Chapter 14
Hailey
Morning came faster than I expected, but it was so much easier this time around. I’d actually slept pretty damn well, and the food had stayed in my stomach, where it belonged.
“Hey, there,” Nolan whispered, blinking as he also appeared to wake up.
I guess it made sense. He couldn’t exactly move, so he just rested. Given the fact that he was a lawyer, I imagined he could use the extra rest too.
“Sorry,” I offered, still feeling a bit guilty for dragging the two of them out here, even if it was mostly Preston’s fault. “I’m actually hungry. I don’t suppose—”
Nolan grinned, immediately picking me up and carrying me out to the living room, where Wilder was just waking up on the couch. Plopping me down in his lap, Nolan kept his smirk plastered all over his face as he walked into the kitchen, calling out, “On it!”
I had to laugh as I struggled to get comfy on top of Wilder, but then it became abundantly clear that it was indeed morning for him too. I’d noticed yesterday that he’d accidentally been sporting something, and feeling it again was getting my mind thinking all sorts of inappropriate things.
I cleared my throat as my cheeks warmed, I went to get off him and sit on the other end of the couch, but he snaked his arms around my waist and pulled me back to his chest.
“Ah, ah, ah. I like you right there.”
I tried not to giggle. “I bet you do.”
“And just what does—”
Knock, knock, knock.
I shot upright, looking around the apartment. Why was somebody knocking on my door? Wait, what day was it?
Everything was blurring together because of all the frequent naps I had, and then it hit me like a truck.
Oh God. My doctor's appointment. It's Merrick! He can't find them here!
I leapt off Wilder's lap like it was on fire, I grabbed his hand and yanked him up, rushing him toward the kitchen where Nolan was digging through my fridge.
“You need to hide, you need to go somewhere!” I started shoving both of them through the door, rushing them back toward my bedroom, where I could at least stick them and close and lock the door or something. “Hide, would you?! I need to get some clothes on. Crap. Hold on.”
I ducked my head out of the door, calling out toward the front. “I'm coming, Merrick. Just give me one second!”
Rushing back into the bedroom, I threw on clothes as quickly as I possibly could, not giving a shit that there were two alphas in my bedroom right now. I had bigger things to be worried about.
Once I had a pair of leggings on and an oversized sweater pulled over my head, I took both men in hand once more and shoved them toward my bathroom.
“Get in! Get inside, close the door, and I'll—I'll be back.”
Wilder took my hand, trying to stop me and holding me in place. “What's going on? Why are we being hidden in the bathroom?”
I sighed, my shoulders dragging as I heard the knock at the door come one more time.
“It's my ride to the doctor's appointment. I need to leave. You guys can stay in here, but just don't come out.”
Nolan and Wilder exchanged looks and then turned to me as Wilder said, “All right, Hailey, whatever you need, but I think you need to explain this when you get home.”
They had a point, and I knew I had to explain about Merrick sooner or later. I just needed it to be later right now.
First things first. Doctor's appointment.
“Yes, okay. I'll talk about it when I get back, but I need to go. Please just stay here.”
I started to rush out of the room and then stopped, spinning on my heel so that I could reach my vanity. I snagged a bottle of one of my most potent perfumes and took off the lid, spraying little puffs of it every couple of inches as I walked down the hall.
I didn't want Merrick smelling two alphas in my apartment.
When I got to the front door, the apartment actively reeked of perfume, and I cursed. It was like a toddler had come through the space with utter abandon. Whoops.
Well, it was too late now. With a sigh, I pulled open the door and put on my cheeriest smile, which I had to admit was easier, thanks to actually eating and resting.
“Hi, Hails, ready to—Jesus, why does it smell like your perfume exploded all over the apartment?”
Merrick held his hand up to his nose, grimacing as he reeled backward. I scratched at my head, playing into the-embarrassment-after-an-accident vibe.
“Because that’s exactly what happened. I was clumsy and dumped some all over the floor. I just got it cleaned up. But yeah, I’m ready. Let’s go.”
Merrick hesitated as I started to press through the door, slinging my purse over my shoulder.
“Don’t you want to crack a window or something?”
“I did. It’s fine. Come on. I don’t want to be late.” I kept moving, pulling the door closed behind me and locking it up.
“You seem chipper today,” Merrick remarked, his brow cocked. “What’s that about?”
“I’m just glad I’m finally going to the doctor to get to the bottom of this. So, thank you.”
Merrick’s expression softened, that little smile he got when he was happy to be helping spreading over his face. My chest pinched. I hated lying to him. He was a good man, and there was definitely something between us.
“Anytime, Hails. Let’s go.”
I followed him out, my mind utterly spinning. My life was way more complicated than I liked, and I really needed to think of what to do about the two alphas currently shoved in my bathroom.
“Hello, Hailey. What can I do for you today?” the doctor said, looking at his notes.
I’d only spent a few minutes in the waiting room before he called me in. Thankfully, Merrick was outside, grabbing us some sodas for after the appointment. If he’d come in, he might have discovered I was at a clinic that specialized in bond sickness, and I didn’t want that.
“I think I’m experiencing separation sickness, and I need to know what my options are,” I said.
The doctor looked up in surprise. “Are you sure it’s separation sickness? It could be a number of things.”
“I’m an EMT—I know what separation sickness is. I accidentally bonded with an alpha on a night out and don’t know where he is… so all signs point to separation sickness,” I admitted bashfully.
“There’s nothing shameful about going out for a night and enjoying yourself, but there is something a little bit concerning about bonding with a guy and not even knowing his full name. How long ago was this?” the doctor asked.
I narrowed my eyes. Something told me he very much thought there was something shameful about going out, and I didn’t need his judgment.
