Filed to story: The Wolf Prince’s Fated Love
“Let’s go find out.”
In minutes, we were standing at the front steps up to Gracelyn and Adam’s cabin, the sturdy logs some of the first we’d cut here after the main lodge was finished. The whole pack pitched in, as was our way. It was fine workmanship, but we weren’t here to admire it.
Adam stood with his shoulders slumped, leaning against the front door, one hand resting on it, pleading with his heavily pregnant mate through the door. “Please, my love. Please. Let me in, and take some rest. The stress isn’t good for you, or the little one.”
His voice was that of a broken man, and I could feel his desperation through the pack bond. I sent a rush of soothing energy through it as we climbed the steps, and I dropped a hand on his shoulder.
“What’s the problem, Adam? What’s happened?”
“Alpha, she found out that the ODL is here, and flew off the handle. She’s angry I didn’t tell her, and I deserve that.” He hung his head, and I squeezed his shoulder. “But I didn’t want to stress her. She’s had such a hard time, I wanted her to have as much peace as she could. But she got angry, and kicked me out. She’s trying to hide it, but I think the stress has sent her into early labor. I’m getting glimpses of pain through our bond, when she stops concentrating on blocking me. Goddess, it’s not supposed to be like this. I’m scared, Kane. What if I lose them both?”
His voice cracked, and my heart lurched at the pain I could feel radiating from him through the pack bond, and the naked fear in his voice. It was a very real possibility that the delivery could go badly, but I couldn’t dwell on that. As Alpha, I had to be the rock he leaned on.
“Excuse me,” Brielle interrupted, elbowing past us without hesitation. “Gracelyn. It’s Brielle. Remember me from earlier?”
There was a muffled snuffling sound from inside, and then Gracelyn’s soft voice on the other side of the door. “Yes, I remember.”
“Great. I have some ginger and red raspberry leaf tea right here for you in my bag. Could I come in, please? I think you might need the healer.”
“Just you.” There was a deep groan from the other side that rocked me back on my heels, but Brielle didn’t blink. “Nobody else is allowed in.
Nobody.”
“That’s fine. We don’t need these guys taking up all the space, anyway. I could check on you, if you’re okay with that.”
“Yes.” The door lock clicked open, and Brielle leveled a stern look at me and Adam, who stood like he was about to shoulder that door open like a linebacker.
“You two are going to stay right here and respect her wishes. Are we clear?” She may have been a psi-or an omega-but in that moment, she was all alpha female, and she was glorious-protective authority practically rolling off her.
“Yes, mate. Go to her. If you need us, call.” I gripped Adam’s shoulder tighter as Brielle slipped through the door, turning sideways and shutting and locking it immediately, not even letting us have a glimpse inside.
How could I ever have thought her too weak to be mine? Brielle was fiercely protective, and I loved her even more for it.
SEVENTEEN
Brielle
“How are you doing, Gracelyn? Can you tell me what’s going on?” I tried to keep my voice low and soothing, because from the looks of things, Gracelyn had been struggling for a while. The small front room of the cabin was a wreck, with just about everything out of place.
Not like a temper tantrum, but more like she kept knocking into things while she paced, which she was still doing, completely ignoring me as she grabbed at her heavily pregnant belly.
“Can you sit down for me so I can check your ankles?”
She grimaced and clutched her lower back, but didn’t stop moving.
Hell, she really might be in preterm labor.
“Okay, you shouldn’t be having contractions yet. It’s time to sit down and put your feet up.”
When she didn’t respond, I crossed the room, wrapped my arms around her shoulders, and pulled her to me in a hug. She shuddered and then clung to me, sobs racking her shoulders.
“They can’t take my baby, Bri. I won’t let them. I would die, just die. Do you know how long it took us to get pregnant? A hundred years. A hundred years of hopes and dreams, and they might take her. Please, please, promise you won’t let them take her.
Please.”
Wolf shifters were not a fecund species, despite our longevity. It was typical for children to be rare, and spaced far, far apart if a couple were blessed with a second pregnancy. But even knowing this clinically, seeing the toll it took on Gracelyn in the moment, it hit me harder than it ever had before. I had a fated mate now, and it was all so much more real. Visceral.
“Shhh, Gracelyn. It’s going to be okay. Nobody is going to hurt you or your child. But if we can’t get these contractions to stop, she might come too early, and we don’t want that. Do you think you can lie down?”
She nodded, still gulping and gasping through her flood of tears. She let me steer her out of the front room and into a larger living area, with a big, fluffy chaise lounge next to a love seat. I guided her down onto it and grabbed a few throw pillows to arrange behind her back. Once she was comfortably reclined, I sank down onto my heels and checked her pulse at her wrist. It was a bit fast, but nothing dangerous.
She groaned again, and I placed a hand lightly on her belly. Rock hard. I acted on autopilot, relying on my studies but also instinct. Seeing a female in trouble drove my wolf, had her pushing me to act and act quickly. I found their bedroom and grabbed more pillows to stuff under her feet. I positioned her on her side and then went to the kitchen for an ice pack. I wrapped it in a towel to keep it tolerable on her flushed skin. I settled it against her neck, and she shivered.
I settled back down on my knees next to the chaise and ran my thumb over the back of her hand, back and forth, just trying to give her something to focus on. After several minutes of silence, she spoke.
“He didn’t mean to upset me. He never does, really. He’s just so scared, he didn’t want me to, to-” She hiccupped, then groaned. “He didn’t want me to do this,” she gestured to herself, upset and contracting, “but I can’t help it. It’s every wolf’s worst fear, come to hang over the end of my pregnancy like a guillotine. I just want them gone, Bri. When they’re gone, I can pretend they don’t exist. But having them here, waiting. Who would call them here? Who could be that cruel?” She started sobbing harder, her shoulders shaking, and I leaned forward to hug her again.
“I don’t know, honey, but Kane’s going to find out. Nobody wants them here, and nobody wants them putting pressure on you.” I stroked her hair, shushing her softly until her sobs softened to gentle, even breaths. As gently as I could, I pulled back to grab the soft chenille throw from the back of the love seat and tucked it over her. Instead of covering her feet, though, I pulled the hem of her stretchy black leggings up a few inches so I could see her ankles.
Definitely swelling, maybe more than the alfalfa I’d grabbed on the way out of the room could help. We needed juniper, and she needed to be off her feet until it kicked in and knocked this swelling out. Tucking the blanket around her feet just so, I walked back to the front door and opened it a crack. Adam was slumped against one of the support posts, eyes sunken and grim, the very picture of a worried-sick male. He nearly leapt at me, but Gael’s hand on his arm halted him in his tracks.
Kane closed the distance, but I held up a hand. “No one else is coming in until she’s okay with it. I got her comfortable and lying down with her feet up, to see if we can stop the contractions for now, but she’s got more swelling than I realized, and that’s putting strain on her too. I need somebody to get some juniper berries so I can make a poultice for her.”
Adam let out a tortured whine and pulled against Gael’s hold. “Please, Alpha. She needs me, even if she’s too stubborn to admit it. I won’t do anything but hold her. Please.” My heart clenched at his pleading, but this wasn’t my call to make. It was Gracelyn’s.
“I promise I’ll call you the second she asks for you,” I reassured him as softly as possible. My gaze swung to Kane, who had his hands clasped together behind his back. “Can you send someone for the berries?”
He nodded once, his eyes never releasing mine. “Anything you need, anything she needs.”
“Thank you. Can you tell Leigh and Shay-I don’t know. At least where we are? I don’t want them to come looking for me and worry…” I couldn’t say the words.
That something had gone wrong.