Chapter 12
Braxton
Sleeping next to my mate every night was pure delight.
Never before had I thought I would find such comfort in another’s arms. Yet here I was, surrounded by my mate’s scent, with a blanket covering us.
My arm wrapped around his middle, my leg looped over his, our hips flush against one another with his back to my front.
Perfection.
That was until I got an elbow to the ribs, and Kip was flying out of the bed. The comforter flew into the air, sending a jolt of cold air right on my naked skin. The blanket landed over my head, so I was cloaked in darkness while I tried to swim my way out.
“Kip?”
I scooched forward and landed ass first on the floor with the blanket still over my head. Once I finally got it off me, I stood, blinking rapidly to adjust to the light of the room.
Before I was even awake enough to know what was happening, I honed in on the slam of the bathroom door, blinking groggily while I tried to make sense of what was happening. The blanket was in a heap on the floor, and I stood alone in the room, naked as the day I was born.
The sound of Kip’s vomiting reached my ears.
Oh.
Perhaps that was the delicious scent I’d enjoyed so much just moments ago. Not the vomiting, no, but the reason for the vomiting. Kip’s scent had changed subtly over the night, and I had a sneaking suspicion as to why.
I knocked on the door. “Kip? Is there anything I can do?”
“No,” he gasped out between breaths. “Maybe some water.” The unsettling sound of his retching filled the void between us.
I went to the kitchenette and grabbed a bottle of water. I opened the bathroom door gently and set the bottle next to him. He was leaning against the shower door now, sweat beading on his forehead.
I got a warm washcloth and handed it to him. He wiped his face down and took a long drink of water. I couldn’t help but smile.
He laughed. “What? Why are you looking at me like that? Can you open the window? It reeks in here, and I need some fresh air. I think I had too many sugar cookies.”
The evening prior we had ventured out to get dessert after we’d had dinner at the lodge.
The holiday festivities were in full swing, and everywhere we turned we were handed delicious desserts.
The week had been filled with various holiday activities, paired nicely with lots of downtime in the cabin, getting to know one another.
I shook my head. “No, mate. It wasn’t the cookies. You know what this means, don’t you?”
He was quiet for a moment, his head tilted slightly. “Don’t you think it’s too soon?”
I shrugged. “Bears have quick gestation, love. It’s been a week and a half since we mated.”
“It’s been a week and two days. You think I happened that quickly?”
I grinned. “I sure hope so.”
He tossed the towel at me. “Don’t act like you have some magical spunk. Westley’s mate got pregnant right away too, on their little vacation adventure. My family must have good genes.”
“I can’t argue with that. How do you feel about having a baby?” We had talked about it throughout the week. I knew we both wanted kids. But wanting them someday and expecting one right now were two very different things.
“Great, minus the vomiting,” he said. “I want kids.”
“Me too,” I said. “Especially with you. A little cub running around would be magical. He can have that awkward teenage phase that you had, with limbs that were too long and feet that were too big.”
Kip rolled his eyes. “Thanks for reminding me. As if you never went through an awkward teenage phase.”
I shook my head. “Not that I recall. I was this perfect starting the day I hit puberty.”
Kip tilted his head like he was thinking. “Honestly, I don’t recall you going through an awkward phase either. Probably because I was too young to remember, old man.”
“Oh yes, because the three years’ difference between us is just ancient.”
“It really is.”
“One thing is for sure, any child of ours is going to be tall AF.”
Kip laughed. “You’re not wrong.”
I helped Kip to his feet. I took a moment to hold him close to me. I went to kiss him, but he put a hand over my mouth. “Ew. No. I just threw up.”
I rolled my eyes. “I’m too excited about the baby to care about that.”
He turned toward the sink. “I’m excited too, but I still have basic hygiene.
” We brushed our teeth together, side by side.
I couldn’t wait to take him to my home and show him what I built for the two of us.
Since I knew he was my mate when I selected the house, I specifically designed it for the day that he would join me there.
And now we’d be planning a nursery and figuring out how to set up our home for a child.
“We still have two more days of this vacation,” I said. “Do you want to stay here, or…?”
“Is there a reason to rush home?” he asked with a mouth full of toothpaste. He seemed to be working hard at cleaning his teeth, paying special attention to his tongue.
“Should we get you to a doctor?”
He met my gaze through the mirror. “Braxton, seriously, I’m fine. We just found out two minutes ago that I might be expecting. I feel fine. Morning sickness is normal. I don’t think a doctor is necessary yet.”
“It wouldn’t hurt.”
“Are you nervous?” he asked, his smile widening.
“I’m not nervous. I’m just cautious because—”
“Because you’re worried?”
“I’m cautiously excited.”
“How about this, we head to the local grocery store and pick up a test?”
My breath hitched. Yes. That would make a lot of sense. “It’s too soon. Store-bought tests aren’t going to be accurate.”
Kip seemed to think it over for a minute. Then he broke out into a smile. He reached for his phone, holding up his hand to stop me from talking before I could ask what he was doing.
“Branson?” he said when his call connected.
“This is Kip—” He paused. “Yeah, that’s the cabin!
Good memory. You must be great at your job.
” He laughed at something Branson said. “Hey, do you have any omega pregnancy tests at the lodge? The kind that have the early detection?” Another pause. “You do? Great. Can I get one?”
Twenty minutes later, we were sitting on the couch next to the roaring fire. I had stoked it while Kip had taken the test. It now sat on the coffee table next to the stack of pamphlets.
It came out positive.
We were going to be parents.
“We’ll need to leave a good tip for Branson. He didn’t have to go the extra mile and hand deliver this to us,” Kip said. The blue lines on the test had not taken the full three minutes to appear. By the time he walked out of the bathroom and handed it to me, they were there clear as day.
I pulled Kip closer to me and pressed a kiss to his temple. “Whatever you want, dear.”
He laughed. “Whatever I want, huh? I could get used to that. But you know that I’m not made of glass, right? You don’t need to coddle me just because I’m expecting.”
“I suppose that’s true. But I’m going to.”
“Brax. I can still work and do all the things—”
“Of course you can, and you will, but you’ll also be cherished and spoiled by me for the rest of your days. It’s just the way it’s going to be.”
Kip sighed, sinking into me as he exhaled. “I suppose I’ll allow it.”