A Warrior Wedding (The Protectors #7)
Teresa Gabelman
CHAPTER 1
Jill rushed through the drug store looking at the signs hanging from each aisle. She needed to hurry. Sloan wanted them back at his office fifteen minutes ago and, as usual, Steve was on the verge of a freak out. They had just finished target practice and she practically had to beg Adam to stop. No one wanted to walk into Sloan’s office late. Well, maybe Sid, but that was Sid.
Seeing the aisle that she needed, she headed that way, her heart beating out of her chest as her stomach heaved painfully. Finding what she was looking for, she cursed. “Holy shit.” Seriously, how many of these things were there?
An older woman strolled down the same aisle looking first at Jill, then to the products Jill was looking at, and then back to Jill, an understanding expression crossing her wrinkled face before moving on. Jill shifted uncomfortably. Once the woman had disappeared, Jill grabbed a box only to stare at it. She knew deep down this was impossible. It couldn’t be, but she had to be sure.
“Five minutes?” Jill whispered as she read the box. She could have the answer in five minutes and then she would know for sure, what she already knew, but then again, since becoming a half-breed, things were not always what they seemed. Surprises were around every single corner she turned, and for a girl who used to like surprises, she was now hating them with a passion.
“What in the hell are you doing?”
So deep in thought, Jill jumped, the box flying out of her hand as she turned. To her horror the box landed in Adam’s hand. Reaching for it, she missed when he pulled it further away from her grabbing hands. Adam’s eyes narrowed as Steve snatched the box.
“What is it?” Steve looked at the box for a few seconds before shock flashed across his face and he threw the box back to Adam. “What in the hell have you done, Jill?”
“It’s not mine.” Jill looked away quickly then back, indicating she was lying her ass off. When she saw the identical looks of ‘calling her bullshit’ on their faces, she sighed. “Just give it to me.”
“What’s going on?” Adam crossed his arms, while still holding the box.
“Yeah, inquiring minds want to know,” Steve added, also crossing his arms and blocking her escape path. “What is going on?”
“There is no way you can be pregnant.” Adam glared down at her. “So why were you buying this?”
“Yeah, there’s no way...unless...” Steve’s mouth formed an ‘oh, shit’ circle. “Slade’s dead, but you’re not. You’re only half dead which means...”
“Which means what?” Jill growled, her eyes narrowing dangerously. When Steve just cocked an eyebrow at her, she grabbed another box from the shelf throwing it at him. “I’m not cheating on Slade, you ass.”
“Then why do you need that?” Steve pointed at the box Adam held, then to the box on the floor before waving his hand at all the boxes on the shelves.
She knew she could blow Steve off, but Adam was a different matter. His penetrating gaze told her that he was not letting this go, and would stand there all day until she talked. Another woman started down the aisle, but spotted them and backtracked until she disappeared.
“I’ve been sick.” Jill sighed and felt a little better saying it. “It started after the initiation and hasn’t gotten any better.”
“So you think you’re pregnant?” Adam frowned. “We’re half human, Jill. We can still get sick.”
“Yeah.” Steve looked a little less stressed. “You probably just have a virus or something. You do look like crap though. Maybe we can stop by the makeup aisle and get you something for those bags under your eyes.”
Adam slowly turned his head toward Steve, his frown hard.
“What? I’m making an observation. She looks like crap.” Steve looked back at Jill. “And now that we’re on the subject, you’ve lost some weight. It could be water weight though.”
“What in the f*ck are you talking about?” Adam growled. He then closed his eyes with a shake of his head. “You know what, don’t answer that.”
Steve ignored him and answered anyway, “Women have water weight. So sometimes when they look like they’ve lost weight, it’s just water weight. Not weight-weight.” Turning his attention to Jill, he continued like he knew exactly what he was talking about, “Other than losing weight and those dark bags under your eyes, what else is going on with you?”
Jill actually touched under her eyes self-consciously, then cursed because she was actually listening to Steve. “I can’t keep blood down,” Jill replied, feeling weak just saying it. “I fed from Slade a couple days after initiation and it came right back up.”
“What did he say?” Adam asked, but when she remained silent, he frowned. “You haven’t told him?”
“No.” Jill shuffled from one foot to the other. “He’s been so busy with all the funeral ceremonies, I just thought like you guys do. I have a virus, but I’m not getting any better. Regular food makes me nauseous, but even if I eat a rare steak for the blood, it comes right back up.”
“Ah, hello!” Steve threw his arms out wide. “You’re engaged to a doctor.”
Jill stared at Steve for a second before tugging the box out of Adam’s hand and heading to the register.