Chapter 16
The dream wasn”t Ben”s fault, not really. It had been a while since he had taken his cock into his own hands, and even longer since he”d gotten laid. He had turned down women at the bar because he wasn”t a good guy. They deserved better than him, and he didn”t deserve release.
However, his body required it, no matter how many times he put on a pair of running shorts and tennis shoes and went back behind the house to pretend to go for a jog. Every time, he ran as his mountain lion, trying to burn off sexual steam.
As his current dream was not so subtly informing him, this tactic hadn”t been working.
Usually the women in his dreams were faceless, lacking identifying details. This dream woman, however, had straight blond hair, gorgeous brown eyes, and forearms decorated like the night sky.
She even had Delilah”s scent.
It”s not real, he told himself in the dream, even as he gripped her hips and guided her over his aching cock. She rode him, her breasts bouncing with her movements, until she climbed off and turned around. After winking at him over her shoulder, she knelt on all fours. Her dream ass, and the pretty pink lips right beneath it, were a sight to behold. Ben wasted no time pressing inside. He rubbed his hands over her ass, smoothing the skin. Then he leaned over her, his stomach to her back, and nuzzled and bit her neck while he thrust inside her. She moaned and writhed, rocking back to speed him up.
He threw his head back in joy. Finally, he was with her. Finally, he was holding her and claiming her as his.
“I love you,” he said, continuing to pump his cock in and out of her.
”Chase,” she said, her voice needy.
Ben pulled away abruptly. He scrambled back on the dream bed. Back, and back, until he forced himself into wakefulness.
The first rays of morning were coming through his bedroom window. He was lying on his back, naked. It would be so easy to take his dick in hand and find some satisfaction. But Delilah and the baby were only two rooms away. He couldn”t jack off thinking about her while she was right there. It wouldn”t be right.
He got up and threw on a pair of jogging shorts and tennis shoes, then left the house through the back door.
Once he was far away from the house, he let the lion take him. He ran, speeding through the wilderness. His race was silent, desperate. Yet no amount of speed could erase the dream from his mind.
He must”ve been five or six miles from the house when he finally stopped. He looked around the trees, ensuring that he was truly alone, and shifted back into his human form. Here, here he would finally take his release. All it took was one mental image of how Delilah had looked in his dream, and his cock was hard again. He reached down and gave it a stroke. It felt good, but not as good as Delilah had in the dream.
He closed his eyes, envisioning her as she had looked in his dream, trying to recapture the way she had felt, her skin on his.
But in his mind, she said it again. His brother’s name.
Ben growled and let go of his dick. Angry with himself, he shifted back into his mountain lion and ran to where he”d left his clothes. He dressed and went to the house, feeling just as frustrated, and a whole lot unhappier, than he”d felt when he left.
He could hear McKenzie crying before he even reached the back deck. She sounded well and truly furious. He cocked his head in concern. It had been a while since she”d sounded so upset. Maybe Delilah had tried to sneak in an early shower and McKenzie had woken up while Delilah was showering.
He smiled to himself. Delilah sure did love the water. He wondered what she would think about the swimming hole a couple miles behind his property. Maybe he could take her and the baby there sometime.
He went inside the house and was surprised he didn”t hear shower water running. Maybe Delilah had just gotten out and hadn”t had a chance to pick up McKenzie yet. He went into the kitchen and started coffee.
McKenzie was still screaming. McKenzie was still screaming by the time the coffee started dripping.
Okay, that was it. He was concerned now. He went down the hall to Delilah”s room and knocked.
No answer, other than McKenzie”s screaming.
He opened the door a crack. ”Delilah?”
No answer. He pushed the door open and stepped inside.
The room smelled off, stale. Delilah lay in bed, McKenzie cradled in her arms.
”Delilah?” Ben asked again.
She slowly opened her eyes. ”Ben? I can”t seem to get up.”
Shapeshifters didn”t get sick, but he had seen enough television shows and movies to know that he should check her for a fever. He placed his hand against her forehead. She felt way too hot.
”You”re sick,” he said. He didn”t know the first thing about caring for a sick person, other than what he”d seen on TV, but he had access to the internet and he would figure it out.
First things first, he needed to make it so Delilah could rest.
”Does McKenzie need anything?” he asked.
”I just fed her,” Delilah said. ”She might need a fresh diaper.”
