Chosen by Sin (18 page)

Right now, he wanted to talk to her patient. With his mind on his
mission, now was not the time to talk about the baby.

Automatically, she shook her head. “Wait. No.
T’es fou?
”

When he cocked a brow, she said, “It means,
Are you crazy
? He’s recovering from a critical wound. He needs
rest.”

“How much rest are you talking about?”

“Days, at least.”

Dex ran his hands through his hair in obvious frustration. “Damn it. In
days, there could be several more killings. I’ll leave. Come back—”

“No!” She fought to keep the desperation out of her voice.

Dex put his hands on his hips. “You don’t seem keen on me leaving
anytime soon. And that brings us right back to my initial questions, doesn’t
it? This time, I want you to answer me, Jes. How’d you know I was in France,
and why did you bring me here?”

“If I tell you how I knew you were here, you’re not going to believe
me!” she cried.

“Try me.”

“Fine.” The stress of the past few days—hell, the stress of a
lifetime spent desperately clinging to love only to lose it over and over
again—suddenly became too much for her. In her mind, Dex was pulling away
and ready to walk out the door. All she knew was that she couldn’t let him
leave her. Not like everyone else in her life had. Not this time.

“I’m pregnant,” she said.

***

Dex didn’t react for several seconds. When he did, it was only to turn
pale. Finally, he repeated, “You’re pregnant.”

Since she knew it wasn’t a question, just an echo of the shock she’d
given him, Jes didn’t reply.

He blinked several times. “You just said you couldn’t get pregnant.”

Again, she said nothing and his expression darkened. “Because you
are
pregnant? And I’m to assume by the fact that you’re
telling me this that, what, the baby’s—”

“—yours,” she confirmed.

“Bullshit,” he gritted out.

“
C’est vrai.
It’s true.”

He laughed. Out loud.

Then grew completely quiet again.

They stared at each other, as if each was daring the other to speak
first.

“You want to tell me how the fuck that’s even possible?” Dex asked
softly.

“You were there. All four times. I think you know.”

He shook his head. Began pacing the room while raking his hands through
his hair. “You told me in L.A. you couldn’t get pregnant. Even if you were
lying—”

“I—truly thought I couldn’t get pregnant. I’d been told by my
doctors that I couldn’t.”

He kept talking despite her interruption. “I wore condoms—”

“Which aren’t foolproof,” she retorted.

He stopped pacing and pointed his finger accusingly at her. “It’s been
just over a week since we were together.”

She crossed her arms protectively over her belly. “Vampires have a
different gestation period than humans. It’s short, and a successful
fertilization presents itself almost immediately. I’ll give birth within a
month, but I’ll begin to show within days.”

He grasped his temples. “This is crazy. This is—” He looked
frantically around him, as if searching for an answer he wasn’t going to find.
“So this is why you brought me here? Because you thought—what? I had a
right to know? That I’d propose, and we’d be one big happy family?”

He was yelling now. She’d known he would react this way. She strove to
keep her own voice calm, but inside, she was crying. “One out of two isn’t
bad,” she said softly.

“What’s that mean? That you
don’t
want me to propose? Good! But if you don’t want me to be part of some farce of
a family, then why? Why am I here?”

“For one reason and one reason only. Because I need you.”

“You need me,” he sneered. “Yeah, you sure needed me an hour ago. What,
did you think fucking me would make me more receptive to your little
bombshell?”

“Listen to me,” she said quietly. “The sex we just had wasn’t about
anything but me wanting you. I should have had more self control but—”

“Damn straight you should have!”

She kept talking over him. “I should have had more self control, but
the fact remains I’m pregnant with your child.”

He grew deathly quiet at her flat statement, until all she could hear
was his labored breath. Until she could see the realization in his eyes.

He was beginning to believe what she was telling him.

She licked her lips before continuing. “The reason I knew you were in
France is because our baby sensed it. We felt it. Together. And you can’t
leave. Not to go back to the United States. Not to talk to shape-shifters. Not
for any reason. Because if you do, our baby will die.”

***

Dex seriously felt like his brain was about to explode.

If he didn’t know better, he’d think he was dreaming again.

