He leaned down to kiss my forehead, which was damp with sweat.
“I’m so glad you’re okay now,” Bastian said to his brother. “I was really scared.”
The two briefly embraced. Noro nodded at him. “I’m sorry it took so long.” He glanced for a moment at Torin, then added, “I guess the two of you can fill me in later.”
Bastian nodded. “Right. Now the most important thing is--”
Pain ripped through me like a buzzsaw and I screamed.
Chapter 22
Labor fucking sucked.
“Everybody back off and give him space!” Tholan snapped at the curious gryphons.
The ring loosened and only those involved with the pregnancy or helping deliver the baby were allowed by my side.
Tholan and Mom were on standby. The old omega gryphon was acting both as a midwife and a bouncer, making sure nobody else got in my space. Mom was instructing me to breathe and reassuring me that her own delivery with me had gone just fine, and I needed to stay calm.
Colton remained a wolf, his furry white head laying on my chest and providing both calming pressure and something pleasant to grip my fingers in. He whined softly in sympathy as contractions jolted through me.
Ramsay and Eric knelt together by my side, with Noro on the other.
“You’re gonna be just fine,” Ramsay said, wearing his usual smile. It was normally carefree and happy, but I knew he was restless by the way he kept fidgeting.
“We’re here for you,” Noro reassured me. He held my hand, which I kept squeezing. His face still had claw marks across it from where Blaze had attacked him earlier, but he felt no pity for himself. All of his attention was focused on me.
But Eric was breathing heavily and he seemed disoriented.
“Eric?” I asked.
He shut his eyes and nodded to acknowledge me, but then he tipped over and collapsed on Ramsay’s shoulder.
“Whoa, Eric?” Ramsay cried.
A pained groan came out of Eric, and then I saw my own agony mirrored on his face. But his wasn’t from labor. I realized with a start just how intensely he and Noro had been fighting earlier. He must have sustained injuries, including ones I couldn’t see.
“Eric?” I asked frantically. “What hurts? Tell me.”
He winced and muttered, “Nothing. It’s fine.”
“Don’t lie to me when I’m in the middle of having your baby!” I snapped. “Tell me now.”
“Think I broke something,” he finally mumbled, “when I fell.”
I remembered him twisting and falling out of Noro’s grasp and my blood ran cold. “Shit.”
I went to reach for his side, but a shockwave of pain made me cry out.
“Stop,” Eric said while shaking his head. “It’s fine. I can wait.”
Ramsay frowned and put his arm around him, stroking Eric’s back to try and soothe him. I grabbed Eric’s hand, gripping it a bit too hard.
“No,” I said firmly. “Take my hand. Put it where it hurts the most. I’ll fix it.”
Tholan and Mom exchanged glances, unsure of what to do. Colton’s ears had flicked back in uneasiness.
I knew it was a fucked up situation and I knew I should’ve been focusing on delivering my baby. But my mate was injured. He got hurt trying to defend me. He journeyed up the mountain and fought gryphons just to protect me. There was no way I couldn’t at leasttryto heal him, even if I was in the middle of delivering.
