Chapter 14 Carmine
CARMINE
Waking up in a strange place, bolting for the bathroom, and vomiting was not how I wanted to start my day. After emptying the contents of my stomach and using the mouthwash I found in the cabinet, I finally went back to the bedroom where my mate still slept peacefully.
The deadly assassin I loved didn't even flinch when I bolted out of bed. I had pulled the comforter with me, and now my mate's bare ass was on display for the room, and still he snored. I shook my head and had to smile at that.
I supposed he was comfortable in Andro's home, and he could sleep soundly based on the security measures I had already witnessed.
I had the same sentiment. This place was locked down tighter than Fort Knox.
Especially after the whole event yesterday.
Extra, trusted guards had been brought in, and everyone was on high alert.
As soon as Andro came to the basement to deal with Shaughn, Dom and I were sent away. We were told to stay close, which apparently meant we couldn’t leave the property.
My phone lay on the side table on the charger, and I checked the time. It was relatively early in the day, not quite early enough that everybody would be awake. I exited the room and went in search of a cup of coffee. My stomach rolled at the thought. Maybe a cup of tea would be better.
I didn't expect to run into Joey, but he was coming out of a room with his newest baby in his arms, still rubbing the sleep from his eyes.
"Oh, good morning," I said.
"Good morning. Is it morning? What time is it?"
"Five," I said.
He blinked a few times like it was taking him a moment to process. He adjusted the baby in his arms. "This one didn't sleep at all, and it was my night to deal with that. I’m running on fumes.”
“Who deals with them on the other nights? Does a nanny handle the midnight wake-ups?"
Joey laughed. "If we get desperate, yes, we'll have someone stay with us overnight. But no, Andro and I rotate nights. I don't know how, but it seems like the baby always sleeps better on his nights, though."
"That's amazing that he does that.” I wondered if his enemies knew what a doting father he was. If they did, perhaps they wouldn’t send spies to befriend his children. Andro didn’t fuck around when it came to the safety of his omega and children.
“He's a good father,” Joey said. “Dom will be too."
I bit my lip and put a hand over my belly.
"Wait. Are you…?" His gaze bounced between my midsection and my face. His eyes brightened as if the thought of me expecting had woken him up.
I grimaced. "That's what woke me up. I was not feeling the greatest. I was actually on my way to find a cup of tea." It didn’t take a rocket scientist to realize that waking up sick after spending a week in bed with my mate had probably resulted in a pregnancy.
"Do you want a pregnancy test? I have some left over. We keep extras around for the harem omegas."
"Do you— Uh, would you mind?"
"Not at all. Let me go grab it." He shoved the baby into my arms. The little guy looked up at me, all bright-eyed, as if he had not a care in the world that it was five a.m. Hours ago I had attacked a man for trying to put his hands on one of the Ferrini children. Now I was standing in the hallway holding one. Joey’s bodyguard had stayed out in the hallway, and he didn’t seem fazed by it.
Andro hadn’t spoken to me or Dom about what had occurred yesterday. As far as I knew, they took care of the threat, and that was the last I was gonna hear about it.
The baby in my arms spit out a line of bubbles.
"Hi." I was fine yesterday, protecting the children, but this was a baby in my arms. I didn't know what to do with that.
Joey came back a moment later and handed me a small box.
"Thanks." I looked between him and back toward the room where Dom and I were staying.
"If you want, I can have a cup of tea brought up to you. A whole kettle, actually."
"Can you? I hate to go, but…"
He grinned. "I’ve been there. I understand. I'll bring it up myself if there isn't any of the staff around, they'll leave it on a tray outside the door. I'll tell them just to knock to let you know it's there."
"Thank you," I said, and rushed back to the room.
My mate had woken up, although it was a recent occurrence. His hair was disheveled, and he stood naked looking around the room in confusion. "Where did you go?"
"Nowhere," I said. "Stay right there."
He blinked at me. "Can I get the blanket back?"
"Sure, but get it yourself." It was literally two steps away from him, his tired ass just hadn’t woken up enough yet to find it.
I went to the bathroom and closed the door.
I fumbled with the box, ripping it open and finally pulling out the test. It was pretty easy to do, and I wasn't unaccustomed to doing them.
This was the first time that I ever wanted a positive result, though.
Dom and I had only just found each other, and we still knew very little about how things were gonna go for us, but a baby sounded amazing.
Two minutes later, the result was clear. I stepped into the bedroom. My mate was lying on the bed with the sheet covering his waist.
"What's that?" he asked. "Come here, I'm cold."
I crawled in next to him, draping my body over his. His arm came around my shoulder, and he held me against him. I’d never been a cuddler. I liked space and distance. With Dom, it was more like he was an extension of me, and I wanted him near me as much as possible.
He kissed my forehead, letting his lips lightly trail over my skin.
I showed him the result. He blinked at it.
"Am I supposed to understand what this means?"
"Perhaps not," I said. "It's a pregnancy test. A positive one."
“Positive?" He rolled me over so that he was lying on top of me. “We’re pregnant?"
"Yes."
I tossed the stick away and wrapped my arms around his neck, planting my lips on his. He returned my kiss with the fervor and excitement of a man who’d just received the best news.
"This is exciting. Are you excited or did you want to wait? Did you want kids?" he asked once we separated.
"Yes, no, and yes. I mean, I wouldn't have been opposed to waiting. But I'm not opposed to this. You know I'll still work, right? I'll just be very careful about my jobs."
"Of course, you're more skilled than anyone I know, and I know you would never put our child in danger.”
“And after they're born, I'll go back to work after some time off."
"Of course. Of course," he said. "We’ll make this work, Carmine. Always. No matter what. I'm just so happy."
"Me too." I breathed easily for the first time all morning. This would work out. It had to work out.
There was a knock on the door.
"Ignore them. It's just them letting us know they've got our tea."
"Tea for you. Where's my coffee?"
"Get it yourself," I said with a laugh. He knew he hadn’t found himself an omega that would cater to his every whim, and he loved it.
He laughed and kissed me again. There was a knock on the door again, this time louder.
"Andro wants to see you in his office. Now. Both of you." It was Felik’s voice.
Our eyes flew open.
"Andro wants to see us now? For what?” I asked. “It’s still early. I didn’t even know he was awake.”
“Sweetheart. I think it's time we figured out what the future is for us."
I swallowed thickly. "They won't—"
Dom shook his head. "They're not gonna kill us, not after yesterday. We—Andro, Cord, Felik, and I—were actually starting to talk about the fact that we're mates when all the ruckus happened. I don't know what this meeting is, but I don't think it's bad."
"I'll run if I have to," I said.
"I know, and I'll go with you. Let's see what they have to say before we start making plans to sneak off into the sunset."
Dom and I got dressed, both in a casual pair of jeans and a T-shirt. I went to put my holster on, and Dom helped me with it. Next, I helped him with his. I doubted Andro would let us into his office armed to the teeth, but that was all right.