Slade had never called or come to see her. As a matter of fact, he’d dropped off the face of the Earth for all Trisha could tell. Several weeks ago one of the men had mentioned that Tiger and Slade were working at Reservation. He wasn’t even living at Homeland anymore.
The silent message of actions speaking louder than words had been clear to Trisha. The sex they’d shared had been nothing more than casual sex to Slade. That reality hurt deeply but she was recovering and determined to pretend it never even happened. That was until earlier that morning. She was afraid she would be sick again.
“Dr. Norbit?” Trisha glanced up at the secretary. “You can go in now.”
“Thank you.”
Trisha rose to her feet even though her knees grew weak. She had the urge to flee. She could leave, quit her job, and move to another state just to avoid the entire mess. She’d been tempted to listen to that panicked voice inside her head. She even hesitated as her gaze flickered to the door that led out of the reception area. She swallowed instead though and forced her legs to walk toward Justice’s office. I’m a doctor and I know what needs to be done regardless of the personal consequences I’m facing.
Justice wore his usual jeans and sported a tank top and bare feet. It always amused her that the leader of an entire race could always be so casual unless he planned to stand in front of media cameras. He wore dark suits then, would pull his long hair back, and even put on shoes.
As she entered his office, he strode toward her with a smile curving his generous lips. She always noticed how good-looking he was with his fit body, his handsome features and those sexy cat eyes. The fact that he was really nice also added to his appeal. She forced a smile.
“Welcome, Trisha. It’s hot today, isn’t it?”
She nodded. She’d overdressed in a long navy skirt and business-style button-down shirt, intentionally going for the professional look as a means to calm her nerves. She’d even taken time to pull her hair up into a nice bun. It had distracted her from the upcoming meeting she’d requested with Justice as soon as he had time to see her. She’d specified the urgency of needing to talk to him. He’d made the time.
“So, what is so important? Debra, my secretary, informed me that you needed to speak to me about something right away. Is this another request for more nursing staff? Are the two additional ones we hired not enough? Do you have a request for more medical equipment?” He waved her to a take chair while he walked around his desk. “Have a seat.”
Trisha collapsed into a plush chair. Justice kept his smile in place as he took his seat. He leaned forward to brace his elbows on his desk, resting his chin onto his hands. He looked amused.
“You look so serious. Don’t be. I told you before that I’m very willing to get you whatever you need for the medical center.”
“This isn’t about that.” She had to slow her pounding heart. “This is about a personal matter.”
The smile slowly faded as his gaze narrowed. “Please tell me you aren’t resigning. We need you.” He lifted his head, removed his elbows from his desk to fall back against his chair, and looked suddenly tense. “I’d be more than happy to discuss money with you if this is a salary issue. We really want you to continue working with us. You are an excellent doctor and my people have grown to trust you. You have no idea how much we value that and you.”
She shook her head. “It’s not about money and I don’t want to lose my job or quit, though you might not want me to work for you after this meeting.” She took a deep breath, studying Justice. “I’m sorry. I’m scared to death right now.”
“Of me?” He looked surprised.
“Of the situation. I don’t even know where to begin. Something has happened and it’s pretty serious. If anyone realizes how severe this is, it’s me.”
“All right.” Justice took a deep breath. “Tell me what is wrong.”
“I’ve been given access to a lot of the medical files that contain some of the recovered research data from Mercile Industries. They tried to breed New Species men and women. I know you are very aware of this.”
His face tightened. “Yes. I was personally subjected to a lot of their breeding studies.” His voice had lowered to a growl.
“From what I’ve read, from the files I’ve been given, all their testing was between two New Species pairs and it always failed. They never attempted to breed New Species with pure humans.”
“No. We were considered too dangerous and they were afraid we’d kill any of the staff who attempted to lure us into having sex with them. You can’t blame us.”
“I don’t.” She hesitated.
“They severely abused us.”
“I know that. I— It’s happened,” she stated very softly.
“I don’t understand. You found a file where they held those studies on some of my people? Some of them agreed to have sex with humans while we were prisoners?”
She fought the urge to burst into tears. “No. I’m sorry. I’m not being very clear. A full human has conceived a child with a New Species.”
There. I said it. She watched the shock transform Justice’s face. His mouth opened and then closed. He finally found his voice.
“That…” He looked dazed. “You’re sure?”
“Positive. I ran the tests myself this morning and preformed an ultrasound. The fetus has a strong, well developed heartbeat and it looks perfect. I won’t lie. This pregnancy isn’t normal. The heartbeat is that of a much more advanced fetus and the measurements are off on the size. It appears the growth rate and fetal development are farther along than a typical pregnancy. It’s alarming, Justice. The baby is growing faster than it should be and the pregnancy symptoms are premature for the gestation period.” Her fingers dug into the chair she sat in. “For the first time, according to what I know, a New Species has been able to help conceive a baby. I know you believed all your males were sterile but at least one of them isn’t.”
