The Island Of Alphas: A BBW Paranormal Romance (17 page)

"And you're positive that you and your pack can hold back Dominic and his own pack until then?"

"Positive. We will keep them from Clearwater. There will be guards posted all around the village and in the jungles up from the beach and around the medical center as well."

"Why the medical center?"

"Well...it's kind of a long story, but we keep something, a special artifact, in one of the underground bunkers beneath the medical center. And we're not entirely certain that Dominic knows about the existence of this artifact, but on the off-chance that he does, we want to keep him from it."

"What is it?"

"It's an ancient crystal amulet, left here by one of the scientists when we shifters were first created. It supposedly has supernatural powers, though nobody really knows for sure. I just prefer to keep it safe and locked up. Dominic reportedly has some supernatural powers of his own, though I've never seen any evidence of this, but considering all the strange supernatural things that occur on this island, it could very well be true. If that's the case, the last thing I need is for him to get his hands on an amulet that could further increase any powers he already has.”

Just then, there was a loud knock on my office door, and Laura opened it and stuck her head inside.

"Liz? Ten women are sitting in the waiting room now."

I'd completely forgotten all about my afternoon appointments. Listening to Eric talk about Dominic and the other wolves, I'd even forgotten about my stunning pregnancy news for a minute.

I told Laura to tell the women waiting that I was sorry and would just be another second, then I told Eric I had to go. "I've got back-to-back appointments all afternoon, and many of the women are already here."

"All right. Have a good afternoon, and know that I'll always protect you and keep you safe, Liz. You don't need to worry about anything. Nate and I will be on guard in the jungle area between here and Wulfric Palms tonight, but hopefully we'll see you tomorrow night."

I said I'd be looking forward to it, and we ended the call. Immediately after, I pocketed my phone and dashed out of my office to started attending to patients.

I was so swamped all afternoon, I barely had a moment to think. Unfortunately, despite the fertility drugs they'd now been on for several weeks, my patients' blood work revealed that none of them had become pregnant. However, if the fertility drugs
were
to help combat the supernatural force that was preventing the women from becoming pregnant, I knew it might take some time. Months or years, even. I was prepared to hang in for the long haul, though.

Now that I myself was pregnant, I knew I wouldn't be going anywhere. Which would be perfectly fine with me, provided that Eric was the father of my baby, and I could spend the rest of my life on the island with him as my mate.

At the end of the day, while we were locking up the clinic, Laura asked me if I'd like to go to her house for a glass of wine.

She tucked a strand of her long blonde hair behind one ear, smiling. "You look like you could use a glass, and I know I definitely can. Then after, we can have dinner with just us and Ian, since none of our men will be coming home tonight. No sense in both of us cooking when we can just share dinner."

I normally loved spending time with Laura and her little son Ian, but at present, I just felt like being alone. Not to mention that now that I was pregnant, I knew I couldn't drink, and I wasn't sure how long I could beg off a glass of wine without arousing suspicion in Laura, being that she knew full well how much I loved wine.

Pocketing a set of keys outside the clinic, I shook my head. "Thanks so much for the offer, but I think I'm just going to take a long stroll on the beach alone and probably eat dinner late. I think some time alone is really what I need right now."

With a warm tropical breeze fluttering through her hair, Laura frowned at me. "Is anything wrong? You really seemed kind of out of it earlier, and now not wanting to have dinner...it's just not like you. You're normally so social. Is there anything you want to talk to me about?"

I wished that I could. I wished that I could just spill my guts to her, and tell her about my positive pregnancy test and my anxiety as to whether or not Eric was the father of my baby or not. But I knew I couldn't. Eric and Nate deserved to be told about my pregnancy first, though thankfully, they wouldn't have to be told right away. As much as I hated the idea of Dominic and his men trying to attack the village, I was grateful that Eric and Nate wouldn't be visiting me that evening. It would give me a chance to collect my thoughts and muster my courage to tell them my news.

With bright sunlight warming my skin, I looked at Laura, trying to lift the sides of my mouth into a smile. "Thanks for being concerned, but I'm fine. Just have a lot on my mind. Just need some quiet time to think, I guess."

She studied me for a long moment, still frowning. "Oh, I get it. I don't know why this didn't dawn on me earlier. I think I know exactly what's on your mind."

I swallowed, cringing inwardly. "You do?"

"Well, I think so. You've developed strong feelings for both Eric and Nate, and now you can't decide which man you hope gets you pregnant, right?"

I nodded. "It's...well, it's along those lines."

Laura gave me a little smile with her light blue eyes sparkling in the sun. "I understand. I know it's probably complicated. Enjoy your time alone."

We soon parted ways, and I dropped my purse off at home and changed into khaki shorts and a bright red halter-top before heading down to the beach for my walk.

Holding my sandals, I ambled close to the shore, sinking my toes into the warm, wet sand, while waves occasionally lapped at my feet. There wasn't a cloud in the sky, making the crystal-clear, turquoise blue water an even brighter shade than usual. Tropical fish in brilliant shades of orange, yellow, and pearl swam in large schools in the shallows, dozens of them zipping and darting in unison, as if parts of one body.

