Thrown to the Wolves (Black River Pack Book 3) (11 page)

I was giggling when my dad opened the passenger’s door to help me out of the SUV Parker had insisted we buy yesterday. He’d wanted something safer than the car he’d just bought me and had one little reason that pushed him to make sure we had it before the drive today. A reason that my father noticed as soon as he pulled me into his arms. There really was no way to hide something like this from other shifters—damn their sense of smell.

“You’re pregnant?” he gasped in wonder. Then he lifted me up into the air when I nodded my head to confirm what his nose had already told him. “I’m gonna be a grandpa!”

Alasdair, Braden, and Camden elbowed their way past our dad to give me hugs and congratulate me before Parker stole me away from them all and walked me towards the house.

“It’s too cold for Annora to be standing around outside,” he chided them, acting as ridiculously protective of me as he’d been since we’d discovered the pregnancy.

It was something I needed to grow accustomed to and soon because I found myself treated like delicate china during our entire visit. I was set up on the couch with my feet resting on a pillow. Nobody would let me help cook, set the table, or clean up after dinner. I wasn’t even allowed to hand out presents from under the tree. Instead, each of the men in my life brought me the gift they’d chosen for me and sat next to me as I opened mine before they would even look at their presents from me. My brothers took particular delight in the stockings I’d brought for them. It was the one happy memory I had from Christmases past and a tradition I wanted to carry on with my family going forward.

By the time Parker and I left, I was exhausted. Not because I’d done anything. All the coddling made me so damn tired. I had no idea how I was going to last the entire pregnancy this way, especially since my dad and brothers had made it clear that they were going to visit more often now that we had a baby on the way. My only hope was for my brothers to find their own mates, or else I was going to have to deal with an entourage of overprotective men until the baby came.

****

“Merry Christmas, baby,” Parker whispered as he woke me up with a kiss on the lips before he bent over my stomach and placed a kiss there too.

“Merry Christmas,” I repeated before glancing at the clock and realizing I needed to hurry if I was going to be ready in time to head over to Hunter and Grace’s for brunch. “You let me oversleep!”

“Of course I did,” he said in a tone that implied that I should have known this was obvious. “You need your rest.”

“Not ten hours of it!” I argued as I climbed out of bed.

“Apparently you did since that’s how long you slept,” he quipped. “You’re sleeping for two now.”

“I think the saying is ‘eating for two,’” I corrected him.

“That too,” he agreed. “So we better get you downstairs and fed.”

I was already half dressed since I had picked out my outfit for today before we had left for my visit to my dad’s yesterday. “No time. I’ll just eat something at Grace and Hunter’s.”

“We’re not going over to their house,” he said, surprising me—our plans for today had been set weeks ago.

“What do you mean we’re not going over to their house?” I asked. “We’re spending Christmas day with the family.”

“Yup,” he agreed, making a popping sound at the end of the word. “That’s why everyone’s downstairs already.”

“What!” I screeched. “I don’t have anything ready since I thought we weren’t going to be here today.”

“No worries,” he reassured me. “I have everything covered.”

When we made our way downstairs, I quickly realized Parker hadn’t been exaggerating when he’d told me that he’d taken care of everything already. Extra stockings had been hung for Hunter, Grace, Foster, Spencer, Eliza, and Elias. The tree lights were turned on, and I could smell coffee brewing in the kitchen. The extra leaf was in the dining room table, and the places were set. Food was spread out on the kitchen counters—a veritable buffet that included all my favorites.

Eliza and her dad were helping in the kitchen. Or at least Eliza was trying to help as her dad followed her around, taking things away from her and telling her they were too heavy for her to carry in her condition. Spencer sat on one of the barstools, laughing at his mate as she grumbled in frustration. Her belly was lightly rounded with the baby she and Spencer had conceived the night Foster was born.

Grace was seated in the recliner with Foster in her lap and Hunter leaning on the arm so he could be close to them. If he wasn’t busy taking care of pack business, he didn’t stray far from their sides.

There was a knock on the door before it was flung open, and in walked my dad and brothers. It was a huge surprise since I hadn’t been expecting them after we’d spent Christmas Eve at their home.

“I invited them before you started talking about the trip to see them. I figured you’d want to spend Christmas surrounded by all your family,” Parker whispered in my ear as I my gaze moved around the cabin, soaking in the sight of all the people who mattered most to me in one place at the same time.

“Thank you for giving me everything I could ever want,” I whispered to Parker before I stepped away from him to join in on the fun of spending Christmas with our family.

Other Books By This Author

BLYTHE COLLEGE SERIES

Push the Envelope

Hit the Wall

Summer Nights (novella duo)

Outside the Box

Winter Wedding (novella)

BACHELORETTE PARTY SERIES

Sucked Into Love

Checked Into Love (coming soon)

BLACK RIVER PACK SERIES

Crying Wolf

Shoot for the Moon

Thrown to the Wolves

Acknowledgments

My boys – Thank you for not complaining too much about the piles of laundry & carry-out meals while I was writing. Yes, I know… yet again. I love you!

Mom – Thank you for always supporting me and inspiring me to live my dream.

Yolanda – Thanks for being a great friend. Even though we live states away from each other, your continued support means the world to me.

Mickey – I am so grateful to have found an editor like you! Thanks for putting your mad editing skills to good use for me. This book seriously wouldn’t have released on time if you weren’t so amazing!

Panty dropping Book Blog – Thanks for your help getting the word out about my books. Heather has been great and you all have done an amazing job pimping me! The bloggers that work with you have been so generous with their time and efforts on my behalf.

Teeny – You’re incredibly sweet and I’m so happy to have gotten to know you. Thank you for making my words pretty with your formatting skills.

Readers/Bloggers – Thank you from the bottom of my heart for taking a chance on me. I would not be living my dream right now if it weren’t for all of you.

About The Author

I absolutely adore reading—always have and always will.  When I was growing up, my friends used to tease me when I would trail after them, trying to read and walk at the same time.  If I have downtime, odds are you will find me reading or writing.

I am the mother of two wonderful sons who have inspired me to chase my dream of being an author.  I want them to learn from me that you can live your dream as long as you are willing to work for it.

When I told my mom that my new year's resolution was to self-publish a book in 2013, she pretty much told me, "About time!"

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