I headed out the back to decorate some cupcakes, trying to focus on the task at hand rather than my pounding head. I really didn’t feel so good. As I iced the cupcakes, my vision started to blur. It started slowly, the neat piping doubling before my eyes, swirling in and out of focus.
“Jonica?” I said in a voice that I hoped was loud enough that she could hear. I was suddenly dizzy, clawing at the slippery metal counter for something to hold onto, to keep me steady, but to no avail. “Joni-“ And my vision went suddenly black, the world disappearing from beneath me as I fell.
Steadily I blinked my eyes open. The lights were harsh, whiter than white, and burning. I couldn’t have been out for long, but where the heck had I been moved? There was no way I was still in Frostbites, though I had to say I’d never seen it from the ground before so maybe it was.
I was comfortable, a pillow behind my head, a blanket covering most of my body. My mouth felt a little dry but not awful.
There were footsteps outside, mechanical beeps, something attached to my wrist, the sound of bodies in the room. Who was here? A doctor? A nurse? Had Jonica stuck around? Who was looking after Frostbites?
“Oh thank god, he’s awake.” It was a familiar voice, one that I definitely recognized but it seemed so out of place here, like it should have been somewhere else. “Chasen, could you grab a doctor?”
It was Jarrett. Wait. And Chasen was here? Shit. I didn’t think Jonica would call them both; she had to know that we hadn’t officially told Jarrett yet. Had I mentioned it? Maybe I hadn’t. Fuck.
Suddenly Jarrett stood above me, his eyes full of concern, looking over my face, his hand reached out to cup the side of my head. He leaned in and pulled me into a hug that I couldn’t really reciprocate because I was trying to piece together what the hell was going on.
“I’m so glad you’re okay,” he mumbled into my shoulder. “When Jonica called I went into a full panic and-“
“I’m all right, Jarrett,” I said as soothingly as I could. “At least I think I am. What happened? I was making cupcakes and-“
“Jonica said you fainted,” Jarrett said. “She heard you call her name, or thought she did, and came out to see you lying on the floor with a piping bag in your hand. She thought it was a joke at first.”
“We prank each other sometimes,” I said sheepishly.
“Yeah, she said that,” Jarrett continued. “But when you didn’t get up she panicked and called an ambulance. And me. And Chasen.”
There were a million questions dancing on his lips. I could see them in his eyes. He didn’t know where to start. And even though Chasen and I had only really figured out we were fated four days ago, there seemed to be a such a gigantic gap between us all of a sudden that I could hardly breathe. It made me feel suddenly sad. Neither one of us seemed to know what to say, we just stared into each other’s eyes until the door opened and broke through the silence.
“Doctor Morris is on her way,” Chasen said as he walked in. He stopped a little way from the bed and stared over at me. “Are you okay?” he said tentatively.
“I mean, I’ve been better,” I said, but smiled so he knew that I was actually okay. “I’ve never fainted before.”
“Something to cross off the bucket list,” Chasen said.
“Why would anyone put fainting on their bucket list?” I replied. “Skydiving, mountain climbing, tic-tac lunch with RuPaul, but never fainting.”
“Tic-tac lunch with RuPaul?” Chasen scoffed.
“You’re watching Drag Race with me whether you like it or not,” I said. “I refuse to take no for an answer. I’m not missing a season for you.”
And then I realized that Jarrett was right there watching all of this happen, watching the two of us quip back and forth like we’d been doing for years, but I was talking about things we were going to do together which was almost definitely against the rules. Jarrett looked a little stricken.
“Jarrett, I-“
“Glad to see you’re awake, Mr. Heeley,” Doctor Morris walked in, her mousy-brown bob bouncing with every step. “You gave everyone quite a scare.”
“Did I?” Shit. “Sorry guys.”
“Oh you weren’t really in any danger,” Doctor Morris said, waving a dismissive arm. “They were just being a bunch of drama queens. You didn’t bang your head or injure yourself, you just passed out, you’re going to be fine.”
