Benji’s mouth tightened as he continued. “But none of them have been like this. Not the whole, uh, baby arrangement thing. And not the vampire thing. But just the fact that you actually stayed behind.”
“What do you mean by that?” I asked.
Benji winced. “You know. Like, staying after sex.” He sighed. “I guess what’s why I got freaked out when I woke up and you weren’t there. I thought you’d left me behind, just like all the other alphas did.”
“Oh, Benji,” I murmured. I stroked his back. “I’m here. I haven’t gone anywhere except to prepare you breakfast.”
“You were?” Benji groaned. “Now I feel even more like an asshole.”
I arched my brow at him. “What did I say before about talking badly about yourself?”
“To not do it. I know. Sorry.”
“It’s all right.”
Benji rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. “The other alphas were nothing like you. They all cared about one thing, and I’m sure you can guess what it was.”
I scowled. “Yes, I can.”
“In the morning, they’d just disappear. Hell, sometimes even before then. One guy would just use me and leave, like I was nothing.” Benji frowned again at the bad memory. “I guess it took a harder toll on me than I thought it would. Made me feel like I wasn’t worth anything.”
I took Benji into my arms and rested his head to my collar. “Shh. You’re worth more than any of them.”
Benji grunted softly but didn’t reply.
“I mean it,” I growled. “I would teach those men a lesson if I ever met them.”
Benji laughed. “That’d be fun to watch. Does that make me a bad person?”
I smirked. “No. In any case, if you’re feeling better enough to eat, there’s plenty waiting for you - and only you - downstairs.”
“Only me, and maybe… a baby?” Benji said with a sheepish grin.
The earlier feelings of dread I faced while speaking to my brothers had dimmed. Being with Benji ignited hope inside me. We still had time. I had faith that everything would work out.
“Perhaps.” I kissed his forehead. “It’s too early to tell yet, but we’ll know soon enough. Now come. You have a possible baby to feed.”
11
Benji
The few days passed with a slight tension in the air - at least when Margaret was around, anyway. She seemed to lurk in the corner of my eye until I was quickly hurried away by Pierce, who muttered something incomprehensible under his breath every time he noticed her.
“I guess she just wants to know about the baby, huh?” I asked.
“Yes,” Pierce growled. “But she could do it without acting like a hound on your trail.”
Besides the stress about Margaret, I couldn’t stop thinking about Caleb, either. How had his surgery gone? It wasn’t like I could just go and visit him, since Margaret would probably kill me on the spot for trying to leave. All I could do was sit anxiously and wait.
That night I received a call from the hospital and I nearly leapt out of my skin. My heart pounded with excitement as I picked up.
“Hello?”
“Hi, is this Benjamin Foster?” the man on the line asked.
My heart leapt. “Yes, that’s me.”
“Hello, this is Dr. Lopez. I’m calling about Caleb Foster. It says here you’re his first contact, and he told me himself that he wanted to update you as soon as the procedure was over, so I thought I’d give you a call,” the doctor said warmly.