My surroundings should have had a calming effect on me. Though despite that, the longer I walked, and the farther down the beach I went, entering a long, deserted stretch, the more I began to feel uneasy. Like something bad was about to happen, or I was being watched. Figuring that some of Eric’s men patrolling the jungle area adjacent to the beach probably were watching me, I ignored the thought, or tried to, anyway. But my apprehension only continued to grow.

After thirty minutes or so, I turned and began heading home, a little irritated with myself for letting my inexplicable feelings cut my walk short. That was when I saw him. A tall, well-built man striding out from the jungle, maybe only forty or fifty feet away from me. I gasped, stopping dead in my tracks, pulse pounding, though this was no man who’d ever physically harm me. I recognized him instantly.

"Jason."

My former fiancé, the man who I'd spent many happy years with, was heading straight toward me with a wide grin spreading across his handsome face.

*

I didn’t understand what was happening. I couldn't even begin to make sense of it. The world may as well have been upside down.

After we'd spent several years together and had gotten engaged, Jason had suddenly left me one day, without explanation. He'd simply left a note:
I'm sorry, Liz, but it's over. Hope you can find happiness.
That was it. No clue as to what had made him unhappy enough to leave. No hints about what he was feeling. Nothing.

We hadn't even been fighting or having any problems. We never really had. Our relationship had always been very amicable, comfortable. Which wasn't to say that it had been completely without passion, however, our relationship had been more about shared goals and expectations.

Jason was a scientist specializing in medical advancements, and I was a doctor. We both hoped to eventually get married. We both wanted children. When we'd met, everything had just seemed to fit, and we'd settled into a life of effortless companionship. Which had made the abruptness of Jason's departure much more shocking.

A week or so beforehand, he'd received a multi-million dollar inheritance from his father's estate, and in the months after he'd left me, I heard rumors that he'd moved to Hawaii and was living in a mansion with a nineteen-year-old model. Since Jason had quit his job and disconnected his phone upon leaving me, and since his sister, who'd never liked me, hadn't returned any of my calls, I hadn't been able to confirm the rumors. And really, I hadn't been able to believe them at all. I hadn't been able to
let
myself believe them.

Whenever I contemplated that they could be true, it simply hurt too badly. So, I'd thrown myself into work to forget, and then soon I'd been fully embroiled in the tax evasion scandal at my New York City clinic. I had been able to forget about Jason for a while, though a little part of me always hoped for him to one day return and tell me the truth about why he'd left. Now, somehow, improbably, it seemed I was going to get my chance for answers.

While he strode toward me, I stood stock-still, absolutely stunned, maybe even more than I'd been when I'd seen my pregnancy test turn positive that day. I just couldn't fathom how it was possible that he was on the island, and how he'd gotten to the island. Since only alphas and leaders of the four groups of shifters could transport outsiders to and from, I knew he must’ve had help.

He had to have a specific reason for coming to the island and being brought through the portal. I just couldn't imagine what that reason was. I realized I now had two sets of questions for him, the first about why he'd left me, and the second regarding just what in the hell he was doing in Clearwater.

As he drew closer to me, I could see that nothing about him had changed. He was still fairly attractive, enough to make my heart do a flip, though not nearly as big a one as each time I saw Eric, and not even nearly as big a one as each time I saw Nate, but still a flip, nonetheless.

His fairly muscular, lean build was still the same, his hair was still dark strawberry blond and his eyes the sparkly golden hazel that I'd always loved. His skin was even the same light shade of pale cream, which struck me as interesting. It made me think that the rumors about him running off to Hawaii to set up house with a nineteen-year-old hadn't been true. 

If he'd spent much time in Hawaii, it stood to reason that he'd have at least the hint of a tan. This also told me that he must have only just recently arrived on the island. I was very fair-skinned, and I used sunscreen liberally, but had managed to develop a light tan during my several weeks on the island.

By the time Jason reached me and came to a stop two or three feet away, my shock and confusion still hadn't lessened any.

He gave me a small, almost apologetic-looking smile. "Hi, Liz."

My mind reeling, I just stared at him for a long moment before responding with a tremor in my voice. "Jason. What in the hell are you...how did you...."

Flustered, I swallowed, unable to even finish the thought. From the direction of the jungle, a couple of tropical birds shrieked, one right after the other, loud enough to be heard above the crashing of the ocean surf, sounding as if they were laughing at me.

Jason took a small step forward, his apologetic expression becoming even more contrite. "I'm so sorry if my being here is a shock. Please let me explain."

Shock was an understatement, and I definitely wanted him to explain.

"Please do. Because you being here...you being on this island...I have to admit, nothing is making sense to me right now."

The world was seeming so topsy-turvy I was actually feeling a bit dizzy and was having to work hard not to let my body sway.

Seeming to notice my discomfort, Jason stepped forward yet again and took one of my hands in his. "Let's go sit down and talk. There's a fallen log up by the jungle we can use as a bench."

The action of him taking my hand suddenly made me angry, and I yanked my hand from his. "I'm sorry, but you left me. You don't get to hold my hand anymore."