Page 79 of The Billionaire Alpha Surrogate

“No. We don’t know how far-reaching his contacts are,” Lucy said.

“Should we get ahold of Micah and let him know that you and the babies are safe?” Odessa asked.

“No. If Gavin finds out, he’ll send someone to kill us. For all I know, he’s got people in the shifter world,” Lucy said. “I’ll just lay low, at least for now. The babies have gone through enough stress as it is.”

“No one is going to touch you here,” William said. “They’ll have to get through our dead bodies first.”

“Exactly,” Allan chimed in.

Even though she knew her family would protect her, she couldn’t help the cloud of terror that hovered around her. Lucy was terrified that at any minute Gavin’s goons would appear out of nowhere. She wandered from window to window, constantly looking out. Her muscles were so tight that she sometimes found it hard to move or even breathe.

“Lucy, you have to relax. This isn’t good for the babies,” her mom said.

Finally, after a week, she decided that Gavin was going to keep his promise. As long as she stayed out of sight and didn’t try to contact anyone in the human world, she and the babies would be safe. However, she seldom left the house and when she did, she didn’t go anywhere alone.

At night, she cuddled with a pillow, pretending that she was holding Micah.

This is for the best. I told him that I loved him and he didn’t say it back. He just said we would talk about it. This saves him the trouble of telling me that he doesn’t want to be with me. I’m just sad that he’s not around to be with the babies that he had wanted so much.

A week later, Lucy’s water broke. Matthew called the clan doctor, who rushed over.

After twenty hours, the babies were finally born.

“They are early, but they are healthy,” the doctor said. “They are breathing normally.”

Odessa and Sophia cleaned the babies, wrapped them in blankets, and then handed them to an exhausted, but elated, Lucy.

“They’re perfect,” Lucy cooed looking at them.

“You have been very fortunate,” the clan doctor said. “After the attack from the wolves, the fear of Gavin, and the early birth, I expected more complications and that the babies would have to be put on ventilators. They are very strong.”

Turning to Sophia, he said, “Wild lettuce tea for pain. Call me if anything looks wrong, even if it’s the tiniest thing that you think is unimportant.”

“I will,” Sophia promised.

Odessa and Sophia helped Lucy get cleaned up, while Matthew changed the sheets and threw away the plastic mattress protector.

Lucy settled back in bed and fed her babies. They fell asleep quickly. Odessa and Sophia put them in their bassinets and Lucy fell into a deep sleep, knowing that her babies were going to be okay.

The shaman, or holy man of their clan, stopped by the house the next day for the blessing and naming ceremony.

“The boy is Alex,” Lucy said.

“Alex is a bear shifter. He will be a great leader,” the shaman proclaimed.

“This is Gracie,” Lucy announced, holding up her baby girl.

“Gracie is a wolf shifter. She will be a healer of hearts, souls, and minds.”

Lucy wished that Micah could be there to see his beautiful babies. He would adore them. Her heart hurt because she missed him so much.

You knew better than to fall in love with him. You knew that he hired you to carry his babies and that he thought of you as a friend with benefits.

It didn’t matter what she told herself, though. It didn’t make the pain go away.

At least I have the babies and memories.

Between feeding the babies, changing their diapers, and playing with them, she found time to finish her book. Her English teacher had edited it and called it terrifying, which pleased Lucy. She was working on formatting it and designing the cover, and then she would start the marketing process. Everything was looking up for her. Her body had healed. She just wished that her heart would heal.

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