29. Chapter Twenty-Nine

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Bennett

August rolled into September before I knew it. The relentless heat that had plagued us finally turned into some cooler weather the very last week of the month. Which I was thankful for, not only because I was well and truly done with the high temps, but because I was starting to show, and I really needed it to start being sweater weather so I could hide my small bump.

Before long, I was going to have to break down and go buy some actual paternity clothes. Right now, I was getting by with buying a size up in everything, and just having a baggier style. But the buttons and zipper of my dress slacks were starting to get uncomfortable. Yesterday at work, I had finally given up and just yanked my shirt out of my pants and undone the button and zipper. Letting out a sigh of relief to not have anything restraining my belly .

It wasn't the most professional look, having my shirt hanging out of my pants. My boss's raised brows had forced me to take him into his office and let him know the reason I could not tuck my shirt in for one more second. He'd been surprised by my news, not knowing I was even seeing anyone, and I hadn't gone into great detail about my circumstances, or my relationship status.

Seth was right and I wasn't going to be able to put off telling Shay much longer. Soon I wouldn't be able to hide the gentle rounding of my belly, even with baggy clothes. And the man lived right next door to me. He saw me out frequently. Though I had been making a point of heading straight into my house if he was in his yard when I got home, keeping my head down and barely tossing a wave in his general direction. Then I practically hid out in my house, behind locked doors.

We hadn't talked since Lucas's birthday. I had no idea where any of the court cases stood. But Edward's rehab should be ending soon, which meant the court date had to be near.

But I couldn't plan my future around the outcome of a court case. Because I wouldn't put it past Edward, or his fancy team of pricey lawyers, to try some other stall tactics. The man was going to face assault and battery charges, regardless of the family court case outcome, so who knew what they would do to keep him from having to answer for what he had done to Shay.

Walking by the closed door of my guest room, I smiled, rubbing a hand over my baby bump. "That's going to be your room," I told my bump, "We're going with a jungle theme, what do you think about that?"

There was no answer, of course, no fluttering little kick. It was still a bit too soon for me to feel movement, but I kept hoping each day would be the day .

Since today was Saturday and I didn't have a shift at the hospital, I was planning to get all my Halloween decorations put up. Nope, I did not care one bit that it wasn't October yet. It would be in a few days and that was good enough for me. Besides, I had looked at the weather for the upcoming week and it was supposed to rain for several days.

It was sunny today, and a little cool, perfect Fall weather. After I got my many, many boxes of decorations out–for both inside and outside–I was going to start sorting out the nursery. I needed to decide on a paint color and had gotten a couple small cans to see what the colors would look like on the wall.

Dressed in a pair of comfy, worn sweats, and a long-sleeved t-shirt, I had just taken a plastic tote outside to my back patio when someone knocked on my front door. Glancing at the time, I saw it was just after ten.

Going to my front window, I saw Shay and Lucas standing on my porch. Shay looked a bit grumpy, and Lucas looked like he'd been crying. Grabbing a lightweight sweater off the back of my couch, I shoved my arms into the sleeves, and pulled it closed around my waist.

"Good morning," I said, opening the door. "What's wrong?"

Because it was clear Lucas had indeed been crying. His blue eyes were red rimmed and watery, and there were still remnants of tear tracks down his face. I had to fight the urge to snatch him up and pull him in for a hug.

Shay ran a hand through his disheveled hair. "Sorry to bother you."

"Come in," I opened the screen door for them. "It's no bother. Is everything okay?" It clearly wasn't, by the way Lucas's bottom lip still trembled, and his chest hitched with the aftereffects of a crying jag .

"I'm sorry, but do you mind watching Lucas while I run to the store?" Shay said, his posture telling me he wasn't happy about having to ask. "He's refusing to go. He wanted to come over to see you and I told him no, and he had a bit of a–" he shrugged, not settling on a word, but I could guess. Meltdown. Temper tantrum. Take your pick, but I had a feeling the usually smiling child had lost his cool. And Shay looked very close to losing his.

"Of course." Smiling at Lucas, I told him, "You can help me hang up my Halloween decorations."

Shay gave me a look of someone who clearly did not understand the holiday timeline of how things should be properly done. "It's not even October yet. Oh Goddess, you're one of those people, aren't you?"

Straightening to my full height at his tone, I pulled the sweater closer around me, crossing my arms around my waist. "I'm not sure what you mean by ‘those type of people', but it will be October in two days. And the weather is decent today. Perfect day for decorating."

