Chapter 12 Clark
TWELVE
CLARK
"I need pickles, please.” I’d wandered into Turning Pages at nine in the morning. "Specifically, pickles dipped in peanut butter."
My mate looked up from his paperwork, one eyebrow raised. "Pickles and peanut butter?”
"Don't look at me like that, my love.” I patted my belly. “The baby wants what the baby wants."
“That makes some sense.” He grinned and set down his pen, “ That concoction contains salt, protein and healthy fats. Your body is craving what it needs."
I put my hands on my hips. "How do you know that?"
He pointed to the stack of pregnancy books that had taken over half his desk. "Chapter Twelve of 'What to Expect When You’re Probably Having A Shifter Baby.' Dr. Bauer recommended it."
Of course there was a book specifically about shifter pregnancies or ones where one parent was a shifter. Flynn had read it cover to cover and was taking notes. Knowing him, he’d written to the author and suggested changes.
"I'll get pickles.” He reached for his jacket.
“You don't have to.” We could do a grocery shop later.
"And peanut butter. The good kind, not the processed stuff." He paused at the door. "Anything else the baby wants?"
Gods I adored this man who had a whole other side to him, a furry one.
"Maybe some of those weird purple carrots from the farmer's market?"
He nodded as if an order of purple carrots were a perfectly reasonable pregnancy craving. "I'll be back in twenty minutes."
After he left, I settled behind the counter with my latest manuscript.
I'd been working on a story about a pregnant dragon who had to protect her eggs from local villagers. She was doing a deal with them, saying if they didn’t steal her eggs, she'd protect them from invaders and provide fire whenever they needed it. My editor loved it.
The bell chimed, and a regular customer, Arden, came in with his usual cheerful smile.
"Good morning! How are you feeling?"
Each time the bell jingled at the door, the person asked about my health. They treated me like I was made of glass. It was sweet, but unexpected and overwhelming.
"Great, thanks. Flynn's getting me snacks."
"Oh, the cravings! I remember when I was pregnant with my youngest, I ate nothing but mustard sandwiches for a month.
" He headed toward the romance section, then paused.
"You know, my son-in-law is bringing his book club in next week.
They're all excited to meet the author who's made this place so family-friendly. "
In the months since I'd started doing readings, Turning Pages had transformed. The children's section had tripled in size, there were now comfortable chairs scattered throughout the store and weekends brought a steady stream of families browsing together.
"It's Flynn who's made the changes.” I hoped he’d be back soon because I was hungry. "I just gave him a nudge."
"Don't sell yourself short. This place has life now. It’s full of joy." He selected a book and brought it to the counter. "Flynn's happier too. Anyone can see that."
He wasn't wrong. Flynn still had his grumpy moments, but the bone-deep loneliness that had shadowed him when we first met was gone. Even his posture was different. He stood up straight and sometimes bopped around the store listening to his favorite band when no one else was here.
The bell chimed again, and Flynn returned with two grocery bags and what looked like a small bouquet of dandelions.
"Pickles, peanut butter, purple carrots," he announced, setting the bags on the counter. Then, with a slight flush, he handed me the dandelions. "And, um, these."
“Did you pick me flowers?"
"They're not flowers, they're weeds," he muttered. "But they smelled... right. My wolf thought you'd like them."
Arden made a soft “Aww" sound and my mate’s blush reddened even more.
"They're lovely.” I brought the dandelions to my nose. They did smell good and their earthy scent tickled my nose. "Thank you."
“My wolf has opinions about what you need."
"Speaking of opinions.” I pulled out my phone to show him a photo, “Look what Dr. Bauer sent from my ultrasound." Yesterday when we’d been at the doctor’s, the machine had refused to print the image.
Flynn leaned over the screen. “I still have to pinch myself because it’s hard to believe I have a mate and a baby on the way.”
We smooched. Me kissing him reinforced that it was real.
"Our baby.” Dr. Bauer had said our little one was above average size and had a healthy heartbeat.
"No sign of shifting abilities yet?” He ducked under the counter to grab some printer paper but he couldn’t fool me. I’d been around shifters long enough to suss out when he was kidding, though he’d met his beast much earlier than the other pack members.
“I know what you’re doing.”
“Oh no.” His fake voice was hilarious. “You caught me. Whatever shall I do?” He grabbed me and dipped me over as though we were in a dancing competition. My Flynn, the guy who used to say no to everything, was twirling around the store.
“She said something else."
My mate pulled me up.
"She mentioned that she has another patient who just happens to be a dragon shifter and they’re due around the same time as me.” I tapped my fingers on the counter. “Dragon shifter? You didn’t think to tell me that dragons exist, especially since I write about dragons.”
Flynn studied the ceiling. “They’re not very common, not like wolves and bears. I’ve never met one. But there are more dragon shifters than unicorns.”
“What?” I grabbed his lapels. “Unicorns. Do you know any?”
Arden, who'd been listening in, piped up and said he met a unicorn shifter once. “They were silver and pink and really shy. I only got a quick glimpse.”
I explained that I wrote fantasy and I was meticulous about world building details.
“Oh, well hit me up if you need any information about my unicorn encounter.”
My next book after the dragon one would feature a unicorn and I’d have to take Arden out for lunch and scrounge every detail from him.
“Dr Bauer mentioned that pregnant dragon omegas need more calcium for proper scale development." I tried to imagine a baby dragon puffing tiny plumes of smoke.
“They don’t have live births but lay eggs.” Auden handed Flynn the book he’d chosen.
Eggs? Of course that made sense as a dragon was a reptile.
After Auden left with his romance book and a promise to recommend our store to his friends, my mate and I shared the pickles and peanut butter while going over the day's schedule.
"The Murphys are coming in at two with their kids for a reading," he said as he consulted his appointment book. "And that new family from Windermere Street wanted to set up a regular story time."
"The one with the little boy who asked if we had any books about friendly shifters?”
"That's the one." Flynn grinned. "I may have mentioned that you're working on something that might interest him.”
I was and I had multiple projects on the go. Discovering shifters existed created a surge in my creativity.
A story about a young shifter learning to control his beast and written for kids who might be going through the same thing. Dr. Bauer said that there were several shifter families in the area who would appreciate age-appropriate books about their experiences.
“Sweetheart.” I was struck by a sudden thought. "What if we started a special section? Books for shifter families? Dr. Bauer could recommend us to her patients, and Alpha could spread the word in the pack community."
Flynn's eyes lit up with the same enthusiasm he'd had when we first discussed expanding the science fiction section. "That's... brilliant. There's definitely a market for it, and most shifter parents have to order books online."
"We could host readings specifically for shifter kids too. Give them a safe space to see their experiences reflected in stories."
"I love it." Flynn leaned across the counter to kiss me, tasting of pickles and happiness. "See? This is why my wolf knew you were perfect for us."
"Your wolf has good instincts."
"He does." My mate glanced around the bustling bookstore, taking in the children's laughter from the reading corner and the general atmosphere of warmth and community we'd built together. "He's also very smug about how well everything turned out."
I laughed, one hand resting on my growing belly. "He should be. We've got a thriving business, a baby on the way, and apparently we're about to become the go-to bookstore for the paranormal community."
"Don't forget the most important part.” My mate nuzzled the base of my throat, close to my mating mark. "We're happy."
He was right. Despite all the uncertainty of the past few months, the morning sickness and weird cravings and the occasional existential crisis about being mated to a shifter, I was happier than I'd ever been.
"Yeah.” I squeezed his hand. "We really are."
The bell dinged as another family came in, and Flynn straightened up to greet them. But not before placing his hand briefly over mine on my belly.