Diapers were another thing Ben had never done before. Looked like it would be a day for new experiences.
Ben picked up McKenzie and she stopped crying almost immediately.
”You do have the magic touch,” Delilah murmured.
He seriously doubted it. He turned to go. ”Get some rest.”
”Can”t,” she said. ”I have to work.”
He turned around. ”You think your boss is gonna want you there when you”re dead on your feet?”
”I can”t lose this job,” she whispered, almost to herself.
”You won”t,” he said. “I”ll call your boss.”
Delilah looked like she wanted to argue, but she was too weak. Ben snagged McKenzie’s diaper bag on the way out of the room. First things first, fresh diaper.
He brought the baby and the bag into the living room, where he set the bag down on the floor and knelt next to it with McKenzie in his arms. He looked at her blue eyes. They had a hint of green in them, just like Chase’s. He missed his arrogant, holier-than-thou brother more than he could say.
”Okay,” he breathed. ”What next?”
McKenzie just looked at him.
He had seen Delilah do this once or twice, but he hadn”t really paid attention. He thought back. She would set the baby on something, some kind of blanket. With one hand, he looked through the diaper bag and found a folded piece of fabric. That looked about right. He unfolded it in front of him and laid the baby down. She stared up at him in surprise.
”What?” he muttered. ”You didn”t think I would get this far?”
Next, he somehow had to get her out of her clothes. There were snaps everywhere.
He figured it out, and once she was down to her diaper, he got out his phone and took a picture of the way it had been fastened. He was rather proud of his cleverness.
From here, though, he didn”t have a clue what he was doing. He unfastened the diaper, realizing he’d just hit the point of no return. He was committed now, and he had to get this baby in a fresh diaper. He knew there were wipes involved, but he wasn”t sure how many to use. He thought five was a good number.
Once she was clean, he got out the next diaper.
”Shit. I mean, shoot.” He looked from the diaper to the baby and back. The diaper looked like a freeze-dried version of the other one. It was folded up in a little tiny rectangle. The one McKenzie had been wearing looked like it would actually fit on a baby”s body. He plucked at the creases and opened the new diaper up. This was a little better.
He wasn”t sure which way was front or back, but he made his best guess. He strapped it on her, then looked at the picture he”d taken with his phone and compared the two. Good enough.
He picked the kid up and took her outside so she could look around while he found the phone number for Tykes Palace on his phone. ”Tykes Palace,” he muttered while it rang. ”More like Typhoid Palace.”
When a woman answered the phone, Ben said, ”Hi, my name is Ben. I”m a friend of Delilah”s. She can”t come to work today. She”s sick.”
”No doubt she got it from one of our little ones,” the woman said.
”No doubt,” Ben growled.
”It happens to everyone when they first start working in childcare,” the woman said. ”Takes them a little while to build up their immune system. Luckily, it”s Friday and I have fewer kids in today. Just tell Delilah I hope she gets better soon.”
“Will do,” Ben said.
They ended the call.
The lady sounded nice enough, but Ben couldn”t squelch his irritation that she knew everybody would get sick in the beginning, and she hadn”t given Delilah any warning.
Or maybe she had. It wasn”t like Delilah told Ben everything. He found himself feeling disappointed at that thought.
Next, Ben texted Marlana to let her know he was on babysitting duty and wouldn”t be able to follow around the rogue shifter.
She texted back, We have a guess on who he might be. Meet me here at one so we can talk it over. You can bring the baby.
Ben spent the rest of the morning carrying McKenzie around while he looked up remedies for fevers and human sicknesses. He visited the Dr. Bridges website so often that when it prompted him to download the app, he did so without hesitation.
At lunch, he brought Delilah some chicken soup along with a steaming mug of tea.
”How”s my girl?” she croaked.
”She seems okay,” he said.
”I should probably feed her.”
Ben handed the baby over and turned to go.
”No, stay,” Delilah said. ”I”m bored.”
”I could bring in Doug”s TV.”
”No, it”s okay. Just talk to me.”
Ben didn”t know what to say. He averted his gaze while Delilah pulled McKenzie to her breast. Finally, he said, “The lady at Typhoid Palace said she hopes you get better soon.”
“Typhoid Palace?” Delilah scrunched up her nose and even managed a smile. “Funny.”
