“But it’s difficult,” she explains. “Twice, we were successful, but then I had an early miscarriage both times. We have been trying for two years now. For humans, this might be different, but as wolves… two years is an impossibly long time.”
“Did you see a doctor?” Ella asks, her tone tentative.
“Yes, we both did. Everything is great with Marius. I am the problem.” She swallows, tears filling her eyes again. “I just want a baby.”
“Fuck! I don’t know what to say,” Dave blurts out. “Aside from this sucks!”
“You don’t need to say anything,” Annie reassures him.
“Yeah, you listening is enough, and getting mad in our place is fine, too,” Celine adds. “I know I still have time, it’s just…” her voice trails off.
“And I technically know it’s great that I have a sibling for Asteria and Aurora on the way. I want this baby, but I wish I could skip the pregnancy.”
Ella places a hand on Annie’s knee. “It doesn’t have to be as difficult as the first,” she says quietly. “You were with twins after all.”
“True,” Annie mutters.
“And you were with Liam’s firstborn,” Celine adds. “It probably put even more strain on your body.”
“I will try to see the positive side,” Annie promises. “When I think about the baby being here, I feel happy. I am just,“ she pauses, “scared.”
“We won’t leave your side!” Ella says with insistence.
“Not at all? Goddess, you mean that, don’t you?” Annie mutters.
Her light comment relaxes the atmosphere a bit, and we all chuckle. While Ella and Dave hurry away to get us more food and beverages, Annie squeezes Celine’s free arm.
“If you want to, I can set you up with a specialist. He helped one of my pack members.”
“Really?” Celine asks.
“Yes, she had trouble getting pregnant and came to me for help. I researched a lot during that time, and the doctor I dug up was really fantastic. I don’t want to overstep, but...”
Celine lets her words sink in before she nods. There is new hope in her eyes. “I guess I could try. Thank you, Annie.”
forty-four
The Pack
*FELIX*
Maddox’s pack, Verdant Forest, is much closer than I anticipated. We drove six hours to reach our destination, shocking me when I realize how close Gwen was all those years, and that she took a crazy detour to run from there. It makes sense, though. She probably wanted to put as much distance between herself and her pack as possible.
“It’s surprisingly beautiful,” I admit.
“How did you imagine it to be?” Maddox asks.
“Darker,” I admit. “Gloomy. But the area is beautiful, the forest in particular, and the pack doesn’t look run down.”
Maddox is silent for a while. After four hours of driving with him, I have become accustomed to his silence. I first thought he was freezing me out, but whenever I ask him something, he immediately answers and engages. He is polite, friendly even, but he is also very quiet.
“Gloomy, huh?” he mutters.
“Does it not look beautiful to you?” I ask.
Maddox just shrugs. “I guess it does. But I don’t really mind.”
Okay, there goes my potential conversation about what he enjoys doing in the pack. Obviously, he is feeling detached. It’s moments like these when I wish that Dario were here. He is much more sensitive to people’s feelings and can react appropriately. Whereas I might sense Maddox’s detachment, but I have no idea how to handle it.
