Ian went over to the sink and washed his hands. “Please get up on the exam table, Kian. I’m sure your strapping mate can help you.”
“My pleasure.” I lifted him up to the table. And kissed him. “I love you, Kian.” My mate leaned into my chest, his legs dangling off the table.
“l love you too, Gabe,” Kian whispered, “and I can’t wait to share everything with you, from the quiet nights at home in front of the TV to long, stay-awake-all-nights with the kids teething, to vacations in Disneyland or wherever else. Just with you.”
Kian didn’t know what his words meant to me. It had been five amazing weeks with him. I’d found myself leaving work early because I had someone to come home to. I didn’t want to miss any moment of our lives I didn’t have to.
“Okay, lovebirds, let’s meet your little ones.” I turned to my friend, and he had a knowing smile on his face.
“How’s Adam and the kids?” I asked.
“Good, Adam just completed the designs for a new estate in Billings. His first solo project.” I didn’t miss the pride in his voice for his mate. “The two of you should come over for dinner.”
I looked over at Kian and raised a brow. “We’d love to,” my mate replied for both of us.
“You heard the boss. We’d love to,” I said.
Ian laughed as he slipped on gloves and took a seat on the stool beside the bed. “Looks like you’ve already figured out how mated life works.”
Kian snorted. “He’s a fast learner,” he teased.
“Always has been,” Ian said. “Please lift your T-shirt, Kian.”
My mate did as he was asked. And I couldn’t help the smile that appeared on my face when I saw the small mound that was my mate’s belly. Somewhere deep down in a very primitive place, I couldn’t stop the glow of satisfaction at the obvious changes in my mate’s body that showed his pregnancy. I was fertile. Kian was carrying my seed in his belly. There was a very heady feeling knowing I was responsible for that change.
Kian looked up at me, and we shared a smile, and he slipped his hand into mine.
“Ready?” Ian asked.
We grinned and nodded. “Yup. Let’s get this show on the road,” Kian said.
“Well, you heard the boss,” I said to Ian.
Ian chuckled and squirted the gel on Kian’s stomach. My mate’s grip on my hand tightened. I followed all of Ian’s movements with my eyes. Until an image appeared on the monitor in front of him.
The quiet seemed to stretch out, and Kian and I exchanged a look. My heart raced, and Kian squeezed my hand so hard I thought he would manage to break a bone in there. I could hear his racing heartbeat, and there was a sour undertone to his scent that told me he was as scared as I was. The narrow-eyed look Ian had given Kian when they were first introduced flashed into my head.
“That’s what I thought,” Ian finally spoke, breaking the silence. He looked at us, and his dark eyes danced, and some of the tightness around my chest loosened. That wasn’t a bad look.
“Congratulations, you two.” Ian grinned. “Just what I thought. You’re having twins.”
My mouth dropped, and Kian’s eyes widened, and his head swiveled to Ian. “What!” he said. “Are you sure?”
“Pretty sure,” Ian replied, chuckling. “Watch the monitor,” he urged.
Suddenly, the blurry image became astonishingly clear and in 3D.
“That’s a baby,” I whispered, amazement in my voice even though I knew my mate was pregnant. I hadn’t expected everything to be so recognizable, and certainly not a tiny face.
“Oh, he’s so…so beautiful,” Kian said shakily.
I closed a hand over his. “Are we having a boy?”
“Do you want to know?” Ian checked.
“Isn’t it too soon?” Kian asked.
“Not at all. With the pregnancy being over seven weeks along according to the measurements and full-term being twenty-six weeks, it should be no problem.”
