Released: MC Secret Baby Romance (New Adult Contemporary Biker Romance) (50 page)

Phaedra felt as though she was instantly in love and, as she rolled over and lay on her back, she looked up to Derren adoringly and wished she could say what she felt inside. I LOVE YOU, she said in her mind. She had never felt anything so incredible in all her life. He was both dominant, but caring, and he could have easily just had his way with her and been rough, but he had been gentle at all the right times.

With the dying embers of the fire glowing beside the two, they lay down beside one another and fell asleep. In the distance, a fox shrieked, but close by, there were eyes watching the two lovers.

In amongst the trees, with only the red, glowing eye of the cigarette end giving away his location, Jerry was watching with a grimace.

"What the fuck is that guy playing at?" he shook his head. "Ain't no good come from fucking outsiders," and he walked away with the leaves crunching underfoot.

He'd have to tell Samson at some point, but he didn't know quite how to broach the subject. If they found out he'd been lurking in the darkness watching the whole thing, then he'd be in almost as much trouble as the gang leader himself. As he stubbed out his cigarette and took a deep breath, he looked up to the stars, as though they would give him the answers to his predicament.

"I'll just keep my mouth quiet," he reasoned with himself. "For now, anyway."

And, he was back at the party with the drunken gang either passed out or deeply inebriated.

"Where have you been?" asked Max, as he saw the old guy stumble out from the woods.

"Just went to take a leak," he lied smoothly.

"You seen Derren recently? That son of a bitch seems to have bailed on me."

"Nah, I ain't seem him. Probably gone back up to the mountain."

"His bike is still out front though," Max squinted, as he looked into Jerry's eyes.

"I dunno man," Jerry walked away. "I'm not his keeper."

*****

Phaedra knew it was morning when the sunlight filtered down through the leaves. When she opened her eyes, she was immediately struck by the sound of birds singing and the beauty of the early morning sunrise. The memories of the previous night came to her in pieces. She remembered his gorgeous body, his mesmerizing eyes, and how he gave her the time of her life. Rolling over, she couldn’t wait to feel his arms around her. She wanted him all over again; wanted to smell his skin and taste every part of his body. But, when she turned, she saw that he wasn’t there.

Sitting up, she assumed he was nearby, but as she scanned the area, she quickly saw that he wasn’t. Gathering her things, she hurried back to the house thinking he was maybe back there with his gang. He wasn’t there either. Mama Wilson was standing on the front porch smoking a pipe, and staring off into the distance.

“Another night in the woods?” she gave Phaedra and accusatory glance.

“Yeah….” She followed the old woman’s gaze out into the mountains.

Far away, if the young girl tried hard enough, she could hear the distant rumbling of the gang’s motorcycles. Derren had left her behind, and she had to put all her strength into swallowing back her tears.

“Huh,” Mama Wilson grunted. “Quit your God damn day dreaming. Ain’t you got chores to do?”

“Sorry, I mean yeah. I’ll go do them.”

With a heavy heart, the teenager picked up her mop and bucket and began her day.

Three months had passed since the gang had been down to the Wilson House, but to Phaedra, it may as well have been yesterday. Not an hour had passed when she hadn’t thought about the man she’d given her virginity to. Occasionally, she would wake from her sleep and imagine she could smell him beside her. Other times, she’d dream of hearing the motorcycles in the distance, as he came back to her. Then, she’d awaken with a racing heart and remember she was very much alone.

Now, as she tended to the few livestock the family kept out in the back, she bent down and felt for the second time that day that her breasts were sore and swollen. Putting it down to the peculiarities of the body, she dismissed the sensation. But, half way through the day, she was struck with a sudden and terrible fit of nausea. Running into the woods, she vomited repeatedly until she heaved, and there was nothing more to be released from her body but air.

Mama Wilson was watching her from an upstairs window and knew exactly what was wrong. She’d been in her situation once or twice before. As the teenager made her way indoors for a drink of water, the old lady accosted her on the stairs.

“What you tryin’ to hide, young lady?”

“Uh?” Phaedra still had a hand clutched to her mouth.

“Come ‘ere,” Mama Wilson pulled the girl to her and felt her brow. “You do know what’s happening to you, don’t you?”

“Just a passing sickness I think. Maybe the stomach flu.”

“Oh, for goodness sake, girl, you can be so naïve sometimes. You’ve got a God damn baby in you, that’s what.”

Utterly shocked and bewildered at the idea, Phaedra sat where she fell on the hallway floor.

“I can’t be,” she said, staring into space.

“And, why’s that? You’ve been with a man, ain’t ya?”

Phaedra felt the anger boil within her, as she clenched her jaw.

“Just the once.”

“It was one of those bikers, wasn’t it,” the old lady crossed her arms.

“It was,” she lowered her head.

“You stupid, stupid girl,” Mama Wilson suddenly exploded. “You’re toying with the Devil! You don’t know what those men are.”

Phaedra, bewildered by the old lady, merely looked up to her inquisitively.

“You ever heard of a shape shifter?”

The young girl shook her head.

“Well… You’re about to.”

*****

She stood on the edge of the forest with one foot on the dirt track, and the other in the hardened mud. Knowing full well she was stepping into Prince Country, she knew she had no choice. After giving it a significant amount of thought over the passing months, she decided, as her bump grew, that she’d have to find him.

After hearing about the gang and their secret bloodline, she knew it would be dangerous, but she couldn’t wait around for prince charming anymore. Looking down at the bump of her ever growing belly, she felt the prickle of tears in her eyes.

