Page 36 of His to Mate

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Ann gotup the next day and took Katy outside for a walk and to chase leaves for a little while. She was so little she disappeared when she dove into a flowerbed, chasing something. More than likely a bee, Ann thought. The aliens had revived many of the insects needed for pollination and other useful things. Others had simply come back on their own somehow.

She let Katy play while she had breakfast and checked over her plans for the day. Skye had taken a test Meg created and had passed it with flying colors. Meg had been impressed enough that she had allowed Skye to start classes early in the mornings. There were four students, so far, and Skye enjoyed it, but that meant Ann’s mornings were now free. Katy filled up plenty of that time.

The nausea hadn’t been too bad this morning, and she’d had toast and scrambled eggs for breakfast, which might rebel later. Ann was still learning the process of morning sickness, so she stayed on the lighter side of most foods until dinner time. Although, lately, she’d spent most of her dinner times asleep.

She scooped Katy up when the puppy came up for cuddles and scratched her ears and back for her. They’d become instant buddies, her and the puppy, and Ann was happy she had her now. She was a very smart dog, little Katy, and had already learned to let Ann know that she needed to go out with three sharp barks and a shake of her head.

Ann tried to think of something to fill her morning with today but couldn’t think of much. Skye would come by after lunch, but there wasn’t much else on her agenda other than that. With a sigh, she went to get dressed and made sure she had on a blouse that had a pocket on it for Katy. She’d just have to go out and explore some more.

She headed in the direction of a shop where she’d spotted some baby clothes and other things a person with a baby might need. Katy kept her company as she drove the transporter over. Ann felt incredibly alone, even with Katy with her, when she walked into the derelict shop. The guard quickly followed in his own transporter and stood outside.

With her hand over the pocket of her pink shirt, she looked around. Baby clothes, bassinets, cribs, bottles, strollers, it was all there for the taking. She called in with her phone-watch and asked for a truck and a couple of men to be sent over. She let the guard know help was on the way, and started to gather things up into three piles, one for her mom, one for her, and one for the other new mothers to be. The third pile would be sent to a depot and they’d have to go pick out what they wanted from there.

Ann filled several boxes with the help of the two men that came, and those were loaded into her guard’s transporter. She would put the boxes into their storage area at the house until she needed them. She filled 6 boxes for her mother, double everything as she would have twins, and the rest all went in boxes for others. By the time lunchtime rolled around, she was tired, ready for food, and Katy had explored every nook and cranny of the shop. She picked the puppy up, put her in her pocket, and thanked the men for their help.

“You’re welcome. We’ll drop these at the addresses you gave us and unload them for your mother. Have a nice day.”

“You too,” Ann said in an offhand way, and headed for her transporter. The trip home took only moments and she went up to her room. She crawled onto the bed and put her head down, just for a moment. She woke up to find it dark outside while Katy barked frantically at her shoulder.

“I’m up, little girl, I’m up. Come on, let’s get out of here and find you a place to potty.” Ann put Katy down and she followed as Ann went out the door.

A quick swipe at her face with a washcloth, a brush through her hair, and a shower would be nice, but Katy needed to go, now. She took her outside and ordered some food and a drink from the kitchen staff as she walked through. She had dinner, alone, again, outside with Katy.

Her mom was too busy most days to come over very often, and Skye was her only other real friend. She got along with Meg and some of the other women, but she liked Skye the best. She reminded her of the best friends she’d lost so long ago, and made Ann feel like someone really cared about her.

Not that Rager made her feel unloved, he was just… busy. Really busy for a man that was still newly mated. He had a brand-new empire to run, though, so she tried to keep the complaints down. He would send her messages, gifts, and the things she asked for every day, yet the one thing she really wanted, she couldn’t have. A little more of his time.

She thought about Rex, and how she’d longed for him to even acknowledge she existed. Those days were long gone, but she remembered them well. It wasn’t that long ago, after all. She’d wanted him to love her, as she loved him, but now she knew she hadn’t even known the boy, she couldn’t have really loved him. Not like she loved Rager.

She knew some of it might be pregnancy hormones, but over the last few days, she’d finally admitted to herself that she did love him. How could she not? She might be asleep when he came home, but she always felt it when he was in bed with her. She slept so much better, wrapped in his arms.

He was a smart man, a kind man, and he made her heart skip beats when he smiled or touched her. She wasn’t exactly sure what love was anymore, but she knew what she felt for him must be love. She’d protect him with all of her might, and she’d fight alongside him against any enemy. She also knew that she’d give him anything that would make him smile, that would please him, and she hoped, she really hoped, this baby would really make him smile.

She imagined the way she’d tell him. It would have to be over dinner, so he wouldn’t miss work. She’d have a dinner ready for him, and they’d talk until he finished his food. Then, she’d take his hand and tell him he was about to be a father. She imagined the smile that would beam across his face and that he’d take her in his arms. It made her smile, and her stomach flip-flopped in joy.

Her watch beeped and she looked down. A message from Skye asking if she wanted company. Ann felt bad that she’d slept through their afternoon meeting and replied that she’d love some company. It didn’t take long, and Skye soon walked through the backdoor.

“Hi there, sleepyhead,” Skye called as she came over. Ann didn’t get up, but she did kiss Skye’s cheek when she came over to her. “I left you in bed this afternoon, figured you needed some sleep.”

“I did. I spent the morning gathering baby things, and came home and crashed. Poor little Katy was about to chew my ear off to wake me up.” The puppy yipped and then chased a leaf that blew across her nose on a breeze.

“That’s good. Better than puking your guts up all day.” Skye sat down in a chair and took the glass of tea Ann offered her. “I talked to two more women at the clinic today, both suspect they are pregnant, but it’s still too early to tell if they are. Those baby clothes will come in handy.”

“I’m glad. Although, it’s probably going to keep you two busy when all of these babies decide it’s time to be born.”

“Hopefully we’ll have the other women trained to help by then. We’re focusing on obstetrics and gynecology for now, and the basics of caring for patients.”

“It sounds intense.” Ann leaned forward, aware now of how tired Skye looked. “Are you sleeping?”

“It’s hot in my apartment right now, the power keeps going off and on over in my area. I’ll live. And yes, the training is intense. It’s mostly going to be a trial by fire for those poor women that I’m teaching. None of us will have hands-on training, not until the births start. We’ll have to rely on each other a lot. And the books.”

“You can do it, I know you can. You’re a smart girl.” Ann was positive about that. “Oh, do you want to stay here until the power is fixed over there? We have air conditioning. Our power is always stable, the men wouldn’t dare let the power go out over here. I think we have some solar panels too, just in case.”

“That’s actually a good idea if you don’t mind? I don’t know how much more of that heat I can take.”

“No, it has warmed up, hasn’t it?” Ann fanned herself with her hand and got up. “Let’s go inside before this heat knocks me out again.”