Shattered Hope by D.M. Turner

Author:D.M. Turner [Turner, D.M.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Paranormal Romance, Romantic Urban Fantasy, Campbell Wildlife Preserve
Publisher: Dawn M. Turner
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 4

Home of Ian Campbell, Pack Alpha

Saturday, February 11, 2017

DONNA lay on the bed in Ian’s guestroom, unable to motivate herself to get up. They’d come in from the night’s full moon run only minutes before. (Not that she’d done any running in her condition.) She’d Shifted from wolf to human and curled up on the bed without climbing into her clothes. Graham had gone into the adjoining bathroom to take a shower first, with her encouragement.

Something was wrong, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on what. A hand on her rounded belly, she tried to figure out what had bothered her all night and most of the previous day.

A pain rippled across her back and settled in her abdomen. The muscles tensed then relaxed after a moment. One of the Braxton Hicks contractions Jeremy had warned her about. She’d had them off and on for the past couple of weeks. Jeremy had checked early that week and said everything was proceeding as normal.

So why did she feel so… uneasy? Like something dreadful was about to happen.

A heavier, sharper pain struck, causing her to curl up more tightly. She tried to breathe through it like they’d taught in Lamaze, but it took her breath away. Were Braxton Hicks contractions supposed to be so strong?

The bathroom door opened. “Honey? Are you alright?”

“I don’t… think so,” she gasped around pants. “I think I’m going into labor.”

“But you’re not due until next month!”

“Don’t you think I know that?”

“I’ll be right back.”

The fear in his voice compounded the dread crawling through her. Something was very wrong. That’s when it hit her. She hadn’t felt the baby move since the morning before.

* * *

Graham ran through the house and found Ian in the kitchen. “Has Jeremy left?”

“He just headed for the front door a minute ago. Why?”

Without taking the time to explain, Graham ran out the front door and waved to the car pulling slowly down the driveway. “Jeremy! Wait!”

Brake lights flashed. Jeremy opened the door and got partway out of the car. “What’s wrong?”

“Donna’s gone into labor.”

The curse that flew out of Jeremy’s mouth stunned Graham, but not enough to still his feet as he turned and ran back to the house. The rapid crunch of shoes on gravel that followed assured him that Jeremy was right behind him. He barely caught the front door before it flew into the window behind it but didn’t wait to make sure Jeremy closed it.

By the time they reached the guestroom, Donna was curled into as tight a ball as her belly would allow, panting and gasping. Sweat glistened on every inch of bare skin. Graham eased onto the bed beside her and laid a hand on her shoulder. “I’m back, and I brought Jeremy.”

She nodded but made no attempt to speak.

“Let’s see how you’re doing,” Jeremy murmured gently. He set a bag on the floor, knelt, unzipped it, and dug around inside. His hand emerged with a stethoscope. He tucked the ends in his ears then set the round piece against Donna’s abdomen.

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