. She felt like an outsider until that point. When the women finished up supper and set the table, she felt like they had been family for years.

Sarah’s thoughts were interrupted as the comforter and sheet were torn from her body. She yelped as teeth sunk into the flesh of her ass. Then she moaned.

Josiah swatted her rump. “Get up,” he ordered.

“Get in bed with me,” she answered, her voice husky.

“I’m serious. Baby, I want nothing more to crawl back into bed with you. I want to make you scream my name. But the coroner’s report showed some inconsistencies to injuries on the charred skeletons’ necks. They have no idea what caused damage like that. We do. Fangs. It just reinforced the fact that I put your life, my life, my family’s life, hell I put the fate of the entire world on your victory. And I have no idea what I’m working with. So get up and get dressed. We’ve got work to do and little time to do it.”

She rolled to her side and sat up. “You are serious.”

“Deadly. Up. I’m not saying this as your husband and mate. I’m saying this as your coach.”

Sarah scooted off the bed and crossed the room to her bag. Once she found a tank top, sports bra, and a pair of Lycra shorts, she dressed and slipped on her flip-flops. She stopped in the bathroom long enough to put her hair in a ponytail and then walked with Josiah to the gym.

They toed off their shoes outside the door of the gym. He held the door open for her and motioned her inside. She took in a wall of floor-to-ceiling mirrors, the bags hanging side by side, the racks of gloves. She felt his hand on her hip.

“Did you bring your gloves?” Josiah asked.

“They’re at home waiting to be moved,” she answered.

“Grab a pair off the rack. I’ll get pads.”

Sarah nodded before she hurried across the gym to the gloves. She first found a pair of wraps and bound her hands. Then she slipped on a pair of white boxing gloves. When she turned around, she found Josiah standing in the middle of the mat with a pair of pads on his hands.

“Get into stance and throw a punch,” he instructed.

Sarah stood in front of him and raise her hands. She threw a jab then a cross into the pads. She dropped her hands as he scowled.

“What is it?” she questioned.

He shook his head. “Your stance is all wrong. You’re practically standing straight up. You’re dropping your hands and not covering your face. No wonder you’re getting knocked out. And your punches have no power behind them. Pardon my language, baby. You, me, all of us? We’re fucked.”

“Then fix it. Show me how to do it right.”

“We have six weeks, Sarah. It’s not enough time. Just tell me you’re a phenom on the ground. Like once you’re on the ground it’s lights out.”

Sarah shrugged. “I don’t have a whole lot of experience with jiu-jitsu.”

Josiah cursed under his breath. Sarah bit her lip. She meant to tell him how inexperienced she was. But she hadn’t even told him she fought. And then she was kidnapped, and everything spiraled apart.

They both turned as the door open. Micah strode in with a piece of paper in his hand. “Just talked to Littlefoot. He wants to have a ceremony for Sharky and Amos on the reservation tomorrow. He wants to bury their ashes there.”

“The cremation is complete?” Josiah questioned.

Micah held up the piece of paper in his hand. “Got the confirmation here.”

Josiah rubbed his face. “Fine. Whatever. Sounds great.”

Micah frowned. “What’s wrong?”

Josiah shook his head. “I screwed up. I let my pride take over, and I told Cort and Rock that Sarah would win. Her stance is a mess. Her punch is weak. She has very little experience on the ground. I just fucked over our entire family.”

“Then fix it. You have six weeks. You prepped me for the cage in about the same time, and I had surgery in the middle of it.”

Josiah shook his head. “You don’t understand. I have to help Littlefoot bury Sharky and Amos. I have to secure our camp from more attacks, and I have to figure out why our phones were jammed and you six were sent to Connecticut…”

Micah held up his hand in protest. “Whoa, bro. Stop. What is this ‘I’ shit? There are seven of us, remember? Not just you.”

“I need to protect the family.”

“No, you need to protect your mate. You have this overinflated idea that you are the sole keeper of all of us. News flash. We’re all adults. Grown men. Even Abe is old enough to drink.” Micah dropped the piece of paper in his hand on the floor and then crossed the mat to Josiah. He laid his hands on his older brother’s shoulder to look him in the eye. “I know Dad dropped taking care of us on you. And I know you’ve been carrying that burden since. Look at me. Stop. I will lead the charge for the next six weeks. We’ll work on figuring everything out, okay? You concentrate on getting Sarah ready for the cage. The other boys and I will take care of the rest.”

Josiah cocked his head to the side confused. “How did you know?”

