Page 59 of Daddy Wolf's Secret Baby

Josiah groaned. “Great. A brand new thing to have nightmares about. It’s not enough that I have nightmares about clowns with balloon animals and giant scorpions and cockroaches, but now, when I’m running from them, I’m going to get stuck up to my belly button in molasses.”

Jace laughed. “I don’t like clowns, either. Once, at a birthday party, one got in my face and he had really stinky breath.”

“I guess that’s enough to make anyone not like them.”

Josiah helped Zahra clean up after breakfast and they headed to the mountain to shift and lope around. Normally, he would have loved being up there with his girl and son, but he was anxious. He was constantly on the lookout for vampires, hunters, or both. Zahra was hypervigilant as well, her head continually swinging around, her head cocking at every unusual sound. Even Jace was on alert.

Luckily, they didn’t run into anyone and headed back to Zahra’s house after they got some exercise. Jace still had some energy to burn so they went out back and played basketball.

Jace had just made a basket when the hair on the back of Josiah’s neck stood up. He felt as though someone was watching them.

“Go inside,” Josiah said.

He walked around the house and peered up and down the alley behind the house, but he didn’t see anything. Not sure whether the person had fled or had been watching from a tree, house, or other place, he sighed heavily and went inside.

Zahra raised her eyebrows at him. Josiah simply shook his head.

Jace, who was lying on the couch with his book, asked, “Did you find him?”

“Nope.”

The boy nodded and went back to his book.

Josiah followed Zahra into the kitchen. “He doesn’t get rattled easily, does he?”

“Nope. I’m glad about that.”

He helped Zahra make dinner, they all played a game after, and then he read to Jace when it was time for bed.

Zahra walked him to the door.

He hugged her and brushed a kiss across her lips. “Call if anything weird happens.”

“Scout’s honor.”

“Were you ever a scout?”

Zahra shook her head. “Nope, but the sentiment still stands.”

Grinning, he left. On the way home, he reviewed the day in his mind.It was like a normal family day, except that I’m going home at the end of it.Do I want more days like it? Hell, yeah, I do.

Shaking his head, he laughed at himself. “If someone had told me two months ago that all of this would be happening, I’d have called them crazy.”

The next afternoon, Zac and Josiah went toHowlers’for lunch. Matthias and Lucious joined them.

“A couple of the dragons were out patrolling and caught sight of the hunters. One of them thinks they were spotted and that the hunter simply waved and went back to what they were doing,” Lucious said.

Zac put down his drink. “What were they doing?”

“They appeared to be checking for caves. So, either these hunters don’t care about shifters or they have adopted the idea that the enemy of my enemy is my friend. They would know that we’re hunting the rogue vampires, too.”

Matthias sighed. “Let’s just hope that when we find the vamps and destroy them, the hunters will consider it a job done and be on their way.”

Zac lifted his glass. “Here’s hoping.”

Everyone clinked glasses. They talked about strategies for finding the vampires, including using bait, which they would only do as a last resort.

Later that afternoon, Josiah went back out on the mountain, hoping to find the vampires hiding in a cave. He could watch it until backup arrived and they could take out the nest. All of the caves big enough for a nest were empty.

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