Page 61 of As The Shifter World Turns

61

ONE STEP FORWARD AND TWO STEPS BACK

Ivor

Mates. Ryder and I were mated.

I’d put all my doubts aside and listened to my heart. And I was so glad. The time was right. We were meant for one another and we loved each other. My beast was content and so was his stag apparently.

I’d finally gotten rid of Kellan from my head. For a while I couldn’t say his name, just thought of him as the asswipe. But I’d banished him along with my other insecurities.

Hello, mate.

That was Ryder sending a text. He’d message me during the day just so he could use the word ‘mate’. It was adorable and I loved him so much.

I’m busy, mate. See you tonight, I texted.

Okay, mate.

Gods, I loved that stag shifter. I giggled, and my boss gave me a look as he walked past.

Ivor still picked me up after work, even though I could have taken the bus. Often he dropped me off at the manor and then headed back to the office. He was working long hours, more so than me at the moment and we hadn’t yet been out to celebrate our mating.

“Your chariot, sire.” He bowed and opened the door as I exited my office building. “How was your day?”

“Fine. There are some bigwigs coming to town next week so I’ll need to be at work earlier than usual.” I took a breath and continued, “And it’ll be fine. It’s only for a few days. The baby and I can cope.

Once I did up my seat belt, he spoke to my bump. “And did you have a good day sleeping and kicking, little one?”

“Mostly asleep but they got in a few good kicks,” I told him.

Ryder changed the subject. “Daire’s going to be happy with me.”

“Why’s that? Did you get him and Micah a new client?”

“No, a possible tenant.”

Seb’s apartment which had originally been Micah’s had been empty for a while. “That’s great. Who?”

“You remember Trey from my office?”

Fuck, fuck, fuckity fuck! The gorgeous omega who worked with my mate? How could I forget? I'd apologized to the guy for being snarky but that didn’t mean I wanted him living in our building. “Yes.” The word got stuck in my throat but luckily Ryder didn’t notice as he was yelling at another driver for cutting him off.

“Sorry.”

“No, it’s?—“

But he interrupted me. “I shouldn’t be shouting around the baby. It’s a bad habit I need to control.”

I cradled my bump. “It’s fine. The baby will definitely recognize your voice after they’re born.”

While Ryder concentrated on the road and not yelling, I went over the idea of seeing Trey bouncing down the stairs each morning and meeting him on the roof on Friday nights. Not knowing if he had a vehicle, I pictured him in the back seat of Ryder’s car when my mate drove me to work. And when I got out, he’d pop into the front.

I glanced out the window so Ryder wouldn’t notice my eyes swimming with tears. But when I sniffed, I covered it with a cough and he glanced in my direction.

“Something wrong?” he asked.

“Just got something in my eye,” I fibbed. “Dust.”

I took a deep breath while telling myself to get a grip. This wasn’t about Trey or Ryder. It was me. My insecurities were going to endanger the relationship with my mate. And I couldn’t blame baby hormones. Okay, maybe I could—a little. But I had to omega up and deal with this. Being an adult was the pits sometimes.

“When is Trey coming to look at the place?” I asked in what I hoped was a casual tone. Yeah, I was so cool and mature, I could hold down a full time job, be pregnant and not bat an eyelid when my mate’s very handsome omega employee waltzed by while inspecting the apartment on the floor above. I could do this.

“Once he leaves the office today.”

So soon. I’d have to plaster a smile on my face when he arrived. Or I could hide in our apartment. Yeah, our apartment. We were mated. Hiding worked, but if the guy rented the place, I’d see him every day .

As Ryder pulled up at the manor, an unfamiliar car drew up behind us. “That’s Trey now.”

“Great.” Rummaging in my messenger bag, I tried to control my emotions. The problem was me. Not anyone else. If I could get over this initial meeting, that was Step One. There’d be a lot more steps.

“Hi, Trey.” Ryder waved and I got out and greeted the omega.

But he wasn’t alone. He was with an alpha and they were holding hands. I’d dodged a bullet this time, but there’d be a next time and a next time if I didn’t get a handle on my jealousy. Maybe making an appointment with the therapist Neil saw a while ago would be a start, even though Neil thought he was developing feelings for the guy. I wouldn’t be falling for him, but I needed someone to talk to.

Micah

I pushed Elune in her stroller around the pond at the park while Archer walked at my side, pointing out the ducks to our daughter. She babbled and waved a fist at them while clutching her favorite toy bunny.

Run . Even though it’d been months since I’d first heard my beast, it was still a novelty. I’d stopped cupping my ear which Archer was thankful for. With the baby and work, we hadn’t been to the woods at Daire’s family's country house in a while, so my unicorn was pestering me to let him out.

Soon.

“Look at the birds, Elune,” Archer told our daughter.

Run. Run. Run. Huh? That wasn’t my unicorn. What was that? “Whoa!” I stopped in my tracks.

“Something wrong?” Archer leaned over Elune as I glanced over my shoulder. He stood up and followed my gaze. “What are you looking at?”

“I’m going crazy.”

“Need more details, love.” He slung an arm over my shoulder. “We’re both sleep deprived, but I can continue on here if you want to go home.”

“I’m hearing voices.”

“You definitely need sleep.”

We sat on a park bench and I pushed the stroller back and forth. “My unicorn told me he wanted to run.” I lowered my voice. “And then someone else repeated the word over and over as though they were mocking me and my beast.”

“Don’t take this the wrong way,” Archer told me. The thing was whenever someone said that, it instantly meant the listener took it the wrong way. “But could it be that you’re not recognizing your beast? You’re still a newbie at this, love. ”

“Nope. It was someone else or something else.” A shiver ran down my spine.

Run. Run. Run.

I leapt up and tugged at my hair. “There’s another unicorn talking to my unicorn.”

“What did you say?” Now Archer was on his feet.

The truth had just hit me as though I’d slammed into a wall. “There’s a beast talking to my beast.” Our eyes locked on one another and then with trembling hands, I turned the stroller around so we were both studying our daughter.

“Elune!” I got to my knees. “I heard your unicorn, sweetheart.” With a hand on my mouth to contain the sobs, I brushed my fingers over her head.

“Does this mean she’s going to shift?” Archer asked, his eyes open wide while he flapped his hands.

“Who knows. Our daughter is unique but I doubt it. She’s way too young. But the professor told us she was talking to her beast and now she has enough control, she’s communicating with mine.

“Does she want to run?”

“She’s agreeing with my beast that he needs to.” I said that with absolute certainty.

“Oh, they’re ganging up on you.” My mate’s eyes danced. “You know what you have to do?”

Without saying another word, I turned the stroller around and we headed home. Archer ran on ahead and brought the car back to meet us. After loading the stroller in the trunk and getting Elune in her car seat, Archer drove us to Daire’s parents’ place. We were lucky they rarely used the estate as this had become the Sunshine Manor family’s favorite place to shift. And when we reached the lake, Archer put our daughter on his shoulders while I stripped off my clothes.

“Watch your father, Elune,” he told her. She babbled and kicked her legs as I let my beast take hold of me.

Run. That was my unicorn.

Run. Run. Run. That was my daughter’s beast talking to mine.

And my unicorn took off through the woods.