“You're going to be fathers.” Dr. Thorne's smile widened, genuine warmth in it.
The words didn't make sense. Logan’s brain tried to process them, fitting them into some kind of logical order, but they kept sliding away. Fathers. Nick. Him. Fathers.
“I don't—” Logan started.
Nick's eyes rolled back. He collapsed against the pillows, out cold.
“Nick!” Logan lunged forward, catching his mate before he could slide off the bed entirely. “What the hell just happened?”
“Shock, most likely.” Dr. Thorne moved around the bed, checking Nick's pulse. “He'll be fine. His body's been through significant changes.”
“What changes?” Logan demanded, arranging Nick more comfortably on the mattress. “What's wrong with him?”
“Nothing's wrong.” Dr. Thorne packed his instruments back into his bag with careful movements. “Your mate is forming a temporary womb. The pain should ease up considerably over the next few days as his body adjusts.”
Logan sat down hard in the chair, his legs refusing to support him. A womb. Nick was growing a womb. They were going to be parents.
“How?” The question came out strangled. “He's male. Vampire. How is any of this possible?”
“Male vampires can conceive with their mates, regardless of species.” Dr. Thorne's tone remained calm, clinical. “He must be a direct descendant of Prince Christian. His body recognized the need to carry your child and began adapting.”
Logan stared at Nick's unconscious form, trying to reconcile everything he'd just heard. Yesterday, his mate had been a human suffering from mysterious episodes. Now he was a vampire carrying their baby.
Their baby.
Chapter Eight
Logan stared at Nick, sprawled unconscious across the bed. Sweat glazed his skin, his hair was plastered to his temples, and his mouth slack and pink. Nothing about him screamed “dangerous vampire.” He just looked small. Too small for what he’d just gone through.
Father. Logan’s hands shook as he tucked the blanket back around Nick’s hips. He was going to be a father. Right now all he cared about was the guy lying half-wrecked in front of him.
Nick’s body curled around the pain, his knees pulled in like a drowned kitten. Something about that made Logan sick, made him want to tear the whole world in half just for letting this happen. He glanced at Dr. Thorne, who seemed pretty casual about the whole thing, then back at his mate.
“Is he going to stay down long?” Logan could barely get the words out. Guilt scraped his throat.
Dr. Thorne finished packing his kit, not a single muscle out of place. “He’s overloaded. That’s all. Shock’s common when the body starts shifting this fast. He’ll wake soon. Give him water and food then let him rest.”
Logan grunted. He didn’t trust doctors, especially those who looked like they’d walked out of a vampire mafia movie, but this one had helped, so he’d let it slide.
He hovered over Nick, breath stuck in his throat, waiting for a sign that his mate would be okay. He grabbed Nick’s hand, cold and bony even after two full meals of Logan’s blood. He didn’t like the way the tendons stood out, thin and fragile.
A clatter from the doorway. Zeppelin strode in, stone-faced as always, and gave the doctor a quick up nod. “Everything all right?”
“Your wolf’s mate is pregnant,” Dr. Thorne said. He sounded like he was announcing a bake sale.
Zeppelin blinked then grinned like he’d won a prize at the carnival. “Good for you, Logan. Really. You’re in for it now.”
“Yeah,” Logan muttered. His voice came out rough. He didn’t let go of Nick’s hand.
Zeppelin took one look at the mess on the bed then jerked his chin toward the hall. “You got this?”
Logan glared. “I got it.”
Alpha’s lips twitched. “Scream if you need backup. I’ll keep the rest of the lookie-loos away.”
Dr. Thorne followed Zeppelin out, their low voices fading as the door swung shut. Silence pressed in, loud as a gunshot.
Nick moaned, his hands grabbing at the sheets. Logan moved fast, steadying his mate with a palm on his lower back. “Easy. You’re safe.”