“Do you know what caused it?” I asked. “I’m not dying, am I?”
Doctor Morris laughed, a sort of girlish giggle that filled up the room. No one else was in on the joke but she didn’t seem to mind.
“Heavens no,” she said. “Quite the opposite in fact.”
I blinked. I had no idea what that meant.
“I’m incredibly pleased to be able to tell you, Mr. Heeley,” she started. “That you’re pregnant.”
“What?”
“Huh?” Jarrett said, looking at me wide eyed, then back at Chasen. I had some explaining to do, that’s for sure.
“Wow.” Chasen grinned but suddenly hid it from view. But I caught it. Holy shit.
“Early days, but yes, you’re pregnant,” she smiled. “Congratulations.”
“Wait, but how does this feed into me fainting?” I said. There were so many questions rushing around my head at once I couldn’t quite get my bearings. The room was definitely spinning. Was I about to pass out again? Fuck.
“Well, you’re pregnant, which you didn’t know about when you got that little mating bite on your neck.”
My hand immediately flew to where Chasen had bitten me just last night. Jarrett had probably seen it; I hadn’t exactly gone to great efforts to hide it.
Well, that’s one way for him to find out.
“Because of that, your blood sugar dropped to quite a dangerous level, so you fainted,” she said. “It almost put the baby in danger, but everything seems to be fine there. Nothing to worry about at all.” She eyed me carefully. I must have looked terrified. I certainly felt it. It wasn’t exactly how I planned this thing with Chasen to go. “I know this is a lot to take in,” she said quietly. “But I’m here if you ever want to talk about it or if you need some advice.” She turned to Jarrett and Chasen. “Or any of you, for that matter.””
“Thank you, Doctor,” Chasen said suddenly, flushing..
“Yeah, thanks,” Jarrett said, though he had that questioning look in his eyes again. I could hardly blame him. Not only did he now have to deal with me and Chasen being together, now there was a whole other life involved.
“Thank you, Doctor Morris,” I said.
She told me that I could discharge myself when I was ready and left us alone. The room was deathly quiet, Jarrett and Chasen exchanging looks, clearly wanting to talk but not able to do it in front of me and Chasen not wanting to leave my side given the news we’d just had. This was all a mess, a much bigger drama than I wanted it to be. But I stopped the runaway train of questions and thoughts just long enough to stop and think. I was carrying Chasen’s baby. I was going to be a dad. If this was how forever felt, I didn’t want it to end.
9
Chasen
Was this really happening? I almost wanted to leave the room and chase down Doctor Morris to make sure she hadn’t made a mistake. We’d had sex twice, how could it be possible that we’d gotten pregnant so quickly? I mean, we hadn’t used protection but wow. Was I allowed to be a little bit impressed with myself?
What had started with a mad panic, Jarrett calling me to tell me that Tate had been taken to hospital and turned into what could possibly be a day we would never forget, the day we found out we were pregnant, that we were going to have a baby together. Wow.
I mean, I hadn’t wanted to face Jarrett and I guess he only called me because he knew that there was something going on between us. I suppose I appreciated that. He could have just kept it from me. It gave me some kind of vague hope that he wasn’t going to tear me apart for hooking up with his best friend.
I imagine t
he pregnancy changed that a little bit for him. It would at least confirm to him that we were fated. There would be no way Tate could get pregnant otherwise. There was so much to say. The air in the room was so thick I felt like I was drowning in it.
“Can I talk to you outside for a second?” Jarrett said, suddenly, rubbing his hands through his hair. He looked agitated. I’d not seen him looking like this before and I knew it was pretty much all my fault.
I looked over to Tate. “You okay by yourself,” I said.
He nodded.
I wanted to run over and hug him, kiss him, hold him, make sure he was okay and tell him that I loved him, that when I said I would be there, I meant it. I wasn’t going anywhere. He was having my baby and we were going to be together. I could hardly wait.
