“Hey there, gorgeous,” he said softly, tucking my hair behind my ear. “Finally awake?”
“What happened?” I mumbled. I tried to look down at my body, but the hospital gown and blankets were in the way. “Are they out of me?”
Jericho laughed. “Is that any way to talk about your kids? And yes, for the record, they areoutof you.”
“Finally,” I mumbled, letting myself fall back in exhaustion. “Where are they? Why aren’t they in here with me?”
“The nurses are just making sure they’re healthy, don’t worry. They’ll have them back to you in a jiffy,” he reassured me. “By the way, I gotta say… the sweaty, pissed off hospital gown look? I’m totally loving it.”
“Oh, shut up,” I muttered, but I couldn’t help smiling. Even when he was being an idiot, I loved him.
We made small talk - mostly of half-horny mutterings that were probably inappropriate for a hospital room - when I realized half an hour had passed and I still hadn’t seen my babies since waking up. A strange sense of unease came over me.
“Jericho, where are they?” I asked, my brows furrowing.
“I don’t know,” he said. “Maybe they’re still cleaning them up? Do you want me to go check?”
I knew the prickle of anxiety would only get stronger if he didn’t, so I said yes. He nodded and quickly left the room, heading for the nursery.
I sighed and stared at the ceiling. I was drugged up and fucking tired and suddenly incredibly anxious and stressed that I wasn’t holding my children right now. I thought about all the other people who had seen my babies before I did. That just wasn’t right.
A moment later, the door opened again. My heart fluttered, hoping Jericho brought good news.
But it wasn’t Jericho standing there.
“Oh, Beth,” I said, my hopes dashed slightly. “Are they letting people visit me now?”
“I guess,” she said with a light chuckle and a shrug. She looked around the room. “Where are the pups?”
“I don’t know,” I said, wrinkling my face. “Jericho said they must still be looking them over or something. He went to ask.”
“But thereweretwo, right?” she asked.
“Yeah,” I confirmed. “But I don’t know anything beyond that.”
She nodded slowly. I noticed the friendly smile on her face from before I went into surgery was gone. Instead a strange, faraway look was cast on her expression.
“Are you okay, Beth?” I asked, suddenly feeling uneasy again.
She stepped closer to the hospital bed and wouldn’t meet my eye. She looked me up and down as if she were eyeing a piece of meat. A cold anxiety ran down my spine.
“Mason,” she said quietly. “It’s time to go.”
I stared at her with wide eyes. The only answer I could muster was, “What?”
She reached down and touched my arm. Fear exploded through me, like electricity running through my skin. I wrenched my arm out of her way, but I couldn’t escape. I was exhausted and stuck in a hospital bed.
“It’s time to go,” she repeated, almost coldly this time. She grabbed me by the arms and began lifting me from the bed.
“Beth, what the hell are you doing?” I cried, struggling in her grip. I tried as hard as I could to escape, but I was enormously fatigued and she was stronger than she looked. As a beta wolf, she was naturally stronger than me, but especially when I was so exhausted.
She took me in her grip and dragged me out of bed towards the door. My heart raced with fear, but my throat felt tight, like I couldn’t scream even if I wanted to. She had me halfway down the hall before the thought of my pups came to me. Where was Beth taking me? Why was she separating me from my family?
My protective instincts exploded. I wrenched myself out of her hands and tried to run in the opposite direction. I heard Beth snarl behind me, then heard her rapid footsteps. I couldn’t run far. I had just gone through a surgery.
“Get back here!” Beth snapped. She was on me in an instant. I felt weak and useless and could only growl at her as she gripped me again.
“What the fuck’s wrong with you!?” I snapped. “What are you doing?”
