Claiming Shayla Read Online Free

breath.
    “Kiesha’s safe. If I were contagious, I would have stayed away,” Shayla assured him. “What? Why are you looking at me like that?”
    Alex studied her like she was a puzzle he couldn’t quite figure out. “There’s something different about your scent. I can’t put my finger on it.”
    “It’s my lotion. I’m using a new brand.” From what she’d been told, Shayla had concluded that the mating mark must leave behind some type of scent identifier that other shape-shifters recognized. To be safe, she’d hunted until she found a brand of perfumed lotion that didn’t make her gag and slathered it on.
    “No, that’s not it. There’s something else. Shannon?”
    As Shannon approached from her seat at the breakfast nook near the window, Shayla conquered the urge to slide out of the chair and move away. Breathe. Don’t do anything to make them suspicious.
    Shannon walked right up behind Shayla and pressed her nose against the skin of her neck, right below the unlotioned hairline. Shayla froze. It felt like even her heart stopped beating.
    It seemed a lifetime but was probably only seconds before Shannon lifted her head and moved to face Shayla. With her eyes gazing directly into Shayla’s, she told Alex, “She’s not sick.”
    She could see the knowledge shimmering in Shannon’s eyes. Shayla opened her mouth, the word don’t on the tip of her tongue as she reached out beseechingly to stop her.
    “She’s pregnant,” Shannon stated.
    “Who’s pregnant?” Kiesha asked from behind.
     

Chapter Two
    Kiesha’s question cut through the tense silence like a knife.
    Alex watched Shay’s face close up tighter than a rock wall and just as hard. It was clear by her very lack of expression that her pregnancy was not open for discussion. Glancing at Shannon and then Kiesha, he didn’t believe they got her silent message, or maybe they were just ignoring it.
    “Shannon?” Kiesha asked curiously.
    Shannon shook her head, still engaged in her staring contest with Shay. “Nope, not me.”
    “But it can’t be… Shay ?”
    When Shay didn’t respond, Kiesha moved to stand next to Shannon. “Shay, are you pregnant?”
    Shayla finally ended the contest with Shannon by briefly closing her eyes. “I don’t want to talk about it.”
    “But…” Kiesha began.
    A very firm, “No.”
    “Shay, if you’re pregnant…”
    A surge of supernatural power suddenly swelled in the room, making his skin crawl. It was coming from Shayla. “I said …I don’t want to discuss it.” Her voice came out in a guttural growl, and her eyes flashed to gold and then back to brown. He doubted Shayla was aware of what she was doing.
    Shannon obviously felt it too, for she took a cautious step back and pulled Kiesha with her. Alex’s wolf came to attention. New shifters, especially those as unaware of their power as Shay seemed to be, were aggressive, unpredictable, and potentially dangerous.
    Kiesha’s mouth opened. Alex cut her off. “Kiesha, leave it alone. She doesn’t want to talk. Stop forcing the issue.”
    If his mate continued to push, Shayla’s wolf might see it as a challenge and attack, either to establish or determine its dominance over Kiesha. The vibes he felt coming off Shay indicated that already her wolf was a force to be reckoned with, and Kiesha was still mostly human.
    Kiesha turned on him. “I’m not forcing anything. She’s my cousin. We don’t keep secrets from each other.”
    “And I’m sure she’ll talk when she’s ready. Right now I don’t think she is.” Alex nodded toward Shay, silently urging Kiesha to note her expression.
    The phone rang in the background. Kiesha hesitated, obviously torn. Her gaze bounced from him to Shay to the office, and back to Shay again. Finally she gave in to its urgent prompting and took off for the office den.
    “I know about you and Rory,” Shannon said quietly.
    “That’s my cue to leave. I’ll go see if Kiesha needs help.” Alex turned down