Page 40 of Hard Knox

My hand flew to my shoulder, remembering him biting the shit out of me and making me show off the mark to his club. The reality of his words hit me like a tidal wave.

“I… I’m going to change? Become a shifter?” The world seemed to spin around me, a mix of fear and intrigue battling within. “How could you do this to me?”

“Yes,” he confirmed, his tone soft yet earnest. “Listen, everything we were investigating, I didn’t tell you at the time, but I recognized so many of the names associated with Mark. Big players in the supernatural world. I thought you were in real danger. Claiming you as my own, before it was even time, I was doing my best to protect you from forces you couldn’t possibly understand. I should’ve told you sooner, but I was scared. Scared of losing you. Besides, our rules don’t allow me to tell you until you agree to be my ol’ lady.”

“So, everyone in the club is a shifter?”

Knox laughed. “Not by far. But most the officers.”

I pulled my hands away, needing a moment to process everything. “I need to think about this, Knox. This is a lot.”

Knox nodded, his expression one of complete understanding. “I know it’s a lot, and I’m here, whenever you’re ready to talk more. I love you, Eliza, and I’m hoping you’ll see this as the gift it is. We can be together in ways most can’t even dream of. Forever.”

Forever? As he spoke, the initial shock began to give way to a bizarre sense of wonder. The world I thought I knew had just expanded infinitely, revealing depths I had never imagined. Knox was still Knox, the man I loved.

I looked at him, this biker, this fox, and realized that no matter his form, he was still the Knox I loved. “Okay,” I finally said. “Okay, let’s talk about this. I have a lot of questions.”

Knox smiled, relief washing over his features. “Ask me anything, Eliza. I’m an open book from now on.”

“Are you sure? Any other big secrets to tell me?” My voice was climbing.

“Fuck, Eliza. I just promised. Fuck.”

“What is it, Knox?” I asked, bracing myself for anything.

“I think you’re pregnant. My senses aren’t great in human form, but somehow, I just know.”

Crossing my arms, I complained, “So, that’s why you proposed.”

“No, I always planned to at your prom,” the biker held his hands up and swore.

“What about Emma?” I asked, on pins and needles.

“A regular human but will have a special little brother or sister.”

As we sat back down, the night no longer just a night but a beginning of something extraordinary, I started to ask my questions, one by one. Each answer unraveled more of the mysterious tapestry of the life Knox had led—and the life that awaited us both.

The End for Now