Page 18 of Elusive Alpha
Except this morning, I wasn’t feeling so well. Hadn’t for a few weeks. Rook was in town picking up a few things at the store, and I had brushed my teeth for the third time that morning when I heard Rook fumble with the front door. His key was tricky.
“Idris,” he called out from the front.
“I’m here.” I loved listening to his footsteps. They were graceful and yet so very alpha, somehow. Didn’t make sense out loud when I’d told him about it, but in my head, it did.
“Are you okay? You threw up again?”
I groaned. “Yes. You can smell it. Ugh, I sprayed all the sickening floral things.”
“I can smell you, omega. Come here.” He placed his hand against my forehead and then hugged me tight against his chest. “You smell sweeter today. Almost like…” Rook moved his nose to my neck, inhaling deeply. Then he froze in place.
“What? Do I stink?” I’d showered that morning but hey, anything was possible since I’d puked my guts out only minutes before.
“Not at all. Don’t be silly. You never stink. Let’s sit down.”
Somehow “you don’t stink” and “let’s sit down” made me nervous. Rook led me to the bed where we sat side by side. “You smell very, very sweet to me, mate.”
“Thank you? Why doesn’t that sound like a compliment?”
He reached for my hand, pulling it up to place a kiss on it. “You and I have been mated for a few months. And you’ve been sick in the mornings. Tired in the afternoons.”
I sighed. “I get you’re trying to insinuate something but I haven’t had my coffee yet.”
Rook chuckled. “You might not get that coffee anymore, mate. Not for another seven to eight months.”
Now he’d done it. “Say what you mean, Rook.”
“I think you’re pregnant, omega. I’ll run down to the pharmacy, okay? I’ll be back as fast as I can.”
I put the pieces together in my head. Damn, it all made sense. I pressed my hands to my stomach. While I hadn’t thought about it much, I wanted a family. I was happy with Rook just the way we were, but a baby? That was beyond my wildest dreams. Lying down for a rest, I laid my palms on my still-flat belly. Could there be a baby in there?
“I’m here,” Rook said, coming in with a bag and opening it to reveal at least a dozen pregnancy tests. “Pick one.”
I chose a test and peed on the stick as the directions instructed. The next two minutes were going to be intense, but Rook held onto me and tried to calm me.
“I was going to tell you today over breakfast that I forgive you,” I said.
He purred and I felt it vibrate our bodies. He did that when he was happy and a few times when he was upset, but then it was growlier. “Officially?”
“Yes. I didn’t want that between us anymore. And now…I hadn’t even thought about having a baby yet, have you?”
“I think about all the possibilities with you, omega. I’ve thought about it but it seemed too soon to broach the subject.”
I chuckled. “The subject broached us.”
The timer went off and I couldn’t move. Felt like I couldn’t breathe. “Want me to check it?” my alpha asked, whispering in my ear.
“Yes.”
Rook walked into the bathroom and then came back. His lips were pursed. He was hiding a smile. “It’s positive. You’re pregnant, Idris.”
Like the first time he touched me, my body sagged. My knees melted and Rook caught me before I hit the floor. “A baby.”
“Yes. Our baby.” He paused, giving me a chance to collect myself. “Are you happy? It’s okay if you’re not. It’s a surprise.”
“I am,” I answered. “I’m so happy. It’s unexpected but so were you.”
“In a good way?”