"You put your Christmas decorations up at Thanksgiving, don't you?" He sounded so horrified, I had to fight to keep my lips in a firm line.

"I put my Christmas decorations up November first, as one should." I informed him haughtily. "Halloween decorations go up October first, or before, weather dependent. Those stay up until November first when they are replaced with Christmas decorations, which shall remain until at least January first. That is the proper order of things." Smugly, I informed him, "Or at least how I do things in my house."

I could tell he was fighting with how–or if–he wanted to respond to my rant by the way his eyes flittered around the room, landing on everything except me. "That seems a bit…much. "

"Don't you have groceries to get?"

"Yep," he popped his P loudly, "sure do. Thank you for letting him hang out with you. I'm not sure why he acted like he did. I think he just missed seeing you. We both have."

Oh…well…I really wasn't sure how I was supposed to even respond to that. Instead, I pointed to the fresh bandage on Shay's neck. "How's that going?"

"It's done," he told me quietly, searching my face. His eyes strayed to Lucas, who had plastered himself against my side. "We can talk about it…some other time."

Nodding in understanding, I placed an arm around Lucas's shoulders, pulling him closer. "Whenever."

Better to act nonchalantly, since I wasn't sure what this meant for Shay and me. But it was one big obstacle out of the way. Regardless, that didn't mean Shay was ready to move forward with anything to do with us. He still had the court cases to get settled.

"Okay, I'm gonna head out," Shay announced after another awkward minute of silence between us. "Can I pick you up anything while I'm there? Anything you need?"

Tapping a finger against my bottom lip, I thought about it. "Mmm, mint chocolate chip ice cream."

I'd been craving it lately, along with the never ending want of tacos. Probably two reasons my pants weren't fitting.

Shay grinned, "You got it." Waving his finger at Lucas, he ordered, "Behave while I'm gone."

"I will, Daddy."

Gah, he sounded so small, I just wanted to hug him close forever.

Nodding at Shay, I waved my hands at him. "Shoo. We have decorating to get to. "

He gave me a two-fingered salute. "I'm going. You behave too," he tossed saucily over his shoulder, winking. "Save any lights you want to hang from the house for me. I'll do it for you when I get back."

My heart warmed at his offer, along with the wink he had given me. Shay being a flirt might be more than I could handle. I couldn't be expected to just keep keeping my hands to myself. Especially knowing his mate bond was well and truly severed.

Best tell him about the pup you're carrying before you do anything else , my wolf warned me ominously.

Hand resting against my abdomen, I sighed. I know, I know. I will.

"Come on," I said to Lucas. "Let's get started on the back yard. I've got some cool inflatables for out there. Then we can work our way to the front."

"Cool!" Lucas gave me a squeeze, "Thanks for letting me come over. I missed you."

Kissing the top of his head, I mumbled, "I missed you too."

"Maybe we should let Daddy hang those," Lucas advised from his spot next to my step stool. I was hanging a huge spider and web to a holder already attached to the back of the house. Stretching, I could almost reach it.

The yard was littered with plastic tubs of decorations, and we'd already hung some on the fence. Giant inflatables, strategically placed throughout the yard, flopped on the ground, waiting for me to inflate them with the blower.

"I've got it," I told him, feeling triumphant, then gasping when I got a tiny bit dizzy. Holding onto the stool, I stayed still for a few seconds until it passed.

Lucas was staring up at me with frightened eyes. Reassuring him, I said, "I'm okay. Just was dizzy for a minute. Sometimes that happens when I'm standing on the stool."

"I still think we should wait for Daddy to do any more high up stuff."

"Yes," an unfamiliar voice behind us had me spinning around and I nearly toppled off the step stool. "Why don't we wait for Daddy. Better yet, Lucas," the stranger motioned for Lucas to come to him, "come to Papa. I haven't seen you in so long. Come give me a hug."

Papa?

Oh, fuck! Was this Edward? How was he even here, standing in my backyard?

My wolf growled, agitated beneath my skin, sensing the danger.

Lucas's face confirmed my fears. His pale face was white as a ghost, his eyes wide and fear filled. Slowly, he shook his head back and forth, not making a sound. Carefully, I climbed from the stool, putting myself in front of Lucas and wiping my sweaty palms down my thighs .

The man–Edward–was still a good distance from us, and I realized he had entered my back yard from the woods, where the fence had been left open for easy access for shifting.

