Chapter 51

(**Rayne's POV**)

Rayne fidgeted with her hands as she and Parker waited for the nurse to call them back into an exam room. They had been at the little clinic for werewolves for about thirty minutes. Parker was getting agitated while they waited. Rayne was remembering the look on her father’s face when she told him he was going to be a grandfather. Edmund looked overjoyed, then shellshocked as it settled in on him. She knew he was thinking about her mother.

The joy she felt dimmed significantly as she too thought of her mother. This was just one more thing in a long list that Rayne would face without Mia. Even though it had been so long since her death, Rayne would always feel her loss. She was just grateful that Edmund was with her again. Edmund excused himself to go to his apartment shortly after she shared the news.

Parker was angry at how Edmund had reacted, but he understood the loss they both felt at the news. He knew it was a joyous occasion and wanted it to remain that way. He called the doctor they knew and was able to get an appointment for one in the afternoon. Here they sat, waiting patiently to see the doctor. Rayne knew the test could be wrong, but her heart said it wasn’t.

What concerned her now was what the baby would be. Had there ever been a shifter-werewolf hybrid before? There was no one she could think of to ask. Logically, she knew that there were other hybrids out there in the world. Vampire hybrids were the most common, but were there other species hybrids out there? What would a child from a shifter and werewolf be capable of?

“Relax, we will get all the answers soon.” Parker’s voice was calm, but Rayne could feel the anxiety coming off him.

“I know, but what if this doctor doesn’t know anything?”

“We will ask Morty. He is old as fuck and I am sure he has come across a hybrid or two in his lifetime.”

Rayne hadn’t even thought of Morty. “That is an excellent point.”

Parker reached over, grabbed her hand, then brought it to his lips for a gentle kiss over her knuckles. “I know you were thinking now is a bad time for us to have a baby. You didn’t have to say it out loud. I felt it from you when you and your father were talking earlier.”

“I only thought that since everything is so unclear for the future.” Rayne wanted to say more, but they were in the waiting room of the clinic and not a safe place.

“Miss Solas?” A nurse stood at the open door to take them back. Her blue eyes zoned straight in on Parker and made Rayne growl. The nurse was a shifter too. That is unexpected since there were not many shifters in California.

Rayne stood up and would have taken her hand from Parker, but he held it tight and ignored the nurse. The nurse’s blue eyes hardened, but she said nothing more while she led them back to an exam room. Once they were in a room, the nurse took Rayne’s vitals, then left in a huff. The entire time she was doing her job, the flirty looks she kept sending Parker were ignored. This woman ignored the mate scent on him and flirted shamelessly. All Rayne wanted to do was rip her throat out.

Parker chuckled once they were alone, “I only have eyes for you, my love. You know this, so don’t let her get to you.”

“If she comes back in here, I may have to prove a point.”

There was a knock on the door before the doctor stepped inside. She was younger than Rayne expected, but what caught her attention right away were the neon green streaks in her hair. This woman was their doctor? Rayne approved instantly. She loved it when people broke the traditional look of professionals.

“Hello there, I am Dr. Dillon. I have your blood work here and you are pregnant. The test was almost unclear, since you are so early in your pregnancy. From what I can gather, you are only about two weeks along. I will give you some vitamins to take, schedule you for a sonogram, then I will want to monitor you as your pregnancy progresses. I understand you are a shifter?” She looked over at Parker where he stood next to the exam table.

Parker nodded his head at her statement.

“I have no experience with hybrids. I have only delivered human and werewolf babies. So, I want to monitor this pregnancy very closely.”

Rayne felt her anxiety spike at the doctor’s statement. “What are my baby’s chances of being one or the other?”

“Like only a werewolf or a shifter but not a mix?”

“Yes.”

“Well, I honestly have no clue. I will reach out to some of my colleagues and see what they say. At this point we will need to wait to see how the pregnancy progresses. This is beyond me, if you want my honesty. I can recommend you to my teacher or you could go find a witch.”

