Alpha's Vow (Shifter Ops 2)

But before I can sigh in relief, there's a long, low whistling sound that grows into a horrible whine. Then impact. The chopper shudders and lurches to the side.

“Fuck.” Lance grips me tighter.

“Abort mission,” Teddy yells. Everything moves in slow motion. I can barely see in the shadows, but I feel Lance reach behind us and grab something. Before I know it, we’re out of the seat and Lance is strapping me to him.

“What are you doing?” I scream.

“We're going down,” Lance shouts.

No. We can’t be going down. I’m not ready to die. Not when I have so much to live for—this tiny life growing inside me means everything to me.

The helicopter tips, and we lurch against the seat. I scream, and my stomach swoops. The helicopter plummets toward the ground.

“Hang on!” Lance’s grip on me is brutal. Wind slaps my face; I can barely see. Lance heaves us to the open side of the chopper and leaps out. My screams are lost in the rush of air.

I can’t die. Please don’t let me die. Please, God, let me and this baby live. I’ll do anything to protect it.

The world is suddenly silent. We float in the night, the stars twinkling above. It's almost peaceful in this rush of wind. And then somehow Lance turns us and I'm facing down over the valley. We are fucking falling. Free falling. We’re gonna fucking die.

I scream his name as another whine pierces the quiet.

Far above us, the helicopter explodes. A sharp blast, a piercing boom. Light splintering the night. Lance hunches over me. I’m strapped to him somehow but I clutch him tight.

“Hold on to me, Charlie.” The words drift slowly through the ringing in my ears. My face is numb. The night wind is cold, sharp as a blade, and then a huge jerk makes my heart stop. The parachute unfurls above us. We hang in the air, high above the valley. Below us, the roads and houses are twinkling lights mirroring the stars.

“I’ve got you, angel.” Lance's eyes are a beacon in the night. “I’ve got you.” He holds me tight as we float to earth.

Charlie

Day dawns bright and cold. Lance and I ride in the back of a big black Yukon. After we landed, Lance got us free of the parachute, picked me up, and walked us to the road. It wasn’t long before Deke drove up with Teddy already in the front seat.

“Rafe and Channing got out safe,” Deke reported immediately. “The cops have already stormed the compound. Found a fucking grenade launcher.”

“Yeah, we figured that out.” Teddy chuckles. For a guy who got his chopper shot out from under him, he’s pretty chill. His huge body is stuffed into the passenger side and every time he moves, the seat creaks, but he’s relaxed and grinning like he’s on vacation.

Me? I can’t stop shaking. I’m in Lance’s arms, tucked against his side. My teeth keep chattering, too.

“Are you cold, angel?” Lance asks.

I shrug. My skin is numb. Lance meets Deke’s eyes in the rearview mirror. Deke nods and punches a bunch of buttons. A second later, hot air comes blasting out and Lance points the blowers at me.

But I can’t feel anything.

“We’ll go to the hospital. Get you checked out. And the baby.”

“Right.” My voice sounds far away. My ears keep popping—probably from the blast. The blast from a freaking helicopter exploding right above me.

“I'm so sorry, angel,” he says, even though none of this was his fault. Even though he’s the one who saved me. He kisses my temple for the millionth time.

I want to let him take care of me, the way he just did. The way he has since the moment we met. But I can’t seem to let him in. It’s like the fear seeped into my bones, and won’t leave.

Chapter 15

Lance

The next morning, Charlie stirs against my chest. She was a million miles away yesterday as we dealt with the aftermath of her abduction. Withdrawn. Seemingly numb. Almost blank.

It’s scared the hell out of me—and nothing scares me.

To make it worse, she had nightmares during the night, waking up with startled cries, trembling in my arms as I held her and reminded her she was safe.

Now, she blinks her eyes open and then her gaze slides away from me. My pulse picks up speed.

“Charlie? Talk to me, angel. I know you’re not okay.”

She sits up and swings her legs over the side of the bed, giving me her back. She’s in one of her threadbare graphic tees and a pair of panties. There was no love-making last night and it seems like there won’t be any this morning, either.

She sighs. “No, I’m not.” When she turns to look at me, there’s pain in her eyes. “Lance, what happened to me was sort of a wake-up call. I…” She runs a hand over her face. “I can’t deal with high-stress situations. Not when I have the baby to think about.”