do anything more for him and worrying about all the
“what ifs” wouldn’t do anyone any good. She was a professional and knew she needed to let it go until she heard news from the hospital.
Valiant transferred her from his arms into Slade’s. “Those men destroyed the inside of my house.” Valiant growled in anger. “I was out hunting and smelled them. They were gone by the time I reached my home but I followed them this way.”
“I’m sorry.” Slade watched him. “Thank you for the help.”
“She’s one of ours.”
Slade nodded. “Mine specifically.”
Valiant arched an eyebrow. “It now makes sense why you threatened to kill me for touching her. You should feed her more. She’s too skinny. You should at least be breeding a bigger one if you are going to be mounting a human. I can feel all her bones.”
“I’m not skinny,” Trisha protested softly, using one hand to wipe her face. She sniffed and her anger stirred. It may have been the stress and trauma but she felt insulted. “I needed to drop ten pounds before I got pregnant. I eat plenty too. You’re making me feel as though I’m not taking care of myself. I’m healthy to the point of having excess weight I could lose.”
Slade cleared his throat. “Where? I’m partial to your breasts and I love your ass just the way it is.”
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“You know I’m going to get bigger, a lot more so, in a few months, don’t you?”
Slade nodded. “I can’t wait to see you fat.”
“I won’t be fat,” she sputtered. “Pregnant is not fat.”
“Where should we take her?” Brass moved closer.
“You can take her to my home,” Valiant sighed. “Just for one day.” He shot Slade a warning look. “Only one.”
“Thank you. Your place is the closest and I need to stash her until darkness falls. I want to move her to my house unseen. It’s going to be a mess out there right now after this happened. In a few hours things will calm.” Slade shifted her in his arms. “I want her under cover quickly.”
Valiant nodded. “Even better. Let’s go.”
“You can put me down,” Trisha informed Slade.
He shook his head. “You are barefoot. Just wrap your arms around my neck and relax.” He suddenly grinned. “Unless you want me to put you on my back again.”
She wound her arms around his neck, remembering their time after the SUV crash and how the muscles of her thighs had ached for days afterward from clinging to him.
Valiant led the way with Slade following and Brass trailing behind.
“Where’s Moon?” Trisha twisted her head, searching but she didn’t see him. “Is he okay? He wasn’t shot too, was he?”
“He’s unharmed. He planned to stay with Harley.” Brass answered. “He’ll guard him while he’s inside the human hospital.”
“Will someone let us know how Harley is doing?” Trisha met Slade’s gaze. “Please?
I’ll worry until I hear if he made it.”
He nodded. “I’ll make sure you’re updated as soon as I have news on his condition.”
“Thank you.” She knew he would keep his word.
* * * * *
Valiant lived inside a large two-story house. Trisha stared at it, surprised. It was an old Victorian, in pretty good shape. Someone had lovingly restored the place unless it had been built to mimic an older house. Either way it appeared authentic and impressive.
“This is land we bought adjoining the old resort,” Slade explained. “An old woman lived here but her son had died. She was all alone and not doing so well. Now she’s in a retirement center with a full-time staff to care for her. We were able to buy up a lot of properties in the area that surrounded the resort. We paid them nearly twice the market price to make them happy.”
Valiant walked up the wide porch steps. The double doors were broken and Trisha winced. One of the stained- glass doors had been smashed and she knew it would be 182
impossible to replace. Brass used his foot to sweep the glass to the side as Valiant ushered them inside his home.
Trisha stared at the beautiful woodwork inside the nice entryway and at the hand-carved banister that led to the second floor. Her doubts of the real age of the home vanished. The beautiful woodwork shone with love and pride, craftsmanship that no longer existed except for the very rich. Valiant led them through double doors into a large living room. Trisha stared in horror.
“They wrecked most of the house,” Valiant growled. He walked to the overturned couch and straightened it. “Put her down there. Between the three of us we should be able to make her more comfortable.”
“I’m so sorry,” Slade told him sincerely. “We’ll help you replace what was destroyed.” He gently eased Trisha
