Chapter Six

Peter

"Hello, Peter." Doctor Michaels greeted me with a giant smile and a firm handshake. "How are you doing this morning?"

"Pretty good, Doc." I adjusted the paper gown the nurse had me put on when I arrived. "I was wondering if we could check my vitamin levels. I have been exhausted for the last couple of weeks. At first, I thought I was coming down with a slight cold, but the longer it lasted, the more I thought it might be something else. I know shifters don't get ill often, but I have had issues in the past."

"I see." Doctor Michaels placed the stethoscope on my chest. "Have there been any other symptoms, such as nausea, headaches, hair loss, weight loss, or gain?"

"I have felt a bit queasy in the mornings, but after a cup of juice, I usually feel much better."

"And you are newly mated, correct?"

"Yes. But I married another shifter before that. Could that be the cause? If the fated mate marks you, your previous bond becomes void, doesn't it? I didn't hear of any health-related consequences of a new relationship."

"No. Since he is your fated mate, the previous claim would have faded without any issues for you or your bear once you made the claiming bites." Doctor Michaels took notes on his tablet and hummed. "I am going to run a couple of tests. Sheila will come in here and take your blood."

"Okay." I hated blood work, but if I could find out why I felt like sleeping all day long, I would be willing to let them stick me as many times as needed.

"Hello, dear." Nurse Sheila entered the room, wheeling the cart of supplies ahead of her. "Doctor Michaels has asked me to get a urine sample from you, so after I take your blood, you can go down the hall and fill this cup for me. There is a little door in the wall. When you are finished, place the container there, and we will collect and process it. Okay?"

"That's fine." I held out my arm and looked in the opposite direction. I'd learned the hard way never to watch, or I would lose consciousness. It's not even the sight of blood that does it; I can handle that. It's the stupid fear of needles.

"All done." Sheila put a Band-Aid on my arm. "Come back here when you are all finished, and Doctor Michaels will be back to talk to you."

"Oh, okay."

After returning to the examination room, I played games on my phone while waiting for the doctor. I hadn't had time to do so in so long, and I missed it. These games could become quite addictive, though. I laughed to myself when I remembered the times I hadn't fallen asleep until after four a.m. because I was up playing ball-blasting games. But when waiting for a doctor, it was better than wondering what horrible news the doctor may come back with.

Knock. Knock.

Doctor Michaels entered the room, and my anxiety spiked. Hopefully, it was just some low vitamins.

"Congratulations, Peter, You're pregnant."

***

"Honey, we're home," Karl called, coming through the front door of our house. He told Georgi to leave his shoes in the cubby by the door. "I brought home Chinese food like you asked. Are you in the kitchen?"

"Yeah." I set the last plate on the kitchen table and grabbed the glasses. "Thanks for picking dinner up. I didn't feel like making anything after today's doctor's appointment."

"Oh yeah." Karl wrapped me in his arms and kissed me. "How did that go?"

"Fine." I ruffled Georgi's hair as he passed me with the bottle of soda. "We'll talk later."

Karl scanned my face before nodding. "Okay. Let's sit and have dinner. I ordered sweet-and-sour chicken, beef and broccoli, and beef fried rice."

"You got me the egg rolls, too, right?" I pulled the containers from the bag and placed them on the table.

"Of course." Karl filled our glasses with the root beer I requested. "Georgi wanted crab rangoon, and I wanted wontons and fortune cookies."

"Fantastic." My mouth watered at the choices that lay before me. "Let's eat."

"So, Georgi." Karl placed a large scoop of rice on his plate. "Tell us about your day. Did you learn anything new?"

"Xavier told us where babies come from." Georgi bit into his crab rangoon. "Is it true?"

Karl looked at me with a horrified expression, and I laughed. "Well, what exactly did he say about babies?"

"He said that when shifters want a baby, they get a babysitter for their older kids and then go to the mall and pick one out. Then the papa takes a pill, which grows into an egg. And when the egg is done growing inside the papa, it comes out of his butt. After about a week, they break the egg, and the baby is born."

"That's not quite the truth." I smirked at Karl, who was hiding his face behind his napkin, the laugh lines beside his eyes growing deeper. "Do you want me to tell you the details now, or should we finish dinner first, and I will explain it to you later?"

"I didn't think it was true." Georgi shoveled a forkful of rice into his mouth. "Later is fine. I don't want to talk about babies. Can I get a dog?"

"Not right now, buddy." Karl regained his composure and placed his napkin back on the table. "But we can discuss it again in a few months and see. Okay?"

"Okay." Georgi finished his root beer. "Can I go play in my room? I'm full."

Examining his plate, I figured he'd had enough for now. "Go ahead. Bath time is in about an hour."

"Thanks, Papa. Love you." Georgi kissed my cheek and dashed out of the room.

"I had no idea how to handle that one." Karl shook his head. "Babies from swallowing pills?"

"Better than if the kid had told the whole class the truth. I'd better text the parents and let them know so they can all talk to the children."

"You are going to tell him?" Karl raised his brow. "Isn't he too young?"

"An age-appropriate version, yeah. He should know about an omega line and how they are born, at least, and that it's not from a pill at the mall." I placed a hand on my still-flat belly. "Besides, he should know, since he's about to become a big brother."

"A big brother—"

"Congratulations, babe." I grabbed his hand and placed it under mine. "You knocked me up."

"Really?" Karl stared at my abdomen, slack-jawed and wide-eyed.

"The doctor surprised me with the news at my appointment. He is still doing blood work to see if I am also deficient in vitamins due to fatigue, but he confirmed that the test was positive. You and I created a baby." I examined his face for a sign of how he was feeling but only saw shock. "Are you happy?"

"I have never in my life been happier." Karl looked into my eyes, and his lips tilted up. "Our family is growing."

"That's right, alpha. Our family is growing."