The Millennium Wolves Book 4
Autor
Sapir Englard
Leituras
š„216M
CapĆtulos
33
Three Is the Magic Number
Book 4
SIENNA
āItās a boy, Sienna!ā
The words were followed by a sudden, high-pitched cry that flooded my whole body with an urgent joy.
My teary eyes met Jocelynās 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 Iād been waiting for my entire life.
A shadow fell across my body, and I looked up.
āAiden?ā
The imposing figure leaning over me was blocking the light from the overhead fixture, but I would know my mate anywhere.
āGive me the baby, Sienna,ā he said, his voice soft yet strangely commanding.
Something in his manner seemed off, but this was my mate, my babyās 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.
āAiden, come back! Where are you taking him?ā
Frantic, I tried to rise, but Jocelyn put a firm hand on my chest. āThereās something wrong with the baby, Sienna. Aiden needs to take him to get help.ā
āNo!ā I cried, and Aiden halted at the door, then turned.
His expression twisted into a snarl, revealing elongated fangs.
Konstantin!
āI told you if you didnāt give me what I want,ā the vampyre hissed, āIād take it, Siennaā¦ā
***
āSiennaā¦ā
āSienna! Wake up, love. Youāre having another nightmare.ā
Aiden.
My mateās 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 armsāand my desperation at its loss.
Shit. I let out a shuddering sob as Aiden pulled me into his embrace. I thought Iād seen the last of my Konstantin nightmares now that the bastard is dead.
Iād heard pregnancy hormones could cause vivid dreams, but that nightmare was unsettling.
āIt was aboutā¦ā But I trailed off.
Was I pregnant?
Unlike the last time Iād missed my period and went to see Jocelyn, Aiden and I were on the same page this time, with the same amount of information.
Heād seen my pee stick, for Godās sake!
Granted, he didnāt know what the plus sign meant until I told him, but stillā¦
It was the thought that counted.
But after the family dinner, when the initial excitement of the positive pregnancy test had worn off, Iād realized something didnāt quite add up.
Sure, Seleneāthe only one other than Aiden who knew about the testāhad told me it was pretty accurate, that she and Jeremy had even used one when they couldnāt 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 wasnāt available.
My heart twinged at the thought of Jocelynās loss.
āAbout what, Sienna?ā
Not wanting to worry my mate about the content of the nightmare, I stuck with the more immediate problem.
āAiden, Iā¦I donāt trust that pee stick.ā
I felt his chest rise and fall as he sighed. āSiennaā¦ā
āAnd I miss Jocelyn.ā
āI know you do, sweetheart. Shall we go see Hanh tomorrow to set your mind at rest? I know heās not Jocelyn, butā¦ā
I nodded my head against Aidenās bare chest. āOkay.ā
But to be honest, as nice as he was, I wasnāt sure I trusted Hanh either.
***
The next morning, I stopped by Aidenās office on the way to the medical suite. He was leaning over his desk, frowning as he leafed through a pile of papers, and didnāt notice me hovering by the door.
I cleared my throat, and when he looked up, I cocked a hand on my hip. āHow about you delegate some of that work to Felix so you can come with me?ā
He looked confused for a moment, so I rubbed my stomach and gave him a stern look. āGet your mind out of the gutter, lover boy. The maybe-baby and I are going to visit Hanh. You in?ā
***
I took a deep breath before knocking on the door to Hanhās office, and Aiden gave my hand a reassuring squeeze.
āSienna! Alpha Norwood! To what do I owe this unexpected visit?ā Hanh said as soon as he opened the door.
I pushed my way past him, Aiden in tow, then wheeled around.
āI took a pregnancy test, Hanh!ā
Hanhās normally serene countenance betrayed his surprise with a slight eye twitch.
āIt was positive.ā I released Aidenās hand and crossed my arms. āBut how is that possible? Wouldnāt that mean I was pregnant when you examined me a week and a half ago?ā
āHmm.ā He nodded thoughtfully, then gestured for me to hop onto the examination table. āWhen was your last period?ā
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.
āUmā¦about five or six weeks ago?ā
āPermission to touch you, Mrs. Mercer-Norwood?ā
I nodded and lay back on the examination table. āIā¦I just need to know the truth,ā I admitted, my voice trembling slightly.
āOf course. Letās see what we can find out.ā 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 Hanhās 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.
āAs you know, Sienna, Alpha NorwoodāāHanh nodded in Aidenās directionāāI am only an assistant healer, filling in for Jocelyn. And in light of the contradictory and inconclusive findings of my previous examinationā¦
āIād 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.ā
My shoulders slumped. Iād gone to visit Hanh to settle my nerves, but I felt more unsettled than ever.
āAnd if you are pregnant,ā he continued, āI want to remind you both that Iām leaving next week to visit my mother and have procured a substitute healer for the time that Iāll be gone.ā
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 Iād 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 homeās progress, weād jumped at the opportunity to move in.
And Sienna didnāt know yet, but Iād spoken to the contractor about finishing the bedroom next to ours ASAP so I could fill it with all the baby things sheād been saving to PinBoard.
Thank God for Felix. I never could have gotten everything done without his help.
But that wasnāt the only surprise weād 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 dateāapplying her makeup, spraying her hairābut I kept distracting her.
I couldnāt help it.
The girl was easily the best-looking thing Iād 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 assā¦
I growled. I couldnāt 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. āAiden, I swear to God, if you donāt stop this, weāre never going to make the reservation!ā
āWhat reservation?ā I asked innocently, trying to throw her off. āLetās skip it.ā But there was no way we wouldnāt be showing up tonight.
āAiden, no. Even though we decided not to tell anyone about the baby yet, the two of us need to celebrate. Besides, Iām starving.ā She tried to get up, but I kept a tight hold of her, keeping her pressed to me.
āLet me go,ā she demanded.
āNever.ā
āAiden, come onā¦ā
I pressed my hardness up into her and gave her the āIām going crazy and need you nowā look.
āAiden Norwood, control yourself.ā
āItās impossible when Iām around you.ā
She narrowed her eyes and lowered her face until there was nothing more than a centimeter between our lips.
āLet go of me and Iāll kiss you,ā 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.
āCome on, slowpoke,ā she taunted, slipping a pair of heels onto her feet. āI donāt want to be late.ā
I groaned but stood up, straightening my sweater. āYouāre killing me.ā
āGood things come to those who wait,ā she responded with a smile, then grabbed her purse and sauntered out of the room.
SIENNA
āIām so ready for this meal. Just you and me, a quiet table, a bottle ofā¦well, not wine, but somethingā¦,ā I said as we drove to the restaurant.
Aiden nodded along with me. āMm-hmm, a quiet dinner. For sure. Canāt wait.ā
āAiden Norwood,ā I said, turning to him. āTell me you made the dinner reservation for just us like I asked you to.ā
āJust us.ā He nodded quickly, keeping his eyes on the road. āLike you asked.ā
āSomehow Iām not so reassured.ā
āSienna, baby, would I ever do anything to go against your wishes or force you to do something you werenāt prepared for?ā
I looked at his profile again, this time noticing his smirk. āI donāt know, would you?ā
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 Aidenās hand, and he helped me out of the passenger seat.
He wouldnāt 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, āI know youāre up to something, Alpha,ā then took off, walking ahead of him into the restaurant.
As soon as I stepped foot inside, a chorus of āSURPRISE!ā rang out from all over the room.