“I’ll find you your Daddy,” she whispered as she patted it.

A solitary tear fell onto her stomach and she closed her eyes.

“It’s now or never.”

Phaedra knew she’d arrived when she saw the goat skull hanging on a tree. It was an ominous welcome sign; one that only the gang would see the beauty of. There was the noise of village life not far from her and, with a knot her in her gut, she walked purposely until the club house came into view.

The motorcycles were lined up in the front, so it wasn’t likely she had the wrong place. The smell of liquor, despite all the doors being closed, seemed to seep from the walls of the building. Taking a deep breath, she gripped her fingers into a fist and knocked on the door.

There was the cacophony of laughter coming from within and, for a second, she hesitated, frightened of the sense of domineering masculinity that was about to be thrust upon her. However, before she had the chance to change her mind, the door opened.

“I remember you,” came the surly voice from the old man.

“Is Derren here?”

Jerry looked her right in the eye and scowled.

“No outsiders are welcome here. You better make your way back down this mountain young lady, and fast before the villagers see you.”

He was about to grab her by the arm and march her off the property himself, but that was until he noticed the bump of her enlarged stomach. He stopped dead in his tracks with his bony hand trembling half way to hers.

“I think you better come inside.”

As she stepped into the bar, the room went quiet.

“Why the fuck you let an outsider in here, Jerry?” someone yelled.

“Because… I think there’s something about our pack leader that you all need to know.”

Derren stood up from behind a table at the back of the room.

“Hey! What’s going on here?”

His voice went dead when he saw Phaedra.

“What are you doing here?”

“You know this girl?” Samson climbed down from his bar stool and gripped his son’s arm.

“No…. I …. I mean yes,” the gang leader, now under the interrogation of his father, stuttered.

Every man in the room had his eyes on the girl’s stomach, and they all understood.

“You did this,” Jerry pointed to her.

“How would you know?” the gang leader shouted.

“Because I was there.”

There was a sharp inhale of breath from everyone, as the situation unfolded.

“I saw everything, kid. The gang has eyes everywhere.”

“I’m your fucking leader!” Derren roared. “You had no right!”

Through his rage, he could start to feel something dislocate in his mind, as if his real self and his angry self were splitting into two. His father, meanwhile, was raging.

“Don’t you get angry, boy. You’re the one who went against every rule in Prince Country. You don’t mess with outsiders.”

“I’ve had enough of you telling me what to do!” Derren was shifting, feeling the strength that was coming from inside of him. “You don’t own this gang anymore. I’m the leader. I MAKE THE RULES!”

Before he was able to control himself, the wild hair began to grow from his muscular body and where there were fingers, there were now claws. Phaedra was aghast at the spectacle, but there was nothing she could do except watch when the man she so badly wanted to be with lashed out and struck his own father. She covered her face with her hands and gripped her eyes closed.

Jerry tried to stop him; tried to get in between them, but it was no use. He was caught in the crossfire and was flung against the bar, as he took a swipe to the ribs. Left groaning on the floor, he watched as Samson began to grow angrier. The muscles began to bulge from the old man’s shirt until he was almost the size of his son. The two bears looked to each other with frightful bloodlust in their eyes.

There was a loud roar, a crash, a flourish of blood that arched wide up against the ceiling, and then a howl. One of them was dead, but Phaedra wouldn’t open her eyes to find out who it was.

*****

A baby’s cry sounded faintly down the hall. On the porch, Phaedra was sketching in a brand new diary and singing softly to herself. Yet, as soon as she heard her son’s voice, she stretched and yawned before standing up to see to him. The nights had been long with little Alex now in her life, but she wouldn’t trade any of them for the world. She loved her little boy and the two of them had a special connection.

One of the good things about him being born was that she was finally able to leave the Wilson house and have some independence of her own.

“Alex needs changing,” the gruff voice came from behind her.

“I’m just on my way. He’s one demandin’ kid.”

She laughed as she leaned back into the body behind her and felt Derren’s strong arms behind her. He clasped her around the waist and seductively kissed her neck.

“You’re so beautiful,” he whispered before kissing her delicately on the cheek.

She gasped at his touch, feeling his hands all over her body.

“Oh my God, don’t start this again,” she pushed him away with a cheeky smile. “I’ve got to see to the baby.”

“Urgh, you’re such a tease,” he groaned playfully before walking away.

After changing Alex and lying beside him until he fell asleep, Phaedra made her way back out onto the porch. Her husband was leaning against the railing with a cigarette between his fingers. He blew smoke out into the air and watched it hang in the midday sun.

“He’s growing up so fast already.”

“He’s only six months old. How fast can he be growing?” he laughed.

Turning around and planting a kiss on his wife’s cheek, he leaned back and enjoyed looking up at his newly built house.

“I always wanted a house like this. I thought it would never come, but I’m glad I waited. It’s all just so perfect.”

“It certainly is,” she hugged him tight.

Then, she shifted away as sadness descended over her. She still hadn’t forgotten what happened.

“What’s wrong?” Derren asked.

“I just can’t stop thinking about your father.”

“I think about him too sometimes, but… it’s the way of our people. We always fight things out. Dying in battle is honorable. It’s the way he would have wanted to go.”

“It all seems so barbaric.”

“We ARE barbarians, Phaedra. We live off the land and we shun the outside world. It’s been that way for centuries, and it’ll be like that forever.”

“But, I can’t stop thinking that if I hadn’t come up here that day, he would still be alive.”

“Yeah, but if you hadn’t come up here, then we wouldn’t be together.”