Page 77 of Hunny and the Bear

Tank froze, the look on his face transforming from one of pure rapture to one of horror. He shot up from the bed, rushing to the dresser. He slipped on the comforter that had fallen onto the floor, nearly slamming into the ground before he caught himself on the bed.

Alarmed, Hunny sat up, her heart beating hard as he made it to the dresser. She watched in alarm as he yanked open the top drawer and started grabbing items haphazardly. “Henry, what’s wrong?”

He turned to her, a look of panic written all over his face. Before he could answer, she inhaled, a metallic odor filling her nose. Wrinkling her brow in confusion, she looked down,recoiling in horror when she spotted bright red staining her inner thighs and the sheet under her.

“Oh, my God!” she exclaimed hoarsely, an icy chill sliding down her spine. She was bleeding? No, no, she couldn’t be—

“Up, little rabbit,” Tank urged, reaching her side in an instant. He pulled her to her feet, cupping her face tenderly. Whatever panic she’d seen on his face before was now gone, replaced by a deadly calm she wished she could feel. “It’s okay. We’re going to go to the clinic and have my mom take a look. Alright?”

Hunny nodded jerkily, but as soon as he released his hold on her, she let out a ragged breath, her chest feeling suddenly too tight. Tears stung her eyes. “I don’t understand what’s happening, Henry. I don’t understand. I didn’t—”

Immediately, Tank’s dominance washed over her, and the tightness in her chest eased, allowing her to drag in precious oxygen. He tapped her leg, holding out a pair of his sweatpants for her to slip into. She did so robotically, clinging to the waves of power that he released in steady increments, focusing on that instead to keep her from unleashing the scream that echoed in her mind, shouting at her that something was wrong with her babies. She’d done something wrong—

“Other leg, little rabbit,” Tank commanded gently, all but lifting her up and into the sweats before setting her back down on her feet. He slid one of his shirts over her head, dressing her while she stood there, too numb to do anything but let him lead her through this. Whatever this was.

Hunny slid her eyes shut as the word ‘miscarriage’ slithered into her mind like a snake.

She opened her eyes in time to watch Tank dress faster than she’d ever seen before in her life. It was like she was watching him through someone else’s eyes, stuck on some weird kind of autopilot. Then he was sliding house slippers onto her feet, picking her up, and hustling them down the stairs. Grabbing thekeys to his truck by the front door, he tore out of the house with her, running to the garage and racing inside.

She felt useless as he placed her in the cab of his truck, buckling her up and giving her a quick kiss before he made it to the driver’s side door. It was only as they tore down the road, Tank driving far too fast, that Hunny noticed the time on the dashboard, glaring at her in a bright neon green. She blinked rapidly, coming back to herself.

“Henry, it’s just past nine a.m..” Her voice sounded off, even to her own ears as Tank fumbled with his cellphone, mumbling irritably to himself as he pressed a number on the screen. The phone rang and he sent her a confused look. “Jason’s going to be there to get Natasha, isn’t he?”

“Fuck,” Tank spat, right as his mom picked up the phone. He looked at the road ahead. “Mom, Hunny’s bleeding …”

Thirty One

Tank thought he’d felt terror before, but it was nothing compared to now. Hanging up the call with his mom, he tossed his phone onto the dashboard before taking Hunny’s hand in his. Her touch was like ice, and her skin was paler than usual as he looked over at her, his brow furrowed with concern. The scent of her blood mixed with her own usual scent was unnerving, causing his inner beast to roar and claw at his insides, demanding to be set free in order to help their mate. The animalistic side of himself didn’t understand what was happening.

Not that his human side fared much better. Fear and uncertainty were riding him hard, though he was doing his damndest to keep those emotions locked up tight, at least until he could get his mate to his mom. Losing his shit wouldn’t do Hunny or himself any favors; not when she was relying on him to get them through this.

His stomach was twisted into knots, his limbs shaking as he fought to pretend that everything was fine. Hunny was checkedout beside him; the only thing keeping her from sobbing was the gentle waves of dominance he sent her way every few minutes. Thank fuck he was a dominant shifter. All he could do right now was get her there quickly and try to force back the overriding panic pushing against her.

It was a strain to exert his dominance in waves like this for any length of time, though, but he didn’t care. He’d seen the look of pure terror on her face, had caught the scent of her utter despair as she’d realized at the same time he had that something was terribly wrong.

She thought she was losing the kits. Hell, he thought she was losing the kits. There’d been so much blood, he didn’t know what else to think.

He didn’t know how to help his mate other than to minimize her anguish, to keep her calm. It was a temporary solution until he could find someone to help her. His mom was already at the clinic, just a few minutes away. She’d know what to do. How to help them.

Fuck,he thought almost desperately.Please let Mom know what to do. These kits might not be his by blood, but they were his just as much as they were Hunny’s. He’d vowed to love and protect them, to keep them safe and raise them. If Hunny miscarried, he’d be devastated. But he knew that was nothing compared to the heartbreak his mate would feel.

Tank’s hand tightened on the steering wheel, the leather and metal creaking ominously.

“We’re almost there, darlin’,” he assured Hunny, pressing down on the gas pedal. If she heard him, she didn’t answer, only mumbling something about the time. He knew what she meant—what she’d said as he’d called his mom a few minutes prior.

Jason and his Beta would be at the den house, picking up Natasha’s body. The very thing he’d wanted to avoid—exposing Hunny to that prick ever again—was coming to fruition. Hedidn’t want Hunny, nor their kits, anywhere near that sick son of a bitch. But there was nowhere else to take her. It would take too long for his mum to grab all her stuff and get to his cabin. And if she needed more … surgery or something … then Hunny needed to be at the clinic.

No matter who they’d encounter there.

“I think I’m in shock.” Hunny’s voice was off. Hollow. She blinked hard as if to clear her vision. “I feel like I’m not really here, like I’m just detached from this entire situation.”

“It might be my power,” Tank admitted, hating that his attempt to help could be causing her more distress instead. “Do you want me to ease it back?”

She shook her head, her fingers tightening on his. “No. N-Not yet, okay? Not until we know …” She trailed off, looking out the passenger side window.

“Whatever my mom says, little rabbit, we’ll be okay.” Lifting his hand, he kissed the back of her palm. “It could be nothing.”

Even as he said it, acid burned in his gut. There’d been a lot of blood between her thighs. On the sheets, too. Was bleeding normal at this stage of her pregnancy? Fuck. He had no goddamn idea.

---