Chapter 7
I n the morning, I can’t stop smiling; Noah keeps stealing glances at me as we scurry around the cabin, gathering our remaining toiletries and chargers before our flight. Every time I catch him staring, his focus zips away, but he smiles wide.
We giggle as we pass each other, Noah leaving me with a soft pat on my ass.
“Wild wolf,” he mutters. “What did I get myself into?”
I laugh, zipping up my suitcase. He’s saying that now, but he has no idea what devious items I have in here. I double-check that my surprise won’t be visible if Noah opens my bag for me when we land; he’s been sweet enough to gather a change of clothes for me in the mornings when I feel too nauseated to move, and I definitely don’t want to spoil this treat I’m packing for him.
Shoving a fuzzy, faux tail into the depths of my clothes, I call out down the hall from our bedroom. “Don’t speak too soon.”
“Oh, Goddess.” Noah chuckles in the kitchen. But as his car keys jangle, I can hear his sharp inhale from here. “Oh, Goddess .”
My eyes widen; whatever he’s reacting to, it doesn’t sound good. Heaving myself to my feet with a grunt, I attempt to dash for Noah. Instead, I’m forced to stoop over the wooden dresser beside our bedroom door, struggling to retain my vision as a flurry of lights waves across it.
“What’s wrong?” I try to call out, but my voice comes out a flimsy whisper. Closing my eyes as darkness creeps across my vision, I ease myself to the floor, propping my back safely against the wall as the thump thump thump of Noah’s feet speeds down the hall to our bedroom.
Big hands shuffle my legs into a better position, my knees bent and feet planted on the floor as Noah holds my shoulders in place—just in case I fully pass out.
“How did you know?” I mumble.
“I know you well enough by now.” Noah strokes my hair back, planting soft kisses on my forehead as my vision returns in patches. “Do you need a bag to throw up in?”
I groan, my stomach swirling. “Not this time. Did you pack enough of them, though?”
“Oh, yeah. We’re all prepared, even if you puke twenty times on the plane.”
Raising my head slowly, I laze my eyes open with a weary chuckle. Noah softly smiles back, sorting my long hair into place.
I sigh. “Sorry.”
As Noah’s smile fades, my heart hammers. I can’t tell if my raging heartbeat is the after-effects of my blood pressure dropping from pregnancy, yet again, or if it’s a trauma response, afraid of what a partner’s serious, unhappy face might mean for my safety. Even though I trust Noah, a part of me still tightens in defense, especially while my conscious mind is hazy from feeling god-awful.
Softening his features, Noah lowers from his crouch beside me, joining me on the floor. He’s facing me, scooting as close as he can until his bent knee bumps my thigh. With Noah’s wide palms stroking my shoulders and arms, I swallow hard, staring deep into his serious, concerned gaze.
“Did I say something bad?” I whisper.
Noah blinks a few times, tilting his head in thought. “Actually, yeah. Towards yourself.”
I straighten. “What? What did I say? Just ‘sorry?’ How’s that bad when we’re about to be late for—”
“How’s that not bad when you’re carrying this baby for both of us, and fighting like hell through every second of it?”
I laugh. “Not every second—”
Noah’s jaw hardens, and I freeze. My heart thunders in my ears. But after the trust we shared in each other last night, I face Noah’s upset head-on, my focus switching between his eyes.
Settling his hand over my belly, Noah lowers his voice. “I know I need to work on this too when it comes to my wolf, but I don't like it when you talk about yourself like this, either. You’re not a burden on me. I don’t think you realize how much you do for me, and for the whole pack, even before you were pregnant. But now that you are pregnant, there’s nothing that should require you to continually apologize for feeling sick, or to downplay your pain. It’s not fair to you. I don’t appreciate it.”
With a rapid breath, I stare in awe of my mate’s words. He’s genuinely angry, but he’s so gentle about it that I don’t know what to do. How to process it, or what he wants me to say.
But Noah drops his stare, his thumb tracing the soft swell of my stomach. “It fucking kills me that you have to suffer through this in the first place, but I don’t want you to feel like you also have to feel bad for it. You can’t control when you throw up, pass out, have body aches—any of it—and I would never ask you to.”
“Okay, well, we really are about to be late. I know what you’re saying, but I also don’t want us to miss our flight.” My chest rises, defiance building in my chest.
“What if we did have to miss it from you not feeling well, though?” Noah stares straight into my eyes, challenging my rising Alpha side. As our scents build and clash, Noah’s chest puffs, his wolf holding strong. “I’ll tell you: I’d just get us another flight, as long as it meant you felt well enough to fly. I’d stay home, forgetting about the Summit, if you needed me to. I’d stop the whole fucking Lycan world for you, Aliya.”
Dropping my stare, my face flushes hot. “That’s a little extreme.”
“Is it, sweet Omega? Or is it what my badass Luna deserves?”
I blink a few times, struggling to grasp his words. “I don’t know, if I’m honest.”
Lifting my chin, Noah catches my gaze once more. “Then I’ll tell you: it is what you deserve, and more. Honestly, I feel like shit from how little I’m able to do for you compared to what you’re going through. I know sometimes you feel okay, but that’s also because you don’t let anything stop you. And it’s not just me that you support. This pack did not function nearly as well without your grounding presence, Aliya. Not just because of what you do, but who you are. Your value is far deeper than you give yourself credit for.”
Biting my lip, I struggle to fight back tears. I hear what Noah is saying, so why is this hitting me so hard? Meeting Noah’s eyes, I huff out my frustration, hugging my stomach. “Then what am I supposed to do now that I feel like shit, right before we leave?”