As he stepped closer, I saw he was absolutely stunning, with his expertly styled black hair, and wide blue eyes, a shade darker than Shays. He was tall, and very thin, and walked forward with a grace I had never possessed.

Feeling Lucas tremble behind me, I reached back to put a reassuring hand on his arm, squeezing lightly.

"You shouldn't be here," I told Edward, as he continued to stalk forward. "There's a restraining order against you."

He smiled, but there was a cruel, cold twist to his perfectly bowed lips. Waving a hand in the air, he shrugged.

"Silly piece of paper, nothing more. Lucas," he leaned around my body, so close now the fumes of whiskey from his breath made my stomach curdle and I drew back sharply, trying not to gag. "Do what Papa says and come to me."

Lucas trembled harder, and I straightened my shoulders. "You need to leave. Now."

He examined his perfectly manicured nails, looking bored. "I do what I want. I go where I want. I get what I want." His tone turned cold, sharp as a knife. "And right now, what I want, is my son."

Lucas gasped loudly; the only sound he had made since Edward had announced his presence. As calmly as I could I told him, "Lucas, go in the house and lock the door."

Without making another sound, he quickly did as I asked him to do, shutting the glass slider with a thud and locking it. Searching my sweater pocket for my cell phone, my hand came away empty .

"You're drunk." Edward laughed at my observation, the sound a bit maniacal.

"Nooooo," he winked at me, drawing out the word. "Have I been drinking? Yes. Am I drunk? Eh. Let's just say I have a very high tolerance." Holding his finger and thumb about an inch apart, I noticed his glassy eyes, his pupils blown. "I may also be a little bit high. Rehab was…not for me."

"Why are you here?" Please let Lucas find my phone and call Shay. Or Asher and Gabe. I didn't know if they were even home, but they were the closest help. Even if Lucas called 9-1-1, help would at least be on the way.

"Me?" Edward pointed to his chest, his voice innocent. "I came to get what's mine. My alpha and my–our–son. Though I have to say," he tapped his finger against his lip, "I honestly didn't think the kid was Shay's. But what do you know? Shay actually was a sneaky fuck and managed to get a paternity test done, and that welp really is his .

"Honestly, I had so many lovers then, it was hard to keep track of who might be the real baby daddy." He shrugged, moving in closer and whispered, "I guess tying Shay to that bed and fucking his brains out for days and days, actually did the trick. Not that I gave him any choice in the matter. He did protest a couple of times, but I needed to produce an heir or Daddy said he was going to cut me off. He meant it that time, too. And I mean, what alpha isn't down to get fucked even when they say no, am I right?" he sighed, and my eyes were wide with all the implications behind the statements he had just made.

Unable to help myself, I whispered, "Oh, Shay."

"Kinda fucked Shay up though, in here," Edward tapped the side of his head. "Made his tiger go bye-bye, along with that impressive dick of his." His voice switched then from the almost song-like quality it had, back to the cruel tone he had used before. "Shay always was weak. But then again, that's part of why I picked him. He was pretty and he was dumb. Fucking had heart eyes when he looked at me. So easy to manipulate."

"Shay is none of those things!" I hissed, angrily pushing him in the chest, forcing him to take a step back. He stumbled sideways before quickly righting himself. Anger flashed in his cold blue eyes, and he narrowed his gaze, looking me up and down.

"Oh, my Goddess," he laughed, his alcohol laced breath making my eyes water. "You have a crush on him, don't you? I mean, he is fucking hot, don't get me wrong. But my Goddess, that is one weak alpha. Do you know, in all the times I smacked him around, punched him," he leaned in closer, whispering as I shrank away from him, "tied him up and forced his cock inside me–even when he didn't want it–he never once hit me back. Not once did he lay one finger on me. Not even to stop me. See…I have a bit of a temper. It's kind of a problem, really."

Shoving him as hard as I could a second time, he lost his balance and fell to his knees. I ran for the gate, hoping my shaking fingers would be able to work the latch. I could take my chances and run for the woods, but even in his drunken state I wasn't sure I could outrun him. Especially if he shifted. Underneath the stink of booze, I caught the faint hint of wolf.

His hand slammed into my back, the momentum pushing me forward into the fence, and I cried out. Shielding my stomach before impact, I did my best to protect my pup.

Edward spun me around so fast I got dizzy. Both his hands landed against my shoulders and pinned me to the fence. The gate latch dug into my lower back, but I gritted my teeth against the bruise I was positive was being pushed into my skin from the metal .

