“What about her friend Liz? Sam would have contacted her.”
Jordan shook his head again. “She seems to have moved as well, and the company she works for is built like Fort Knox. No one will tell me anything, and no matter how hard I try, I can’t break into their system.
"There has got to be something we can do!"
“No, I don't think there is." Jordan looked away, his shoulders slumping, all his anger evaporating in a single exhale. "I think it's time to give up."
Give up? Never! Jordan knew exactly which buttons to push, and it was my turn to explode.
"Of course you do! You don't give a damn about finding Sam! She was never anything to you!"
I squeezed my fist together so hard I could feel my fingernails digging into my skin. God, I wanted to punch something, someone.
“And she’s pregnant, for God’s sake! If we take too long finding her…” I let the sentence trail off, feeling the agony of what could possibly be done.
We took too long before going to her. I thought for sure if I gave her time, she would be ready to talk. I didn’t want her to terminate the pregnancy. After our argument, I had thought it would be best for us all to cool down for a while. What a colossal mistake that had been!
"This is your fault, you know? Treating her like shit, telling me that was the way it had to be."
I turned away. I couldn't look at him. I was too disgusted. With him. With myself. My shoulders slumped.
"No, it wasn't just your fault. It was mine too. I should have never listened to you."
With that last scathing remark, I headed for the door, but stopped when I heard him move. I turned quickly, blocking the razor sharp claws Jordan threw out. His swipe was so fast it was only a blur of golden fur, but he knew better than to sneak up on me. Our enhanced senses wouldn’t have let that happen often.
Gritting my teeth, I willed the shift. An electric shiver raced up my shoulder as I changed only my right arm and hand. In a lightening quick move, my now black, fur clad paw connected with his jaw. His head jerked back harshly. Not wanting to hurt him too seriously, I had retracted my claws at the last minute, but the hit was still solid.
Jordan stood still as stone, his face turned away and his chest heaving. I prepared myself for a repeat attack, but quickly realized Jordan hadn’t wanted to fight. He wanted me to hit him.
"What in the hell is wrong with you?" I shouted.
Haunted eyes turned towards me. "I deserved it."
His voice was low and hoarse, defeated. Both of our arms had reverted to human form, as our tempers cooled. Our fights never lasted long. Our friendship had always been more important.
"Talk to me, Jordan."
He sat boneless in his desk chair; his head falling into his hands. He looked miserable and disheartened. Hell, we both were.
"You are so right. I fucked up. I thought…" He paused and looked up at me, his eyes dark with some unknown, yet intense emotion. "I still think having a relationship with Sam isn’t a good idea, but we… I,” he corrected, “should not have even started anything to begin with. Our world is not for her."
I made a frustrated sound in the back of my throat. "Are we back to that now? We are not the first to have a human lover. We grew up around mixed couples."
"Yeah, and look how most were treated. Name one couple that was truly happy." Jordan challenged.
"The community made them miserable, not their spouses."
Jordan growled, obviously irritated, but he didn't say anything, only looked down at his hands in thought.
After a moment, he said quietly, "Maybe, Alex. Maybe." Without another word, Jordan got up and left the room I didn't know what to think of his sudden change in attitude. There really wasn't anything else to say. We would have to agree to disagree… on everything.
It was going to be another long night. I grabbed my keys and left to get some more damn coffee.
6
Sam
After smoothing the plush yellow blanket with white trim, I stood back to take in the whole room. Everything looked just right. The walls were painted soft lavender, with a border in multiple shades of purple with yellow butterflies. Against the far wall, near the small closet, there was a changing table full of necessary supplies. A matching white crib, complete with yellow and white bedding stood in the corner ready for its new occupant, complete with a butterfly mobile hanging above.
Walking towards the window, I sat in my favorite piece of furniture. Placing a hand on my rounded belly, I rocked slowly and stared outside at the park across the street. I watched little boys and girls race around the playground, swing high, and slide down slides with big smiles on their faces.
My lips twitched into a grin. I had to admit it was a great place to raise a child. The neighborhood was quiet, and the schools were highly recommended. The park across the street from our quaint, three bedroom home was just a bonus.