Lian Roch (Bayou Heat)(22)
She swallowed hard and felt relieved when Ashe continued talking.
“I’d love it if you’d come stay with us.”
Lydia turned to gape at the woman. “Us?”
“Me and my mate, Raphael. And our daughter, Soyala, of course.” Ashe stood up. She looked very trendy. Human, come to think of it, in her black peasant top, skinny jeans and boots. “Now, I have to warn you, she’s only a few weeks old, so you might be woken up at all hours of the night. But it’s homey there and if you needed anything…well…to talk or whatever—”
The pull to say yes was a strong one. She liked this woman. A lot. And to remain in her soft, supportive light sounded so appealing. But the last thing she wanted was to impose on anyone. Especially a new family.
“I’ll stay here,” Lydia said quickly and gently.
Ashe looked instantly bummed. “It’s the baby thing, right? I swear no one wants to hang out with us anymore. All the poopy diapers and breastfeeding.”
Lydia laughed again. “No. God, no. Not at all. In fact, the baby thing is a huge plus for me. It’s just—”
“What?”
“I don’t want to impose.”
Ashe made a shocked sound deep in her throat. “Okay, that’s silly and crazy. You’re staying with us. Period. End of story. I made lasagna for dinner tonight, and garlic bread. Who in their right mind can turn down garlic bread?”
It was virtually impossible to not like this woman. Lydia shrugged. “I do love me some garlic bread.”
Ashe beamed, clasped her hands together. “Perfect. As soon as you’re done here, I’ll take you home. We’re pretty much the same size and you can borrow anything you like.” She glanced at her watch. “It shouldn’t be more than a half hour, I think. Raphael, Baptiste and Roch are having a powwow out in the hall somewhere.”
“They are?” Lydia felt her cheeks warm. She’d wondered where the man—the male, she’d have to get used to that—had gone off to. She wanted so much to get to know him. This man who had found her in Break for Beignets, saved her from whatever had been in her apartment, then brought her here. She wanted to know how he’d done that. And why?
“So, this Roch who found me,” Lydia began, trying her damnedest to sound casual. “Who is he?”
“He works with my mate. They’re what’s called Diplomatic Faction. Or ‘Suits.’ They’re like politicians or facilitators in our world.”
Suit. Diplomat. Well, that certainly fit. And made him sound even more attractive than he already was. She cleared her throat. “Does he have a mate?”
“Roch?” Ashe started laughing. “Oh, no. He’s a total loner. Really enjoys the single life, if you know what I mean.”
Lydia did. Dammit.
“Totally unattached by choice,” Ashe added. “But a good guy. Loyal, and deeply dedicated to his work. Even more so than Raphael, I think—which is saying something.”
A loner, and a workaholic. Kind of like her. “So, no family dinners,” she said with a forced smile.
“No. Not unless he’s invited to one.” Ashe paused, then her eyes narrowed playfully and studied Lydia. “Wait a sec. I could invite him?”
Lydia’s heart seized inside her chest. “No, no, that’s fine.”
The woman smiled broadly. “I have more than enough lasagna.”
“I was just curious,” Lydia explained, hoping her cheeks weren’t too pink. “He was the one who found me and brought me here. I wanted to thank him or…something.” God, she sounded like a moron.
“It is pretty extraordinary how that all happened,” Ashe remarked thoughtfully. “Actually, it’s unheard of. Everyone’s talking about it.”
Lydia didn’t understand. “What do you mean?”
“A male Pantera finding a pregnant human female.” Her brows lifted. “Especially one he’s never met. Or slept with.” She nodded. “Extraordinary. And something I’m sure Raphael and the others are trying to figure out as we speak.”
Chapter 5
Roch paced the small patch of moonlit grass behind Medical. Due to his erratic and overassertive behavior when he’d brought Lydia in, Raphael, Dr. Julia and Jean-Baptiste had all thought it best that any discussion involving the human woman be done outside the building.
At first, Roch had blown them off, didn’t believe that he was acting in any way but professionally when it came to her welfare and situation. But then he caught himself sniffing at her door, even growling at any Nurturers who tried to enter.