“We won’t be long,” Jarrett said, not looking at Tate before stepping outside. I followed him, the corridor a lot busier than the private hospital room, a fact I was glad for because I was pretty sure Jarrett was about to tear me a new one. I wanted witnesses. “I don’t really know where to start.”
“Me neither,” I said. “I guess there’s a lot that-“
“That you’ve been keeping from me?”
“That’s not quite what I was going to say,” I said. “I was going to say a lot that we need to talk about. I have a lot to explain.”
“I’ll say!” Jarrett exclaimed. A nearby nurse tutted him. I apologized. This only seemed to piss Jarrett off more. “What the hell is going on, Chasen?”
Jarrett had never been all that happy with the connection Tate and I had, the flirting that we did every time we were around each other. It made him feel uncomfortable because Tate was his best friend and, I guess, he didn’t like the idea of us being together. But this was different. This wasn’t harmless flirting or a random hook up. This was fated mates. This was serious.
“I don’t know where you want me to start.”
“How about you start with hooking up with my best friend at my bonding ceremony?” he spat. He knew where he’d wanted me to start the whole time. “I couldn’t believe it.”
“Why didn’t you say anything sooner?” I asked. “I was pretty sure you saw before Brent pulled you out of the room but-“
“Brent convinced me not to,” he said. “He didn’t think it was the right thing to do at a bonding ceremony and then thought you’d talk to us when you were ready.” He stopped, seeming to calm down even slightly. “And I didn’t really know what to say. I felt a little betrayed, if I’m being honest.”
“That wasn’t what I wanted to do, Jarrett, believe me.”
“Then what the hell were you thinking? He’s my best friend Chasen, what the fuck?”
“Hey now, back down, Jarrett.”
“Back down?” he echoed. “You’re telling me to back down?”
“You better believe I’m telling you to back down,” I barked. “That’s my fated mate in there, Jarrett, you think I’d just go and do something like that to hurt you, who the fuck do you think I am?” He opened his mouth to speak but quickly found that he couldn’t. “You are my brother and I love you but you can’t cheat fate. I wasn’t thinking, I was just acting.” I sighed. “You know what we’ve all been going through trying to find our fated mates, trying to keep the pack alive.” I said. “I had no idea that Tate was going to be mine.”
He took his eyes away from me, leaning back against the wall. “It’s weird to hear it out loud. It’s not what I was expecting. I always thought Tate was an alpha.”
I shrugged. “So did I. Imagine my surprise when this happened.” I took a breath. “I didn’t want to hurt you or betray you, Jarrett, not even a little bit. You know I love you. But you can’t cheat fate. You can’t even try it. I wasn’t expecting Tate to be my fated, not even a little bit. And then I scented him at your bonding ceremony.”
“So that’s why you were acting so weird,” he said.
“Yeah, I scented him there,” I continued. “And then it all just got the better of me. I followed him out to the Alpha den and…” I blushed. “Well, you saw what happened there.”
Jarrett laughed, which made me feel a little easier. At least he didn’t hate me completely. It was possible that he would forgive me, if not now then at some point. “You got him pregnant,” Jarrett said plainly.
“Yeah,” I breathed. “Not my intention.”
“I take it you didn’t use a condom.”
“No.”
“Then it was a risk,” Jarrett shrugged. “I’m not judging you, I swear, but I made that mistake to remember.” He cleared his throat. “Actually I did that twice. And it wasn’t a mistake, mistake is the wrong word.” He shook his head. “My kids are the best thing that’s ever happened to me, you know that. I just meant-“
“We weren’t careful,” I replied. “I know. Not the smartest move but you know what it’s like when you’re in the moment.”
“I have three kids,” he said. “I think I know better than most.”
I took a deep breath as I allowed the news to settle in my head. Tate was pregnant. We were going to have a baby. We were going to add to the pack, keep the pack alive. It was exactly what we knew we needed to do. I just felt so damn scared I didn’t really know what to do with myself.
