And Then There Were Four
Chapter 90

Waking up the next morning, I was surprised to replace myself in James's bed. He didn't want to let me sleep in that room even though the other guys had told him to leave me be and let me rest; he refused.

I vaguely remember him coming in, grabbing me and the blanket, lifting me in his arms, and carrying me to his bed. He even went as far as changing me out of my clothes and putting me in one of his large oversized T-shirts before crawling in behind me. Out of the four men, he was the sweetest and the most sentimental. "Good morning, beautiful," he whispered from behind me as he pulled me close to his ch3st and kissed the side of my cheek.

"Morning. I'm sorry about last night. I didn't mean to lose it on you guys."

"It's okay. Don't even worry about it. s**t happens, and honestly, we dropped the ball when we forgot that you're not used to our world." Always apologizing, the ever-sweet James slowly slid from behind me and walked towards the ensuite bathroom. "I take it you heard my mother is coming..." I said with hesitation, knowing how complicated the situation was going to be.

"Yes, we all heard the conversation last night, and I will tell you that Damien and the others were very upset to see you as upset as you were," he replied.

Laughter escaped me, thinking about Damian being upset. "I can understand the twins being slightly upset, but you don't have to lie and throw Damian in there, too. I know he's not that kind of man."

James walked from the bathroom and gave me a knowing look before shaking his head with a grin." You two are just the oddest couple I've ever met. You love each other one minute, and you hate each other the next, both equally irritated with each other. But then you guys can't keep your hands off of each other when the moment calls."

"Well, we have a love-hate relationship. What else do you expect, James?" I asked as I pushed myself further into the blankets, getting comfortable.

"Very true. Needless to say, yes, we know that your mother's coming, and we know the elder needs to go. Damien has already reminded us this morning."

Knowing he recognized the need to get rid of the woman made me feel slightly better, but then again, I was also concerned because I wasn't sure how it would be possible.

"I don't understand why she is like that, James. The woman I spoke to on the phone initially isn't the same woman that's here, and if it is, she plays the game very well."

Sitting on the edge of the bed, James sighed, taking a moment. "One thing you will learn is people like her and those in her position can be what they must to get what they want. Just because they are where they are doesn't mean that we trust them. No one trusts them, really."

"So then, why are they even in that position?"

It made little sense to have a council no one cared for. I got it, though. Look at how the humans ran their government. They have had men in office that no one likes, but yet year after year they keep electing people.

And year after year, those people keep disappointing the nation. "Maybe Damien can call the council or something and have her call back." My suggestion made James laugh as he gave me this funny look. "Yeah, right. Like they would actually do something like that I will tell you, though, she is fvcking weird."

"Well, James, we have to get rid of her somehow. So how are we supposed to do that? I mean, I'm pregnant and hormonal, and Damian doesn't like her, and she's obsessively interested in knowing everything about me and the babies." The babies... S**t. "That reminds me. My appointment is today."

Agrin lit up James' face when I mentioned it, and nodding his head, he jumped to his feet. "It sure is. Why do you think I'm already getting up? We are supposed to be leaving soon."

Rolling my eyes, I pulled the blanket over my head, only to have it ripped back down. "It's too early to get up, James."

"I don't care. You're the one who set the appointment," he said as he made his way towards the door. "Get up and meet me downstairs. The faster we go to the appointment, the faster you can take a nap."

A nap sounded good, but the growling in my stomach was louder. "What about food?" "I'm going to make it," he called from outside the door before closing it behind him.

If I didn't have James, I wasn't sure how I could manage all of this. He was the normalcy I needed to deal with Damian and the twins. Regardless of how sweet Talon and Hale could be... at times, they also irritated me.

Such was the difficulty of relationships. I had never heard of one couple out there that wasn't slightly annoyed by their better half at some point in time.

Just never expected it would happen to me so soon.

Thirty minutes later, I was making my way into the kitchen, following the smell of bacon and toast. I was starving and in an unusually good mood until my eyes laid upon Elder Harrison, and my smile quickly fell

"Oh, there you are," she said with exaggeration. "I figured you would have been down here earlier to have breakfast with me."

"I'm sorry, what?" I replied, slightly confused.

My comment was not what she was hoping for, and as she raised a brow with her hand on her hip, she pushed away whatever she was feeling and smiled at me. "It's okay. I keep forgetting you know nothing of werewolf culture and are still learning how to be a proper Luna." There she went again with the insults. "Look,"

"That's enough!" Damian bellowed, cutting me off, "Elder Harrison, I think it's best that you take your leave. We have been more than hospitable, yet you continually disrespect my mate and pack. I will not tolerate it any longer."

A gasp left her throat as she placed her hand on her ch3st in shock. "Excuse me?"

"You heard my brother," Hale added in as he stood next to the kitchen island with his arms crossed over his ch3st. "As much as the visit has been wonderful, we need you to leave. We still have much work to do on the pack house and don't have the time for entertaining."

