The Millennium Wolves Book 4
Autorzy
Sapir Englard
Lektury
đ„217M
RozdziaĆy
33
Three Is the Magic Number
Book 4
SIENNA
âItâs a boy, Sienna!â
The words were followed by a sudden, high-pitched cry that flooded my whole body with an urgent joy.
My teary eyes met Jocelynâs as she lifted my baby and placed him in my arms. And as I gazed down at the tiny, red-faced creature nestled against my breast, my heart swelled with love and wonder.
With the knowledge that this was the moment Iâd been waiting for my entire life.
A shadow fell across my body, and I looked up.
âAiden?â
The imposing figure leaning over me was blocking the light from the overhead fixture, but I would know my mate anywhere.
âGive me the baby, Sienna,â he said, his voice soft yet strangely commanding.
Something in his manner seemed off, but this was my mate, my babyâs father. How could I deny him?
Almost against my will, my arms loosened, allowing him to pick up our son.
Aiden straightened and gazed down at our baby for a moment, then turned sharply and strode toward the door.
âAiden, come back! Where are you taking him?â
Frantic, I tried to rise, but Jocelyn put a firm hand on my chest. âThereâs something wrong with the baby, Sienna. Aiden needs to take him to get help.â
âNo!â I cried, and Aiden halted at the door, then turned.
His expression twisted into a snarl, revealing elongated fangs.
Konstantin!
âI told you if you didnât give me what I want,â the vampyre hissed, âIâd take it, SiennaâŠâ
***
âSiennaâŠâ
âSienna! Wake up, love. Youâre having another nightmare.â
Aiden.
My mateâs hand was on my shoulder, shaking me gently, and I was in our bed at the hotel, my heart racing with remnants of fear.
I could still feel the warm weight of the dream baby in my armsâand my desperation at its loss.
Shit. I let out a shuddering sob as Aiden pulled me into his embrace. I thought Iâd seen the last of my Konstantin nightmares now that the bastard is dead.
Iâd heard pregnancy hormones could cause vivid dreams, but that nightmare was unsettling.
âIt was aboutâŠâ But I trailed off.
Was I pregnant?
Unlike the last time Iâd missed my period and went to see Jocelyn, Aiden and I were on the same page this time, with the same amount of information.
Heâd seen my pee stick, for Godâs sake!
Granted, he didnât know what the plus sign meant until I told him, but stillâŠ
It was the thought that counted.
But after the family dinner, when the initial excitement of the positive pregnancy test had worn off, Iâd realized something didnât quite add up.
Sure, Seleneâthe only one other than Aiden who knew about the testâhad told me it was pretty accurate, that she and Jeremy had even used one when they couldnât reach Jocelyn.
But I needed confirmation.
And I needed it to come from the healer I trusted the most. But unfortunately for me, and especially for her, she wasnât available.
My heart twinged at the thought of Jocelynâs loss.
âAbout what, Sienna?â
Not wanting to worry my mate about the content of the nightmare, I stuck with the more immediate problem.
âAiden, IâŠI donât trust that pee stick.â
I felt his chest rise and fall as he sighed. âSiennaâŠâ
âAnd I miss Jocelyn.â
âI know you do, sweetheart. Shall we go see Hanh tomorrow to set your mind at rest? I know heâs not Jocelyn, butâŠâ
I nodded my head against Aidenâs bare chest. âOkay.â
But to be honest, as nice as he was, I wasnât sure I trusted Hanh either.
***
The next morning, I stopped by Aidenâs office on the way to the medical suite. He was leaning over his desk, frowning as he leafed through a pile of papers, and didnât notice me hovering by the door.
I cleared my throat, and when he looked up, I cocked a hand on my hip. âHow about you delegate some of that work to Felix so you can come with me?â
He looked confused for a moment, so I rubbed my stomach and gave him a stern look. âGet your mind out of the gutter, lover boy. The maybe-baby and I are going to visit Hanh. You in?â
***
I took a deep breath before knocking on the door to Hanhâs office, and Aiden gave my hand a reassuring squeeze.
âSienna! Alpha Norwood! To what do I owe this unexpected visit?â Hanh said as soon as he opened the door.
I pushed my way past him, Aiden in tow, then wheeled around.
âI took a pregnancy test, Hanh!â
Hanhâs normally serene countenance betrayed his surprise with a slight eye twitch.
âIt was positive.â I released Aidenâs hand and crossed my arms. âBut how is that possible? Wouldnât that mean I was pregnant when you examined me a week and a half ago?â
âHmm.â He nodded thoughtfully, then gestured for me to hop onto the examination table. âWhen was your last period?â
As Hanh took my hand, Aiden sat down in a wooden chair, his eyes never leaving me. If his intense watchfulness was making Hanh nervous, the healer was hiding it well.
âUmâŠabout five or six weeks ago?â
âPermission to touch you, Mrs. Mercer-Norwood?â
I nodded and lay back on the examination table. âIâŠI just need to know the truth,â I admitted, my voice trembling slightly.
