Chapter 3 – Grey
GREY
Ijust sit on the floor, staring at the bathroom door, listening to my little shifter cry.
I don’t think I’ve ever felt this shitty before.
It’s just—I don’t know what she wants from me.
Am I supposed to not protect her? Gargoyles are hardwired to protect innocents.
It’s in our blood, an old instinct from the days when we used to guard buildings, homes, and pieces of land.
I can’t just turn that part of myself off.
Admittedly, that feeling inside me has gotten worse since I fell in love with our tiny woman… and a hell of a lot worse since she got pregnant. But this is me holding back. This is me trying to give her space. If it was up to me, she’d spend every second of her day in bed.
Journey sits down beside me, and I can hear Ender in the kitchen, probably turning everything off so we don’t burn the house down.
“She’s got a point, you know,” Journey says softly.
I turn to look at him. Journey’s a big man with blond hair and bright blue eyes.
And his kind face gives him an almost angelic feel…
exactly the opposite of me. But I know him better than anyone in this world, he’s just as protective of Celaeno as I am.
So why the hell is he acting like I’m the only one?
“Yeah, so you were cool with her taking off and putting herself in danger? Or were you throwing on clothes and swearing just like me?”
He runs his fingers through his hair and sighs. “Of course I was scared. And of course I want to keep her safe, just like you. But before she met us, she had complete freedom to do whatever she wanted. The last thing we should do is make her feel… imprisoned with us.”
I snort. “Or we should get some chains.”
Journey’s gaze holds mine. “And what if we make her so miserable she takes off? She can shift, Grey. She could just be gone one morning.”
For a second, I can’t breathe. “She wouldn’t do that.”
“She could.”
My gaze moves back to the bathroom door, and I hear the slight sound of her crying on the other side of it.
Fucking hell. I’ve made her miserable. My pregnant woman is crying alone.
This isn’t what I want. Not even close. I just want to make her happy.
“So what do I do? Just… let her go out alone?” Just saying the words makes my gut churn. “Just give her freedom and hope she doesn’t get hurt?”
Journey closes his eyes. “I don’t like the idea either, but I think we have to.”
I’m going to try. I swear to God, if that’s what she needs to be happy… to want to stay with us, I’ll try with every bone in my body. Even if it drives me crazy.
“I’ll try,” I promise. “But now, how do we… how do we get her to stop crying and come out?”
Ender speaks from the doorway. “I can help with that.”
He drops the kitchen towel he’s been drying his hands off with and strips off his shirt, revealing his massive muscles covered in tattoos. When he sees us watching, he flashes his startlingly-white teeth. “What? I can’t think of a better way to get her out then with some man-flesh.”
Fucking Ender…
But then, maybe he has a point.
Journey and I look at each other. He shrugs, and then we both stand, stripping down to our boxers.
“So the plan is…” Journey begins.
Ender is standing in boxers with hearts on them, and the words, “Kiss Me,” on them. And, of course, a massive erection. “I’ll go in, make her happy, and get her to come out. You guys… try to lounge around looking hot.” His gaze goes to me. “That's hot. Not like you have a stick up your ass.”
I glare. “I wasn’t looking like that!”
He cocks his head. “Is it possible for a man to have a resting bitch face?”
My fists clench.
“I’m going to go ahead and give a yes on that one.”
He heads toward the bathroom before I can come up with a snappy retort, and knocks lightly on the door. “Can I come in? I don’t think it’s fair that you left me out here with His Moodiness either.”
There’s no response for a long second, and then a slight sniffle. “Okay.”
Ender slips inside, and I go to the chair, trying to ‘lounge around’ in a sexy way.
“You look constipated,” Journey says, staring at me.
I’m back to glaring. “You try to look sexy!”
The hulking man shrugs his shoulders and goes to the bed, lying down he puts his hands under his head, looking strangely casual.
Okay, so I’m not into men or anything, but I think Celaeno will definitely find a muscled guy lying around in boxers with a hard-on attractive. Now, what am I supposed to do?