"Never in my life!" she yelled. "I can see what they were talking about now. I didn't want to believe them but after this... I can't promise to protect you after this."

"What are you talking about?" I asked, stepping forward. "Protect us?"

Once again, that irritating smug smile crossed her lips, and it took everything in me not to smack it off her face. I was tired of the games she was playing, and If she wasn't careful, she would not like the outcome of her actions,

"Yes, I'm to report back things are running smoothly here. I couldn't very well have told you that now, could I? It seems that things are not as they seem. Not to mention you, dear..."

'fon**g knew it.' Damian growled through the link. 'I told you, Ivy.

Glaring at him, I rolled my eyes with disgust and focused my attention back on the elder. "I don't know what you're referring to when it comes to me. can you be a little more enlightening?"

"Oh, please. Stop pretending we know what you are, shifter," she scowled, "You're Solvmåne, and those kinds are not to be trusted."

Those kinds? She didn't even f*g know me Not to mention my race is supposedly gone or whatever, and then I'm something else

Everything was so f****g confusing, and I wanted more than anything to figure it all out, so I knew exactly what I was, but I still had no clue Perhaps one of these days, I would stop putting off speaking to Frigga and finish replaceing out the details

Right now, though, I was doing everything in my power not to r!p this stupid b!tch apart for talking to me like I'm a fvcking i**t. "Look, I don't have time to deal with you. I have somewhere to be My mate asked you to leave, so I expect you gone. Don't make me ask you again."

Snatching the plate of bacon and a piece of toast, I turned on my feet and made my way towards the front door. I wasn't dealing with that woman anymore I was having a wonderful day, and there was no way I was going to let her ruin it.

"Ivy, wait!" James called from behind me as he came jogging up to where I was.

**Don't you dare tell me I was out of line, James," I grumbled as I stuffed the bacon into my mouth The last thing I wanted to hear was I was wrong. The only thing that would do would piss me off even further.

"I wasn't going to tell you that," he chuckled as we reached the car. "I was going to tell you that Hale is coming with, but Talon and Damian are going to stay behind to make sure she doesn't try anything stupid."

Stopping in my tracks, glared at him. Are you serious?" "Uh, yeah, I'm sorry, Ivy. We just have to make sure "It's okay," I said, cutting him off "let's get going."

Hale made his way to the car as soon as I climbed in, and within minutes we were off towards the pack hospital. The entire time we drove, I kept trying to remind myself that it was okay. Did I want all of my mates there today yes. But I couldn't have everything I wanted all the time.

As the car came to a stop, I exhaled deeply and climbed out. Hale took my hand, lacing his fingers through mine, causing me to look at him. "It will be okay, Ivy."

"Thanks," I said, happy for the reassurance he was giving me.

Honestly. I needed it because lately, I had been at my wit's end with how things had been going Alli wanted to do today was to see my babies and confirm the suspicions of their genders I already had Knowing that they were okay was going to make everything that much better.

They were my future, and when they got here, it would complete the little family we were growing.

"Good Morning, Ivy," the doctor said with a smile as he opened the ultrasound room door and gestured for us to enter. "Let's check on the little ones and hopefully see what you're having today"

"Thanks, doc, i already have my thoughts on what I'm having" 1 replied as I climbed up onto the white table James and Hale were at my side as they always were.

"Oh, do you now?" The doctor chuckled, "What do you think you're having?" "A boy and a girl," I replied "Just motherly instincts.

Honestly, it was the dream I had that made me think it was going to be a boy and a girl. The pink and blue blanket ran through my mind constantly like the plaque, and with Priscilla telling me to trust my instincts, I was.

I had no doubt the baby in the grass was a reference to my unborn children. I was just going to have to wait and see if my assumptions were correct.

Rolling the cool gel and wand over my stomach, the screen lit up, and the doctor took measurements as he had done before. "Your babies are growing wonderfully and actually are putting you closer to your due date." "Closer? How much closer?" I asked hesitantly. "Oh, I would say about four to six weeks, tops."

Shit... that meant the guys were right, and I only had a few weeks before the twins would be here. It wasn't much time to prepare, but with my mother on the way, I was sure we would be able to manage.

One thing about my mother I loved was the fact that she was good at getting s**t done. She always had been.

"Alright, are we ready to know what we are having?" The doctor said with a smile as the guy's eyes lit up with excitement.

"Yes, go on with it," James replied, causing me to smack him as everyone broke out into laughter. To be honest, I thought he was the most excited out of us with how he acted.

"Well, it seems the Luna was correct in her assumption. There is one boy and one girl." As happy as I was supposed to be, I felt nothing but dread at that moment. The dream was real, and it was a warning. The doctor confirmed the worst. Something dark was coming for my children, and I wasn't going to be able to stop it.