Justice suddenly stood. He turned to the window and presented Trisha with his back. He remained silent. Trisha watched him with fear. She had no idea how he’d react. She had a television, watched interviews with hate groups, and knew that it would only bring New Species huge trouble when word spread that they could not only have children, at least one of them wasn’t sterile, but that the mother wasn’t New Species.
A lot of idiots believed cross breeding of that sort would be a grave offense. They’d compare it with an animal and a human breeding. Their prejudices disgusted Trisha but she couldn’t change their narrow minds. Justice finally turned with a huge grin.
“That’s wonderful!” He dropped into his chair. “And we’re sure it was definitely a human and New Species breeding?”
“One-hundred percent sure.”
He laughed. “I never thought I’d be able to have children. None of us did.” He stood again and almost leaped across his desk to grab a gasping Trisha. He yanked her out of the chair, into his arms and hugged her. “This is the best news ever, Trisha. You’re a genius! You did it!”
Trisha pushed gently away from Justice until he released her. She looked up into his grinning face with a horrible feeling. He obviously thought she’d done something as a doctor that resulted in the pregnancy. She knew she needed to set him straight immediately.
“This wasn’t something I did on purpose. There was no medical intervention. This just happened. It’s a completely unplanned and natural-occurring pregnancy.”
“That’s even better! You’ve made my day. Hell, my year.” Then his smile faded as he tensed. “We have to keep this under wraps. We’re going to have to shield the couple. There could be a firestorm of threats directed at us if the press finds out and reports it. Who knows?”
“Just you and me so far.”
“The couple doesn’t know?”
She realized he didn’t understand what she attempted to tell him. She opened her mouth. Justice backed up.
“About that―”
Justice cut her off. “The press will
be all over it if they find out. We need to keep this classified. You are going to have to care for the pregnant female. No one, and I mean no one, can find out about this until after the baby is born. We’ll get the pair secluded to protect them and any paperwork you did on this needs to be destroyed. Can you imagine what those terrorist groups will do and how dangerous it will be when they learn we can breed with humans? It’s one of the things they’ve tried to use against us to drag more idiots into the fight for their cause. They believe it’s vile for Species to touch someone fully human and it’s going to really piss off the ones who are looking forward to our demise once our generation dies out.”
“Justice―”
“You and I will work together to protect them at all costs, Trisha. We have to keep this top secret. I’ll call for a helicopter transport immediately to fly them out of here within the hour. The Reservation isn’t fully operational but it’s very secure and it’s the safest place to stash them. You’ll have to go there too.” He stared at her. “I know your life is here but you need to be protected.” He grinned. “This is more important. I—”
“Shut up!” Trisha finally yelled.
Justice frowned at her. “What―”
“Quiet,” she ordered him, lowering her voice. “I’ve been trying to tell you something and you keep cutting me off.”
He nodded. “Go ahead. I’m listening.”
She hesitated, staring into his beautiful, exotic eyes. “I’m the mother. It’s me, Justice. I’m the female carrying a New Species baby. There’s no paperwork since I ran all the tests when I was alone at the clinic. I realized I had missed my period but I had chalked it up to stress when I was late. Then I started feeling morning sickness and I took a test when I got out of bed this morning. It was positive. Right after that I went to the medical center and gave myself an ultrasound.” She blinked back tears. “There’s definitely a baby growing inside me and it’s growing at an accelerated rate. The only explanation for that abnormality is perhaps because the baby is half New Species and the pregnancy will be shorter due to the father’s altered DNA.” Her hand rested over her stomach. “I’m the mother,” she repeated.
Justice gaped at her, completely stunned. She collapsed back into her chair while she fought more tears. It was tough but she managed not to burst into sobs. She lifted her gaze and realized Justice mutely gaped at her. Seconds seemed to drag for an eternity before he found his voice.
“You’re sure the father is New Species? I know you were seeing someone and I believed him to be human.”
“The last time I had sex was about two years ago. I’ve had sex once since then and it was with one of your men. There is no doubt whatsoever that he’s the father.”
Justice sat on the edge of his desk. “All right. This is good news, Trisha. You look so miserable but don’t be. You have no idea what this means to my people.” He gave her a sad smile. “We can have children after all. If one of us is able, perhaps others can as well. I know you are probably scared but this is going to work out somehow. We’ll make it. Can you handle your own medical needs until we can secure someone we can trust to take over? You obviously can’t deliver your own child.”
She blinked back more tears. “I’m still in shock but I want the baby. I’m mostly scared. I never thought I’d be a mom and I know that my baby is in danger because of what this means. It’s going to be the first known mixed species baby between our races. I’m afraid of what kind of life he or she is going to be facing. I did the ultrasound and everything looks right but it’s so hard to tell at this stage. I’m worried about the size of the baby though because it measured bigger by far than what it should be. I have to run a ton of tests. Something could be wrong with the pregnancy. We just don’t know what to expect because this has never happened before. I’m terrified.”
