Chapter 118

Three tests. Three minutes. Three positive responses.

I wanted Lane to be a liar. I wanted my wolf to be… protesting? Tired? Annoyed? Something. Anything.

I wanted to be anything but pregnant.

Blinking back tears, I sat down on the toilet in the pharmacy and rested my head against the tiny sink. Pregnancy was the last thing Killian and I needed. Not now. Not with the hunter on the verge of destroying everything. Not with our marriage being held together by proverbial duct tape. Not with his mental health as fragile as it was.

What if this was just some horrible repeat of last time? I couldn’t survive that. A painful sob clawed its way out of my chest. We couldn’t survive that. There was just no way.

And what if nothing happened? What if we had a baby? Could we even handle that? Would he stay? Would he run again if it was too much?

The questions were endless. And ones I couldn’t handle alone.

Nemo. Nemo. Nemo. Nemo. Nemo. Nemo.

NOLAN: What’s wrong?

I typed, erased, typed out again, and ultimately kept erasing the words I needed to tell him I was pregnant.

NOLAN: Where are you, Ginny?

The pharmacy.

NOLAN: Why?

Of course, I had to say why.A pathetic whimper escaped me. I couldn’t make myself type it out, so I took a picture and sent that instead.

NOLAN: I’ll meet you at my apartment in an hour. Go to the diner and get something small to eat, okay?

I’m not hungry.

NOLAN: I know, but it’s a public space. You’ll be safe there.

Safe is good.

NOLAN: Safe is good.

NOLAN: It’ll be okay, Ginny. We’ll figure this out.

I left him on read because I wasn’t sure what else to say. It didn’t feel like it’d be okay. Nothing felt okay.

After the most nerve-wracking hour of sitting at the diner with a cup of soup, I walked to Nolan’s apartment via the alley that ran behind all the shops. Avoiding people was easier. I had no desire for small-town small talk.

I went to knock on his door, but it creaked open. I frowned. That wasn’t Nolan. Nolan was always so careful about making sure his apartment door was closed.

“Nolan?” I called out as I pushed the door open further and let myself in. “Nolan?”

I froze just beyond the threshold, my heart stuttering in my chest. The coffee table was broken in splintered halves, glasses shattered on the floor, and furniture knocked over.

Oh, no…

I scrambled for my phone, fumbling and dropping it. It slid across the floor and under the tipped couch. Dropping to my knees, I reached for it. As I did, the door creaked. My skin prickled, and my heart rate kicked up as I rushed to my feet.

The woman standing in front of the door was anything but what I expected. Short and slender with vibrant purple hair, she didn’t look like some kind of dangerous hunter. But that feeling she instilled in me just by looking at me…

I shuddered as I put more space between me and her.

“Genevieve Byrne.” That voice. How could something so simple sound so dangerous? “We need to have a little chat, Mama Wolf.”

She wiggled Nolan’s phone as she circled me.

“Where’s Nolan?” I asked.

“Nolan’s a little… tied up right now,” she replied with a wicked grin. Nolan… no, no, no. “In my trunk of all places. Imagine my surprise to find out not only could I get Nerdy Byrne, but also Killian’s pregnant wife. That’s just icing on my fucking cake.”

“He’ll come for me.” I backed away from her, but there was nowhere to go. I was stuck no matter where I went. My heart pounded faster in my chest as panic flooded through me.

“Oh, honey,” she laughed, “I’m counting on it.”