Chapter 5 #2
The envelope passed the scan without incident, but that didn’t ease my anxiety.
Blake accepted it, but his movements were precise and deliberate like a bomb technician approaching a suspicious device.
My name was written across the front in block letters that revealed nothing about the sender’s identity.
When the door closed behind the security guard, the four of us stood around Blake’s coffee table, staring at a piece of mail that felt loaded with malicious intent.
“Open it,” I said, surprised by how steady my voice sounded. “Whatever it is, we need to know.”
Blake carefully tore open the envelope and tilted it so the contents spilled onto the coffee table. A single photograph fluttered down, landing face-up among mine and Penny’s weeks of collaborative research.
It showed Dominic being led into the courthouse in handcuffs, his head down and shoulders rigid while photographers captured his arrest. But someone had drawn a red circle around his face and written a message across the bottom in hauntingly familiar scratchy lettering: “Stop digging.”
The threat was crystal clear. Someone knew we were investigating, knew we were starting to fit the pieces of the jigsaw puzzle together. And they wanted us to stop.
As I stared at the photograph, another wave of nausea hit me so hard I nearly doubled over. I staggered to the sofa, collapsing onto the cushions and buried my face in my trembling hands. The stress was making everything worse. I could feel Penny’s concerned gaze burning into me.
“Leo,” Penny said sharply, moving to my side. “You okay?”
“I’m fine,” I managed, though we both knew it was a lie. I pressed my hand to my mouth, tasting bile.
Penny’s instincts engaged, his sweet scent shifting to protective, soothing concern. “You know what? I’m starving, and stress eating sounds amazing right now. Blake, can we get some groceries delivered? I’m craving those honey-lavender cookies from that fancy market downtown.”
Blake looked up from the photograph, his thoughts momentarily distracted by Penny’s cheerful tone. “Of course. My assistant can arrange a delivery. What do you need?”
“Just some comfort food,” Penny said, already pulling out his phone. “Leo looks like he could use some actual nutrition too.”
He turned his gaze to me. “You know how you get when you’re stressed—you forget to eat. How about some of that creamy soup you like?”
“Yeah, sure… that sounds good,” I said, even though food was the last thing I wanted right now.
“Jake, what’re you in the mood for?” Penny busied himself with the grocery app, placing an order for food and some other “omega necessities.”
When Blake turned back to Jake and their analysis of the threatening photograph, Penny leaned closer to me. “Want me help you lay down until the food gets here?”
I started to decline, but Penny was eyeing me meaningfully. I nodded and let him help me to my feet.
“Leo,” he said quietly once we were out of earshot, his voice carrying the kind of gentle authority that came from years of friendship.
“We both know this isn’t just bond separation.
Your symptoms have gotten worse the past few days…
you can barely keep food down and your scent has been shifting in odd ways. ”
My heart pounded as I understood what he was really saying. “Penny…”
“Your heat?” He began, his voice quiet. “Did you guys use… you know… protection?”
He all but whispered the last word.
The question hung between us. “I—I don’t think either of us really thought about it at the time,” I said quietly, suddenly embarrassed at the oversight.
“So…” He paused, choosing his words carefully. “There are other reasons an omega might experience persistent nausea and scent changes after spending their heat with an alpha.”
He chattered on in his usual Penny manner. “The stress of being away from your bondmate was the culprit early on, but now it could be disguising the other reason, you know?”
The words I’d been avoiding thinking crystallized in my mind. “I can’t be,” I whispered.
“There’s only one way to know for sure.” Penny’s voice was gentle but firm. “And if you are, you need to know. You need to start taking care of yourself properly.”
I found myself nodding, still digesting the possibility that I might be…
When we reached my room, I sat on the bed, watching as Penny held up his phone. “I ordered food and some ‘omega hygiene products.’ Blake won’t think twice about an omega buying those kind of things, so I snuck a little something else in extra.”
Forty-five minutes later, Blake’s intercom buzzed. “Mr. Harrington, grocery delivery for Mr. Lee.”
“I’ll get it!” Penny jumped up from where he was perched at the foot of my bed, scrolling through his social media, and practically bounced to the door.
“I ordered way too much.” I heard him say from the hallway. “But I saw they had those artisanal crackers Leo loves and I got carried away.”