“It’s been about three months,” I admitted.
The doctor’s eyes widened. “I see. Can you explain a little bit about your symptoms?”
“Dizziness, pain, unable to keep food down, general lack of sleep—basically feeling like total crap. I did all the basics: rest, fluids… I even had a banana bag.”
The doctor chuckled. “Banana bags do help a lot, but I don’t think they’d help in this situation. If you simply had something like the stomach flu, then maybe.”
I nodded. “That’s why I thought it best I come in.”
“Our nurse took your blood and urine, yes? Those results should be through in a few moments. As you know, they won’t cover everything, but we can always send samples off for more testing if need be.”
“Yes. Done and done. I know the drill.”
The guy nodded at me again, and then it was quiet while he looked at his notes. I hated being in a situation like this. I knew how the body worked. I was an EMT, and still, it felt like doctors wanted to treat me with kid gloves, or at worst, be totally condescending.
Sometimes being an omega sucked.
We waited a few more minutes, and I answered more questions, basic things about my usual routine, how severe the symptoms were, and when—if—they felt better during the day. Eventually, his tablet pinged, and the results were in.
“Ah! I think we’ve discovered why the sickness isn’t fading,” the doctor declared, looking at the screen.
He was quiet for a moment, clicking across the tablet as he read whatever had popped up on the screen, which he rudely kept out of my view.
My stomach turned, and I did my best to take long, steady breaths as the anxiety began to choke me. I wasn’t great at waiting on the best of days, and this certainly wasn't a good one.
“Why?” I asked.
The wait was probably only a few seconds, but it could have been a lifetime, considering the anxiety consuming me.
“You’re pregnant.”
My stomach dropped so hard that I nearly threw up on the spot, and I was pretty sure it was sitting in the crust of the earth.
Pregnant?
“I’m on birth control!” I squeaked.
In fact, I was real damn religious about taking it just to maintain my heat cycle and not because of my love of a good dick… Preston had broken a rather long dry spell. That was the entire reason I’d gone out, because it’d been so long, and I wanted a moment to have fun.
And now, this?!
In hindsight, I should’ve tried online dating like everyone else.
The doctor nodded. “Yes, but as a medical professional, you know that isn’t always effective. We can give you a scan to figure out how far along you are…”
“I know exactly how far along I am,” I muttered, absentmindedly running my hands over my knees.
The alleyway sex had been the only time I had sex in the last year, so it was most certainly that.
“I’ll be a little over three months.”
“The father is the alpha you’ve bonded with?”
“Yes. It was a one time thing.”
“In that case, you need to think long and hard about what you want your treatment plan to be. If the alpha is not in the picture, you need to seriously consider either finding pack members of said alpha, if he has them, or bonding with someone else. You cannot be on your own, dealing with separation sickness while pregnant.”
“I mean, I could also not go through with this…” My mind was spinning, too many thoughts and questions running through me at the speed of light.
The doctor sighed. “Okay, we’re going to want to take more blood samples and run a few more tests before you decide anything.
We're going to need to monitor your condition closely.
I'm going to get you a bunch of information, then you can take a day or two to decide what you want to do.
There are medical options, but they're not fun. I would congratulate you, but given the circumstances…”
“Yeah, this isn’t good news.”
Babies were amazing. I loved babies. Had I been feeling better, I would’ve been at Sunny’s house every other day, getting in some baby snuggles with her daughter.
But right now? Under the current circumstances? No.
My life wasn’t really conducive to having a baby.
I lived in a tiny apartment, and the neighbors weren’t exactly quiet.
My job was nonstop, with hours that were wildly unpredictable.
I didn’t have a pack that could support me—I wasn’t sure Nolan and Wilder counted, could I even trust them? I was all on my own.
Tears gathered in the corners of my eyes, but I blinked them away. I refused to break down in front of the doctor. Even worse, I couldn’t let Merrick see me with red eyes. That would lead to questions I was in no way ready to answer.
“Well, let's schedule you to go get the other tests in a week or so, and I’ll send you off with some information. Take some time, and then…we’ll go from there.”
I didn’t say anything. I just nodded and left the office on autopilot.
Everything had changed, flipped on its head—again.
As I hauled myself into Merrick's giant truck, I did my best to act normal, despite the pamphlets burning a hole in my handbag.
“How did it go?” he asked, turning to me with concern on his face.
“Good,” I said brightly. “It’s just a nasty bug; they’re going to prescribe me some antibiotics, and I should be able to get over it with some rest and fluids.”
Merrick didn’t look convinced at the bullshit coming out of my mouth, but I kept the smile on my face and looked forward. He didn’t press after that, which I appreciated.
The entire drive back, I was quiet. My mind was spinning at full speed with no direction.
I was going to have a baby. I mean, I guess that’s where I’m at. Did I want to pursue other options? Adoption was a thing. I could give it up.
Guilt smacked me in the face. That felt wrong, even though I hadn’t planned this. I loved babies, and I had pictured myself as a mom one day.
I just thought “one day” would be a lot later.
Something hit me then that filled me with shame, a thought I couldn’t stop, but I knew was the least of my problems.
Who the hell would want me now?
Not to be conceited, but I knew I wasn't particularly bad looking, and I was an omega, so if I really wanted a bonded mate, I’d be able to find one pretty quickly.
Only, now I was bonded to an unknown alpha and pregnant, which made me quite possibly the least attractive omega in a hundred-mile vicinity.
The rather unsavory term used goods came to mind.
By the time we arrived at the apartment, I was spiraling. I leaped out of the car with a shouted goodbye and headed straight for the door. I knew it was rude. I could hear Merrick calling out after me, but I just played it off like I had to pee, insistent he needed to go to work.
But I was not okay.