Chapter 3
I wasn’t sure what kind of reaction I was expecting, but it sure as hell wasn’t flat out disbelief.
“You’re what now?” Dan sputtered.
Gabrielle was almost laughing. “Pregnant. That’s ridiculous.”
My face turned red with hot embarrassment. Why weren’t they talking me seriously?
“It’s not a joke,” I declared.
Mom shot me a sympathetic look. “Matheson, how do you know? Have you taken a test?”
Before I could answer, Gabrielle interrupted sharply. “If you are, whose baby is it? You say you have three fated mates, but the baby can only belong to one.”
Murmurs of agreement broke out among the crowd. I expected that much. I just had to grit my teeth and bear it.
“That’s not true,” I said.
The humor melted off Gabrielle’s face as she sneered. “You’re not being funny, pup. Unlike you, I’ve actually given birth to a child, and I know how it works.”
I tried not to be offended at her remark. It helped that Colton, her own son, was holding my hand tighter, as if in apology for his mother’s words.
“Calm down, Lady Gabrielle,” Eric said firmly. “Let Matheson speak.”
Her mouth tightened. “Fine,LordEric.”
The tension around the fire had noticeably thickened.
“No, I haven’t taken a test,” I said. “But I know for a fact I am pregnant. I know it sounds ridiculous, especially since it happened so quickly, and I’m obviously not showing yet… But it’s the truth.”
“Then answer my question,” Gabrielle snapped. “If you are indeed pregnant, then whose baby is it?”
I met her gaze fiercely, not backing down. “The baby belongs to all three of them.”
Silence again.
Then awkward chuckling.
Then, worst of all, loud and raucous laughter from nearly everyone.
I shut my eyes, trying to drown out the noise.
It’s normal,I told myself over and over again.It’s normal for them not to understand. It’s okay.
“That’s enough!” Eric snarled.
The laughter cut off quickly. Eric’s commanding tone had startled even me. His face was twisted into a serious growl.
“All of you are quick to laugh, but who's the one fulfilling the prophecy? It sure isn’t any of you!”
His words caused them to pause, perhaps in shame.
“Trust me, I was in the same position as most of you,” Eric continued. “I didn’t understand how one omega could be pregnant by three alphas, but Iwantedto believe Matheson. He knows his body better than anyone, especially with his magic awakened now. And you know what? I put my small-mindedness aside and accepted it as the truth.”
“His magic?” Mom asked, blinking at me. “Matheson, did that really happen?”
“Yes,” I said. I touched my chest, feeling those sparks inside me. “I knew my magic awakened the very moment I became pregnant. In fact, that’s how I knew I was pregnant in the first place.”