âOf course. Letâs see what we can find out.â Hanh placed his hands on my belly, his movements deliberate yet gentle, then closed his eyes in concentration.
My heart raced with anticipation and anxiety, and when Hanhâs brow furrowed suddenly, it plummeted into my stomach.
After a few moments of tense silence, he removed his hands and stepped back.
I immediately searched his eyes, but they gave nothing away.
âAs you know, Sienna, Alpha NorwoodââHanh nodded in Aidenâs directionââI am only an assistant healer, filling in for Jocelyn. And in light of the contradictory and inconclusive findings of my previous examinationâŠ
âIâd like to defer to modern medicine in this case and take a blood sample. But it will take a day or two to get the results back from the lab.â
My shoulders slumped. Iâd gone to visit Hanh to settle my nerves, but I felt more unsettled than ever.
âAnd if you are pregnant,â he continued, âI want to remind you both that Iâm leaving next week to visit my mother and have procured a substitute healer for the time that Iâll be gone.â
AIDEN
Almost a week had passed since Hanh called to say that we were really, truly, undeniably having a baby, and holy shit was it the week of a lifetime.
Filled with tender sex, hopeful talks about the future, and connecting with Sienna in a way Iâd never before imagined possible.
But also busy as hell.
A house in our neighborhood had recently become available for rent, and tired of hotel living and eager to be able to more closely observe our homeâs progress, weâd jumped at the opportunity to move in.
And Sienna didnât know yet, but Iâd spoken to the contractor about finishing the bedroom next to ours ASAP so I could fill it with all the baby things sheâd been saving to PinBoard.
Thank God for Felix. I never could have gotten everything done without his help.
But that wasnât the only surprise weâd been working on.
Tonight I was taking Sienna out, but she had no idea what was in store.
Right now, she was trying to get ready for what she thought was a simple dateâapplying her makeup, spraying her hairâbut I kept distracting her.
I couldnât help it.
The girl was easily the best-looking thing Iâd ever seen.
Everything from her long red locks to her even-fuller-than-usual breasts, from her long legs to the curve of her lightly freckled assâŠ
I growled. I couldnât just look at her. I had to feel her.
Grabbing her from behind, I backed up to the bed, where we collapsed onto the mattress.
Her giggles filled the room as I flipped her to face me. âAiden, I swear to God, if you donât stop this, weâre never going to make the reservation!â
âWhat reservation?â I asked innocently, trying to throw her off. âLetâs skip it.â But there was no way we wouldnât be showing up tonight.
âAiden, no. Even though we decided not to tell anyone about the baby yet, the two of us need to celebrate. Besides, Iâm starving.â She tried to get up, but I kept a tight hold of her, keeping her pressed to me.
âLet me go,â she demanded.
âNever.â
âAiden, come onâŠâ
I pressed my hardness up into her and gave her the âIâm going crazy and need you nowâ look.
âAiden Norwood, control yourself.â
âItâs impossible when Iâm around you.â
She narrowed her eyes and lowered her face until there was nothing more than a centimeter between our lips.
âLet go of me and Iâll kiss you,â she said softly, her sweet voice turning me on even more.
I immediately unwrapped my arms from her back, but instead of the long, passionate kiss I was expecting, Sienna just pecked me and jumped up.
âCome on, slowpoke,â she taunted, slipping a pair of heels onto her feet. âI donât want to be late.â
I groaned but stood up, straightening my sweater. âYouâre killing me.â
âGood things come to those who wait,â she responded with a smile, then grabbed her purse and sauntered out of the room.
SIENNA
âIâm so ready for this meal. Just you and me, a quiet table, a bottle ofâŠwell, not wine, but somethingâŠ,â I said as we drove to the restaurant.
Aiden nodded along with me. âMm-hmm, a quiet dinner. For sure. Canât wait.â
âAiden Norwood,â I said, turning to him. âTell me you made the dinner reservation for just us like I asked you to.â
âJust us.â He nodded quickly, keeping his eyes on the road. âLike you asked.â
âSomehow Iâm not so reassured.â
âSienna, baby, would I ever do anything to go against your wishes or force you to do something you werenât prepared for?â
I looked at his profile again, this time noticing his smirk. âI donât know, would you?â
We rolled up to the entrance, and Aiden climbed out and handed the keys to the valet attendant, then walked around to open my door.
I sighed, taking his lack of response for an indication of what I was about to walk into.
My hope for a quiet night with my mate dissolved, I took Aidenâs hand, and he helped me out of the passenger seat.
He wouldnât look me in the eye, which meant only one thing.
My dear mate was afraid of getting caught.
I leaned in suddenly, and when I kissed him, I could tell he was surprised because of how high his eyebrows shot up.
Pulling away from his lips quickly, I whispered in his ear, âI know youâre up to something, Alpha,â then took off, walking ahead of him into the restaurant.
As soon as I stepped foot inside, a chorus of âSURPRISE!â rang out from all over the room.
