Make A Wish (Dandelion #1) (21 page)

“That’s beautiful, Juliette.” Beau’s eyes softened and the look he gave me warmed my heart. “And you kept it up even while you were gone?”

“Yeah—I mean, it took some convincing to talk them into letting me do it but eventually they did, after they were totally one hundred percent sure I wasn’t going to stab them with the pen. Which I totally contemplated many times.”

“Would you let me read them?”

“Do you really want to?”

“I do,” Beau said.

I could feel him looking in my direction, but I was no longer looking at him. Instead my eyes were pinned to my hand—which was resting on the base of my protruding belly—in thought. I had written about Beau so many times in the entries I’d written. Some good but some not.

“I don’t know if that’s a good idea, Beau. You might just hate me after reading it. I talked about you a lot and it wasn’t always the best. There’s not anything too bad but I imagine it would still hurt to read.”

Beau nodded. “I understand, Juliette, I do but I’m sure anything you’ve written in there was well deserved. I made mistakes but I’d still really like to read it. But if you’d rather I not, I understand completely.”

I sighed.
God damn baby daddy.

“Ok. You can read it. But let me finish transferring over everything first and please—” I cleared my throat, “—don’t hate me.”

“Take your time.” Beau stood and left the room, leaving me with my thoughts.

Dear Baby,

We’re free. Yesterday we were rescued from the terrible place, and you’ll never guess by who. Your father, Beau. I’m still being surprised by how much has changed since we’ve been in there but I couldn’t be happier to be out.

I feel like a weight has been lifted from my shoulders, knowing that you won’t be born into that environment. You’re surrounded by such amazing people. You’re gonna be so well-loved
—
you already are.

Your daddy and I have started getting to know each other, as friends. I’m enjoying spending time with him. He’s so different than I remembered but in a good way.

Turns out, Beau is really excited about you and wants to be involved in your life. I’m beginning to understand more about what it means to be a parent. Sacrifice. Your needs and wants will always come before my own, as it should be. Beau being in your life is so important to me, and I’ve come to learn that I won’t be losing you to him, but gaining him, as part of your family. You don’t even realize it yet, but you’re bringing us all together. Me, your daddy, Saylor, some of your dads family, and lots of others. You’re our little miracle and you’re proving it every day by just being you. I’m counting down the moments till we can finally meet.

Love you with all my heart,

Xoxo, Mommy

BEAU

“You ready?” I asked Juliette, helping her out of the car.

“Not really. I’m kind of terrified,” she confessed shyly as she brushed a stray hair from her face. “What if something is wrong?”

“There won’t be anything wrong. But if by chance there is, I’ll be right beside you. You aren’t facing this alone.” I kept my voice gentle and kind, reassuring her in the best way that I knew possible that I wouldn’t be leaving. Something being wrong was what I feared too, but I couldn’t let her in on that. With everything she endured, it was now her time to lean on someone else for a change.

“Thanks, B. I’m glad you’re here with me.”

“Me too.” I linked our arms together and led her into the small private clinic where her ultrasound had been scheduled. With what happened the last time she’d went to a hospital, I wasn’t going to risk it.

We luckily didn’t have to wait long—about fifteen minutest or so—before we were called back into one of the patient rooms.

“What’s wrong?” I asked her as she froze outside the door of the room.

“It’s just, being in a place like this brings back memories. Some good, others painful.”

“It’s okay. It’s not the same as before. I’m here with you and I won’t let anything happen to you both. I promise.”

She nodded her head and finally stepped forward. I let go of her arm to let her go first, but once inside the room, my hand found hers, like two pieces of a jigsaw puzzle.

“Hello, Juliette. I’m Clarissa, your sonographer. I’ll be administering your ultrasound today.” She turned to me and smiled a warm smile. “I’m assuming you’re the father?”

“Yes, Ma’am.” I couldn’t help the stupid grin that made an appearance. I was proud. I’m no longer just Beau an Alpha werewolf, now I’m also a father.