“We know a few witches.” Parker stroked Raynes back as he spoke.

“Well, I will give you those vitamins and set up the appointment for the sonogram when you are at six weeks. Until then, I will make some calls and get back to you.”

“Thank you, Dr. Dillon.”

Dillon shook both their hands, “I will send a nurse back with those vitamins then you can go.”

When they were alone again, Parker moved to stand in front of Rayne. He wrapped his arms around her, hugged her tight, then looked down into her eyes. “Everything will work out fine. I will be with you no matter what.”

Rayne tilted her head up to his as he leaned down to kiss her. The nurse chose that moment to open the door to bring the vitamins. “What the fuck? Are you two a couple?”

“Did you not catch out scents when we walked in?” Rayne asked her with sarcasm laced in her voice.

Parker turned to look at the nurse with an amused smile on his face. He flicked his eyes to her name tag then back to her face. “Well, if you haven’t noticed by our scents, then I am not sure what else to tell you, Gillian.”

“You are a shifter! What the fuck are you doing with someone not of our species? That is not natural at all. If she is pregnant with your baby, then you will have an abomination to nature!” There was so much venom in her voice that Rayne couldn’t stop the growl that bubbled up in her throat.

Rayne tried to push Parker out of the way as she lunged at Gillan, but he swiftly caught her around the waist before she got past him. She growled loudly as she struggled in his embrace as he held her from behind. The look Gillian shot her made Rayne’s control on Ruby slip. Her fingernails turned to claws before she could stop it.

**Let me out!!** Ruby was struggling fiercely to gain control.

*No, this isn’t the time or place. We can’t shift now, Ruby. The baby could die.*

That shut Ruby up instantly, and she stopped trying to break free. Gillan’s eyes were wide, but a sneer was on her lips. When Parker saw her sneer, he growled too. “That is enough! I tolerated you lame flirting because I knew I would never deal with you again, but I will not let you speak to my mate like that.”

“What are you going to do about it? Shifters don’t have Alphas. You have no authority over anyone.”

“But I do,” Dillon’s voice spoke coldly from the hall.

Gillian spun around with wide eyes, like a kid caught with her hand in the cookie jar. “It isn’t what it sounds like. The patient was being rude to me, so I defended myself.”

“Is that right? From what I overheard just now, it sounded like you called my patient’s baby an abomination.”

Gillan clamped her mouth closed in a thin, ugly sneer and glared at Rayne.

“You are jealous of me. That is what set this all off. You gave my mate a hungry stare when you escorted us from the waiting room. Batted your eyelashes at him at every unnecessary turn while taking my vitals. In all that time, he didn’t spare you a single glance. Then when you came in here to give me the vitamins and saw us kissing, you couldn’t hold back the green-eyed monster anymore.” Rayne leaned back against Parker as she spoke. She brought her arms around her so his hands rested on her belly, then she placed hers over them.

“He is a shifter and should mate with a shifter. Not a dog like you!” Gillian screamed at her as she raised her hand to slap Rayne.

Dillion grabbed Gillian’s hair and yanked her back towards the hall. Surprise, then rage flickered over her face. “Gillian, you are fired. I will send your personal effects and your end pay to your home.”

Gillian twisted free with an angry huff, then with one last glare at Rayne, she stomped away.

“I am so sorry for her behavior.”

“It isn’t your fault at all. That is all on her.” Rayne grabbed the vitamins off the counter as she and Parker walked to the door.

“I will have my assistant call you to set up that sonogram in a few weeks.” Dillon motioned for them to head down the hall.

Rayne took a few moments to call herself and Ruby down before leaving the exam room. Ruby wanted that shifter’s blood more than anything else today. Was it the hormones from the pregnancy that were causing their anger to spike so uncontrollably?

