Page 22 of Beared at Christmas
He nuzzled into my neck. “Everything since meeting you has been completely unimaginable. At the same time, I’ve never been happier. If I can have a baby, I would like to. But I’m sure I’ll have many questions along the way.” Pulling away, he held my hands before letting go and heading for the bathroom. “Are you ready to find out?”
I didn’t think I would ever be ready. I followed him anyway. And when he held the stick in front of me that tested for the presence of the human chorionic gonadotropin hormone, therewere two pink lines. Brody was pregnant. We were going to have a baby.
Chapter Eighteen
Brody
Six months later…
Ulrik gave me a quick kiss before heading to the ensuite to have his shower, leaving me clean and naked in my nest of pillows. The day had finally come. I was set to have my C-section and finally say hello to my babies face-to-face instead of through my belly. Though Dr. Bocking, my obstetrician, said I could go into early labor any time, since I carried twins, she hoped to avoid that possibility. While there had been several instances of shifters and humans mating and having families, they weren’t well documented in terms of pregnancy and delivery. Dr. Bocking wasn’t sure how my body would be able to handle giving birth to human twins, never mind polar bear shifter twins, so I was having them surgically removed from my womb. And that had been a guessing game, as I had been pregnant longer than a regular polar bear but not nearly as long as a human. That hadn’t stopped my babies from growing superfast. No amount of expensive lotion was able to prevent the red-and-purple stretch marks across my abdomen.
“Are you drinking your fluids?” Ulrik called from our ensuite.
I grabbed the bottle of water from the nightstand and took a sip. “Yes.” I didn’t know if I could handle any more. One of our babies sat on my bladder, and it felt like the other was pushed against my stomach. The slightest amount of liquid, and I wanted to vomit and pee.
As soon as my mate had finished, he dressed then helped me get into one of the oversized T-shirts and a pair of tights, the outfit I’d worn for most of my pregnancy. Once my belly had started to look more like a baby bump rather than a few extra pounds, I avoided going out in public. I’d gotten to knowseveral shifters in the neighborhood, yet there were still so many humans in our small town. I couldn’t risk someone questioning why I looked pregnant. I dreaded being found out even more than Ulrik and his family did.
I waddled over to the wooden bassinette cradles and ran my hand along the smooth railing. Ulrik had built them in his shop and surprised me with the furniture only the day before. “I really like these. Thank you.” I had told him all along that I wanted our babies to sleep in our room for the first few weeks before moving them to cribs in the nursery in the next room. I figured night feedings would be easier the closer they were to me and had considered putting a mattress in the nursery so I would be closer to them. Ulrik had surprised me with the cradles, and they were that much more special since he’d made the pieces.
He shuffled up behind me and ran his palms over my belly before lifting it to give me some relief. “Anything for you.” Nuzzling into my neck, he kissed his way up to my ear. “I love you.”
I moaned, wanting to feel his kisses elsewhere before we had two little ones to take care of and occupy all our days. I would have if we had more time before we had to be at the hospital. “I love you, too. Is my apple juice in the fridge?”
“Yep.” He took my hand as I turned and stood beside him. “Are you ready?”
I tried to smile, as afraid as I was excited. “As ready as I can be.”
He gave my hand a squeeze before we headed out of the room and down the stairs. My bag was packed and waiting in the truck. Hiding my pregnancy meant I had to pass through the mudroom between the house and the garage to get into the vehicle. It also meant, I had missed out on most of the shopping for our little ones. Clara and her newborn had gone along with Ulrik, and she video chatted with me so I could pick what Iwanted. Once the twins were born, I wouldn’t be stuck in the house as much, though I wasn’t sure how much energy I would have.
Ulrik and I had both finished the major projects we had been working on, so he would be off with me for six weeks while I recovered after surgery. Then I was on paid parental leave, my company offering it to parents who adopted. It wasn’t exactly the truth, but it was easier to fudge paperwork with the help of my obstetrician than to tell the truth. Plus, we had Ulrik’s parents to help when they weren’t busy with their other grandchild.
“Here’s the apple juice.” Ulrik handed me the bottle after he’d helped me get my seat belt fastened, and climbed into the driver’s side. It was the last drink I had to have before the surgery. Then nothing until our babies were born.
I stared out the window on the way to the hospital, admiring all the fall colors in the trees and in the decorations on the houses. Winter was my favorite time of year, yet autumn was a close second with Halloween and Thanksgiving coming up. Since I lived in a house instead of a condo, I might see kids dressed up. I couldn’t wait. First, I had to bring new life into the world.
At the hospital, Ulrik dropped me off at the main entrance before leaving to park his truck. It was a private medical facility. For shifters only. I’d been told that many humans with no shifter connection tried to buy their way in. Fortunately, those who worked in the hospital had just as much to lose as the patients, to ever let any of them inside.
By the time I had waddled over to the elevators, Ulrik caught up to me, my bag over his shoulder. “How are you feeling?”
I released a heavy breath. “Full, scared, excited, like I have to pee again.”
He chuckled and rubbed my back. “I’m sure that’s quite common where we’re going. As soon as we get to the registration desk, I’ll ask for a bathroom for you.”
“Deal.” A good thing, since the pressure down there seemed to suddenly double.
We got into the elevator and took it to the fourth floor. At the maternity ward to the left, Ulrik pressed the buzzer to get us access. Once those doors opened, and I started to walk, everything in my stomach tightened.
My knees weakened, and a pain radiated across my belly. Ulrik grabbed my waist and held me tight to him. “Are you okay?”
I shook my head. “I think I might be in labor.” Then, like a dam had burst from within me, my water broke, gushing down my legs and pooling underneath me.
“Help!” Ulrik cried, his eyes suddenly wide and his face pale. Yet, he didn’t let go of me. “My mate needs help now.”
A handful of people came rushing toward us, one of them with a wheelchair. I was lowered into it then wheeled into an examination room. One of the nurses registered me into the system as a patient while the other examined me after I’d peeled off my tights. Ulrik remained by my side the entire time, answering questions for me and letting me squeeze his hand while an agonizing spasm intensified within my stomach.
“You’re here for a C-section,” the nurse said after lowering a sheet over my spread legs. “I’m going to get Dr. Bocking to check to see if it will be an emergency C-section, or if you are okay to deliver them naturally. Either way, your babies are on their way and anxious to get out.”
In the end, I had an emergency C-section. Everything occurred so fast, I barely had a chance to process what was happening at any given time. Not until I had been moved to a maternity room with my babies in their nearby incubators. Mymate sat on the cushioned bench by the window, looking as worn out as I felt, with his disheveled hair and wide, disbelieving eyes.
