Chapter 9
Chapter Nine
Aitor
“ G od, I fucking hate this.” Ikal emerged from the bathroom, his face a little gray, and leaned against the doorframe. He’d been sick almost all day every day since he’d taken the pregnancy test. He hadn’t been able to go to work. The scent of coffee made his nausea worse, which meant roasting coffee beans and running a coffee shop was out of the question. Luckily, Mirabel was a literal angel and had stepped in to take care of everything so he didn’t have to worry.
Ikal was starting to lose weight, which by itself was a concern, but he was also strangely starting to show. His stomach was already gently rounded, which was unusual this early on. Typically, in my experience working with the sea turtle shifter population, they didn’t show until the week before they were ready to nest. I’d done the math a million times, and there was no way Ikal was that close already.
To say I was worried was an understatement, but Ikal had his first doctor’s appointment today, and I was hoping we’d get solid answers. I had also reached out to my colleague and shifter obstetrician, Everett Voda, again to get his impressions. He told me to send him the sonogram images and any feedback from the doctor and he would take a look. He’d also assured me everything would be fine, but I wasn’t so sure. So far, Ikal’s pregnancy wasn’t progressing like a normal sea turtle shifter pregnancy, and that was making me anxious. I felt like I was out of my depth, and I hated that, especially because everything that had worked for my pregnant patients hadn’t helped Ikal at all. It was making me feel like a failure, like I didn’t know what I was doing, and it was my mate that was suffering for my ineptitude.
“I know, maitea. I’m so sorry.” I wanted to go to him, to wrap him in my arms, but he’d been very sensitive to touch, and I didn’t want to overwhelm him. “I would take all this away and put it on myself if I could.”
Tears welled in his eyes. “I know you would.” He swiped his fingers at his cheeks where several tears had escaped. “I don’t even know why I’m crying. And I know I shouldn’t complain. This is what I wanted. I just didn’t know this part would suck so bad.”
“This part does suck, and you’re allowed to hate it.” I stepped close enough to run a hand over his shoulder and down his arm, and he let me. Not being able to touch him the way I wanted to was torture of the worst kind. There was already so little I could do to offer comfort. “Did you want to try to eat something before we go?”
He shook his head. “No, but can we bring some of those ginger cookies just in case?”
“Of course.”
The one thing I had been able to do for Ikal was pull some strings at the hospital to get him in with the best shifter OBGYN we had on staff. Normally, Dr. Enrique Lagarto was booked months out, but I’d called in a favor, and he’d been able to fit us in. Enrique and I consulted frequently since his subspeciality was reptilian shifter reproductive health, and I knew he would be a good fit for Ikal.
My mate’s knee bounced as we sat in the waiting room, his nerves evident.
“It’s going to be fine, my love.”
He turned his big blue eyes my way. “You keep saying that, but what if it’s not, Tor?”
“How about we try not to worry until we have something to worry about?”
Ikal’s gaze narrowed into a glare and he opened his mouth to snap at me, but the nurse came out and called his name.
After she took Ikal’s vitals, we were left alone in the exam room. Ikal rubbed his hand over his belly and stared into the middle distance, and I could feel his uncertainty through our bond. My own nerves were right at the surface, but I tried to project calm, hoping it would help him to relax.
A sharp knock on the door pulled us both out of our thoughts, and Enrique bustled in followed by a nurse wheeling a portable ultrasound machine.
Enrique extended his hand to Ikal first. “Good morning, Ikal. I’m Dr. Lagarto, but feel free to call me Enrique. Most of my patients do. I’ve heard so much about you over the years I’ve been working with this one.” He nodded toward me and smiled at Ikal. “I promise you are in good hands.”
“Thank you.”
Erique shook my hand, then sat on a low rolling stool, folding one leg over the other and clasping his hands on his knee. “So tell me what’s been going on? I read from your intake forms that you’re about a month into your pregnancy. How have you been feeling?”
“Like shit.” Ikal blushed as soon as the words were out of his mouth, but Enrique just smiled.
