I glanced up to see Lark standing there, a half-crushed monster truck in her hand. My heart melted when I realized she had called me her uncle.
“Maybe,” I said, trying to smile. I didn’t want to frighten her.
“I’m gonna have another cousin!” Lark exclaimed.
“Although she wouldn’treallybe your cousin,” I said gently. “Since I’m not really your dad’s brother.”
Lark shot Benji a quick look of confusion, who shrugged and nodded at her. But that didn’t deter Lark. Instead, she dropped the truck and approached me before giving me a big hug.
“You’re still my family, doctor Max,” she said. “I love you.”
My spirits soared. I hugged her back, trying to ignore the hot tears blooming in my eyes. “I love you too, sweetie.”
“Feel better!” she ordered me, then picked up her truck and went back to playing with Luna.
I sank back against the sofa, wiping the tears on my sleeve and feeling like I’d been through the emotional wringer. Most of my anxiety had scattered, leaving me feeling better, if a bit tired.
“They really know how to get you, don’t they?” Benji teased.
“You can say that again,” I mumbled. “Thanks, you guys. I think I just needed to vent and maybe cry it out a little.”
“Anytime,” Caleb said, patting me on the back.
I got up and sighed. “You’re right. I probably do need to talk to Theo.”
I found my mate in the greenhouse where we shared our first kiss. The warm, humid air tingled my skin and the fresh scent of plants and flowers filled my nose. The pleasant atmosphere helped further calm my nerves.
Theo sat near the back beneath one of the peach trees, his back to the bark, his eyes shut as if in concentration. At the sound of my footsteps he opened his eyes and smiled at me. “Hey.”
“Hi. What are you doing here?”
“Just thinking.” He invited me to sit next to him, and I did. The air smelled deeply like peaches.
“I can hear your heart beating strangely,” Theo remarked. “Are you okay?”
I fiddled with a fallen leaf on the ground. “Um, yeah. I was anxious earlier but I’m mostly fine now, I think.”
He put his arm around me. “About what?”
My anxiety flared a bit, but thankfully it wasn’t as bad as before. I snuggled closer against Theo and let his comforting aura wash over me. “The future. Our potential baby. How I don’t feel like I’m ready to be a parent.”
“I don’t think anyone feels truly ready.”
I sighed. “That’s what Benji and Caleb said, too. Still, I just wish I felt a little more like I knew what I was doing.”
Theo chuckled. “Dude, you’re a doctor. You know more than most people.”
“Being a doctor and being a parent are two totally different things,” I protested.
“Sure. But that’s a huge step up to being ready, don’t you think?”
“Or it could just mean I’ll be more nervous because I know all the things that could go wrong,” I mumbled.
“Ugh. C’mere.”
Theo groaned and pulled me with him as he laid on his back beneath the peach trees. We stared up at the canopy of green and pink. Theo rolled over so that his face was above mine, and he smiled down at me.
“I know you’re nervous. I am too. Everyone is when they know they’re gonna be a parent. But it’s also exciting.” He kissed my cheek. “When that baby arrives, you’re gonna love them more than anything.”
