Page 1 of Her Shifter Babe

Chapter 1

Stacey

THERE WAS NO WAY I wouldn’t be able to find Tommy in a town this small, right? I glanced around at the single street of shops. For a tiny country town, it sure was bustling with people. The whole area resounded with the noise of people rushing about, sitting and chatting in cafés over coffee while the typically mouth-watering aroma of barbecue hung thick and heavy in the air.

I gulped at the bile that rose instantly in my throat and sighed. I used to love barbecue, but presently I hated the smell of cooked meat. Even after all these months of pregnancy, I still hadn’t been able to shake that part of my nausea. It really affected me, and I looked forward to the day it passed and my stomach settled back into its normal appetite.

My baby twisted and kicked inside my belly reminding me of their presence and making me smile despite the sadness filling my heart. “It’s okay, bubba. We’re almost there. I know it.” Or so I hoped, anyway. I wasn’t truly sure how much more time I had left, and I was just about run out of money. If I didn’t find my baby’s father soon, I would be in some serious trouble. And so would the precious little life growing inside me.

I took a step toward a park bench as a wave of exhaustion passed over me. Darkness encroached on my vision, and I had to swallow against the heat that prickled up my neck.

“Hey!” a woman called out to me. “Are you okay?”

I instinctively gripped my belly and staggered forward, desperately needing to sit down and take a load off my feet.

The woman grabbed my arm and helped me to the bench seat only a few more steps away. “Sit, you poor thing. What’s going on?”

I shook my hair a little, trying to garner some relief from the heat. I panted for breath and leaned forward, trying to get comfortable as my eyesight continued to swim. This poor woman had stopped for me, and although I was grateful, she really shouldn’t have. The last thing I wanted was to be a bother to anyone. “I’m sorry,” I managed. “You were going somewhere.” I closed my eyes and forced myself to breathe, to draw in big, steady breaths. I couldn’t faint. It would be too dangerous and far too expensive if they took me to the hospital. There was no way I could afford it.

The woman squeezed my arm. “Never you mind about that. I’ll just throw these in the car and I’ll be right back. Don’t stress.”

I forced myself to open my eyes and leaned back against the park bench. Goodness, it was hot. I’d heard that heat could make pregnancy extra uncomfortable, but this was ridiculous.

“Here,” she said and opened a fresh bottle of water before handing it to me. “I’m Nancy. I don’t think we’ve met before.”

Gratitude for this kind stranger washed over me, and I thankfully took the water and gulped it down with relish. The cold was so refreshing on my poor throat, but I tried not to drink too fast, otherwise I knew I’d make myself sick. Some days I could barely even keep it down.

What did she say? Oh, yeah...

“I’m not from around here,” I explained. “I’m Stacey.”

“Stacey,” she repeated. “Me either, at least originally. My bike broke down while I was driving through town, and I just never left.”

I took another few sips of water then smiled up at Nancy, my savior of the day. “Thank you for that.”

I expected Nancy to say goodbye and leave at that point, but she didn’t go. Instead, she glanced from the big new car, to me, then back at the car again. She was a very pretty woman, with dark hair and a larger, curvy body that I personally admired. I’d been curvier, myself before falling pregnant, but months of not being able to eat without brutal sickness had taken a visible toll on my body.

Finally, Nancy turned toward me. “Hey, can I give you a lift somewhere? Or call someone for you? Something? Anything? I don’t feel right about leaving you like this.”

I unhooked the backpack from my shoulders and eased it around my body, holding my meagre possessions close. “Thanks. I, ah... I’m looking for someone, actually. A man.”

She crossed her arms over her ample breasts and grinned at me. “Well, lucky for you, I happen to know a lot of the guys in this town.”

I grimaced at her, a little surprised that she would boast about such a thing.

Nancy stared at me, then burst out laughing. “Oh, God! Not like that. My partners—I mean partner÷—has a lot of cousins in town. So, I can probably point you in the right direction, at least.”

Partners? Did she mean business partners?

I licked my dry lips and forced myself unsteadily to my feet. How did I politely tell her that I was fine when I clearly wasn’t. But I needed to continue my search, and Nancy was a complete stranger. And despite her kindness, I had no idea if I could trust her. We’d only just met, after all. How trusting could I really afford to be when my baby was relying on my instincts to keep him or her safe?

“How far along are you?” she asked gently when I didn’t respond.

I pressed my hands to my belly, defensive of the question. But I shouldn’t have been surprised that she was enquiring about my pregnancy. It’s not like I could hide it any longer. “Um... I’m about six months, I think.” I hadn’t been to a doctor yet for date confirmation, and I’d read that pregnancies were usually counted in weeks, not months.

But who knows? This is my first, and what I know could be written on a pinhead!

Nancy tilted her head to the side like I was an exhibit she was studying. “So, who was it that you are looking for?”

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