17. Bryce

17

Bryce

“ C onnor, baby, why are you crying?” I wiped a tear from my mate’s eye and handed him a tissue to blow his nose. “These don’t look like happy tears, but we just discovered some amazing news. Tell me what’s wrong.”

“I didn’t mean for this to happen.” Connor closed his eyes, his voice shaky. “I took the shot, which was supposed to keep this from happening. I didn’t even realize I went into heat. I always had mild symptoms, something my pack all experiences. I thought with that, combined with the birth control shot, I wouldn’t end up with a surprise pregnancy. Yet, here we are.”

“Are you not happy? I’m sorry if I made you feel forced into a decision. You decide your next step. I figured we were mated and both wanted a family when we were younger, so even though this was unplanned so soon after our mating, I was excited. But you still have a choice if—”

“No.” Connor covered my mouth with his hand. “It’s not that. I wanted and loved these babies the moment I heard those quick little thumps on the machine. I hate that I trapped you into staying with me in Valleywood.”

“Connor, I thought we already covered this.” I rubbed my hands up and down his arms. “I came back to town for you but also because this is my home. I was done being away.”

“I guess I was afraid you’d be mad because this wasn’t discussed first.”

“Well, with that logic, you could also be mad at me. After all, it takes two to have a baby, or in this case, two of them. I didn’t raise the question of having kids either, not as adults. So, it was also on me to question if the birth control shot was enough protection against the possibility. But let me ask you, are you happy with the outcome?”

“I am.”

“And so am I.” I kissed Connor and helped him stand up. “Why don’t I run you a warm bubble bath and make dinner? Then we can get nice and comfy for the night?”

“That sounds amazing.”

“Then let’s make it the plan.”

After a nice, warm bubble bath and some spaghetti, chili, and a heaping of cheese, my omega’s comfort food, we made a den of pillows and blankets on the floor of our living room and sheets to create a fort effect. We may have been grown men, but we never outgrew the need for these moments. I wondered, if more adults embraced pillow nests and blanket forts when overwhelmed with life, would they be able to handle them much better in the moment? Knowing that later they could relax in a safe area, they may be able to make it through tough situations easier. Plus, our wolves loved it.

“I was never going to leave you this time.” I held Connor in my arms. The smile on my mate’s face when he saw the fort had made all the effort worth it.

“My heart believed you when you told me that. But my anxiety and fear of abandonment kept poking at me. Telling me you were one step away from the door.” Connor burrowed into my chest. “I’m sorry for not trusting you and our bond enough.”

“It’s okay.” I kissed the top of his head and rubbed circles on his still-flat belly. “But I need you to promise to be open about your fears. I don’t care if I must soothe them a hundred times a day; the worry is not good for you or our babies. Can you promise to communicate more freely when something worries you?”

“I’ll try.” Connor’s voice was low and quavering.

“Are you okay, babe?” I lifted his chin with my pointer finger to see into his face. “Is something wrong still?”

“No.” Connor leaned in and kissed my nose. “But I am super tired. Can we take a nap down here? It’s safe and warm, and my wolf urges me to rest.”

“We can nap. Close your eyes and dream of our little pups. I can’t wait to meet two little mini-yous.”

“I think they might take after you.” Connor grinned and laid his head on my chest, closing his eyes. “But maybe we will have one like each of us. That would be sweet.”

“I love you, Connor. Always.”

“I love you, Bryce. Forever.”

Connor

The words on the screen blurred as some tears rose in my eyes. I couldn’t believe the words I was reading.

According to credible sources, hockey star Bryce Maxwell will return to the sport as an assistant coach for his team. While the world will miss seeing his expertise on the ice, we would like to congratulate him on this new opportunity and can’t wait to see him help bring the team home with another championship next year.

“Honey, I’m home. They didn’t have your favorite flavor of ice cream, Chocolate Chip Ecstasy, but this Choco-Chip Explosion one looked similar. I hope you like it.” Bryce walked into the living room, immediately put down the grocery bags, and came to squat by my side. “Is everything okay? Is it the babies? Should I call the doctor? Please, talk to me. What’s wrong?”

“Here.” I handed him my phone and buried my face into the arm of the couch. Ren jumped up and rubbed his little body against me, sensing my distress and wanting to offer me calming affection. “Did you take a new job?”

“What job?” Bryce scrolled through the article and swore. “I need to call Alex and have him fix this.”

I sniffled and tried to hide farther into the couch. Ren headbutted my elbow, trying to get me to let him into my hiding space.

“Baby?” Bryce pried my face away from the cushion and sat beside me. Ren jumped off the couch, but I caught him staring at Bryce. Shit. I hope this isn’t an Evelyn situation all over again.

“What?” I was being silly, and now I wanted to hide my face from my mate. “Can we just forget about this? I’m being dumb and hormonal.”

“No, we are going to talk about this so it doesn’t fester and so you know there are no reasons for you to worry. Remember how we talked the other night about how I wasn’t leaving? I still mean that. I don’t know who wrote this article or where they got their intel, but they are mistaken. I told Alex I would not leave Valleywood for any position and that he needed to inform the team and turn down the contracts. Please say you believe me. I thought we were over this.”

“I’m sorry I let it get to me.” I hiccupped and wiped my nose. “I blame the pregnancy hormones. I should have asked you first. Part of me understood it had to be false news and that you wouldn’t do that to me. But I couldn’t control the tears, so I figured I’d ask you instead of assuming it wasn’t true.”

“I wish you didn’t even have to ask, but I agree. It might be the pregnancy making it harder for you. One day, you’ll trust me enough that you will laugh at the weird headlines paparazzi can come up with. I can be patient until then.” Bryce leaned in and kissed me gently. “Now, let’s go clean your face. You have a whole carton of ice cream to devour.”

“You can share with me.” Sharing with me looked more like him getting a spoonful or two before I devoured the whole carton. I swore it was the babies taking over my body. They wanted to eat it all.

“Don’t worry, sweets. I got my own.”

“Weren’t you going to call Alex and straighten this out?”

“Not right now. I sent him a text. I have more important things to do right now.”

“Oh yeah, what’s that?” I grabbed my ice cream and spoon from Bryce and dug in.

“I gotta sit with my mate and eat my ice cream before he eats it all.” He dug into his own carton of the yummy dessert.

“Jerk.” I punched my mate’s arm, but I was sure my laughter betrayed me. My mate had me feeling better already.

Good alphas make their omegas smile.

I couldn’t agree with my wolf more. We had the best alpha.