Micah laughed. “Because I followed you. I was outside the door. Shit. You don’t remember? I was your shadow. You’re my big brother. You were my hero. You still are.”

Josiah pulled Micah into a bear hug. “You’re mine. You’ve dealt with so much.”

“It was hard to give up with you on my ass.” Micah squeezed him quick and then let him go. “I’ll let you know when we need to go to Littlefoot’s tomorrow. And I’ll send someone in to help you. Anyone in particular you want?”

Josiah’s brow furrowed for a moment. “Zeke. He’s the best striker of us seven. Maybe there’s some trick he has.”

“I’ll get him. Oh, thanks for making me a liar.”

“How so?”

“I said no Hallow would step in Rock and Cort’s cage.” Micah pointed at Sarah. “Looks like a Hallow is about to fight for them. Good luck you two. I’ll send Zeke.” Micah gave a brief wave before he walked out the door. Josiah pulled Sarah into his arms and held her tight. He pressed a kiss to her forehead.

“Can we do this?” she asked, her voice soft.

“We have no choice,” he answered. “We have to do this.”

»»•««

Despite it being an informal affair, there wasn’t a dry eye amongst the group as they laid Sharky and Amos to rest. Josiah even noticed Sarah dabbing at the tears cutting paths down her cheeks. He was certain she never met the two old coots.

Littlefoot began the memorial reminiscing about his old friend. He was taking the loss harder than anyone. It made sense to Josiah. First, he lost Zane. Now he lost Sharky. Both had been closer to him than blood. Now they were gone.

Josiah frowned as he sniffled. Friends. Did he ever have any? He couldn’t remember making one human friend other than Littlefoot and Sharky. He couldn’t even consider Leroy a friend.

He glanced around him and smiled a bit. Of course, he didn’t have friends outside the camp. He had six built-in ones right here provided by his parents. He might fight like hell with his brothers, but he would do anything for them. He’d kill for them. He’d lay his life on the line for them.

Littlefoot motioned the seven of them to him. The brothers never shuffled so slowly in their entire lives. He nodded to the shovels leaning against the fence. One by one they each took one and begun digging two holes. He wasn’t sure how long it took to turn the dirt. His arms and shoulders ached. He could feel his palms blister. Finally, Littlefoot cleared his throat to tell them to stop.

Littlefoot, Josiah, Abraham, and Ezekiel took one urn. Micah, Samuel, Caleb, and Joshua took the other. Together they slowly lowered the remains of the two men into the ground. The three youngest stepped back with the rest of the group as the four oldest Hallows filled the holes with dirt again. Once they leaned the shovels against the fence again, they held a moment of silence before returning to their vehicles.

Josiah helped Sarah into the truck and then climbed in the driver’s side. He fired it on and started down the road. He couldn’t think. His mind filled with memories of Sharky and Amos. His dad used to help Sharky with the cars just to spend time talking with his friend. Josiah would tag along. Sometimes he would find something to play with, and sometimes he would push the broom around the shop. When he did, Amos would pay him a quarter. He swept the floor all the time to save money so he could buy candy.

He felt Sarah cuddle against him. “They meant quite a bit to you.”

Josiah shrugged. “They were like uncles. I looked up to them.”

She rubbed his arm. “They helped raise a good man.”

He gave her a small smile. “I wouldn’t say that.”

She grinned at him. “I would.”

They drove the rest of the way to the camp in silence. His thoughts drifted to her, the feeling of her against his arm, the sound of her breath. She was beautiful and smart and brave. He was the luckiest son of a bitch alive. He planned to spend the rest of his life holding her tight.

That was, if she won her fight.

Once they arrived home, they changed and headed to the gym to practice. He hated pushing her so hard. She’d collapsed into bed exhausted last night and was asleep when her head hit the pillow. But she got the severity of the situation. The poor girl worked her ass off. Progress was slow, but he did see some in such a small amount of time.

They didn’t even get their sandals toed off before Micah shot out of the office, breathless. “Joe, Sarah. Good. You’re back.”

“What is it?” Josiah questioned.

“We’ve got Sarah’s opponent. And a reason to call off the fight.”

“What do you mean?” Sarah asked.

Micah turned over the piece of paper dangling between his pinched fingers. There was a portrait of a woman in a sports tank top with long brown hair. “Amara Toth from Trenton, New Jersey.”

Josiah took the paper from him and studied it. “Never heard of her. Why would this get Sarah out of the fight?”

