Page 28 of King Luna

“What’s wrong?” I try to call out, but my voice comes out a flimsy whisper. Closing my eyes as darkness creeps across myvision, I ease myself to the floor, propping my back safely against the wall as thethump thump thumpof Noah’s feet speeds down the hall to our bedroom.

Big hands shuffle my legs into a better position, my knees bent and feet planted on the floor as Noah holds my shoulders in place—just in case I fully pass out.

“How did you know?” I mumble.

“I know you well enough by now.” Noah strokes my hair back, planting soft kisses on my forehead as my vision returns in patches. “Do you need a bag to throw up in?”

I groan, my stomach swirling. “Not this time. Did you pack enough of them, though?”

“Oh, yeah. We’re all prepared, even if you puke twenty times on the plane.”

Raising my head slowly, I laze my eyes open with a weary chuckle. Noah softly smiles back, sorting my long hair into place.

I sigh. “Sorry.”

As Noah’s smile fades, my heart hammers. I can’t tell if my raging heartbeat is the after-effects of my blood pressure dropping from pregnancy, yet again, or if it’s a trauma response, afraid of what a partner’s serious, unhappy face might mean for my safety. Even though I trust Noah, a part of me still tightens in defense, especially while my conscious mind is hazy from feeling god-awful.

Softening his features, Noah lowers from his crouch beside me, joining me on the floor. He’s facing me, scooting as close as he can until his bent knee bumps my thigh. With Noah’s wide palms stroking my shoulders and arms, I swallow hard, staring deep into his serious, concerned gaze.

“Did I say something bad?” I whisper.

Noah blinks a few times, tilting his head in thought. “Actually, yeah. Towards yourself.”

I straighten. “What? What did I say? Just ‘sorry?’ How’s that bad when we’re about to be late for—”

“How’s thatnotbad when you’re carrying this baby for both of us, and fighting like hell through every second of it?”

I laugh. “Noteverysecond—”

Noah’s jaw hardens, and I freeze. My heart thunders in my ears. But after the trust we shared in each other last night, I face Noah’s upset head-on, my focus switching between his eyes.

Settling his hand over my belly, Noah lowers his voice. “I know I need to work on this too when it comes to my wolf, but I don't like it when you talk about yourself like this, either. You’re not a burden on me. I don’t think you realize how much you do for me, and for the whole pack, even before you were pregnant. But now that you are pregnant, there’s nothing that should require you to continually apologize for feeling sick, or to downplay your pain. It’s not fair to you. I don’t appreciate it.”

With a rapid breath, I stare in awe of my mate’s words. He’s genuinely angry, but he’s so gentle about it that I don’t know what to do. How to process it, or what he wants me to say.

But Noah drops his stare, his thumb tracing the soft swell of my stomach. “It fucking kills me that you have to suffer through this in the first place, but I don’t want you to feel like you also have to feel bad for it. You can’t control when you throw up, pass out, have body aches—any of it—and I would never ask you to.”

“Okay, well, we really are about to be late. I know what you’re saying, but I also don’t want us to miss our flight.” My chest rises, defiance building in my chest.

“What if we did have to miss it from you not feeling well, though?” Noah stares straight into my eyes, challenging my rising Alpha side. As our scents build and clash, Noah’s chest puffs, his wolf holding strong. “I’ll tell you: I’d just get us another flight, as long as it meant you felt well enough to fly. I’d stayhome, forgetting about the Summit, if you needed me to. I’d stop the whole fucking Lycan world for you, Aliya.”

Dropping my stare, my face flushes hot. “That’s a little extreme.”

“Is it, sweet Omega? Or is it what my badass Luna deserves?”

I blink a few times, struggling to grasp his words. “I don’t know, if I’m honest.”

Lifting my chin, Noah catches my gaze once more. “Then I’ll tell you: it is what you deserve, and more. Honestly, I feel like shit from how little I’m able to do for you compared to what you’re going through. I know sometimes you feel okay, but that’s also because you don’t let anything stop you. And it’s not just me that you support. This pack did not function nearly as well without your grounding presence, Aliya. Not just because of what you do, but who you are. Your value is far deeper than you give yourself credit for.”

Biting my lip, I struggle to fight back tears. I hear what Noah is saying, so why is this hitting me so hard? Meeting Noah’s eyes, I huff out my frustration, hugging my stomach. “Then what am I supposed to do now that I feel like shit, right before we leave?”

Lifting one eyebrow, Noah breaks into a smile. “You’re going to stay sitting right here, even when I tell you there’s a huge crowd outside our door, waiting for us to say goodbye.”

My jaw drops. “What?! Noah, why didn’t you tell me?”

Noah laughs, hoisting himself to his feet. His wolf’s sly, teasing grin spills from him as he towers over me. “Because I meant it when I said I’d stop the whole world for you. And that I want you to take care of yourself, please.”

Dropping my head back onto the wall behind me, I hide my face in my palms. “Bossy Alpha.”

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