Chapter Sixteen

Baxter

I know Eve wasn't trying to be reckless. She just wanted to help the pup, and herself, and, probably, us.

But damn if that didn't almost give me a heart attack.

Riley peppers her in kisses while Red scents all the cushions. I prop her up in my lap, needing her close, so I can monitor her pulse, her temperature, her breathing.

"We should go to St Mercy's," Red grumbles. "I'll drag Marc home myself."

Riley quirks a brow. "You want to get him fired?"

"I'll call him," I sweep in, calming them both. "He should be on break in the next hour or so." And I want someone to check on the pup, if possible.

"Do you think the pup's okay?" Eve whispers, reading my mind.

My hands fold around her stomach. "I'm sure they are."

"That's a Maddox pup in there," Red asserts, "sturdiest little guy in the world."

"Or girl," Riley says.

"Or whatever they want to be." I smile, tucking my chin over Eve's head. "Boy, girl, omega, alpha, beta, anything in between. They're safe in here." My hands slip under her shirt. "With us."

Eve doesn't relax like I hope, her muscles hardening to the touch. I pull back, trying to get a look at her face. She won't meet my eye.

"What is it, pretty girl?" Riley asks. "You've been off ever since the last ultrasound. Was it something Doctor Perez said?"

Eve shakes her head. My arms twitch, desperate to draw her closer, to bring her back to us, but I force myself to give her the space she needs.

Red is less patient. "If he scared you—" he growls.

"He didn't. I mean, it wasn't his fault." Eve sighs. "I'm sorry."

I won't smother her, but that doesn't mean I can't scent her. My pheromones are so potent even I can smell them dominating the room. "Tell us, little one," I murmur, my lips on her temple. "What's going on up here?"

She sighs again, but softer this time, tension melting into air. "I know everyone's worried about the pregnancy." At Red and Riley's combative expressions, she huffs. "I know , okay? We wouldn't be seeing a court-mandated doctor if the risks weren't severe."

"The court can fuck itself," Red snarls. "They don't know shit."

Riley flashes him a warning glare, but Eve just shrugs. "They know my medical history. They know I am, or was, a runt."

"Hey." It's Riley's turn to intervene. "They can't hold that against you. No-one can."

Suddenly, Eve hardens.

"Our pup can."

At those words, an icy dread floods the bond. My hands feel heavy on Eve's body, like they could sink right through her.

"So that's what this is about," I say. "You're worried for the pup."

She glares into her lap.

"You know, omega," I tell her, "being worried for your pup is about the most motherly thing you can feel right now."

"No it's not. I'm supposed to love them and protect them. Not hurt them with my own stupid problems."

"Woah." Red double takes. " Stupid problems ?"

Riley nods. "You shouldn't undermine what you've been through—what you're still going through. Despite all that, here you are, carrying Maddox's pup, and doing a damned good job of it."

Eve sucks in a breath like she's about to snap back—probably something along the lines of, No I'm not. She stops herself.

Gently, but firmly, I assure her, "You're doing everything right. Doctor Perez has testified to that himself."

Her voice quietens again, as if she's afraid of making herself cry. "It's just … every time I thought I was done being a runt, my body found a new way to remind me. What I am. What I'm not . And sure, that sucked, but at least it was my burden to bear. But now?" She grimaces. "I'm failing for two."

It's been a while since I last heard her talk like this. I hoped all these insecurities were quashed during the tribunal—that her body is, in any way, shape or form, a failure . Apparently I was wrong.

But I won't stand for it.

"Eve Maddox," I rumble, "this body is a miracle. Our pup —" my arms tighten around her, "—is a miracle. Sure, we all make mistakes." I smirk. "Doing yoga, alone, three months pregnant? Not your smartest call."

She blushes. Red and Riley exchange smiles.

"But it doesn't make you a bad omega. And it sure as hell doesn't make you a bad mother."

For a second I think she's going to dissolve against me, but then she squirms, a final chord of resistance keeping her upright.

"What if something happens to the pup because I'm not strong enough?" Her voice wavers. "I don't want to let you down."

"Never," Riley insists, squeezing Eve's ankle. "You could never let us down."

"I'd never be able to forgive myself—if they got sick, or couldn't grow right, or didn't make it—"

"Hey, hey, hey …" I tuck her face in my shoulder as she descends into tears. Red and Riley stare across at me, broken-hearted, until I nod, letting them in.

They throw their arms around her, making sure she's covered in all three of us. Every squeeze is a promise. Every kiss a praise. We'll keep you safe. We love you, more than anything, forever.

"Everything's going to be okay," I murmur. "We've got you, little one."

"Let it out," Red says, though it seems to pain him. "M'not going anywhere."

Eve's tears aren't exactly an anomaly at this point. But something feels different this time—more guttural, like each sob is being dredged up from a place deep inside of her.

She has been sitting on this for a while, I realize, like Riley said. I curse myself for not seeing it sooner.

Quietly, I tell her, "You're doing so well for us." Well in this moment. Well in every moment she's already endured, carrying the burden of being a daughter, a runt, an omega.

Of being a mother.

At last, these words seem to get through to her, as Eve's cries subside. She sniffles, murmuring thanks when Riley offers her a tissue, though her eyes have mostly already dried on my shirt.

There's a flicker of motion in the doorway—Thorn materializing, the way he does. He takes in the scene, his eyes flashing.

"What the fuck happened?"