Page 167 of Labor of Love

“What are you doing?” he asks, body tense as he looks over his shoulder at me.

Wide brown eyes are full of hesitation as I gently remove his glasses and place them down on the coffee table. “The doctor said you had to rest. Come here, relax, close your eyes and let me rub your shoulders.

Surprisingly, he complies. In fact, he does more than comply. He practically melts into me as if he’s been holding all the weight of the world on his narrow shoulders. Didn’t he know I was here? That I would never let him handle this alone?

Rowan was my Fated Mate, I was sure of it. I knew it like I knew the sky was blue and that the tides would keep crashing on the shore.

I should have Claimed him that night, but I hesitated, I wanted the decision to be his. He needed to have a clear head when he chose to spend the rest of his life with me, but I wasn’t going to let that hesitation cost us our happiness. I loved him. No matter what, I wasn’t going anywhere.

My hands moved down his body, mapping out each line and dip through the thin fabric of his shirt. His usually toned and lithe figure had softened with the pregnancy. Using my thumbs, I apply a little more pressure, drawing out a sinful moan from my omega.

“Careful there, love.” I murmur, planting a kiss on the side of his slender neck. “Keep making noises like that and I might take advantage. Give you something to really moan for.”

He chuckles, relaxing even more into my hands like soft putty. “I should’ve known better than to trust a man offering a massage.”

The film is forgotten as I touch him, my hands moving over his shoulders, down his arms, leisurely massaging, rubbing everywhere he allows me access. “Shhhh, let me take care of you.”

Let me look after you.

Let me love you.

Slowly, I release pheromones, letting them swirl around us in a calming fog. The doctor said they’d stabilize his mood and hormone imbalances. “Are the pheromones helping?”

“Goddess, yes! Feels so good.” Rowan makes another low sound of appreciation that goes straight to my cock.

“Need more?” I murmur against his shoulder, inhaling his sweetness. Coconut, jasmine and something else. Something that makes my alpha satisfied almost to the point of smug.

“Mmmmm. Please,” he pleads, and it reminds me of that night. Of how he begged me for more while I was torturing him with my tongue and my fingers.

“Here, let me take this off–skin to skin is going to be better.” I wrap my arms around him and begin unbuttoning his shirt, sliding it down his shoulders and tossing it to the side. I quickly get rid of my shirt, so that he can press his back against my chest and absorb my pheromones easier.

“Better, uh huh.” There’s a small laugh, cut off by another moan, and I rub my thumb over his scent gland. My other hand moves down his arm and over his adorable baby bump. Until today, I’d never touched a pregnant belly, nor had I wanted to. But with Rowan, I couldn’t keep my hands to myself.

Massaging his belly lightly, smiling at the movements coming from inside, I let my hands wander down further, teasing his skin along the waistband of his pants.

“I have to tell you something before anything else happens,” he blurts, trying to push away. “The baby, he’s yours. Well, ours.”

Kissing the back of his head, I feel myself smile.

His voice is shaking as he places his hand over mine, interlocking out fingers. “I didn’t want you to feel trapped, like you had to be a father. I know how much you hate being tied down, and you’ve always said a white picket fence life was never for you.”

My grandfather had been nagging me for years to settle down, trying to pressure me to continue the family legacy–but I’d been waiting for the right person.

“I never wanted to force your hand.” He makes a soft sobbing noise, and his body temples. “Or make you wonder if it was about the money.”

Turning him, careful not to break our connection, I scoop him onto my lap. Rowan buries his face in my neck, inhaling deeply before letting tears fall. Oh, my little idiot.

Taking his chin between my thumb and my forefinger, I lift his face to mine. “Love, I already know.”

He blinks, confused. “What? How?!”

Taking a moment, I think about it. It was almost like I always knew. I mean, I hadn’t been truly upset when he shared the news about the baby. If he was my Fated, which I knew he was, then I should have been devastated. Angry. Sad. Instead, my alpha nature had been content to sit back and keep being patient. Then, there had been the pheromones he’d been leaving all over my office. Each time I caught the scent of them, it reminded me of home.

“You smell like mine.” I kiss his lips softly. “I noticed it a few days ago, but I thought it might just be wishful thinking.”

“And now?”

“It’s stronger, especially right here…” Turning his head, I lick a lazy stripe up his neck. “And the doctor confirmed you were sixteen weeks along. Sixteen weeks ago, you were naked and bouncing on my knot.”

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