“I thought so.” She winked before setting up the equipment. When she turned back to look at us, her smile was abnormally large. “Excuse me if I’m overstepping, but I bet you that your baby is going to be just beautiful.”

“Why do you say that?” Juliette asked curiously, and I admitted, I wanted to know as well.

“I can just tell. You both look like models—that little one has some killer genes.”

“That’s too sweet, thank you.” A slight blush spread across the tops of Juliette’s cheeks.

I squeezed her hand a little tighter in mine and my heart soared when she squeezed back. I pulled up a small stool beside the leather patient bed and sat, all the while Juliette’s hand resting firmly in mine.

“You ready to get started?” Clarissa asked.

Juliette nodded as Clarissa began giving instructions. “Okay, I need you to roll up your shirt to just above the belly and lie back for me.”

Clarissa continued on, explaining what was going to happen, but the words became a blur in my mind. I could only focus on Jules’ rapid breathing and beating heart. I knew she was scared, and that she would be until we heard the news that our child was okay, that nothing was wrong.

“Now this will be a little cold at first,” she spoke, squeezing a clear gel onto Juliette’s stomach. It only took a few seconds of her moving the sensor-thing around before a beautiful thumping noise pierced the air around us. “That’s your baby’s heartbeat.”

For a big tough guy, hearing the heartbeat of my very own child made me all emotional. I couldn’t help it. Resting peacefully inside this beautiful amazing woman was a piece of both of us.

I looked over at Juliette’s bright aqua eyes and saw that she had full-blown tears flowing down her face. I pulled her tightly against me, and she buried her tear stained face into the crook of my neck.

“Told you everything would be okay,” I whispered into her ear.

“The heartbeat is normal and so far everything looks to be checking out perfectly,” Clarissa said as she looked over the sonogram. “Would you like to know the gender of your child?”

Juliette pulled away and looked up at me. “It’s up to you, B.” Her voice was no more than a whisper.

I reached over and grabbed a tissue from the counter filled with medical instruments, then proceeded to wipe the moisture from her cheeks.

“If it’s okay, I’d love to know.” I tossed the tissue away and rested my hand gently on the nape of her neck, rubbing small circles on her shoulder.

“We’d love to know.” Juliette nodded at the woman as she looked back into my eyes. Hers twinkled with happiness and mine with contentment.

Clarissa pointed to the screen, noting the baby’s body parts—the head, feet, hands and legs. “Right here,” she said pointing to in between the two legs, “there isn’t any boy parts so I’m ninety-nine percent sure that you are having a baby girl.”

With that news, Juliette broke down even further. I pulled her tightly against me, wrapping my arms around her, barely processing the little tidbit of news we’d just heard.

“Would you like a moment?” Clarissa mouthed silently to me.

Without saying a word, I nodded my head and she slipped quietly from the room.

“We’re gonna have a daughter, B.”

Our eyes met, and I had to take a deep breath. I rarely ever became emotional, but I was barely holding myself together. Juliette being in my arms made it that much harder. I felt as if my wolf was prancing around inside of me—in pride.

But the moment we pulled apart, I let my feelings out just a little. My lips brushed softly over hers and her body shuddered against mine. I deepened the kiss, only for a moment before whispering to her, “I hope our little girl is just like you.”

“Wow… A girl!” Juliette exclaimed while I drove us back to the reservation.

My brain was working on overdrive trying to process the newly learned news. I was so elated that we were going to be having a daughter, but I also couldn’t help but think about the test results and how the unthinkable had happened.

One night with Juliette—a human woman—resulted in a pregnancy, with a baby girl. This was like an incredible anomaly in the werewolf world and it had happened to me. What were the odds?

***

We hadn’t been back at the reservation long before Juliette had taken off to meet up with Saylor and Eve, to tell them the good news. Right before she left, she had walked right up to me and handed me the journal of letters.

It’d taken me awhile to gather up the nerve to read it but when I opened it, I couldn’t put it down.

