by Grace, Aria
I sit straight up, trying to process the possibilities. All sorts of emotions are flooding through me, and I just don't know how to react. What am I even hoping for? "Sean, there's no way. I'm not…" I press a hand to my abdomen and meet my brother's eyes. "Do you think it's possible?"
"Unless the two of you have just been playing house like a couple of celibate old monks, then yes, it's certainly possible." Sean chuckles to himself. "You said you wanted to raise a family with your alpha, right? This could be the start of that. You should be excited."
"I just…there's no way I can raise a baby in a house where the electricity doesn't even work right," I protest.
"That's something the two of you are going to have to work through together." Sean folds his arms across his chest. "If you want my opinion though, it's clear that you care about him a lot. I'm positive that you're meant for one another. The only issue here is, what are you willing to do to be with your fated mate?"
"Sean, I can't even imagine not being with him. I've spent the last two nights without him, and I feel like someone's ripped out part of my soul." I clutch my hands to my chest and try to bite back the swell of emotion I'm feeling inside me.
"Then you've already got your answer. What the hell are you sitting around acting like a wilted flower for?"
I narrow my eyes and furrow my brow. "You're right. I do know what the answer is." I climb to my feet, and with my hand gently pressed to my belly, I head to the bathroom.
20
Zachary
When my cell phone starts to ring, I'm hesitant to pick it up.
I didn't get much sleep again last night. It was bad enough the all the power was off and the fire was out, but not having Seth in bed beside me made everything so much worse. I very seriously contemplate just letting the call go to voicemail, so I can continue to lounge in bed like the loser alpha I really am.
But I don’t.
I'm not really sure why I finally reach over and answer it, but it just feels urgent, like I would probably regret it if I didn't. When I see Seth's name on the caller ID, I realize that I'm an idiot and should've picked up on the first ring.
I immediately sit up and answer. "Hey, babe, how are you?" I try to hide the sound of sleep that's still clinging to my voice.
"Hey, so, I'm still at Sean's, obviously, but there's something I need to tell you. I don't really want to do it over the phone, but it's important. I just…I just wanted to tell you I'm coming home." He sounds like there’s more that he wants to say but isn't quite sure what words to use.
"Yeah, okay. Do you need me to do anything? I'm sure you're going to want some fresh clothes before you head back to Sean's…" I glance around the room. I know there's a duffel bag around here somewhere.
"No, actually, I'm coming home to stay." His tone sounds final, and his words make my heart skip a beat.
"Babe…"
"Like I said, I've got something important to talk to you about. I just…I'll see you soon."
Before I can say anything else, he disconnects the call. Despite that abrupt end, I feel like the clouds have parted and the sun is shining down on me. Seth's coming back, and he says he won't be leaving again. I don't know what could have possibly happened to change his mind, but I'm not about to question his decision. The only thing I can do now is try to make him feel as comfortable as possible.
I quickly head downstairs to the basement and test the electricity again. As soon as the breaker flips on, the lights start to flicker with the same annoying regularity that they had the night before. I glare, but there's not much I can do about it at this point.
Without steady power, I can't get any work done. If I can't get my work done, I'll have a hard time fulfilling my promises to all those clients I just signed. I need to figure something out so I can work. But right now, I've got other things to deal with.
I go through my work area and turn all the monitors toward the wall. There's no power in the entire house, but on the off chance something screwy happens, I don't want Seth to get freaked out again.
Once that task is completed, I turn to the fireplace.
By the time I got back inside to put out the fire last night, the intensity had dropped down to a gentle flame. I'm still not sure what caused the flare up. Everything looked the same as it always did. Granted, I didn't know exactly what I was looking for, but I'm fairly certain it was just a one-time thing.
I tentatively build a small fire. Nothing too big, just enough to warm up the living room a few degrees. It takes a couple minutes for me to get it going nice and strong. The strength of the flames and the crackle of the fire is the same now as it always is. I cross my fingers and hope it stays that way.