I swung my legs over the bed’s edge as I pushed myself upright, pausing to let the wave of nausea crest and recede. Once my stomach settled, I rose to my feet and trailed after him through the doorway.
When I reached the living room, he was sifting through a bunch of grocery bags on the massive island in Blake’s kitchen and chattering about various snacks.
“Oh Leo! You have to try these ginger cookies—they’re supposed to be amazing for upset stomachs.
And look, they had those fancy teas you mentioned wanting to try! ”
Blake barely glanced up from his laptop as Penny distributed various food items around the kitchen. But when Penny caught my eye and nodded almost imperceptibly toward the bathroom, I understood.
I nodded and headed back toward the hallway. Penny snatched up a couple of bags and trailed behind me, being his usual chatty self as we walked. “I bought a couple of bubble baths, one’s unscented and the other’s soothing oatmeal. I think they’ll help ease the stressed bond symptoms.”
Ten minutes later, I found myself in Blake’s private executive bathroom with a small box that had been discreetly tucked in amongst the bubble baths and omega hygiene products. Penny waited outside, probably tracking back and forth across the guest room's hardwood floor.
Inside the marble-appointed bathroom, I stared at the pregnancy test with shaking hands. Three minutes that could change everything.
I followed the instructions with the careful precision I usually reserved for delicate shoe repairs, then set the test on the counter and waited.
The longest three minutes of my life.
When I looked down, two clear pink lines stared back at me.
Pregnant.
I was carrying Dominic’s child.
My hand instinctively went to my flat stomach, fingers splaying protectively across it as a storm of emotions crashed through me.
My knees weakened as I tried to process my emotions—shock, of course.
I wasn’t planning for this, didn’t think about the consequences of sleeping with a rutting alpha while in heat.
It’s laughable that it never occurred to me, but with Dominic’s arrest, my mind just wasn’t in the right place.
I also felt fear… and anger. Anger that burned hot in my chest that Dominic wasn’t here, couldn’t see the two pink lines that had just altered our future.
Yet beneath it all, a tiny spark of wild, terrifying joy flickered to life. I was carrying my alpha’s child.
I opened the bathroom door on unsteady legs. Penny took one look at my face and knew.
“Positive?” he asked gently, his voice barely audible.
I held up the test with a trembling hand.
Penny’s expression shifted through several emotions—surprise, concern, protectiveness, and finally, fierce joy that he was obviously fighting to suppress. “In spite of everything, this is wonderful news, right?”
“Is it?” My voice cracked. “Dominic’s in federal detention. We’re being threatened by organized crime. We’re living in Blake’s penthouse because it’s not safe to go home. And now…”
“Now you’re carrying the next generation of your family,” Penny said firmly, keeping his voice low. “A baby conceived between mates. You have a right to be happy about it if that’s what you’re feeling.”
I stared at the test, overwhelmed by the magnitude of what it meant. “You can’t tell anyone,” I said suddenly. “Not Blake, not Jake, and definitely not Dominic. Not until…”
“Until when?”
“Until he’s free. Until the threats stop. Until I know it’s safe.” My voice was stronger now, protective instincts I didn’t know I possessed surging to life.
Penny nodded solemnly. “Your secret’s safe with me. But you need to see Dr. Westfield soon. Pregnancy requires medical monitoring, especially with everything you’re dealing with.”
“I will,” I promised.
“Everything okay?” Blake’s voice came from the direction of the kitchen, and we both jumped.
“Just persuading Leo to try some of that ginger tea,” Penny called back cheerfully.
He turned to me with a wink, keeping his voice just loud enough that Blake could probably hear.
“You take a nice, long bath, and when you’re done, I’ll fix you a cup.
And see if you can keep down some of those crackers too. ”
After my bath—which, admittedly, was quite nice with Blake’s giant garden tub and Penny’s oatmeal bubble bath—I returned to the living room where Blake and Jake were deep in discussion about the threatening photograph.
Penny bustled around the kitchen, his hands hovering over Blake's elaborate machine with visible disdain.
His nose wrinkled as he pressed buttons and adjusted settings.
I smiled. Penny was a self-proclaimed snob when it came to his tea and coffee.
I felt like everything had changed while simultaneously staying exactly the same. I was still a cobbler. I was still dealing with the on-going threats to our community. I was still fighting to free my imprisoned mate.
But now I was also a parent-to-be, carrying a secret that made every risk more dangerous and every victory more essential.