No, not dreaming. Having the worst fucking nightmare of his life. And
that was counting his years in the orphanage and the dream where Rurik had him
cornered naked and helpless in a damn bathroom.

“You’re crazy, lady,” he managed to choke out. “And even if you’re not,
what do you expect me to say to that? You expect me to be shackled to you so
you can—you can—”

“Keep your baby alive.”

“It’s not my baby. You tricked me. Lied to me.”

“I didn’t lie. I told you, I believed—”

“I know a vamp can lie,” he said desperately, remembering how Knox’s
brother, Zeph, a full vampire, had lied. He’d heard that from Knox himself.
“It’s possible.” But while that might be true, it didn’t really matter if in the
end all Jesmina had lied about was her ability to conceive. The question was,
was she lying about being pregnant?

“I’m not denying that. There are things that can be done to enable a
vampire to lie. They’re not necessarily pretty, but if someone is determined
enough, they can make it happen. I haven’t developed the ability. I really
thought I couldn’t conceive.”

“And you expect me to believe you why?”

“I. Am. Pregnant. With your child. I’m asking you to stay with me. To
give my baby a chance to survive.”

“Stay with you? Here? For a month? I have a fucking job to do!” He was
shouting so loudly, he expected her to flinch back. She didn’t.

Incredibly, her expression turned haughty and she actually sniffed.

Sniffed!

“And there’s no one else who can do it?” she practically jeered. “You,
Dex Hunt, are the only one who can successfully get the FBI the information it
needs?”

“I need to get out of here. I need to think.” He strode to the library
doors, then froze. She’d said she needed him to stay with her or the baby might
die. He didn’t want to believe there was a baby, or that the baby’s life
depended on him, but what if? What if she was telling the truth? He couldn’t
take that chance. Not when he was still reeling from the shock of her
revelation. He turned back to her. “How close do I have to stay to do what
you”—he waved his hand in an all-encompassing gesture—“I mean, to
keep the baby safe?”

“I don’t know. You just being in France has already helped. The baby
was dying. But then I felt—felt your presence. Felt the baby rally. But I
didn’t truly feel stronger until you arrived and after we—”

He averted his gaze. Stared at a point just over her right shoulder and
gritted his teeth. “If I stay on the grounds, will that be okay?”

“I think so. I don’t think you have to stay that close to me
to—to help us.”

“Good,” he bit out. He whirled, grabbed the door handles, and flung the
heavy oak slabs wide open. “Because being next to you is the last thing I
want.”

Behind him, she gasped, as if his words had caused her intense pain,
but he didn’t look back.

He couldn’t.

He was too afraid of what else he might say, what he might
do
.

Practically staggering, he rushed through the castle halls, retraced
the path Cy had taken from the entrance to the library, then pushed open the
front doors with something like desperation. When he stepped outside, he sucked
in the crisp evening air as if he was starving for it. Dots flashed in front of
his eyes and he automatically bent over, head down, palms braced against his
thighs.

The same litany kept repeating over and over in his mind.

Can’t be. Can’t be. Can’t be.

He’d vowed never to have kids.

Kids were soft. Fragile. Easily hurt.

Life was hard.

He was hard.

He’d never wanted to be the source of pain for any child and he knew,
with him for a father, a child was bound to suffer. If not physically, then
because of Dex’s careless way with words. And if not by that, then by neglect.
Or if a miracle happened and Dex somehow managed to be a decent father, his
child would still suffer the stigma of being part dog. A mongrel. One with a
half-breed father whose own family had abandoned him…Sent him away to live with
a bunch of other unwanted werebeast children who were sometimes abused,
sometimes starved, and sometimes even worse.

Dex’s heart constricted, as if someone had reached inside him and
mercilessly squeezed it, and he grasped at his chest. His left knee gave out
and crumbled, hitting the ground. The world around him swirled, faster and
faster, like he was on a merry-go-round from hell. The dots grew bigger,
blacker. He heard the pounding sound of running feet and wondered if the devil
himself was chasing him.