“We will get through whatever happens together. You will never be alone, Trisha. We considered you one of us before but you truly are New Species now. Your child is one of us and as the mother of that child, you are officially a part of the NSO. I extend all rights to you as such. You will have our full support, we will take very good care of you, and you will be protected at all times.” He rose to his feet and rounded the desk, grabbing his phone. “Get me Brass right now and send him to my office.”
Trisha relaxed. This could have gone really badly. She’d expected the worst, maybe him blowing up at the news. The baby put his people in jeopardy. Justice getting very excited and being happy about her baby was a hell of a lot better than anything she’d imagined.
“We’ll send you with Brass to the Reservation. He’ll protect you with his life and he’ll have a lot of help, Trisha. I know how much trust you have in him to keep you safe. I’ll tell everyone that I want a doctor out there and you volunteered to go. No one will become suspicious about that. That was what I’d planned to do before your attack. I had wanted you on hand when the medical center there was built. I’ll have some of my men pack up your home for you and move your things. I don’t want you lifting a finger.” He chuckled. “You’re going to be very spoiled so get used to it.”
Justice sank back into his seat while Trisha watched him speed dial. He told people he had decided they needed a doctor at Reservation and Trisha had been kind enough to agree to go. He set up a flight for her in less than an hour and then called there to let them know a team headed their way. Someone finally knocked on the door and Justice hung up.
“Enter,” he called out.
Brass walked into the office and closed the door behind him. He’d obviously been on duty since he wore his uniform. He grinned when he saw Trisha and winked before his attention fixed on Justice.
“I was told you needed me.”
Justice grinned. “I’m sending you with Trisha to Reservation. They will be expecting you. I’ll let you pick two of your closest friends to take with you to help protect her.” Justice stood and chuckled. “Isn’t this the best news? Congratulations, Brass!” Justice suddenly strode forward and hugged the surprised man. “You’re going to be a father!”
Trisha felt sucker-punched but it was nothing compared to the expression on Brass’ face. His eyes widened and his mouth fell open.
“Uh, Justice?”
Justice released Brass and grinned at Trisha. “Yes?”
She shook her head at him. “It’s not him.”
“What is going on?” Brass had a confused look on his features.
Justice ignored him and kept staring at Trisha as his smile died. “But he is at your home at night. I told you that I’m aware of everyone’s movements inside Homeland. You are dating him.”
“We’re just platonic friends who watch movies together. He’s not the father of my baby. I’ve never slept with Brass.”
“Baby?” Brass gasped. His attention flew to Trisha. “You’re pregnant?”
She nodded. “I’m sorry about this. I thought Justice called you to be my bodyguard because he knows we’ve become friends. I never guessed he might believe you were the father of my baby.”
“You’re pregnant?” Brass suddenly growled viciously. He backed up and crossed his arms over his chest as his focus fixed on the floor.
Trisha noticed his dark reaction and it left her speechless.
“This is dangerous for her and for all of us,” Justice warned softly. “You are her personal bodyguard. No one finds out about this pregnancy. Clear, Brass? Is this going to be a problem for you?”
Brass met Justice’s gaze. “I’d protect her with my life. No one will know about this from me. What are my orders?”
“There’s a helicopter leaving with her in an hour. Pick two males you trust with her life and tell them they are part of your team. This will be an extended assignment. Don’t pack a light bag. I’ll use the cover that I’m assigning her to oversee the medical center at Reservation for now.”
“Understood.” Brass didn’t even glance at Trisha when he walked out of the office. The door closed softly behind him.
 
; Confused, Trisha frowned.
Justice studied her. “You didn’t know he had feelings for you? You might have thought of him as a friend but I think he was slowly courting you.”
“I didn’t know.” It stunned her. “I thought he might like me but he never asked me out so I dismissed the idea.”
“We’re sometimes hard to read. I’ve noticed with our kind they either come straight at what they want with the aggression of a pit bull or they try to ease upon something they want until they can pounce on it when it is the last thing you would expect.” Justice sighed. “So who is the father?”
Trisha lifted her chin in defiance. “I won’t tell.”
Justice’s eyelids narrowed. “What?”
“It was just sex. It didn’t mean anything. This is my baby.”
Justice looked slightly angry as his arms crossed his broad chest. “Who is the baby’s father, Trisha? You need to trust me. Casual sex or not, a Species would want to know if he were about to become a father.”
She bit her lip. “I don’t think so.”
His arms tightened against his chest. “You admitted you’ve had sex one time in two years. I smelled sex on you once.” He studied her face carefully. “You had my scent on you and I know I’m not the father. You had Brass’ scent but you but you obviously haven’t had sex together.” He sucked in air. “You had Slade’s scent on you too. It was strongest but I assumed that was because you’d been alone with him for days and— Of course. Slade is the father.”
She let her head drop. “Please don’t tell him.”
“I’m sorry, Trisha. I must. He’d want to know. He has a right to protect and watch out for you since you are carrying his child.”
She allowed the tears to fall when she looked up. “He never contacted me, never called me, never once tried to see me in the weeks he lived here after he returned. Please don’t tell him. I can’t see him.”