“I hear that a lot.” He went on, asking Ikal questions about what was helping and what wasn’t.
“I’m going to write you a prescription for an antinausea med that typically works well for reptile shifters. Try it, and let me know if it helps. If not, there are some other things we can try.”
Ikal nodded.
Enrique asked questions about Ikal’s fertility journey and his general health, and slowly, I felt my mate start to relax a little.
“What other concerns do you have before we take a look at your baby?” Enrique asked when Ikal had answered all the questions he’d posed.
My mate looked at me, and I nodded encouragingly.
He opened the hospital gown that he’d changed into and showed Enrique his swollen stomach. “Should I look this pregnant already?”
Enrique rubbed his hands together to warm his fingers, then slid forward rolling closer to Ikal on his stool. “May I?” he asked, holding his hands up.
Ikal nodded, and Enrique’s hands moved over Ikal’s little bump. My inner alpha didn’t appreciate seeing another man’s hands on my mate, and a low growl rumbled from my chest.
Enrique just shook his head. “All alphas are the same.” He reached under the exam table and flicked a lever that lowered the back. “Can you lie back for me, Ikal?”
My mate shifted into position, and Enrique stood, feeling Ikal’s abdomen again.
“I think I see what’s happening here, and at this point, I’m not worried, but let’s take a look and make sure everything is okay.”
The nurse rolled the ultrasound machine forward, and offered Enrique two different probe options. “Let’s see if we can get some good pictures from the outside. If not, we can go the other way.”
“What does that mean?” There was more worry in Ikal’s voice.
“Since you are already showing, I’m going to use this transducer.” Enrique held up the flat probe. “If we aren’t seeing what we need to, then we can do a transrectal ultrasound. But I don’t think we’re going to need it.”
Ikal nodded. “Okay.” He held out his hand, and I took it, lacing our fingers together.
Enrique squirted gel onto the transducer and onto Ikal’s stomach, and the nurse fiddled with the machine’s settings until Enrique said he liked the image.
Obstetrics had never been my best area of study, but the second Enrique started the scan, I was craning off my chair to see the screen.
But what I was seeing didn’t make sense. I kept blinking rapidly trying to make the picture focus.
“Well, that’s just as I thought.” Enrique removed the transducer from Ikal’s belly and wiped away some of the gel.
“What is it?” The anxiety in Ikal’s tone and coming through our bond broke my heart.
“All good news. You mentioned that you had done fertility treatments and were on a limiter during those treatments, correct?”
“Yes. Sea turtle shifters and jaguar shifters are prone to multiples and can have large clutches or litters, so the fertility doctor thought that would be best.”
“Very true. But it looks like the effects of the limiter were out of your system when you conceived.” Enrique turned the ultrasound screen toward my mate. “You are pregnant with five cubs, Ikal.”
“Cubs? You mean eggs?”
Enrique smiled. “No, I mean cubs.” He ran the pointer over where each little cub’s head was barely visible on the screen. “Looks like three fraternal siblings and two identical siblings.”
“Oh my god.” Ikal’s gaze swung to meet mine, and I felt a tear track down my face mirroring the one sliding down his cheek. I brushed it away with my thumb. “Five babies, Aitor. Five.” Ikal’s face crumpled, happy tears flowing freely now.
I turned to look at Enrique. “Are all five cubs healthy?”
He nodded. “Yes. And at this point, I have no reason to believe they won’t stay that way.” He turned back to the ultrasound machine. “I want to take a few more measurements, but everything I’m seeing looks good so far. However, with this many cubs, I’m going to consider this a high-risk case. There is no reason to be worried, but I want to monitor you closely, okay, Ikal?”
“Yes. Of course.” My mate’s joy was almost tangible.
Enrique took the measurements he needed and put the rest of the images on a flash drive for us to take home. I couldn’t wait to send the pictures to Everett.
“I’ll see you back here in two weeks, Ikal.” Enrique shook our hands, and we floated out of the office, Ikal cradling his bump, his smile so radiant it made my heart soar.