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She nodded. “I wanted to wait for a couple weeks before I took a test, even though I know there are ones that can have results earlier.”
“I’m still going to have you take one of ours.”
Nila moved to a cabinet and removed a plastic cup with a lid. “The bathroom is down the hall on the left,” she said, handing it to Mia. His mate left the room, and Lucian looked at the doctor. He waited until he heard her go into the bathroom and shut the door before he spoke.
“She’s worried that having a baby outside of her natural heat cycle is going to be dangerous, either for her or the baby.”
Doc nodded. “It’s understandable she feels that way. In truth, I’ve never heard of a drug like what she experienced. I do know a little about ravens, and they’re very scientifically minded, but they’re also bat-shit crazy and keep secrets like the Kremlin. It’s my belief that if she did go into a real heat because of the drug, then her body will behave the way it would have in the fall, and that the pregnancy will be viable and she and the baby will come out on the other side healthy.”
Nila said, “If her body couldn’t handle a pregnancy at a time other than the heat, I wouldn’t think the pregnancy would happen in the first place.”
Doc made a noise of agreement. “There are drugs that mimic a heat cycle, but they’re mild in comparison to what females actually go through, and they don’t force ovulation. Whatever she was given… either she is pregnant or she’s not, but it’s up to her body to handle the baby. If there is one.”
“You don’t think she’d be in danger from carrying a pup outside of the heat?” Lucian asked.
“I don’t believe so, but I’m just guessing. She’ll definitely need to be monitored more closely during the pregnancy to be sure things progress as they should, but just because it’s not therighttime doesn’t mean it’s not going to be fine.”
The door to the bathroom opened and Mia returned, handing the cup of urine to Nila. Mia sat next to Lucian and said, “I heard what you were saying. I’m a little worried about the pregnancy, but I also know I can’t change anything. All I can do is take care of myself and the baby, and hope for the best.”
Nila turned around and Lucian could see that the test in the cup had turned bright blue. “Congratulations, Mia,” Nila said.
Mia squeezed Lucian’s hand so hard his knuckles cracked. “It’s really real, then.”
“Yes,” Doc said. He turned to the laptop and typed for a moment, and then said, “Let’s give you a good old-fashioned checkup. I’ll draw some blood and we’ll run tests and make sure everything is okay. And you’re going to want to start on prenatal vitamins, too.”
Lucian sat back as Mia went to the scale in the hall with Nila, where her height and weight were recorded. Then she sat on the exam table while Nila took measurements of her heart rate and blood pressure. Doc went through her entire health history. Wolves didn’t normally get sick, but they could be injured, and Mia had twice broken bones as a teenager and seen Doc for treatment. After the blood was drawn, Doc said, “I want to see you every two weeks. We can do an ultrasound at two months, but in the meantime, I want to keep an eye on you and your little one.”
Lucian stood and shook Doc’s hand. “Thanks for taking care of my mate.”
“You’re in charge now,” he said.
“Um, no,” Mia said. “Momma’s in charge.”
Lucian snorted. “I think he means I’m in charge of taking care of you.”
“Oh,” she said, wrinkling her nose as she smiled. “That’s okay.”
He chuckled as he kissed her forehead. “You’re still the boss, Mia, I promise.”
“Good.”
CHAPTERSIXTEEN
Kismet Thorburn glanced down as her watch buzzed on her wrist and a reminder flashed on the screen.
Favor for Noah.
Grabbing the remote from the arm of the couch, she stopped the recording of her favorite daytime talk show and turned off the TV. Her twin had asked her to run some healing ointments and poultices to his brother-in-law, Rich, because Noah had been called on for an emergency healing. Which was what happened when you were the go-to healer for the shifter community.
Her twin took after their mother, who was a witch specializing in healing. Noah was technically a witch, but he preferred to go by ‘healer’ because the word witch made people think about pointed hats and green faces. Kismet, on the other hand, took after their father, who was fae. Her wings matched her father’s, ivory with copper tips, and she had her father’s gift of control over nature. She and Noah often collaborated on plant growth at his home, where she could make anything grow in any conditions. Which was really handy when one wanted to have a fresh lemon for tea in January, and one could make a lemon tree produce just a single fruit before sending it back to winter slumber.
Standing with a stretch, she looked down at her ensemble of tights emblazoned with sugar skulls and her old-school Metallica t-shirt. She decided that Rich wouldn’t care what she was wearing, so she didn’t need to dress up. It wasn’t like she had a male in her life to dress up for, but it also wasn’t that she hadn’t had offers. Her father was a lifer in the fae military, and she’d grown up knowing that any military male would happily take her as his bride to get in good with a commander as stellar as her father. But color her unimpressed with males wanting to get into her pants just because she was related to a male who was the right-hand of the king.
Picturing Noah’s home in her mind, she opened a portal and stepped in. Cool air rushed around her during the few seconds it took to transport from one place to another. The portal opened in front of his home, and she stepped out and onto his front porch, smiling at the scene. On a wooden rocking chair sat a paper grocery sack that was stapled shut. Next to it was a bouquet of wildflowers tied with twine, and a small notecard. She lifted the card and read, “Thanks. We’re even. N.”
Snorting, she picked up the flowers and inhaled the sweet scent. She and Noah were forever doing favors for each other, and it was a competition to see who could come out on top, owing the other a favor. At the moment it appeared they were tied, but she’d figure out something to do for him that was grand enough to be worthtwofavors, and then she’d be in the lead.
Check and mate.
