Chapter 18 - Lydia
With the sun beaming overhead and the warm sand beneath my feet, my heart and mind were at ease. The gentle current of the lake moving in and out against the shore offered us a beautiful ambiance as Zoe, and I laid out on our towels, wearing only bikinis while we tanned.
It was a lazy, yet fulfilling afternoon, and I was more than happy to be there with her, taking advantage of the beautiful weather.
“This lake is beautiful,” I hummed, taking in a calming breath.
With her eyes closed still, she faced the open sky with her sunglasses on. “Sebastian will tell you that he picked this place for the pack, but the moment I saw this lake, I pretty much decided for him.”
I laughed quietly at the thought, well aware that she was telling the truth. Even if she was the younger sibling, Zoe still liked to call the shots whenever she could, regardless of her brother’s alpha status.
She had been headstrong and determined for as long as I could remember, and the story was certainly true to her character.
“Somehow, I believe that.”
Thinking about Sebastian brought a different kind of warmth over me, and ever since we seemed to clear the air surrounding our bond, we were making strides.
“How have you been feeling lately?” Zoe asked casually, flipping over to tan her back.
“I’ve been okay,” I returned gently, pondering the question further. “Although, my stomach has been a bit sensitive.”
She glanced at me at that. “Like nausea?”
I nodded. “Yeah, it comes and goes. I just assumed it was from adjusting and everything else.”
Her brow lifted. “You do know what that sounds like…right?”
Missing her point initially, I furrowed my brows. But as a smug look crossed her face, it clicked. “You mean…”
“Could you be pregnant?”
Hearing those words was enough to send my mind reeling. Immediately, I tried to recall my last cycle, but with everything happening so fast with leaving home and transitioning into Sebastian’s pack, it was hard to place dates together. “I…I’m not sure. I don’t know when I was due for my next period.”
As we looked at one another, that reality hit me in a wave of brief fear and excitement, and I was aware of how big of a change it would be for us if it were true.
Zoe’s visible joy grew along with her smile. “Has Sebastian picked up on it at all?”
I shook my head. “He hasn’t said anything, so I don’t think so.”
“If I know about this before my brother does? I’ll get to have an absolute field day,” she said, relishing in the thought of having something to hold over his head.
Hoping to temper her excitement somewhat, I stifled my amusement despite how excited the thought made me feel. “We don’t know for sure yet. But I’ll have to get checked out soon...that means I’ll have to tell Sebastian.”
Picking up on my slight hesitation, she placed a supportive hand against my shoulder. “Don’t worry, he’ll be ecstatic about it. I know he’s been wanting a family for a while now.”
Even if the nerves persisted, her words did come as a relief. I didn’t doubt that Sebastian would be supportive, but given the sudden revelation, it was difficult for me to wrap my head around it.
While the unknown seemed scary, I couldn’t deny how nice of a thought it was and how it felt right in many ways.
Despite our building elation at the idea, we both hesitated the moment new scents filled the space around us. Exchanging a questioning gaze, we turned at once and immediately met with shock as three shifters stepped out from the trees behind us, cornering us with the lake at our backs.
We both hurried to our feet and the moment I got a good look at them, I recognized those shifters. Dread sat within my gut like a boulder, and I tried to temper my fear as much as I could. I kept my eyes on all of them as they stepped closer.
“Jack’s betas,” I muttered to Zoe, standing our ground as best as we could. She tensed with the understanding.
Jack’s right hand, Will, stepped closer than the others, eyeing me with his arms crossed over his chest. “So, you haven’t forgotten who your alpha is after all.”
Hearing that statement felt so foreign it was easy enough to brush it off. I shook my head. “He stopped being my alpha the moment he decided to prey on me. Why are you here?”
The tension in the air was palpable, gripping around my heart like a vice. The pack territory was like a sanctuary until now, and I hated how their presence was enough to break that feeling of security. I wanted to be as far away from them as possible.
Will gave me a measuring look, unswayed by my words regardless of my conviction. “We’re here to collect what belongs to our alpha…the only alpha.”
I scoffed at the sentiment, taking a step back. Shaking my head, the thought alone made my stomach turn. “No, absolutely not. I’m not going anywhere.”
As they stepped closer, the betas took my refusal as a challenge, and Will smirked. “Yeah? You think you can stop us?”
A dangerous mixture of alarm and anger moved through me, wishing I could anchor myself to the ground. Knowing there was a chance I could be pregnant, I couldn’t stand the idea of being taken away from Sebastian. I couldn’t let it happen.
“It won’t end well for you if you disobey again, Finch. You know that Jack always gets what he wants in the end,” he sneered at me as the others chuckled, moving in.
A growl came from Zoe’s chest as she put an arm out to defend me, allowing the beginning of her shift to manifest. Her teeth and nails elongated in a warning. “Come any closer, and I’ll bury you. Lydia isn’t leaving.”
While I appreciated her help and how she stuck her neck out for me, even if we both fought hard, there were only two of us, and all three of them were much bigger in comparison.
Still, we braced ourselves for the inevitable.
With a newfound instinct—one that silently vowed to protect my bond with Sebastian and the potential life growing inside me, I refused to give up without a fight. Instead, that tension moved through me, and I was unwilling to go anywhere that involved Jack or his betas.
Will laughed darkly as he approached, not caring about my refusal or our attempts to protect ourselves. “Two against three. I think I like our odds.”
In the blink of an eye, the farthest shifter went down with a sudden cry, and Sebastian was on him, grabbing his throat before throwing him back, eyes training on Will next. Roman followed in, growling as he took on the third shifter. He used his burly strength to clip his jaw with a fist.
I watched them through a daze, surprised by Sebastian’s speed yet relieved to see him. Even though Will was preoccupied with Sebastian’s advancement, fists clenched, Zoe still held me back with a guarding arm against me, ensuring I wasn’t caught in the middle.
Tensions tightened around us as Sebastian’s domineering strength took over. With a solid punch square to his face, Will staggered back, caught off-guard. The loose sand beneath his feet made it harder for him to maintain his retreating steps as blood poured from his nose, looking up at Sebastian in disbelief.
I found myself silently cheering for Sebastian, feeling safer in his presence as he cut the space between him and Will. He growled as he bent down and picked him up by his neck, making him sputter for air.
“I’ll let you live this once,” Sebastian seethed as anger emanated from his body, focusing all his fury on the beta in his grasp. “So you can tell your alpha he’s a dead man if he comes back here. He can’t have what’s already mine.”
A shiver moved through me at his declaration, fully aware of and witnessing his willingness to ensure our bond was safe and guarded from anyone who dared to try and break it. While I already knew of his commitment, witnessing it with my own eyes was something completely different.
With a final growl, Sebastian threw Will back, letting him hit the sand hard as his other two buddies scrambled to their feet, struggling to get away. Roman let the other go, shoving him so they could relay the message back to Jack.
The moment they were gone, my relief was immediate, yet a kernel of fear lingered within me still—panic, knowing that things were escalating.
Everything seemed to be going so well, and I was looking forward to my developing future with Sebastian, but I couldn’t shake that dread from growing within me.
As I had feared, Jack wasn’t prepared to give up. Even if I was Sebastian’s mate, he was still determined to get me back.