Page 102 of Unnatural
His breath released in a gush, his muscles unclenching as the person holding the weapon stepped from the cover of the trees. It was an old woman, and shegrinned.
“Aren’t you supposed to be some sort of trained assassin?” she asked, lowering the weapon.
A trained assassin? He supposed he was. Though he’d hoped to put that training far behind him. “Do youknowme?”
“’Course I know you. You’re all she talks about. Kinda sick of hearing about you, truth be told.” But her grin widened, and she gave him a once-over before she slapped her denim-clad knee. “A trained assassin, and I woulda had ya!” She laughed, and Sam let out a self-deprecating chuckle.
“I wasn’t exactly expecting a sharpshooter to be waiting here in the bushes,” he muttered.And I was distracted. Autumn’s within a few feet of me right this second.
“Yeah, I suppose not.” She glanced toward the house. “I’m Ms. Hastings, by the way.”
“Nice to meet you, Ms. Hastings. But, ah, what are you doing out here?” Sudden worry jolted him. “Has there been some kind of trouble?”
“No, no. But a few of us are sitting out back playing cards, and I saw your shadow looming around the corner of the house. Autumn’s taken care of all of us in one way or another. And it was important she feel extra safe tonight.”
“Tonight? Why? What’s wrong?” His muscles tightened again as he primed himself to sprint toward the house. Toward Autumn.
“No need to be alarmed,” Ms. Hastings said. But her gaze slid away. “I suppose you should go in. She’ll be glad tosee you. Here, I’ll walk you to the door.”
No need to be alarmed?What was going on? They made it to the blue front door, and Ms. Hastings turned the knob, letting the door swing open. Sam hesitated, his nerve endings twisting in a different way than they had when he’d first walked up toward Autumn’s house, the one he’d dropped her off at so long ago in that old red truck.
“Don’t be offended if she doesn’t give you much of a greeting,” Ms. Hastings said before she stepped back and closed the door behind him.
What did that mean?
He stood in the quiet foyer, uncertain.Afraid.His heart quickened again, pounding in his chest, his ears. He moved forward as if in a dream. As if he’d walked back in time to that misty forest, creeping through the trees, nervous, yet a thrill of excitement trilling through him. He was about to see her.
Movement out a back window caught his attention. He saw three or four people sitting on the patio at a table, playing cards as Ms. Hastings had said. He recognized the sheriff.What are they doing out there? And why isn’t Autumn with them?
The soft sound of music hit his ears, something slow and sweet. Violins, he thought, a piano. It rose, triumphant, and then dipped into melancholy as he moved forward over the wooden floors, through the dimly lit house.
He barely took in the surroundings, only that there were rugs and throw pillows, cascading plants, and artwork on the walls. She’d made it beautiful. Her home. And though he wanted to stop and look around, he wanted to see her more.
Something was happening in that back room, and he didn’t know what, only that he both wanted to run towardit and away.
As he approached the doorway where the flickering light came from, he heard a moan of pain, the splash of water. He smelled the scent of lavender. His heart jumped, fear spiking, breath stalling as he put his palm on the door and pushed it open. For a moment, he simply stood there, trying to make sense of the scene before him as he caught his breath. His feet began moving before he’d directed them to. Towardher.
Autumn. Autumn. Autumn.
His heart rejoiced at the sight of her even as confusion gripped him in a vise.
She was lying in a large tub of water at the end of the bed, and there was a woman kneeling next to her, her back to Sam.
He approached slowly, his gaze roaming Autumn, moving from her hair to her closed eyes to the black bra she was wearing to…
Her hugely pregnant belly.
The kneeling woman was murmuring something to her, something soft and reassuring. Autumn’s eyes opened, meeting Sam’s. Widening. Her lips fell open, and she let out a small sound of shock, which morphed into a grimace and a grunt of pain as she leaned forward, putting her hand on her swollen stomach.
The woman next to Autumn looked behind her, spotting Sam. Autumn lay back, blowing out several breaths and reaching out to Sam. He all but ran to her, going to his knees on the other side of the tub and taking her hand.
“Oh, Sam.” She started to cry, tears tracking down her flushed cheeks. “You’re here. You made it.”
“I’ll give you two a moment,” the woman said, standing and offering Sam a gentle smile. “She has a little bit of timebefore the real work begins.”
Autumn gripped his hand, the tears continuing to fall as she whispered his name again and again. He leaned forward, using his other hand to touch her cheek. “Autumn. You’re…” He looked helplessly at her stomach, eyes widening when he saw it moving with the life within.
She let out a small, strangled laugh. “The word you’re looking for is pregnant,” she said, the laughing melting into a grimace as she shut her eyes and breathed through another contraction. “You’re going to see your baby born, Sam,” she said once the pain had passed. “You’re here,” she repeated as though she was still convincing herself it was real.