**I am sorry, Rayne.**

*It isn’t your fault, Ruby. We have a baby on the way. This is fresh territory for both of us.*

**Can we really not shift during the pregnancy?**

*From what Bridgette told me, shifting during a pregnancy puts the baby at risk of death. Something about the shift itself. Bones breaking and reforming and all that is traumatic to the baby.*

**Then we will not shift, though I would love to go for a run right now to work off the anger that bitch caused in us.**

*I understand. We will find another outlet for our anger.*

**Hot sex with our mate?** Ruby sounded excited at the idea of sex with Parker.

Rayne shook her head and chuckled, then she looked up at Parker with a sly grin. “Let’s go him, mate of mine.”

Parker arched a brow at her sudden grin. “What is on your mind?”

“You will see when we get home.”

They left the clinic to head home but were stopped at the jeep by a group of shifters. Where had they all come from? There had never been this many shifters in California before. Now there were six blocking their path to the jeep. One of them was Gillian. What the hell was going on here? Rayne felt Parker stiffen beside her as he realized there were so many shifters here. This was something he had always wanted.

One man separated from the rest of the group and walked forward to them. “You must be Parker.”

“You know my name, that is nice, now tell me yours.”

“My name doesn’t matter. What matters is that thing growing in your mate’s belly.”

“What the fuck do you people want?” Rayne growled at him before she could stop herself.

“Unlike my sister, I will not tolerate your behavior, mutt.”

“That is enough of the name calling to my mate.” Parker moved to put Rayne behind him as he glared at the man. This pissed Rayne off, but she let him do it for now.

“Is she truly your mate? Did the Moon Goddess pair you together or did you just choose her because your true mate never showed up?” Gillian screamed at them.

What the fuck was her problem?

“We are a blessed pair by the Moon Goddess.” Parker lifted his wrist to show them the mark that all mates receive after they fully mate and complete the mating process. Chosen mates never get the small crescent moon mark, only those mated pairs that the Moon Goddess puts together. Rayne held her wrist up to show her mark too.

Whispers and shocked noises went through the six shifters, except Gillian, who growled in anger. What the hell was her problem? Then a thought occurred to Rayne. “Are you drawn to Parker? Like the way mates are drawn to each other. Is that why you are so angry that he is my mate?”

“Gillian, go home. You are done here in Bodega Bay.” A voice said from behind Rayne and Parker.

Rayne turned around at the sound of the newcomer’s voice. Parker spun around so fast he bumped Rayne aside, causing her to stumble. His arms came around her waist before she fell, then he pulled her back against him.

“Little birdie is all grown up.” The man’s sharp eyes were just like Parker’s. His face was older, more weathered by age, but he was clearly related to Parker. He was not the real Owen, but someone else. There was also a hint of an Irish accent in his voice.

His hair was the same reddish-brown as Parker’s, but Rayne knew that could be dyed. The man’s nose, eyes, and lips were another story. They were just like Parker’s. The only difference was the shape of this man’s eyes. They were more tilted up at the corners, and the shade was a little lighter.

Rayne looked up at Parker to see that his eyes were wide with shock. His breathing was fast and erratic as he dealt with the feeling of seeing whoever this man was. So many emotions were bombarding her through their bond. Confusion, joy, fear, and hope. Rayne understood these since she had experienced them when her father showed up at Shadows Retreat.

Her eyes went wide as she realized who this man was. She gripped Parker’s hand as he said the word in his mind. Father. How had he survived?

“I can see this is a shock to you both. Ansel, take Gillian home. I don’t want to see her back in Bodega Bay again. Let me know when you return. The rest of you go back to the port and make sure they have loaded everything on the ship. I will meet you there soon.” He looked to Parker with a serious expression. “Is there somewhere we can talk?”

“My bar, Shadows Retreat, is in the downtown area. You can follow us there.” Rayne told him as she continued to grip Parker’s hand.

“Relax Little birdie, I will not hurt your mate.” He shifted into a crow, flew over to the jeep, and perched on the hood like he was waiting for them to go.

Parker finally came out if surprised state, “I am so confused, Rayne.”

“Well, there is only one way to find out what happened and why he is here now. Let’s go to the bar to get those answers.”