20. CHAPTER 20
CHAPTER 20
It hurt Weston’s heart and soul to discover thirty people had voluntarily left Sanctuary, claiming no Alpha could be trusted. It felt as if he’d let Leandro and Sanctuary down somehow. That he was only just barely able to get out of bed hadn’t helped.
He should have been out there helping not only to run the lines for the electricity to the cameras that were being set up around Sanctuary but also working toward finding a better solution to defend the town if it was attacked. Yet, no one had come up with a good solution, including him.
Add to it that Leandro had been acting…well different and Weston felt like a complete and total failure. Not only was he being evasive, but Weston had noticed his Omega barely ate any longer. He claimed his stomach was always in knots with worry.
Even though those pretty blue eyes were constantly filled with anxiety and fear, something about the words hadn’t quite rung true. Admittedly, Weston had been in too much pain and sleeping a lot as his body healed to have paid enough attention to what had been happening around him, but once he’d been on the mend, he picked up on every nuance of Leandro’s emotions and physical reactions to not have noticed something was very wrong.
It caused him to worry that there was more to Weston’s condition than his Omega and doctor were telling him and that was going to stop as soon as Leandro woke up from the gurney he’d been given in order to stay close to Weston’s side without injuring his burns further.
He wanted his Omega in his arm once again, damn it, and no matter what it took, he planned on making that happen even if he had to force Leandro and Renzo to remain in his room until they told him the truth. He was done being lied to. If something was worse than they had told him, he needed to know so he could deal with it.
“Good morning, Weston,” Renzo said softly when he walked into the room so as not to wake Leandro. He grabbed the chart off the end of the bed and scanned the latest bloodwork and vital signs before putting it back and coming around to the side of his bed to start his own quick exam.
As much as the dark circles under his Omega’s eyes told him he desperately needed sleep, Weston wasn’t about to waste the opportunity to get to the bottom of whatever was happening. “Leandro,” he called out, rousing his sweet kitten, who tried to burrow further under the covers and ignore whatever was attempting to wake him.
“Leandro,” Weston said even louder.
Renzo placed a hand on Weston’s arm to silently gain his attention when Leandro frowned, as if something was buzzing around him like a pest. “I think we should let Leandro get some more sleep. He really could use it.”
Renzo’s words put Weston even more on edge than when he thought their odd behavior had been about him. If it had to do with Leandro, there was no way he was going to ignore it by burying his head in the sand.
He pinned the doctor with his gaze. “What’s wrong with Leandro?” he demanded.
His voice had a hard edge and was loud enough that Leandro sat straight up and glanced at them with worry. He was off the bed in an instant to stand next to Weston. Automatically, he reached for his Alpha’s hand, which helped to calm Weston somewhat as he entwined their fingers.
“Are you okay?” Leandro looked worried between Weston and Renzo. “Are you having a setback? Renzo didn’t think it would happen, but he had said it was a possibility. Do I need to get you anything? Maybe some water?” Then those terrified eyes settled on Renzo. “Does he need more painkillers?”
Renzo shook his head, but before he could speak, Weston confronted them both. “What is going on?” His gaze held his Omega’s as he spoke. “You’ve been acting nervous and scared while hardly eating. There are dark circles under your eyes and you refuse to talk to me about anything but the town and my needs.”
When he felt Leandro try to pull away, he held onto his hand even tighter. “I thought you were both hiding something about my prognosis from me, but then Renzo mentioned how much you needed your sleep. Did you get hurt in the fire? Are you hiding your injuries from me?”
As he said the words, the hurt was evident in his voice. Admittedly, he’d been too out of it to know much of what had been going on that first week, but it had been four weeks, and he was supposed to be released to go home that day, which meant he was well enough for Leandro to tell him the truth.
“I think I deserve to know what is happening to the love of my life.” Was that petulance in his tone? He wasn’t exactly proud of it, but Weston knew it had been there. The thing was, he knew he’d need to be strong for his Omega. The last thing Leandro needed from him was for Weston to basically make him feel guilty for hiding something from him.
Leandro glanced over at Renzo and jerked his head toward the door. “Can you leave us alone?”
Renzo nodded and started toward the door.
“Wait a damn minute,” Weston insisted. “No one is going anywhere until I have answers.”
Renzo grinned. “The only one I can give you is that you are cleared to go home. No working, but otherwise, you should be fine for…” The doctor’s gaze went back to Leandro with a sly smirk on his face. “Well, let’s just say nothing too strenuous, but otherwise, you're good to go for all other activities.”
Why in the hell had it sounded as if the doctor was recommending sex? He gasped as he looked Leandro up and down. “Oh, love. Are you in heat? Do we need to go home so I can help you through it?”
Red flushed every inch of Leandro’s face as he said, “Actually, it’s kind of the opposite.”
The opposite? What the hell was that even supposed to mean? He waited as patiently as he could, but it must have shown in his expression he was going to lose his cool if he didn’t get some answers soon.
Leandro sat on the side of Weston’s gurney and leaned over to give him a sweet, albeit nervous, kiss. “First, I want you to know I love you. I honestly didn’t think I would ever know those feelings in my life, but the moment you ran back into that burning building there was no doubt in my mind. My entire being rebelled against the possibility of losing you, and I was determined to tell you the moment you made it out safely.”
Weston’s heart soared, but he was somewhat confused. “Then why didn’t you?”
Damn if his still red face didn’t get even redder, which Weston hadn’t thought possible. “I did,” Leandro told him. “I just didn’t want the first time you heard happen when you were drugged and might not remember, so I only told you when you were sleeping. Then I was too nervous to tell you when you were more clearheaded.”
That was something Weston could believe. His sweet Omega tended to shy away from things pertaining to the heart. “Is that what has had you so on…Wait, no, there has to be more to it. Why haven’t you been able to eat? And why are there times you are so pale it looks as if you’re about to collapse?”
Weston lifted his hand and traced the dark circles under his Omega’s eyes with his thumb. “And why are these here?”
Leandro mumbled something, but for the life of him, Weston couldn’t understand what he’d said. “Love, I need you to talk to me.”
Blowing out a long, hard breath, Leandro blurted out, “Because I’m pregnant. We’re pregnant. At first, I was excited, but the more I sat here by your bedside, the more I couldn’t help but wonder if you even wanted…”
Weston didn’t let him finish as he sat up and slammed their lips together, pouring all of his love and happiness into it. When he pulled back as they both needed air, he got out with no small amount of amazement. “We’re going to be dads? Really? I can’t wait to hold our little one. To show him what love is and for us to teach him what it is to be a true man and treat people with fairness and kindness.”
Tears were trailing down Leandro’s cheeks. “You’re really happy?” he asked, as if still uncertain. “You’re aren’t just saying that because you think it’s what I want to hear?”
Weston kissed him hard. “You are the love of my life, Leandro. It would be my honor and greatest joy for us to have a baby.”
He got his first genuine smile from his Omega since waking up, and it was full of happiness and mischief. “Then maybe you should get dressed so we can go home and celebrate.”
Weston kissed those sweet lips once again before hopping out of bed. “That sounds like the perfect idea, Omega mine.”
And celebrate they did, for days.