The raw emotion that she portrayed in each word spoke to me. At times I would get so angry at what I was reading. Partly because of the grudge I still held against myself for leaving her, other times because of the way she had been treated in her time being locked away. Then moments later, I’d find myself laughing at her spirit and personality. There were even times I’d wanted to cry but suppressed the urge and continued to read.

When I reached the end and read the final entry that she had written just days before, in my very living room, I let the few tears that threatened me escape.

Closing the book, I stood. I had to go speak with Harlow. I had more questions that needed to be answered than answers themselves.

***

“So actually it took me no time at all to figure out the whole genetic aspect of it. One look at the baby’s test results and I knew that I had seen this before.”

“Explain.” I stood tall, my shoulders back and my long hair tied into a ponytail. The timbre of my voice was firm yet polite while I waited for Harlow to speak.

“Your child is full werewolf, Sir.”

“I don’t understand. Juliette is full human. How can our child be full werewolf?”

“That’s the thing I was trying to say. Juliette isn’t full human. In fact, it’s the other way around—she is a full Were. That is why every test result shows abnormalities and inconsistencies. She was tested as if she was a human but I can assure you that she is not.”

I leaned down and sat in one of the dining room chairs in Harlow’s home, rubbing my temples as if it would magically help the sudden headache that was coming on go away.

“If she is exactly like us, how can she not phase? When I’m near her, I don’t smell a Were gene in her blood and she certainly doesn’t have the wolf abilities that we have or she would have been able to get herself out of some sticky situations fairly easily.”

“I don’t know, Alpha. I truly don’t know.” Harlow sighed, just as frustrated as I seemed to be. “I can do some research, and we can meet up in the next couple days. I’ve never come across a situation quite like this before, a full Were that has never phased—at her age. It’s pretty much unheard of,” she thought out loud.

“That seems doable. Juliette and I have a lot to do anyways to prepare for our daughter’s arrival in the next few months.” Again my stupid silly smile found its way to my face. Something I learned happened every time I thought of Juliette and my child.

“A little girl!” Harlow exclaimed. “Incredible! She’s truly a blessing to us all.”

I laughed at her sudden excitement before giving the small woman a hug and leaving.

MILES

“That bitch!” I yelled, yanking the lamp off the desk of the hotel room and tossing it against the wall, pieces breaking off and scattering to the ground.

I’d been in hiding ever since I discovered that Miguel had been arrested and Juliette had been found. I felt something was wrong when I’d noticed a car following me just days before.

I had staked out Juliette’s apartment, but she hadn’t returned there. I needed to find her; I wasn’t done doing what I needed to do. I needed to get back my research that had been stolen. But most of all, I wasn’t done getting my revenge for everything she’d put me through all those years ago.

I was sixteen when my parents decided to become foster parents. They liked the additional money coming in and I didn’t blame them. It was nice to get some finer things now and then.

I’d been seventeen when Juliette had come to live with us. There was something about her. Her purity, her innocence. It called to me. She followed my around like a lost puppy, always wanting to ‘play,’ but I knew better. I knew what she wanted, so I gave it to her. It was right after I’d turned eighteen that she’d gone to my parents, telling them I touched her in her ‘no-no’ places. They acted as if they didn’t believe her, but I could see how they looked at me different after that.

Juliette had been sent away, but the investigations soon followed. Turns out she’d gone to an adult in the group home she’d been sent to after ours, telling them the same thing. My parents and I had come up with a cover story and we made sure to relay it precisely to officials—over and over again.

Long story short, I got lucky. The investigation was dropped and I wasn’t arrested, but by then the damage had been done. My name had been tarnished and my parents stopped speaking to me after being banned from fostering other kids.

Juliette had won.

Shortly after, I’d changed my name to Miles. Close enough to my real name but different enough that my past wouldn’t be connected to it quite so quickly. I needed a chance to start over and I had, but then Juliette walked into
my
hospital.

Miguel had called from jail and had tried to convince me to turn myself in. He said there was a whole group of people out there helping Juliette and I didn’t stand a chance. He said that the men who rescued Juliette had threatened him, said anyone who came within breathing distance of her or the fetus would pay.