Read NocC 024 - Katie Reus - A Jaguar's Kiss - Harlequin 2012-10 for Free Online

looked so much Gabriela with the same honey-brown hair and dark eyes, took a defiant step forward, growling at Owen.
    Gabriela’s hand tightened on his arm. Before either of them could speak, the single white door that led to the operating/checkup room opened and Dr. Shahi stepped out. Her dark hair was pulled up into a bun, her equally dark eyes widening as she saw Owen. A thin thread of concern spiraled off her.
    “Where. Is. My. Sister.” It wasn’t a question and he barely squeezed the words out.
    The doctor swallowed hard but before she could answer, Owen moved past her, ignoring her protests. The coppery distinctive scent of Skyler’s blood nearly overwhelmed him. Prepared to seriously hurt someone, Owen reached the doorway and stopped dead in his tracks. Israel and Skyler were on the hospital-style bed and the giant male was cradling Skyler in his arms in a manner that could never be mistaken for anything other than possessive and protective.
    They both looked up at him and he was vaguely aware of the others filing into the sterile room behind him. Wearing a pale green dressing gown, his sister was turned on her side, tucked in Israel’s embrace.
    Owen’s eyes tracked to the metal bin filled with discarded bloody rags then back to his sister. “Are you okay?” he asked softly.
    She nodded and wiped a stray tear off her cheek. “I’m…three months pregnant. There were some complications, but the baby is fine and so am I.”
    “But she’s going to need more bed rest and a very stable environment. It won’t need to be a permanent thing. She can still take short walks and spend a couple hours every day away from home, but n o stress.” Dr. Shahi walked farther into the room, nearing the bed, her voice very firm.
    Pregnant? Stunned, Owen looked to Gabriela, but she looked just as surprised as he felt. Maybe even more so. The silence seemed to stretch on forever.
    “Holy crap, I’m going to be an aunt?” Gabriela was the first to speak, her question slicing through the tension.
    Skyler nodded, a real smile stealing across her features, but Israel was still watching Owen, his expression guarded.
    “You’re the father.” It wasn’t a question and Owen wasn’t sure why he even said it. He felt more than a little dumbfounded.
    The jaguar shifter nodded. “Yes. And we’re going to be mated soon. I wanted to mate earlier but…” His expression softened as he glanced at Skyler, then that mask fell back into place as he looked at Owen. “We’ll be mated before the baby is born.”
    Owen had a hundred questions. He’d known his sister had been sneaking off their land the past few months, but he’d assumed she was dating a human or fooling around with one of their pack mates. She was twenty-two and old enough to make her own decisions and he hadn’t wanted to smother her. Despite the questions burning inside him, he swallowed them back and nodded at Israel.
    The jaguar shifter was an attorney and worked for an established law firm in town. From what Owen knew of him, he was respected in the community. Still, he didn’t like the thought of anyone touching his sister, no matter the species. It was impossible to wrap his mind around the fact that his younger sister was pregnant and going to be mated, but he didn’t flash his canines in a blatant show of aggression-even though that’s exactly what his inner wolf wanted.
    Crossing the short distance between them, he shook the other man’s hand—even though a large part of him wanted to pummel him for daring to touch his sister—and said, “Welcome to the family.” He still wasn’t sure what “complications” meant, but if his sister was going to need bed rest he wouldn’t do anything to upset her.
    Behind him he heard Gabriela suck in a breath, but when he turned to look at her she was quietly talking to her other brother. Then everyone started talking at once and he knew it would be a while before he got his answers.
    *
    Gabriela pulled her