Lifting one eyebrow, Noah breaks into a smile. “You’re going to stay sitting right here, even when I tell you there’s a huge crowd outside our door, waiting for us to say goodbye.”
My jaw drops. “What?! Noah, why didn’t you tell me?”
Noah laughs, hoisting himself to his feet. His wolf’s sly, teasing grin spills from him as he towers over me. “Because I meant it when I said I’d stop the whole world for you. And that I want you to take care of yourself, please.”
Dropping my head back onto the wall behind me, I hide my face in my palms. “Bossy Alpha.”
All I can do is laugh alongside Noah’s chuckling as he strides down the hall, knowing what he’s doing to me; while I’m annoyed, butterflies also erupt in my belly, spurred on by his cocky wolf.
I don’t know what’s gotten into him today. It’s almost like his Alpha side’s confidence has skyrocketed since I topped his Omega side last night.
And I can’t deny that I’m flushing down to my chest, heat pooling in my groin at Noah’s demands that I matter .
I’m left to wait in silence as Noah fills a cup with water and fetches a snack to help stabilize my heart. It finally sinks in; pregnancy is no joke, I know, but I’m no exception. I don’t think it hit me how hard I’ve been struggling, not until Noah pointed it out.
If it were Amy or Rainn going through this, would I blame them for making us late after almost passing out?
Fuck no.
Now my cheeks burn from embarrassment, rather than the flustered state Noah left me in. As his footsteps return down the hall, I swipe tears from my eyes, not wanting to worry him more.
But why shouldn’t I let myself worry him? How wonderful was it when Noah braved his raw emotions with me last night, allowing me to worry so I could better support him? Wouldn’t Noah want the same from me?
Halting in the doorway with water in one hand and a plate of nausea-safe snacks in the other, Noah slumps. “Oh, my love . Was I too harsh?”
I shake my head, unable to look at his aching stare as my heartache floods our bond. Hitching through a soft cry, I swipe off more tears. “I didn’t realize how cruel I was being to myself, at all. I don’t want to accidentally teach our baby to treat themself like this. But I can’t help it; I still think badly of myself, sometimes.”
Letting out a pained sigh, Noah settles back down beside me, handing me my water. He strokes his mark on my neck, spreading soothing warmth through my belly as he extends a sweet, comforting scent. “That’s why we’re both learning. I don’t want you to think I’m not proud of you. I just want you to give that wild, proud wolf I saw last night more credit. I love you. So, so much.”
Leaning against Noah, I cram saltines in my mouth. “Even though I still feel bad for making everyone wait outside?”
Noah chuckles, nuzzling my cheek until I smile with him. “Is that a genuine question? If so, I probably shouldn’t answer your OCD, huh? But you’re braving this like a fucking rockstar. I can feel how goddamn uncomfortable you are.”
Sputtering out a laugh, I shrug. “You basically just gave me new Exposure and Response Prevention homework to complete, so yeah. But you’re right: I want to take care of myself better. Especially if that means I’ll be taking better care of our baby.”
Noah’s focus drops to my hand around my stomach. His wavering smile spikes emotion through my heart. As he bends, my lungs swell; cupping my tiny baby belly in his massive hand, Noah kisses our pup as delicately as he can. “I can’t thank you enough for doing this.”
Goddess, his voice is shaking. Burying my hands into his hair, I stroke Noah’s head as he hugs my waist, a conflicting mix of his awe, gratitude, and guilt stirring in our bond. I didn’t realize how guilty he felt for putting me through this, but the second I recognize that angle of his words, my heart softens.
“I want to do this, gorgeous. And I’m so, so happy we’re getting to do it together. Thank you for taking such good care of me. Of us, rather.”
Smiling against my belly, Noah gives our baby another kiss, fluttering my heart.
After a few silent moments, my heart rate settles enough to allow me to rise to my feet—with Noah’s help, just in case. Pulling me in for a tight hug, Noah gives me a slow but tender kiss, massaging my lips with heavy, comforting pressure. Gazing into each other’s eyes, we smile.
“I hope you know I’ll have your back at this crazy Alpha Summit too, even when I inevitably feel sick,” I whisper.
Stroking my hair, Noah smiles. “Oh, trust me, I do, my feisty Luna. They better watch their fucking backs, judging by how you attacked me outside our den.”
With a laugh, Noah and I pull ourselves together, collecting our bags and doing a once-over of the cabin for anything we may have forgotten to pack. Once we’re ready to leave Greenfield, we open our cabin door to a crowd of smiling faces, pack members flooding the driveway with their adoring excitement.
Amy, Kira, and Lexi push through the crowd, giving us hugs goodbye. We said goodbye to Yasmine, Dave, Rainn, and Lilian yesterday; they’re spread around Greenfield Forest, too busy taking their positions to hold down the pack in our stead for the next two and a half weeks. I’m surprised how deeply my chest aches to step into the car, taking one last look at everyone’s smiling faces to wave goodbye.
As we take the first turn out of Greenfield Forest, winding down the country roads, I stiffen at the sharp ache in our bond. Noah bites his lip, his concern heavy enough to bring tears to his eyes.
“Oh, my love.” Rubbing his knee, I breathe through the pain in my chest as Noah takes a few slow, steady breaths. “They’re going to be okay. We’ll be back soon.”
“I know.” His stuffy nose distorts his voice. “This is important. I need us all to be safe, and I don’t know how else to do it except at this stupid fucking Summit.”
My stomach recoils. He’s right: with how severe the Alpha-domination outbreak seems to have taken over, the Alpha Summit is our best shot at preventing global chaos amongst all Lycan packs. I don’t want to say it aloud, but I know we’re all thinking the same thing.
We don’t simply need to go to the Alpha Summit. Noah needs to win .