“Check her mouth, Joe. Chick is sporting fangs.”

Josiah peered closer at it and then blew out a long, steady breath. He bit back the cuss word on his lips. “She’s a bloodsucker.”

“A what?” Sarah asked as she took the picture from Josiah.

“A vampire, beautiful. Immortal, which means unable to be beaten. She’s a sure win. Rock and Cort gave their word they wouldn’t have you fight one of their own. They lied. They broke the deal they made.”

Sarah was quiet for a moment. “What happens if we back out? Will they let us be even though they were the ones who transgressed the deal?”

Josiah and Micah stared at each other. They knew the answer. It felt like a knife in his gut. “No. They’ll come after us.”

She handed the paper to Micah. “Then let me fight.”

“Sarah, you’ll lose,” Micah warned.

“I’d rather try to win if it’ll mean our family will be safe.”

“You don’t understand. There’s no chance in hell you could pull it off.”

Josiah rubbed his chin. “Maybe there is.”

Micah’s brow furrowed. “Enlighten me. What do you know that you haven’t told me?”

“That Atticus told me why the vamps want Henry and the amulet in the first place. It seems to have an enormous benefit for each type of non-mortal creature. For vampires, it gives the ability to walk during the day.”

Micah and Sarah’s eyes grew wide. “It would be a twenty-four seven feeding frenzy on humans. There would be no escape. Thousands would die. No, wait. They would all die.”

“Exactly.”

“Did good old granddad say what the benefit was for werewolves?”

Josiah was quiet for a moment. “To end the curse.”

“You mean be human?”

“Yes.”

“Shit. No more change. No more pain. We wouldn’t have to leave our mates a week a month.”

“We wouldn’t have mates. There would be no such thing as mating.”

“Shit.”

Sarah touched Josiah’s arm. “You said vampires could walk during the day if they had the amulet.”

“I did. What are you getting at?”

“That means they can’t now.”

“True.”

“They cheated. Why can’t we?”

Josiah chuckled. “Aren’t you supposed to be my good church girl? Here you are, talking about cheating. What do you have in mind?”

Sarah grinned. “Ultraviolet lamps.”

“Babe, how could we possibly pass off lamps that big?”

“What about micro flashlight size? There has to be something out there small enough to resemble a cell phone camera flash.”

Micah nodded. “It’s not a bad idea. We can put some of Littlefoot’s family in the stands. They can flash the UV bulbs instead of the cell phones.”

“Will it be enough though?” Josiah questioned.

“We’ve got to try. Put them ringside. The closer, the better. I’ll have Eve research the best options, and when she finds it, I’ll order them.”

“Wait, I didn’t…” Josiah objected.

“I’m pretty sure I told you I’m in charge,” Micah interrupted. “Go train your girl. I’ll send Abe in to grapple with her.”

Josiah chuckled. “Okay, boss.”

“Dang straight.” Micah strode out into the summer afternoon sunshine.

Josiah held the gym door open for Sarah and grinned at her. “His head’s so inflated with power I don’t get to choose what I’m training today.”

Sarah laughed. “Seems that way, huh?”

He let the door fall closed and pulled her into his arms. She sighed as he parted her mouth with his. The taste of her lips, the feel of her tongue caressing his drove him mad. He gripped her ass in his hands and pulled her tight against him. His cock pressed hard against her. He moaned. He was certain she did too.

He forgot about Abe coming to grapple until the door hit him in the arm. “Shouldn’t you save that for your cabin?” the youngest Hallow remarked.

Josiah huffed as he broke the kiss. “Are you ready, smart ass?”

“Always. Hey, did you hear that The Luchador signed to fight in the same promotion as Sarah? Totally legit and everything.”

“Why the hell is that talentless hack fighting MMA? He’s a pro wrestler, not a mixed martial artist.”

Abraham scowled. “He’s not a talentless hack. I bet he’ll surprise you.”

“You think that because you’re his biggest fan. Is he wearing that stupid mask?”

“I assume so.”

“Against the rules but it’s Cort and Rock, so it makes sense. Let’s get to work.” He pressed a kiss to Sarah’s lips and then swatted her ass. “Center of the mat. Let’s work takedowns.”

Sarah winked at him. “Yes, sir.”

Abraham rolled his eyes as he shuffled to the middle of the mat. Sarah squared off with him. In seconds Abraham had her off her feet and on her back. But after nearly a dozen tries she was resisting him. Josiah sighed. This whole fight was a long shot.

But the odds were starting to swing in their favor.