“That’s adorable. I need to pull her mouth open and look under her tongue.” The woman stuck her hand in her pocket and pulled out a tongue depressor. “All my lab coat pockets are full of these.”
Jen shifted Thia so that Kimily could reach her face and watched as the nurse pulled down on Thia’s chin while inserting the tongue depressor. She gently placed it under Thia’s tongue and lifted. It didn’t take but a second for Thia to close her mouth, but apparently, that was all the time Kimily needed.
“Not tongue-tied,” she said. “Now I need to see how she latches on. Even asleep she has the rooting reflex. If you rub your nipple against the side of her mouth, she will turn toward it and open her mouth.”
Jen did exactly what Kimily said and, sure enough, Thia acted in kind. Jen quickly inserted her breast into her daughter’s mouth and tried not to cuss.
“Holy, mother duck, pissing pearl eggs!” The not-cussing thing was only partially successful.
“Okay, I see what’s happening.” Kimily leaned closer and then looked at Jen. “May I?” She asked, motioning toward Thia’s chomping mouth.
“By all means,” Jen growled.
Kimily stuck her finger into the side of Thia’s mouth and broke the seal the little demon had on Jen’s nipple. “When you go to latch her, two things have to happen. You have to put your breast in her mouth while also pulling her onto the breast. This is to ensure the nipple is back toward the rear of the mouth.”
Jen listened and watched every little thing Kimily said and did. She put her hands where she was told and then executed what Kimily called “proper latch technique.” It took several tries, and Thia was getting ticked, but finally, on the fourth attempt, it happened. For a second, Jen heard angels sing, and everything suddenly moved in slow motion. Her right hand held her breast, and her left hand was on the back of Thia’s little head. Jen stimulated Thia’s rooting, and as soon as her little mouth opened, Jen pushed the two together. The angels were gone, and the cussing was back.
“Bloody hell,” Jen nearly yelled. “There’s no chewing going on and that’s great, but what the crap is this sharp stabbing pain that feels like it’s coming up from my toes to my breast?”
Kimily smiled, and Jen was man enough to admit that she wanted to knock that smile off her face. Her boob still hurt. No one got to smile while boob pain was still a thing.
“Unfortunately,” the nurse said in a pacifying tone, “that’s a normal part of nursing. For some moms it gets less painful, or stops all together, but the majority experience it to some degree.”
“Like, forever?” Jen asked, her eyes widening. “Are you saying there’s no way to prevent that? No top-secret latch technique? And taking drugs before nursing is out of the question?”
Kimily shook her head. “I can’t tell if you’re joking so I’ll just make it clear. No drugs or alcohol. And, no, there’s not a secret latch technique. That’s just part of it.”
Jen looked down at Thia. Her eyes were closed, and she was sucking away, not a worry in the world. “I’m not going to lie, mini me, when it’s your turn and you’ve got a babe on your boob, I will laugh. And I don’t mean a cute, little, understanding laugh. It will be the full blow, villain cackling with my head thrown back and my fists lifted to the sky. And there will be thunder and lightning for effect. Put it on your calendar, ’cause it’s happening. Boob for a boob, little B.”
“Okay, well…” Kimily said hesitantly as she stared down at Jen as if she’d phased into a wolf right before her eyes. “If you don’t have any more questions, I need to be going. Out of curiosity”—Kimily paused and chewed on her bottom lip—“where exactly am I?”
“Romania, although this is the Serbia Pack mansion, but let’s not get into how that happened.” Jen smiled and winked at her.
“Pack?” Kimily asked.
Jen nodded and opened her mouth to speak.
“Jennifer.” Decebel’s growl was subvocal and, more than likely, Kimily hadn’t heard it, but Jen had, and ignored it.
“Pack,” Jen answered. “You know, because we’re werewolves.”
There was a thud as Kimily’s body crumpled to the ground.
“Wow,” Jen said, her voice a breathy chuckle. “Okay, that happened.”
Chapter Five
“Hormones suck. That is all … for now.” ~Jen
Decebel snarledat Jen as he walked to the door and jerked it open. “We need some assistance in here, please.”
“Oh, no,” Sally said as she saw the crumbled body of Kimily lying on the floor. “You broke her?”
“Of course not,” Jen huffed. “I told her we were werewolves and that she was in Romania. In relative hindsight, it may not have been the best idea, but it certainly wasn’t anything to lose her head over.”
Jacque knelt next to the nurse. “She’s breathing.” Jacque’s tone told Jen she was not at all pleased with her friend’s revelation to the lactation specialist. “Did she hit her head?”
“She crumpled, literally,” Jen said. “We didn’t expect it, and I think Decebel was in shock that I word vomited.”
