Free The Alpha's Curse (Wolf Shifter Pregnancy Romance) by Scarlett Grove

breathlessly.
    “It’s all I could find,” he said. “You’re in labor.”
    “Yes,” she said through clenched teeth.
    He sat beside her on the bed and took her arm, leaning in to kiss her forehead gently. “Why aren’t you in the hospital? Why is it so dark and cold in here?” he asked her in a whisper.
    “Car won’t start. Electricity out,” she groaned.
    “Don’t worry. I’m here now.”
    He kissed her forehead again and stood, going to the fireplace in her bedroom. He threw in some logs and had a fire going in a matter of a few minutes. Warmth and light radiated from the fireplace, making Avery feel safer than she had before.
    He sat beside her and held her hand through the contractions. The painful moments stretched together until she knew the baby was going to come soon. Lucien had warmed the room hot enough that sweat was trickling down her face from heat and exertion.
    “I’m going to have to push soon,” she said, panting.
    “Soon?”
    “Now,” she cried.
    He helped her push back the blankets and she spread her legs. He’d found sterile scissors and bandages among her emergency supplies and had them ready with hot water in a stainless steel bowl.
    Avery watched his eyes focus between her legs through the haze of pain and sweat. He held her ankle and looked up at her with a determined expression.
    “When the next one comes, push as hard as you can,” he said.
    She panted, looking at him for guidance, so happy she didn’t have to go through it alone.
    “I’m so glad you’re here,” she said, breathless before the next contraction hit. She screamed and pushed.
    “Good job. I can see the head, Avery. Just wait, wait a little longer to push.”
    She panted wildly, wanting to push more than anything in the world. She needed to push the baby out and see his beautiful face. Lucien was here and all would be well in the end.
    “Don’t push, Avery. Stop,” he growled
    “I can’t stop.”
    “Wait.”
    She pulled herself back, waiting for the next contraction. The pain ripped her body to pieces, and she cried loud, the sound of the storm drowning it out.
    “Push now!” he cried, holding onto her, guiding her like a light in the storm.
    She bared down as hard as she could, pushing out her creation. She could feel him slide through her, into Lucien’s waiting arms. Everything went still as Lucien focused on the baby. She leaned forward, weak but aware. The child wasn’t breathing. Lucien held the baby, rubbing his back vigorously. Their eyes met and Avery reached for her child. She’d delivered goats on Valerie’s farm.
    She lifted the baby upside down and smacked his bottom. A loud cry echoed through the room. Lucien helped her right the baby and laid him gently on Avery’s chest. She laid back, holding her baby in her arms.
    His face looked so like Lucien’s. His blue eyes and her dark skin. She smiled at her lover, gripping his hand. Their creation rested snuggly in her arms, against her breast, alive and ready to take on the world.
    “Everything will be all right now,” she said, wrapping her baby in a blanket.
    “I have come to stay, my love. The curse is broken.”
    “What has changed?”
    “The child. My child has been born.”
    “Lucien, my darling, please tell me what happened here.”
    “Let’s get you settled first.”
    Lucien made the bed with fresh linens and helped Avery get clean and comfortable before he fixed them both a cup of tea. He sat on a chair beside the bed and began his tale.
    “My family used to own this land many years ago. It was going to be mine. But I was also supposed to become the alpha of my pack, after my father.”
    “Your pack?”
    “My wolf shifter pack.”
    “You’re a werewolf?”
    “No. I’m a shifter. From the time I was a young pup, I could shift at will. That was until one day my father cursed me.”
    “He cursed you? Why? How?”
    “It was because of love,” he said, before lifting his tea cup to his lips.
    His eyes were cast