My hands cradled my bump protectively. "Shay is too good to ever hurt an omega. That doesn't make him weak!"

He dug his hands into the flesh of my shoulders, pinning me further against the fence. Goddess, he was strong! He was thin, but that was deceiving, because he was much stronger than he looked.

"You're just the neighbor, you know nothing about him. He's barely looked your way until today, and that was just to pawn the kid off on you. I've been watching Shay and Lucas for days, and they never even knew I was here. Ever since I escaped that hell hole of a rehab facility my parents forced me to go to, all because Shay had to throw a tantrum," he rolled his eyes dramatically. "It wasn't like this was the first time I choked him out. There was no need for him to try to get my attention by filing Alpha Law. I'm his mate and I'll always be his mate. This is what we do, Shay and me. I hurt him, then I cry and tell him I'm sorry, and he forgives me."

"You're not his mate anymore." It felt really good to be the one to tell him that. Giving him a sardonic smile, I dug the knife in deeper. "Didn't you know? Shay had the mate bond broken. He had them dig it out of him. It was painful, and it took a few times, but he did it. It was worth the pain for him to break his tie to you. That's how much he wanted rid of you!" I spat the words at him, grunting when he shook me hard enough my head banged into the fence and bounced off it.

But I was angry now, so angry, listening to this man casually repeat the things he had done to Shay. Like it meant nothing to him that he had hurt Shay so badly. If this man thought he was going to waltz into my yard and just take what was mine–my mate and Lucas–he was in for the fight of his life. "And I'm not just the neighbor, I'm his fated mate. The Goddess made him for me! Me! You're never getting him back! You're never getting either one of them back, you raging lunatic!"

Edward let out a scream of pure rage, his hand striking faster than a snake. The flat of his palm hit my throat with so much force I saw stars. Pain instantly engulfed my larynx, strangling me, and I gasped loudly, trying to pull oxygen into my lungs. My knees buckled and I fell forward.

Arms still protecting my bump, I landed on my knees with enough force it jarred my entire body, but I somehow kept myself from falling forward.

I saw the minute Edward's eyes realized what my hands were cradling. The material of my sweater was pulled tight and instead of hiding my bump, it was having the opposite effect.

Grabbing me by an elbow, he yanked me to my feet like I was a ragdoll. Suddenly, he was looking at me in a completely different light. Jerking away from him, I tried to break out of his hold, but he was too strong.

Pulling me to him, I turned my head to lessen the fumes from the whiskey, as he ran his nose along my neck, sniffing. Rearing back, he let out another of his ragey screams, the sound truly terrifying.

Shift! My wolf growled, let me get a piece of him.

You know I can't!

"Is that pup you're carrying his?" Edward demanded, so close to my face drops of his spittle fell on my skin. "You've been fucking my mate!"

He sounded hella indignant for someone who had just admitted he hadn't been faithful. The man was a lunatic that went far beyond anything fueled by alcohol and drugs.

"He's not your mate," I bit out. The whiskey fumes of his breath were making me queasy, and I was beyond terrified, but I would protect what was mine if it took my very last breath to do it. Shay, Lucas, and this pup. "He's mine! My fated, and you're never touching him again!"

Please, please, Lucas, please call for help.

An unnatural stillness came over Edward, and I watched him wide-eyed, tense, to see what he would do next. My free arm still cradled my bump, unconsciously trying to protect the precious life nestled safely inside of me.

He smiled at me, a twisted slash of his lips that made my heart pound in my ears and my blood turn ice cold.

"I'm going to rip that fucking pup out of your stomach and leave your carcass here for Shay to find. Then I'm going to get my son and put him somewhere Shay will never find him."

In the instant it took for his words to register, I had a snarling gray wolf towering over me, saliva dripping from his snapping jowls. He lunged, his teeth snapping not for my neck, but coming straight for my stomach.

I couldn't shift, I was past the twelve-week point in my pregnancy. Throwing my arms up in a defensive move, I screamed, using all my strength to land a glancing blow to the side of his head before his teeth could rip into me. It was enough to knock him off balance, and he landed inches away from me, shaking his head to clear it.

Stumbling to my feet, I ran, turning to see where Edward was. I got a glimpse of snarling fangs and gray paws slashing at me, before razor sharp claws ripped into my arm, tearing flesh away as I jerked back, trying to break free of his powerful hold.