Page 23 of Maple Sugar Mix-Up
“I know.” He didn’t hesitate to grab my hands. “Ashton, listen,” he said firmly. There was something in his tone that made me bite back an apology and wait for him to speak. “It hasn’t been long and I’m not saying this just because you’re… you’re pregnant. But I’m really falling for you. I know I can’t provide anything in the way of money, but I’m not going to leave because of this – yes, I know you’ve been worried – I’m going to stick by you and… and somehow I’m going to figure out how Icanbe more than just a kept-alpha. Somehow, I’m going to take care of you. Both of you.” He rested a hand on my stomach. “And Vicki too.”
My eyes filled with tears and all I could do was squeeze his hand back. “Thank you,” I whispered.
He kissed me gently, then pulled me into a long hug.
~~**~~
I spoke too soon about not feeling pregnant. Within a week I started vomiting whenever I smelled coffee, couldn’t roll out of bed without a blaring alarm clock, and suddenly had absolutely zero motivation when it came to writing.
Through it all Jace was right there, amazingly supportive. He took me to my doctor’s appointments, woke me up when I asked, and dutifully cleaned up when I got sick, even though I insisted I’d do it.
It seemed that, true to his word, he was determined to step up in any way he could, since he couldn’t contribute financially.
I started craving Indian food and he drove well out of his way to get it for me, going so far as to make me some late one night when I really, really wanted some.
Through it all, we just seemed to grow closer. I had to admit, Jace might just have been the alpha I was waiting for.
As my first trimester drew to a close, we told Vicki who was over the moon at the idea of a little sibling. Thought it all, I was oddly calm, given the rough ending to my pregnancy with Vicki, but after I took my first blood test, I was a wreck.
Jace held my hand while I pulled up the website with the results.
“I can’t do it,” I gasped, handing him my phone.
“I got it,” he said calmly. He scrolled for a moment, then turned to me with a smile. “All normal. Nice and healthy.”
I heaved a sigh. “Thank you. I don’t know why I’m so freaked out.”
“It’s okay, really.” He looked back at the phone and arched an eyebrow. “It says click here to find out the gender!”
“Really? I didn’t get that option with Vicki,” I said, leaning over to look.
“Shall we click?” he asked.
I nodded eagerly and we held hands as I tapped it. An animated picture of a box appeared on the screen and we watched curiously.
Suddenly, the box burst open and a bunch of blue balloons floated out. I gasped and clutched Jace’s hand as he sucked in a sharp breath.
Congratulationsfloated across the screen.It’s a boy!
“A boy!” I cried.
“A boy,” Jace echoed, hugging me tightly.
~~~***~~~
Much like the first trimester, the second passed without much incident. The pregnancy got even better as my morning sickness abated and the cravings became much more manageable.
But as the third drew near, my ankle started to hurt. Badly. Jace gave me foot soaks and massages, but it was no use. We headed to the doctor to get it checked out. Much to my dismay, the swelling and stretching from pregnancy was aggravating my injury from the night we met. A few more days of hobbling around and I changed to crutches. Then I was advised to spend as much time off of my feet as possible.
Jace positively doted on me. Were it not for the fact I was stuck on the couch all day, it was heaven. Better yet, he was amazing with Vicki. He was still reluctant to accept any money, but when a day out with Vicki was involved, he was happy to take anything I offered to show her a good time. It warmed my heart.
I just wished there was something else I could do to help him. He refused to quit working altogether, not without some sort of income to contribute. Somehow, he did it without the cocky, insulting attitude of previous alphas. I was starting to accept that he truly didn’t mind my fortune, he just didn’t want me to shoulder it alone.
To my surprise, a way to help him was handed to me on a silver platter. One day, while lamenting I had nothing to do on the couch, he presented me with a stack of manuscripts. Nana’s originals she had given to his Granma Sophia.
It was a precious gift to be able to read something Nana had written for the first time. Even better I could share it with my alpha. When Jace was at work, I read them with my mother and knew the experience was special to her too.
One day, I managed to convince Jace to give me the unfinished ones, includinghisendings. I pointed out that if his son was keeping me off my feet, then I deserved to read his endings.
