Page 39 of Rejected and Pregnant By the Alpha
“Okay, Mama! I will wait for a brother to play with,” he agrees readily, his eyes closed as he grins at me.
“Saben, there you are.” The door is pushed open further, and Jiya walks in wearing a pair of slacks and a nice blouse. She catches Saben’s attention, and I chuckle as he looks down with guilt. “I told you to wait for me to check on your mama before you came in here.” She sighs, moving toward my son and ruffling his hair.
“I wanted to see Mama,” he whispers, expecting to be scolded.
“You’re not in trouble,” I reassure Saben, giving my son a gentle smile.
“But Mama needs to focus on getting better, so could you go play with your toys while Granny Jiya and I talk?” I ask, trying not to wince as the flames from my heat lick at my body.
Saben nods, his grin returning to his face as he tells me to get better before running out of the bathroom. Jiya is quick to close and lock the door before handing me a towel. I quickly bite down on it, screaming from the pain caused by the heat, and finally allow the tears to flow down my face.
“Sorry, he got away from me when I was helping Aidan bring in some food from his car,” Jiya apologizes as I sink further into the ice water, praying for this heat to end.
It’s fine. I’m just glad to see Saben awake and back to his old self,I link to Jiya, my eyes shut and mouth full of the towel muffling my whimpers of pain. Jiya sighs, reaching out and pushing my hair back from my face.
“This one is the strongest heat you’ve experienced,” she mutters. “I think it’s because Julian is so close. You might need his help this time,” she continues.
I say nothing, knowing Jiya means well. She is right; this heat has been unbearable, the pain so intense that I have to keep biting down on something to prevent myself from snarling and howling with pain and scaring Saben.
I will only let him near me if it’s life or death at this point,I say, wrapping my arms tightly around my body and writhing in pain. The ice water splashes around the tub with my movement, and Jiya sighs.
“Fine, but I will send him your way if I think you can’t endure this any longer,” Jiya states, putting her hand in the water.
Fine. If you think that I’m on the brink of going feral, or worse, that this heat will kill me, tell Julian,I agree reluctantly.
“I will. Let me get some more ice. The last batch has nearly melted,” Jiya says. She leaves the bathroom before returning a few minutes later, pouring three bags of ice into the water. The cold instantly soothes my burning flesh, and I sigh, slowly stretching out.
“Thank you,” I whimper.
“Get some rest, Hannah. I’ll keep Saben occupied,” she says, giving me a reassuring smile.
Jiya leaves, closing the door behind her. I close my eyes and focus on breathing. I know the ice won’t last long, as this is our fourth refill since my heat started. My body seems to grow hotter with each passing hour, and I can’t help but wonder just what caused it to be so strong. The only reasonable answer is that my body is reacting to Julian being so close and that the mate bond is trying to bring us back together.
40
Julian
Walking into the Haven Trail pack house, I head upstairs to Theta Aidan’s office, catching the man just as he is leaving.
“King Julian,” he calls out in surprise before quickly masking it. “I thought you would be interrogating the hunters by now,” he says, giving me a friendly smile.
“I thought I would come to you first and wait for Hannah to join us,” I answer, watching as a look of unease flickers across Theta Aidan’s face before it disappears and a stiff smile takes its place.
“Hannah is a little busy right now with Saben, so it will just be us interrogating the hunters,” he says, motioning for me to join him.
My eyes narrow at his flimsy excuse, but I say nothing, deciding that I can just go to Hannah’s cottage later to see how she and Saben are doing. Following Theta Aidan, the two of us makeour way down the stairs. Some of the Haven Trail wolves wave at us, their hostility toward me gone since I helped save Saben and protect their borders. I wave back before disappearing with Theta Aidan into the basement.
“We have the hunters in separate cells so it is easier to interrogate them individually,” Theta Aidan explains as we pass by a set of steel doors that, after taking a deep breath, I find are reinforced with silver. Past the doors is a corridor with three cells on either side. These, too, look like they are made of steel, but what surprises me is the clean air and the bright lighting.
“You look surprised,” Theta Aidan says, grinning at me.
“I am,” I answer, stopping to take in the first cell and finding it prepared with a cot, a toilet, and a sink. “Most packs have damp cells, and I have to threaten them to bring them up to code. I thought the cells here would be the same, but I was clearly wrong.”
“I guess being in the royal pack did have its advantages then because Hannah always said she wanted the cells to provide clean, livable conditions for our prisoners,” Theta Aidan explains, making me smile.
“Well, since your cells are so clean, I wonder just how you interrogate your prisoners,” I muse, motioning for Theta Aidan to lead the way.
Silently, he moves toward the cells at the back of the basement, the sound of someone sobbing reaching my ears.
