Page 107 of Surprise Mother Pucker

“You really think they're going to listen? If anything, like you, they're going to be stubborn as a mule.”

I sighed. “Well, maybe they're going to take after their daddy and be susceptible to good, calm reasoning.”

Eli threw his head back and laughed. “Okay, we’ll see who wins that. Why don’t you go to the bathroom, and I’ll get you another hot chocolate?”

I nodded eagerly. “Yes, please. I don't even care that it’s going to make me need to pee again.

Eli went to procure the beverage as I waddled to the bathroom. Thankfully, there wasn’t far to go. Our table just happened to be near the bathrooms, which was a stroke of luck, considering my condition.

I hummed lightly to myself as I washed my hands. Everything felt so easy with this pregnancy. Even though I was uncomfortable, and I felt huge, I felt far more content than last time. At this point in my pregnancy with Charlotte, I had been panicking, stressing out about what to do, trying to find small online jobs so I could make whatever money I could.

With this pregnancy, it was like I could turn off my brain. I didn't have to worry about things, because I had four guys who were willing to do everything for me to make things easier.

And I trusted them implicitly.

Eli was waiting for me outside the bathroom, leaning against the wall, two take-out cups in hand. Beaming at him, I made grabby hands at the cups as he handed me the hot chocolate.

“I'm surprised you’re not dreaming about hot chocolate yet.” He laughed.

“Oh, I totally am. Did I not tell you about the peppermint hot chocolate dream I had?”

Eli shook his head. “You didn’t, but I can’t say I’m surprised. Let’s get you sitting down.”

We took it slow back to our table. Even though it was close, it still took us a good three minutes to move from outside the bathroom to the large open space with tables. I sipped on my hot chocolate with one hand and clutched Eli’s with the other.

As we turned the corner, my eyes landed on a blonde sitting at a table in the corner of the room, a good distance from us.

I groaned as we took our seats. “Is that the puck bunny?”

“Sadly, but I don’t think she or her friends plan to come near us,” he assured me. “They were pretty humiliated the last time they tried to be mean to you.”

I thankfully hadn't seen any of them in my classes since that day. I didn’t know if they were actually taking that class or were simply there to harass me, but either way, I was glad of their absence.

“I still don't like that she's in the same room as us. Her flying monkeys are just as bad,” I muttered.

Eli’s hand gently rubbed the back of my neck. “A couple of short weeks, and this will all be in the rearview,” he assured me. “But, for now, studying.” He tapped the textbook in front of me.

“If you insist.”

We only managed another two hours of studying before I was too exhausted to continue. One of the more annoying side effects of being pregnant was that I became tired so easily and needed a good long rest in my nest before I could do anything else.

Eli didn't seem to mind, though. He packed up our things and put our books away without complaint.

We were just about to leave when one of the library security guards came up to us, a second guard following not far behind. He was a short beta who smelled like potatoes, but not in a bad way. He had a friendly smile as he approached us.

“Hey, folks, sorry to bother you. We need to do a quick bag check.”

I frowned. Bag check? I had never heard of the staff doing bag checks before.

“Can I have your student IDs?” the second guard asked.

Eli took his from his pocket, and I pulled mine off the lanyard around my neck. I kept it there, because if I put it in my bag, it would take ages rummaging around for it when I needed to scan in or out of the building.

Maybe they were worried that people were sneaking out books they hadn’t checked out? The library was fairly modern, so people had to walk through a little scanner when they came in and out of the building to make sure that no books were being illegally taken.

Eli’s brow furrowed. “Whatever for?” he asked, picking up his backpack and starting to hand it to the guard.

He held out his hand. “No, it’s not your bag we need to check,” he said, before turning to look at me.

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