Bear's Baby (Bear Heat Book 4) (11 page)

She nodded and took a good
look at him. Baxter's hair was in a mess and there were dark circles
under his eyes. His clothes were rumpled and there was stubble
shadowing his jaw. He looked like he hadn't slept in days or weeks.

“Are you sure you're a
Black Bear?” she teased, trying to chase away the worry in his
eyes. “You look like a panda bear!”

He smiled. “Oh,
Lindy,” he murmured, kissing her palm. “I love you so,
so much...”

“I love you too, big
bear.”

His smile grew shy suddenly.
“I...I hope you'll love the little bear too.”

“What little bear?”

“The one...growing
inside your tummy.”

Lindy blinked at him. Then
she gasped as the meaning of his words hit her.

“Are y-you
saying...that I'm pregnant?” she stammered.

“Yes. The doctors said
so.”

“Oh...” She had
to close her eyes for a long moment.

“Lindy.” Baxter
took her hand tenderly.

She opened her eyes to see
him kneeling at her bedside. “Baxter...”

“Lindy, I love you,”
he said, gazing deeply into her eyes. “I love you, and I love
our baby. I want to be with you, and I want to build a happy, loving
family with you. That's what I want. I...” He took a deep
breath. “I hope that's what you want as well. Will you let me
take care of you, cherish you and love you for the rest of my life,
Lindy?”

Her vision wobbled suddenly
and she realized that her eyes were suddenly filled with tears.

She blinked and the tears
plopped onto the back of their joined hands.

They were hot, sweet, happy
tears.

“Yes,” she
whispered at last. “Yes, Baxter. That's what I want. That's
what I've always wanted.”

CHAPTER
TWENTY

Baxter growled and grunted as
he paced the length of the corridor. He was going to gnaw all his
claws off in no time.

“Why didn't you contact
me earlier?” he snarled at Dylan for the umpteenth time.

“We contacted you as
soon as we got the news,” Dylan answered levelly. “You
were on a mission.”

“Yeah, but this is a
bigger mission. This is the biggest mission of my life!”
Baxter said, raking his hands through his hair.

The rest of the Black Bears
nodded in understanding. The clan was here, supporting him and
giving him the space to rant and vent.

This was the most
nerve-racking, gut-clenching few hours of his entire life. His bears
were behind him all the way but they weren't of much help in this
matter.

Everyone was here. Even his
alpha, Ethan was here with his mate and cub.

Cora was bouncing her son,
Matt, on her knee and trying to keep the little bear cub out of
everyone's hair. With a growl, Matt shifted into a furry black bear
and scrambled out of his mother's arms. The little bear ran to his
dad, but when Ethan bent to pick him up, Matt darted away and began
to climb up Caleb's leg.

Caleb laughed and ruffled the
cub's soft fur affectionately. “Good climbing skills, Matt,”
the Black Bears beta said. “Keep practicing.”

Caleb put his arms around
Prisha's swollen belly as she came up to him. “Ah, our cub is
going to be like that as well,” Prisha said, smiling down at
Matt. “Full of action and mischief. See, she's doing another
somersault in my belly.”

Caleb kissed his mate. “Our
daughter will be a strong, beautiful she-bear,” he said
proudly.

Aubrey went to pry the
mischievous cub away from Caleb's leg. “Come here, Matt. Come
play with your Aunt Aubrey and Uncle Thor,” she cooed and
propped Matt up on Thor's broad shoulder. “Oh, guess what I
got for you? Honey biscuits!”

Cora shook her head at her
best friend. “Aubrey! You'll spoil him.”

“I did warn you I'll do
just that, didn't I?” Aubrey said, grinning indulgently as she
handed a big, gooey biscuit to Matt. “I'm going to spoil all
the cubs rotten.” She turned to Caleb and Prisha. “You've
been duly warned. You too, Bax.”

She laughed when Baxter
growled at her. “Tsk, such a grumpy Papa bear.”

Baxter tuned out all the
voices and shook away the hands on his shoulder. His clan members
meant well, but he couldn't bear to be touched right now. He was too
highly strung, too stressed and jumpy.

God, he should have stayed
with Lindy. He shouldn't have left. He should have refused this
assignment. He should have known that she would go into labor any
time. He should have…ah!

This was fucking killing him.

The door of the labor suite
opened and the doctor stepped out. Baxter almost knocked the good
doctor over when he pounced on the woman.

“Dr. Kelly!”
Baxter bellowed. “How is she? How is…?”

“Lindy is fine.”
Dr. Kelly beamed. “So is the baby.”

“Can I see them? Now!”
Baxter craned his neck.

“Of course.”

Baxter muscled past the
doctor and was in the room in a heartbeat.

“Lindy!” He
raced to her, almost crashing into her bed. “Oh, oh...”

He spluttered, unable to
speak when Lindy smiled and held out a tiny, red-faced bundle to him.
“Isn't she beautiful?” she whispered.

“Oh...” Baxter
couldn't find the words. He could only nod mutely as he took his
newborn daughter in his arms.

His clan members hustled
excitedly into the room, and were congratulating and hugging Lindy.
Baxter was only vaguely aware of hands clapping his back and oohs and
aahs near his ear. He had eyes only for his beautiful little girl,
and his lovely, amazing mate. He looked up and met Lindy's
shimmering blue eyes.

His daughter yawned and
opened one sleepy eye. “She has your eyes, Lindy,” he
smiled proudly. “She's going to be a beauty like you.”

Baxter walked slowly over to
Lindy and sat at the edge of her bed. Handing the precious bundle
over to his mate, he kissed Lindy's brow and whispered, “Thank
you. Thank you, for this. This moment, this life. You have given
me everything I have ever wanted. I love you. I love you both so
much!” He circled his precious family with his arms.

He leaned his forehead
against hers as they gazed down at their baby together.

The Black Bears crowded round
to take a look at the newest member of their clan. Baxter turned and
grinned at his clan members. Hands and fists thumped his back and
shoulders, but he didn't shrug them away this time. Instead, Baxter
threw out his arms to embrace his clan. He ended up hugging the two
bears nearest to him.

“Hey, watch where you
put your paws,” Dylan grumbled, but he was grinning.

“You're a nice guy,
Baxter. But you're not my type,” Luke deadpanned. “I
prefer someone a bit curvier.”

Baxter laughed out loud.

He had his beautiful mate and
cub, and a crazy, smart-mouthed, tight-knit clan.

He was a lucky, lucky bear
indeed.

~
End
~

About the Author

Natalie Kristen is a writer
who enjoys mixing the sweet with the spicy, the light with the dark,
the possibilities with the unimaginable. She enjoys exploring
paranormal and dystopian worlds, deep desires and inspiring romances.
She is hopelessly addicted to coffee, chocolate, reading and
writing. She loves to hear from readers so please feel free to
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