Page 86 of Crimson Moon Falling

Jamie smiled at the infant. “Hey, sweetheart. I’m your Uncle Jamie, the fun one.”

To my astonishment, he reached out and took Feeny from Conall with an easy confidence, and started walking her around, murmuring something low and soothing.

I stared. “Why do you know how to hold a baby?”

“Because I have three nieces and a nephew, and my sisters breed like it’s an Olympic sport. Babies have a shifter’s metabolism. Are you feeding her every two hours?”

“We feed her when she starts fussing.”

“She needs to be fed every two hours. Shifter infants burn more calories. Show me her room.” It was a relief to have someone around who knew what the hell they were doing. We all walked up to the nursery, and Jamie looked around, clearly not impressed.

Owen appeared in the doorway, his arms crossed. “What other nuggets of wisdom do you have?”

“You’ll need a lot more stuff than this, but it’s a start. When you buy clothes and toys, make sure they’re durable. And you changed her into a flannel onesie at night?”

“What’s wrong with the onesie?” I asked.

Jamie sighed as if we were all hopeless. “Shifter babies run hot. They need to be in something lighter, or they’ll overheat and get cranky.” He rummaged through the diaper bag and pulled out a lightweight cotton onesie without legs. “This is better.”

I blinked at him. “How do you know all these details?”

“My sisters’ kids love me, and I’m their favorite babysitter.” He handed the sleeper to Owen. “Let’s get her bathed and changed before you feed her. I’ll supervise.”

Later, after Feeny was fed and asleep, I stood in the nursery doorway and watched her as the wolf mobile above her bed turned slowly in the night breeze.

When I walked into the bedroom, Conall was already there, his jacket gone and shirt untucked. The bed was made up in dark linen, and only the bedside lamp illuminated the room.

We stared at each other, then he crossed the room and took my face in his hands. He thoroughly kissed me, his thumb brushing my jaw, and the bond flared warm against my sternum.

His mouth was delicious and familiar, and his warmth and scent surrounded me. But those photos on my phone swam behind my eyelids, and I pressed both hands to his chest. His brows furrowed as he stepped back.

I let out a breath and silently asked my implant for help. “We need to talk.”

“Okay,” he murmured slowly.

I walked to the window and looked out at a sky full of stars. My hands felt awkward, so I crossed my arms.

“A few days ago, I got a text from an unknown number with some photos attached.” My heart rate kicked up, and the device came to life.

“What were the photos of?”

I sent out a tendril and prodded his energy. Curiosity and impatient lust swirled around him, but no anger or guilt.

“The first photos were of two beautiful women in short dresses standing at your hotel door, then a photo showed them walking into your suite.”

Something moved across his expression. Recognition, and then anger. He put his hands on his hips. “What about the second text?” He didn’t try to deny or explain away the photos.

“I tried to call you, but you didn’t answer. Then I sent a text. It also went unanswered. You have a history of that.”

His energy went from anger to frustrated fury. Old wounds buried deep under my ribs had been ripped open, and I hated that he could affect me so deeply.

“What do you think you saw, Riley?”

I answered his first question. “I got a second text a day later. This one had just one photo of only the blond woman this time, standing outside your suite, smiling up at you.”

He took a careful step forward, but I moved back. He tilted his head. “You think I’d fuck someone else?” I sent a tendril out, but he’d locked down his energy this time. He used to do that when we first met.

“We’ve never really talked about what we expect from each other. Not since you came back and allowed your Pack to start talking to me again. Whether we’ll be exclusive, or even live together or not. And whether being a ‘mate’ means the same thing to you as it does to me.”