Page 10 of Duke's Baby Deal
Holland slammed a pillow down on the bed and stormed out of the room.
Bax patted my leg. “He’s a little stressed. Don’t mind him—he’ll apologize later.”
“It’s okay,” I said, and looked down at the baby again. “I don’t mind. He’s right. I should have stayed inside.” I touched his cheek gently, and wondered what the future held for him. “It was silly. I was playing with fire, and the whole forest went up around me.” There’d be no future for mine, and I was surprised at the choked feeling in my chest. “I’ll do whatever’s best for the pack.”
“Well, I’m glad to hear that you recognize where you went wrong—I can’t say you didn’t have me worried, the way you carry on with the alphas.”
I snorted and rocked the baby some more. “I thought…” Yeah, I didn’t want to confess to my attempted manipulation of Duke.
Bax chuckled. “Did you? Think?” But he didn’t say it meanly and I actually found myself smiling in commiseration with him.
“I’m sorry, Bax. I should have paid more attention when you warned me about him.”
“So it was Justin?”
I nodded.
Bax took a deep breath and let it out slowly, then said, “You were spoiled. And I don’t mean spoiled by getting your own way all the time, though I think there was a bit of that too. But Mercy Hills was very careful with you, and you never learned to defend yourself from random alphas, because they all made sure you didn’t have to. It’s a nice way to grow up, but it doesn’t prepare you for the real world at all.”
“Yeah. Maybe.”
“No maybe. But we can talk more about this later. For now, let’s move on to what the problem is.”
“You haven’t guessed?”
“Let’s just say I’d like to hear what you have to say about it.”
I sighed. “It’s all Duke’s fault.”
“Is it, now?” He sounded amused and slightly exasperated.
The baby started to fuss, waving his arms and smacking his lips in between querulant cries. “I think he’s hungry.”
“Probably. He seems to like his schedule already. Every two hours like clockwork.” But his love for the baby was obvious despite the fatigue in his voice. “Pass him over, and then you can tell me why it’s Duke’s fault.” He put the baby to his nipple and made it look so easy. I wondered if I’d ever be able to do it like that. “Now,” Bax said, his eyes fixed on the movements of his baby’s mouth. “Why is it Duke’s fault?”
I looked down at my hands, lacing my fingers together, then pulling them apart again, over and over. “It’s just—the harder I flirted with him, the less—” This was more difficult to explain than I’d expected. “I kept trying to get his attention, but he got—politer the harder I tried.”
“That’s promising.”
“Is it?” For a moment, I felt a rush of hope. Then the events of last night came rushing back. “It’s too late, anyway. I belong to Justin now.”
“If he hasn’t claimed you yet, he doesn’t plan to. And my understanding was that he was leaving as soon as curfew lifted this morning, so he’s already gone. The question is, what do you want to do? Do you want us to get him back?”
“No!” Oh, for the love of… no!
Bax seemed relieved by that, though he only smiled slightly and looked back down at the baby.
I tried a different pattern with my fingers. “Do you think he didn’t know what he was doing?” I kind of hoped that was it. How horrible would it be if he’d meant to leave me here, pregnant and unmated?
Bax glanced up at me, his expression sympathetic. “I suspect he knew exactly what he was doing—I never got the impression he was stupid, just an asshole. I’m sorry you got caught up in our issues.” He extended one hand, supporting the baby with the other, and took mine. “The question now is, what do you want to do?”
CHAPTER NINE
If circumstances had been different… If it had been Duke’s… For Duke’s baby, I’d deal with the jeers and the name-calling. Although, if it was Duke’s, we’d already have been mated, because that’s what Duke was like, even if I’d wished he come looking for me with lust on his mind. But it was Justin who had come looking for me, and he hadn’t even bothered totrynot to take advantage of me. Bax was right—he was an asshole. And, seriously, what alpha would have me with someone else’s pup in my belly?
“I don’t have to have it, do I? We can do something?” Why did that thought make me sick to my stomach?
Bax shook his head sadly. “There are ways. You have to understand that they aren’t particularly safe in male omegas, because of the way our bodies are put together. And this isn’t Buffalo Gap--I don’t know what we could find here. But Adelaide will know what can be done, and what’s best to use.”