“Yeah. I, uh, need to run to the store,” Ben said. ”I read that Tylenol might help your fever, and it’s okay to take while breastfeeding.”
“Yes, it wouldn”t hurt,” Delilah said. She lovingly stroked McKenzie”s red curls. ”I”m just grateful McKenzie didn”t catch whatever this is. I hope if she hasn”t caught it yet, that it means she won”t catch it at all.”
”She won”t get sick,” Ben said.
Delilah looked up at him with wide, glassy eyes. ”You think?”
He knew. Shifters didn”t get sick. He simply nodded. ”I also need to go by my boss’s house for a quick meeting. She said it”s okay if I bring the baby. That all right with you?”
Delilah nodded and leaned back against the head of the bed. ”Yeah.”
”I thought I would bring her carrier in here when it”s time to go so you can show me how to buckle her up right.”
”I can do that,” Delilah said. ”Really, I”m just so thankful you”re here.”
But I”m not Chase, Ben thought. He didn”t say it out loud, just held the thought inside.
* * *
Ben steppedinto Marlana”s house, holding McKenzie”s carrier in one hand and the diaper bag slung over his other shoulder.
Viviana and her mate, Hudson, were coming down the stairs.
”Oh look, it”s the manny,” Viviana said, giggling.
”Manny?” Ben asked.
”Man, nanny,” Viviana said with a grin. Then she rushed down the stairs to admire McKenzie. ”There”s my favorite baby girl.”
Ben looked helplessly up at Hudson, but Hudson was looking at his mate and the baby together, a soft look of wonder on his face.
Ben shook his head. This baby had some kind of magical power, and he didn”t know what it was, but it was wreaking havoc with his pride.
”Can I hold her?”
Ben looked up in surprise. It hadn”t been Viviana who had asked, but Hudson. The giant, hulking human bodyguard wanted to hold the baby.
Dumbstruck, Ben nodded. He set down the diaper bag and carrier and slowly worked McKenzie free of her car seat straps. Wordlessly, he handed her to Hudson.
”Ben?” Marlana’s voice floated down the stairs. ”I”m waiting.”
”I gotta go,” Ben said to Viviana and Hudson.
”We’ll watch her,” Viviana said quickly.
Ben trusted them, and he was sure Delilah wouldn”t mind, so he shrugged and went upstairs. He entered Marlana”s office and sat in the chair she pointed him to.
Her pale blue eyes regarded him coolly. ”Tell me how it”s going with the mother.”
”Good. She’s sick today, so I offered to watch the baby.”
”Excellent.” Marlana nodded. ”I don”t have any experience with this, but from what I”ve read from other groups in the shifter forum, we need to build up trust with the mother so that when it”s time, we can tell her about the child”s true form.”
Ben nodded.
”It”s important that you don”t tell her about us before we”re ready,” Marlana said.
“Got it.”
”Anyway,” Marlana continued, ”I called you in because I wanted to talk to you about that, as well as the rogue. Based on your description and Fraze”s intel, I think he”s a throw-away from the Saltwood pack. They’re in northern Wyoming.”
Ben nodded. ”I”ve heard of them.”
”Sounds like they kicked out a man fitting this rogue”s description a few months ago. The alpha hasn’t agreed to talk to me yet, we”re not that friendly, but rumor from their neighboring pride is that the rogue wants back in and he”s trying to ingratiate himself with the alpha. I don”t know what this means yet, but we should keep an eye on them.”
”Got it,” Ben said. ”Continue as I have been?”
Marlana nodded. “In the meantime, I’ll try to pin down the Saltwood alpha for a chat.”
“I want to do more,” Ben said, trying to keep his voice respectful when all he wanted to do was tear the room apart and insist Marlana put all the pride’s Guardians on the issue.
”Get the baby”s mother healthy first,” she said. ”I don”t think the rogue is after the baby, but if he is, the mother is the first, and usually the best, line of defense.”
A spike of fear pulsed quickly through Ben”s body, followed by a blinding rage.
Marlana must have sensed it, because she raised her eyebrows and said, ”You”re getting personally involved in this, aren”t you?”
”I”m a Guardian,” Ben all but growled. ”I can leave my emotions out of it.”
She gave him a small smile. ”If you say so. There”s nothing wrong with emotion, though. Took me long enough to learn that, but I finally did.”