Page 345 of Dirty Discipline, Vol. 1

Dom woke to the sound of his own voice crying out. He looked at the clock. He had slept late—it was 6:50 pm. There was a savage wrenching in his gut—much more intense than the dull one that had been there for the past two weeks since he broke things off with Kate. And it was coming from her. His connection with her should have weakened after two weeks without her blood, but he felt it clearly. What could have happened to upset her more?

The fact was, it was none of his business. Except that his own body was going haywire with the stress of experiencing it secondhand. And except that he still felt fiercely protective of her. She was playing at Club Congress tonight. He could flash over and just make sure everything was all right. Not that he had any right to comfort or help. But at least he would know.

He passed the next several hours sweating, pacing and even throwing a few things as he waited until ten o'clock. He flashed into a dark corner of the parking lot and walked into the old hotel. The Morphs were playing already, he could hear the sound pumping from the club. He paid the cover charge and went in, nudging his way through the crowd until he found a place he could get a good look at Kate.

It told him nothing. But she spotted him and fumbled her line, spinning around to sing the rest of it facing upstage. He didn't take his eyes off of Kate, but he could feel Fox glaring at him. When the song was over, Fox snatched the microphone out of her hand and said something to her in a low voice, giving her a shove toward the stairs off the stage. Fox started playing the next song, taking over vocal lead.

He pushed his way through the crowd to meet her where she came down off the stairs. She looked pissed.

“What are you doing here?” she snapped, her anger cracking into pain on the last word.

“What happened? What's wrong?” Not expecting an answer, he opened up his senses, trying to feel into her energy for what was going on.

“None of your business!”

He couldn't help it. It wasn't right, but he had to know. He went fishing with his intuition. He got a clear image of a pregnancy test. Before he could digest it, she confessed it herself.

“I'm pregnant.” Pain and anger were in her face and it sounded like an accusation.

He held his face as blank as he possibly could while he tried to sort out what the fuck was happening.

“I thought you said vampires couldn't make babies.”

Impossible. And she seemed to think it was his. That made his blood run cold. Who had been with her that she couldn't remember?

“We can't,” he said as gently as he could.

“I haven't been with anyone else!”

“Permission to look in your mind?” Better to ask late than never.

“Fuck you!” She reached up to slap him. He started to grab her wrist reflexively, but then dropped his hand, letting her slap him across the face. She deserved that much, at least. She whirled away but he caught her arm, as gently as he could at the velocity she had taken off. She swung back to him with a little force, and one of the bouncers came over immediately, his chest puffed out.

“What's going on here? You okay, Kate?”

“Everything's fine,” he said, catching the bouncer's eyes and changing his perception so that he nodded, mumbling, “that's cool,” as he walked away.

“Kate, I believe you. I just want to see if something's been erased from your memories, okay? None of this is making sense.”

That frightened her. Tears sprang to her eyes and she took a step backward. He held her shoulders and looked into her mind. Nothing. He found no gaps or twists that showed tampering. No other men, nothing. He got down on his knees and reached his senses in to feel the energy of the tiny spark of life inside her. His breath caught as the knowing hit him. Female. His.

His entire world tilted and slid around. In a flash, a rush of memories of his wife's pregnancy and the incredible birth. Holding that tiny being in his arms. How fatherhood had changed him forever. Now here it was again—a new tiny being. His baby. Impossible. Impossible, but somehow true. The fiercest sense of protectiveness surged through him. He was a father. And Kate was the mother of his child. He had a mortal family.

His eyes filled with tears, and he looked up at Kate. She looked terrified. He could feel her knees shaking. Of course, his bloody tears didn't help calm her. “What is it?” she whispered.

He stood up. “It's mine,” he croaked. “I don't know how it's possible, but she's my baby girl.” An iron resolve came over him and he felt clearer than he ever had. He took Kate's shoulders again and pushed her back into the darkest corner at the entrance to the stage. There was a heavy curtain that shielded them mostly from view.

“Kate. Take me back. Please. I swear to you, I will love you and be there for you for the rest of your life. I will never leave you or hurt you again.”

She stared up at him, doubt and hope co-mingling on her face. Probably wondering if she dared trust him. Her lower lip trembled. He thought she would lean into him, but instead she pulled out of his grip. “Let me think about it,” she mumbled, taking a step away from him.

Oh God. He prayed he hadn't lost her forever. A bloody tear streaked down his cheek. “Yeah, okay,” he choked.

He dematerialized before anyone registered the strange sight of a man crying blood.

Kate stumbled back on stage, trembling. Fox looked at her skeptically. “Go home. You're no good here.”

Since she couldn't think for herself, she just nodded and picked up her bag. “Sorry.”

---