He’d gone willingly with them at that point.
“We have both Hunters and Suits dispatched to this Haymore Center,” Raphael said, his tone just a decibel above a growl. “We’ll find out exactly who they are and what happened. And how a mistake like this could occur. If indeed, impregnating a human woman with Pantera DNA was a mistake.”
“It has to be a mistake,” Doc Julia uttered, more to herself than to Raphael.
Jean-Baptiste inhaled deeply. “So, the blood samples show—”
“Yes,” she said, her tone a strange combination of excitement and concern. “The baby is both human and Pantera.” She lifted her gaze first to meet Raphael’s, then Baptiste’s. “Do you know what this means?”
Jean-Baptiste lifted his pierced eyebrow. “We need to find the father?”
Roch’s lip curled with irritation, but he kept on pacing. Down the path aways he spotted Chayton, the man who had been taken over by Shakpi not long ago. He was working with a Nurturer and the Shaman-in-training, Sage, Lian’s new mate, on some kind of trust exercise.
Poor bastard, he mused. Forget trust. It was going to be a miracle if the man actually managed to have some semblance of a normal life.
“Yes, we’ll need to find the father,” Julia put in. “When Lydia is ready to allow the testing. But it also means that with Shakpi gone, the curse has truly lifted. We could be seeing pregnancies throughout the Wildlands now.”
Everyone was silent for a moment, letting that information seep in.
“My Genny,” Jean-Baptiste uttered almost reverently. “She has wanted a cub so badly.”
“This could be a new beginning,” Raphael agreed. “But before we start the celebration, we must know how this human pregnancy occurred. Roch?”
Roch stopped pacing and turned to look at the three Pantera, who were all staring intently at him now. “What?”
“Are you certain you don’t know her?”
“Am I certain?” He cursed. “Do you really think I’m the kind of male who wouldn’t remember someone I bedded four weeks ago? That I’m that low, that vile?”
Raphael didn’t answer. Just kept his gaze locked on the male. Whatever his personal opinion, he wanted an answer.
“Christ, no,” Roch answered tersely. “All right? I’ve never seen her before in my life.”
I would remember. Hell, I’d never be able to forget. Never be able to look at another female again after her.
“It seems improbable,” Baptiste put in.
Roch whirled on the heavily tattooed Nurturer and flashed him a feral glare.
Baptiste chuckled and put his palms up in surrender. One had the name of his mate, Genevieve, inked onto it. “Easy, brother. My point is only that you went searching for her—”
“I went to New Orleans. There was no search.”
“And you found her, brought her back here. And look at you now.”
“What?” Roch ground out. “Look at what?”
“You’re acting mated,” Jean-Baptiste said calmly. “You’re acting like me and Raphael and Parish when someone gets too close or threatens our females.”
Raphael nodded in agreement. “I have to say it’s true. I’ve never seen you like this, Roch.”
“I’ve been ill, that’s all,” he tossed out.
“Don’t think so.”
Confusion, irritation and anger all rose up to claim him. “What the hell are you implying, Raphael?”
But it wasn’t Raphael who answered.
“That this child could be yours,” Doc Julia put in, her expression amazed.
A knot formed in Roch’s chest. He ripped his gaze from them and stalked away. Just a few feet. Then he stopped and turned around. “Impossible,” he hissed at them.
“Is it?” Raphael said.
“I’ve never seen her before.” Roch looked up to the heavens. “I swear on Opela. And even if I had, I don’t take risks like that. Even when we were cursed, I made sure the females beneath me were protected.”
“Beneath him,” Baptiste uttered under his breath.
“Beneath me, on top of me—”
“All right. Too much information, brother,” Raphael said.
Roch snarled at them. “You can all go to hell.”
“Hey,” Julia put in, her eyes bright with amusement. “I didn’t go there. I wanted to. But I didn’t.”
“Oh fuck,” Baptiste said, his tone instantly grave.
“What?” Raphael said. “What’s wrong?”
“Remember back when we found out about the curse? We all had samples taken from us for the purpose of testing. Blood, urine, semen…”