Page 96 of Merciless
"Yes!" I told him with a beaming smile, reaching for his hands. "Come on, everybody's here now."
Everyone sat in the living room, their attention rapt on Jandro and I. "You want to do the honors, then I'll present the evidence?" he asked me.
"Sure." I couldn't stop grinning, my joy and excitement impossible to contain. "I'm pregnant!"
"What?!" Gunner gasped, his jaw dropping.
Reaper clapped his hands and punched the air victoriously. "Yes! I fuckin' knew it!"
Jandro took my three pregnancy tests from his back jean pocket and laid them proudly on the coffee table.
"Wait, how did you find out first, asshole?" Gunner threw one of Hades’ dog toys at him.
"He barged in on me in the bathroom," I said.
"Bullshit, I gave you plenty of warning!"
Shadow was the only one who remained quiet, if even sullen at the news. He stared at the tests on the table, a slight furrow in his brow.
"Hey." I scooted toward him on the couch, taking one of his hands. "How are you feeling about this? It's okay if it's not all good. This is about to be a huge change for us."
His odd-colored eyes flicked up to me as he squeezed my hand. "I'm happy that you're happy, I'm just...concerned. I don't know anything about being a parent. Especially agoodparent."
"None of us do, man." Reaper leaned over and slapped his shoulder. "But we'll be fine. We're all gonna struggle through it together."
"The child-raising part worries me, but it's not just that." Shadow swallowed, his gaze fixed on me. "I've read that pregnancy is very uncomfortable, even dangerous sometimes, for a woman. I don't want your health in jeopardy, lover."
"True, you're not entirely wrong about that." I leaned into his side, letting his heavy arm wrap around me. "But a few things to consider—one, pregnancy is temporary. I'll only be carrying for nine months. Two, it's different for everyone. It could be very easy for me, difficult, or anywhere in between. And if it is difficult, I have my medical training and I know my body. I'll also have Dr. Brooks and Rhonda to monitor me throughout the whole thing."
"And you'll have us," Jandro reiterated. "We'll do everything we can to make it easier on you."
"When you're not being a massive pain in my ass, you mean?"
"Well yeah, naturally."
Laughing, I turned back to Shadow and kissed the scar on his cheek. "Does that help alleviate your worries?"
"A little," he said, still looking concerned. "Even once the pregnancy is over, there is still the whole caring-for-infants thing."
"Yeah, that's the terrifying part," Gunner laughed. "But hey, there's four of us, and we already know the kid has an amazing mom. That puts us ahead of the game already."
“We’re all gonna screw our kid up, just to varying degrees,” Jandro said.
Shadow glared at him. “Is that supposed to make me feel better?”
“Well, no one is gonna screw the kid up worse than Reaper, so—“
“Fuck you, ‘Dro.” Reaper tossed a throw pillow at him.
“Most importantly.” Gunner reached across Shadow’s lap to squeeze my leg. “How areyoufeeling about this, baby girl?”
“I feel…” It took a moment to find words for all the sensations in my body, all the thoughts running through my head. “I’msoexcited! I can’t wait to meet this baby and to see all of you become fathers.”
“You haven’t stopped smiling.” Jandro leaned over and planted a big kiss on my cheek. “You’re glowing already. This happiness is such a beautiful look on you.”
“I’m a little nervous too,” I admitted. “I didn’t expect it to happen so soon.”
My birth control implant was removed about three months ago. I thought it would take much longer for my hormones and monthly cycle to return to normal. The guys and I talked right before I removed it and, while we weren’t exactlytryingto get pregnant, the five of us decided not to actively prevent it either.
