Page 59 of Bikar
Leaning back, she looks at me in confusion. “Yes…?”
“As it turns out, that is not entirely accurate. As we speak, you are gestating two of our younglings within your womb.”
“I beg your finest fucking pardon?!”
At least she cannot run away or kick me in the stones again.
It is a small consolation.
CHAPTER 53
BAMBI
He made a freaking PowerPoint presentation about how he got me pregnant…with twins.
Not exactly what I thought I would be doing the morning after losing my virginity, but here we are. Clutching Rooster against me, he purrs contentedly in my lap while Bikar stares at me anxiously from where he sits next to the holo-screen, hands clenched tightly in his lap.
“Bambi, say something.Please.”
It’s the emphasis on the“please”that gets me. Putting Rooster on the ground, he wanders over to his food bowl and the snacks Bikar put there earlier. Focusing on my mate, the stress radiating off his big body makes my heart melt. He fidgeted the entire time he was going over what he discovered about my… current condition. My sigh makes him flinch, and I know he’s expecting the worst.
Getting off the couch, determination in every step, I walk over and climb into his lap. Tucking my head under his chin, he gathers me closer, and we sit in silence for a while until I formulate my thoughts.
“I’ve always wanted a family, including children. Can’t say that I expected it to happen this fast, but I’m not unhappy about it.”
Leaning back in the chair, he lifts my face with the tip of a finger. “You… you are not angry with me?
“Not at all! You didn’t even know this was going to happen when we had sex.” Huffing out a laugh, I must give credit where it’s due. “Your presentation was thorough and pretty much answered all the questions I had. Good job on that, by the way.”
Dark color sweeps up his cheeks above his black beard. “Sugar, are youblushing?”
Nuzzling his cheek against mine, he murmurs. “You say the nicest things to me.”
“Only when you’re not being a jackass.”
He pauses. “Fair enough.”
Standing with me in his arms, he whistles for Rooster. To my surprise, my fur kid toddles over and follows us out the door and down the hallway. The sound of voices gets louder the closer we get to the communal areas, and my nerves hit. Bikar detects the change in my scent instantly.
He stops at the threshold between our hall and the commons. “Little doe, why are you worried?”
Biting my lip, I try to articulate how I feel while keeping my voice low, so our nosy family doesn’t hear.
“I don’t want to tell everyone else I’m pregnant. I want it to be for you and me for a little while, just until I get used to the idea. Your mom… I know she acts like she does because she cares, but she’s pretty pushy about getting to know her new daughter. I can’t imagine how insistent she’ll be when she finds out I’m knocked up with her first grandkid.”
“Mam… she means well.”
His voice is hesitant, and I get it. He and his brothers just reunited with her, so he’s not real hip on upsetting her.
“I get that, but this is ours. I’m your mate and our relationship comes first. Then when our babies get here, they’re second. Your mam will be third on the list. That doesn’t mean you love her any less; it just means she isn’t your priority.”
My tone is firm.
Firmer than normal, so he knows how serious this is. I will not have anyone—especially his mother—interfering in our relationship or my pregnancy, well-meaning or not.
Slowly he nods. “I understand, Starshine. Worry not, you willalwaysbe my first priority and our younglings as well. That is the proper way of things.”
Hesitating, he shoots me a glance before spitting out. “Some of my brothers’ sense of smell is just as good as mine, if not better. They will figure it out sooner rather than later. Your scent has not altered so much that another would notice, but I can already detect changes.”