“You okay, buddy?” Jarrett said, putting a hand on my shoulder. I nodded. And I meant it. I was better than okay. This was the dream, to have a family, to have found my fated mate, the man I was going to be with for the rest of my life. It was what I’d always wanted.
“I’m excited, really excited. Hey, quick question though,” I said. “What did you do when Brent was pregnant the second time?”
“I sang a song to him at a kid’s talent contest to tell him I loved him,” Jarrett said with a grin.
“Okay, yeah, I know, but after that,” I said. “Like, what would you have done for him had he been there first time around?”
“After that, I took care of him,” Jarrett said. “I made sure he knew that I was there for him one hundred percent. I made him comfortable when he was at home, hardly let him lift a finger which drove him completely insane, and let him know he was loved. The time to start creating your family is now. Start spending more time together, make up for all the time that you’ve lost by chasing around and flirting with each other instead of settling down.” He shrugged. “Be in love, Chasen,” he said. “Be in love and just love every second of it.”
I smiled. “We have your blessing?”
He shook his head. “You don’t need my blessing,” he replied. “You can’t cheat fate. You two are destined to be together and I need to just get used to that.” He checked his phone and then looked back at me. “I need to be getting back, I left my teacher’s assistant in charge of the classroom. Are you going to be okay here?”
“Of course,” I said. “Don’t you want to come back in and speak to Tate?”
He hesitated. While it was easy or the two of us to repair our relationship in a heartbeat, I could see that it was going to take a little more time with Tate. I opened my mouth to speak.
“I’ll say goodbye, sure,” he said. “Then I’ll get out of your hair. I know you two have a lot to talk about and...well...I need time too, you know?”
“Okay,” I said. “I’ll wait out here in case you change your mind.”
He poked his head in the door and said a quick “goodbye and congratulations” to Tate before saying goodbye to me too and heading off out of the doors to the hospital. I watched Jarrett go; hoping against hope that Tate and I being fated wasn’t about to ruin their friendship. That was the last thing I wanted to do. I’d talk to Tate about it too, make sure he was okay and we’d find a way to make it work. Even if I had to trick them into being friends again. I was going to make everything perfect for this family.
I stepped back into the private room and saw that Tate had gotten himself out of bed and gotten dressed. He was doing up his shirt as I walked in. I couldn’t help but smile at him.
“Everything all
right?” he said tentatively.
I sighed. “It will be,” I said. “Are you okay?” I continued. “Are you sure you should even be standing up at this point? She said you can discharge yourself whenever, it doesn’t have to be right away.”
“If you’re going to be fussing like this over me, I’m calling the whole thing off now,” Tate quipped with a grin. He looked so adorable and I couldn’t stop the smile that stretched across my face as I remembered he was pregnant, carrying my child. It didn’t seem real.
I reached out a hand to him. “Let’s get you out of here.”
“I should probably head back to the bakery,” he said, taking my hand and letting me lead him out. “I’ve left Jonica all by herself and-“
“If you think for one second I’m going to let you go back to work after you’ve passed out, you must have hit your head on something,” I interrupted. “We’re going back to my place.”
He blinked. “Are we now?”
“Yep,” I said. “I’m going to get you something to eat so you can keep your strength up, and then I’m going to run you a hot bath.”
“But Chasen-“
“No arguments,” I said, squeezing his hand. “I’ve got to take care of you. You’re carrying my baby, remember?”
He grinned broadly and nuzzled his head into my shoulder. I stopped us and took us to one side so we were out of people’s way and kissed him softly on the lips. Everything vanished around us, the bustling nurses, the cars outside, all the world suddenly went to nothing. It was just the two of us. When I pulled away there were tears in his eyes.
“What was that for?” he asked, his voice a little wobbly.
“I just want you to know that I meant what I said.” I made sure I was looking him right in the eyes. I wanted him to understand this. “I’m not going anywhere. I love you, Tate and I can’t wait for us to start a family together.”
10
Tate
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