***

From somewhere outside, the sound muffled by distance, came a man’s
scream. Jes bolted to her feet, straining to hear. To her horror, it wasn’t an
isolated sound, but kept on coming. Her shock morphed into panic. Dex. Dex was
in trouble. She barreled after him, her breath nearly choking her when she
realized he wasn’t screaming, but shouting. She could barely make out what he was
saying, but the words sounded like: “can’t be.” He was yelling over and over
again, but it was his tone, not his words, that sliced into her. He didn’t just
sound angry, he sounded overwrought. In pain.

Because of her.

When she finally made it outside, he was illuminated by her house
lights. He was half-kneeling, one leg bent, one knee and one hand on the
ground, and the other hand grasping at his chest as if he was having a heart
attack. Fear made her stumble. “Dex! Oh Goddess, no!” she shouted.

The ground shook behind her an instant before Cy barreled past, getting
to Dex before she could.

“Shit! What the hell’s wrong with him?” Cy shouted.

She shook her head. “I don’t know. We talked. He was angry. But not
crazed. Not like this. Maybe he’s having a heart attack.” She stepped closer.

“Stand back, Jes!” Cy gripped Dex’s arm and called his name.

***

Dex heard shouts.

Jesmina’s faint voice in the distance.

Strong fingers gripped his arm. “Hunt! What are you feeling?”

That sounded like Cy, the male who’d brought him to Jesmina. But why
would Cy care how he was feeling?

Didn’t make any sense.

Cy wanted Jes, didn’t he?

Did he want Dex’s baby, too?

From out of nowhere, that thought became Dex’s sole focus.

Danger.

Jesmina. His baby. His.

No one was going to take what was his away from him.

No one.

Kill. Kill the man who was trying to take what was his.

The pain in his chest intensified at the same time a heady power surged
through him.

With an inhuman roar, he straightened, grabbed Cy by the arms, and even
though the other man was several inches taller, Dex lifted him into the air,
then body slammed him to the ground. Before Cy could recover, Dex grabbed his
throat and squeezed, not satisfied until Cy began to gasp and wheeze for air.

Kill him.

Do it now.

***

With a feral scream that made Jes’s skin crawl, Dex exploded into
movement until he had pinned Cy to the ground, his fingers wrapped around his
throat.

“No!” Jesmina leaped forward and latched on to Dex, clawing at the arm
he was using to strangle Cy. “Stop. Dex!” But despite her pleas and her
attempts to loosen his grip, Dex didn’t relent. He didn’t even look at her. His
twisted features appeared demonic. As if he was crazed. On drugs. Completely
focused on killing Cy.

“Mine. Kill,” he spat out.

“Jes—” Cy’s voice was thready.

A quick glance confirmed he was running out of air. Though he was
trying to extract himself from Dex’s grip, he seemed to be holding back. With
shame, Jes realized it was because of her. Cy knew Jes cared about Dex. Because
of her feelings for the were, Cy was reluctant to hurt him. But if he didn’t do
something fast, Dex would kill him. “Cy, shift. Use your power. Make Dex let go
of you.”

Cy’s watering eyes widened for a split second before he gasped, “Get
back.”

Swiftly, Jes obeyed, stumbling backward as her gaze skipped between the
two men. This was all her fault. Dex had been driven mad by the news she’d
given him and now he was hurting Cy. Killing him. They—

It took mere seconds for Cy to shift. One moment he looked like his
humanoid self, a tall handsome man struggling to breathe, and in the next, his
body went rigid and seemed to turn to stone. His hair and flesh fossilized,
turning egg-shell white just before it began to glow, as if being heated from
within. Wisps of smoke wafted around him as his body heat rocketed to a
sizzling seven hundred degrees Celsius before bursting into flames.

Upon Cy’s ignition, Dex screamed and automatically let go of the
dragon-shifter.

In slow motion, Dex careened backward, his palms blistered and
smoldering, his arms windmilling, before he hit the ground with a resounding
thud.

Keeping an eye on the mass of fire that had swallowed Cy, knowing it
would take a few moments for the flames to dissipate, Jes rushed to Dex. She
bit her lip, whimpering when she saw that parts of his clothing had burned
away, leaving scalded, bubbling skin behind.