Accidental Surrogate

Sinclair

I’m resolved to buy Ella a ring tomorrow, but we still have to get through tonight first.

She was distant on the ride home, sitting across from me in the back of the limo rather than tucked up against my side the way I prefer. Moreover she didn’t say a word until we got back to the house, and then her only message was that she wanted to sleep in her own rooms this evening.

“Are you angry with me?” I ask, furrowing my brow in confusion.

“No, I just think a little space would be good for us.” She answers, hugging herself in a clear defensive move.

Maybe she’s right, I think, though it’s not easy to hear my thoughts with my wolf snarling in protest. I still haven’t gotten to the bottom of her reluctance to indulge our shared desires, and I don’t want to press her if she really isn’t interested. Even if she is, I think it would be a mistake to push her too hard or fast and risk spooking her. “Okay.” I agree eventually. “I’ll notify the guards.”

My wolf is whining like a pup as I stride away from her, and I can’t believe how attached I’ve become to the sweet human in so short a time. I don’t like letting her out of my sight when I know she’s under threat, but this is so much more than that. I’ve gotten so used to sleeping with her warm little body snuggled in my arms or sprawled out on top of me, that I’m not sure I’ll be able to rest without her.

I try to make my wolf settle, but it’s nearly impossible. In the end, I realize I didn’t scent mark Ella tonight, and if anything will calm my wolf, I imagine that will. I pull on a t-shirt over my pajama bottoms and set off towards her rooms, knowing precisely how

the guards. I look around at them curiously, but their stiff postures are only compounded by their refusal to look me in the eye. A moment later a soft whimper emanates through Ella’s door, and I understand. It’s not a sound of worry, sadness or fear, but one absolutely dripping with sex. My ears sharpen towards her door and I hear more sounds: the slight rustle of the bed sheets; the gentle glide of

shifters are about sex. Even my men weren’t embarrassed, simply nervous over my reaction to them being near Ella at an intimate moment. She might not be my mate, but she is carrying my pup, and

using her protection as an excuse to eavesdrop, I put myself in Ella’s shoes and recall how humiliated she would feel about so many strangers hearing her in this state. Leaving her unguarded isn’t an option, so

way, because every small pant and moan fills my head with a thousand explicit images. I can imagine exactly what she’s doing, and the tiny sounds she emits every now and then egg my wolf on. He’s in a near frenzy, demanding we go in and put a stop to this immediately. I should be the one pleasuring her, she shouldn’t have to take matters into her own hands. This is a mate’s job. If she were mine I would march in right now, give her lush bottom a few swats for not making her needs known to me, then bury my face between her

give in. Still, she’s clearly

want to get involved, remember? Her current need might be related or it might be the pregnancy, her

ministrations speed up, and I pray we’re near the end of this – I’ve given up all thought of scent marking her. If I go in there now, I won’t be able to restrain myself or my wolf. I’m hard as a rock on my slacks, and as soon as Ella’s need for privacy is over, I’ll let the guards return and trust her safety to them once more. Afterwards I’m going to have a nice cold

between us. This is only going to get harder as her pregnancy progresses, and my wolf is quickly running out of patience. I can’t understand his behavior. I’ve had sex with plenty of she-wolves over the years, and he’s only ever pushed me to claim Lydia, no matter how much I cared about

doesn’t believe Ella is human – like he refuses to accept that I couldn’t mark Ella even if I wanted to. And I