SAMANTHA POV
"Thanks for driving me the whole way. You really didn't have to. I know you must have better things to do on the ranch," I say while taking shy glances towards Daniel.
He has been quiet ever since breakfast this morning. Even when he gave me a complete tour of the house, he kept his distance and acted as if I had some incurable disease. I don't know if he regrets having a stranger underfoot or if I did something to offend him besides jumping in to stop him reprimanding an employee.
"It's no trouble. I like knowing you will arrive safely," Daniel replies, and my cheeks turn pink.
"Wow. Umm, thank you. That's sweet," I whisper with surprise in my voice.
Daniel gives me a sideways glance then smirks.
"I've been known to be sweet sometimes," he says, and his hot meter jumps from 100 to 1
SAMANTHA POV "First things first... I will need to take a few measurements. At this point in the pregnancy the organs are big enough for us to see and check on," Dr. Hurst says as he twirls the machines wand through the goo he put on my tummy. "Okay," I breathlessly say as I watch my child on the dark screen. Dr. Hurst zooms in and zooms out several times before saying anything else, and the entire time I am praying. My biggest fear is that all my stress will have affected my baby in some way. I mean I have had to endure finding out my husband was cheater. I had to go through all the craziness that was my divorce. And then I had to move across the country and start over. The only thing I haven't experienced this pregnancy is the lose of a loved one, good thing I don't have anyone. At least I don't have to worry about money and finding a job.
DANIEL POV I watch as the doctor clicks and measures...clicks, and measures. Over and over again in complete silence. I want to ask a million questions. I want to growl. I want him to tell us what he sees before I lose my mind, but if I demand information like that, Samantha will think I'm a freak. Instead, I glue my eyes on my beautiful mate and her mesmerized face. I can see remnants of stress in the lines on her forehead, but for the most part, she looks completely happy. The baby's heartbeat speeds up a little, and I turn back to the monitor to see its precious face, well skull, on the screen. I don't even know what the baby is, and I'm in love with it. I hope Samantha falls for me and lets me take care of them both. I don't think I could walk away if she doesn't. The thought alone brings me to tears, and a tight fist wraps around my heart. I can't live without this little family. "Do you have any names picked out," Dr. Hurst asks Samantha interrupting my internal d
SAMANTHA POV I shut my door with a sigh. I am completely and utterly exhausted. I had no idea my new acquaintances would be so happy to hear what I am having, but I truly enjoyed their reaction. It was as if I threw a gender reveal party and celebrated with close friends and family. That's how happy they were. For a woman who grew up without a true place to call home, the celebration was heartwarming. I wish I had more energy to enjoy it because if I did, I wouldn't have had to call it a night so early. I grin as I take my phone out of my back pocket. I see a missed call from Andrew and immediately press call. I didn't mean to make him wait so long, but stepping away was impossible. "Hello," Andrew answers sounding excited, and I smile. "Well, grandpa, are you ready," I ask, getting right down to business.
DANIEL POV "Emma, I don't have time to listen to your new boyfriend drama, okay. You should be waiting for your mate anyway," I growl while stirring the egg mixture I have going for scrambled eggs. "Oh shutup with that mate stuff. I don't even want to be someone's mate. Since you and the other two boneheads left me up here by myself, all the males are convinced that if they win me over, they will get the Alpha title. So thanks for that. My mate isn't going to love me for me. He will just see me as the ticket to being an Alpha. I hate being a female sometimes," Emma growls, and my eyes roll to the back of my head. "Whatever, Em, can you please allow me to talk to mom! She is the person I called," I snap, and Emma huffs. "Yeah, sure, miss you too," Emma says sarcastically, trying to make me feel bad. "I love you, but damn,
SAMANTHA POV "So why weren't you able to get a hay crop planted this year," I ask as Daniel puts gas in a spacey ATV. I try to keep my eyes off his toned legs and butt, but his fitted wranglers aren't helping me at all. "Well, umm. We had an issue with our previous property, so I purchased this one last month," Daniel asks while keeping his back to me. "Oh, what happened," I ask innocently, stepping closer so I can see what his hands are doing. He quickly stands up as if my presence makes him uncomfortable and places the gas can back on the shelf. "The title changed names, and we were no longer welcome. But I had saved, so moving wasn't an issue...Are you ready," he asks, quickly changing the subject. "Sounds stressful, I'm sorry. But I'm glad you purchase
DANIEL POV I snarl as I finally rip out the filthy scandral's throat and shift. His bloody dead body slowly shifts back to its human form, and I study his features intently. I need to find out who these men are and why they were targeting Samantha. I have a pretty good feeling they are from the Layne's original pack, but I have to be certain. "DAN," Finley roars, and I whip around to see my pack circling the first wolf who tried to attack my mate. Stanley has managed to pin him down in wolf form without killing him. Studying the dead body leaves my mind. The other males of my pack stand tense and ready in a circle around Stan and the attacker to ensure he doesn't try anything. I march towards him naked and bloody with one thought on my mind, "defending my mate." "Shift," I order loudly, and his body
DANIEL POV "Where is she," I ask as soon as I walk in the back door to see Lauren sitting in the kitchen by herself. Samantha's vanilla and jasmine scent isn't fresh inside like it is outside, and the fact makes my stomach sick. I hope I'm wrong. "She's gone, Dan. She ran right after I got her to the house...and she gave me a kick with shifter strength right to the gut before she did," Lauren says without getting up off the kitchen stool. I take in my member's hunched appearance as David rushes to her side. "Are you okay? Did she hurt you," David asks, sounding panicked, and I tilt my head to watch the exchange. Suspicions start to creep up as I watch his eyes dart back and forth from her face to her stomach. "No. I'm okay. It hurt when it happened, but everything is fine," Lauren says, soothing her panicked mate, and I sigh. "Lauren, if you're carrying a pup, you need to let me know so I can help with keeping you safe," I snap, getting irritated at wh
SAMANTHA POV "Well, Angelica, I think we might have to leave the house. Mommy is officially out of food," I sigh as I close the fridge I have opened at least a hundred times today. The basic supplies I had the cleaning ladies bring didn't last me long. I slowly make my way towards my bedroom, already dreading my first solo trip to town. As I go past the front door to get to the stairs, the doorbell chimes, and fear instantly fills me. My body immediately freezes, and my heart begins to pound. I even slow my breathing to try to keep whoever it is from hearing me. "Hello, I am looking for the granddaughter of Hazel Layne. My name is Marcie...My mom was an old friend of Hazel's," a woman's voice calls from the other side of my front door. My body's frozen state slowly defrosts, and I take a deep breath. My heart rate declines a little, and something within me says I shouldn't be afraid. I know I can't live in fear forever, and being fearful of every living, breathing per