By the time Seth finally gets home, I've done my best to cobble together a simple breakfast without using electricity.
I experimented with an old French press that my grandma had and tried heating up some water by the fireplace. The coffee that resulted from this experiment is not quite what I was expecting. It's certainly not the worst coffee I've ever had, but I have no idea if Seth is going to like it or not.
He's more of a coffee snob than I am.
"I missed you so much." Seth throws his arms around my neck and plies my face with kisses. "I shouldn't have left you last night…or the night before. I've been a mess these last few days, and I'm so sorry for leaving you like that."
"You don't have anything to apologize for." I hold him tight before we sit down on the couch. "I completely understand why you left. It's been a really rough couple days for me too."
"Yeah, well…" Seth clears his throat and takes a deep breath. "I think I know why I've been having such a hard time sleeping lately. I guess…I guess some people's sleep patterns get interrupted when…they're pregnant."
I feel as if I've just taken a roundhouse kick to the face. My heart leaps into my throat, and I'm struggling to find the right words to express what I'm feeling. With a grin that spans from ear to ear, I examine my omega's face and try to figure out what's going through his head.
"A baby?" I finally manage to squeak out as I reach for Seth and press a hand to his belly. "Are you sure?"
"I took a pregnancy test at Seth's house." His shoulders relax, and he places his hand over mine. "It came back positive almost immediately. I thought maybe it was a mistake, so I took two more. Obviously, I still need to go get a blood test to confirm, but I'm pretty sure. I haven't gone into heat since that first time…"
I shake my head slowly in disbelief. "I'm going to be a dad…" I say as I meet Seth's eyes. "We're going to be dads. This is the start of the family we were talking about. I know it's sooner than we'd thought, but still…"
"I know." Seth smiles at me with genuine joy in his eyes. "Still…there's a little problem."
My heart drops to my toes. "With the baby?"
Seth shakes his head. "No, not with the baby. Just…I've been realizing over the last few days that there's something wrong. I need to create a space where I can raise our baby safely. I have this deep biological need to be able to provide somewhere safe for my family. This house…isn't that. I hate saying this, but I feel like you're holding something back. I know that you've just spent all this time setting up new clients and taking on more work. But I can't help feeling like you're keeping something from me. Like you're not 100% committed to us moving forward as a family."
His words hit me like a Mack truck. I want to protest, to reassure him that there's no one more committed to him than I am. But I also have a sinking feeling that he's right. I have been holding something back. I take a deep breath and try to prepare myself for the conversation I've been doing everything in my power to avoid. All I can do is hope he understands why I didn't come forward with this from the start.
"When I got drunk the other day, it was because my mother came to see me." I look up at Seth and meet his eyes.
He says nothing, but I can tell he's listening with rapt attention.
I continue my story and slowly unravel all
of my mother's nefarious schemes. I try to explain to him the depth of my past with her and the scars that she's inflicted upon me.
To his credit, Seth seems to take it all in stride. At least, he doesn't say anything until I've completely finished telling him about her plot to take the house and how she trapped me into sending her money every month.
"She's full of shit," he says without hesitation when I finish talking. "You can only challenge a will under suspicion of things like fraud or coercion. If she wrote her will with the help of her lawyer, like a normal human being, then there's no way they can overturn it."
"How do you know?"
"It's just something I've picked up over the years. A couple of battered omegas have used inheritance money to escape from their abusive alphas. The fact is though, your mother is manipulating you, again. You know she's a liar, so why didn't you just look this up online?" Seth seems to be taking this a lot better than I was expecting. For my part, I can hardly believe that what he's saying is true.
"I just always believed that you shouldn't take legal or medical advice from the internet." I look up at him uncertainly. "I wasn't really sure if I should call a lawyer or not, but it's not like I can afford one anyway."
"Most lawyers give free consultations, so they can decide whether or not to take your case. The good ones only take cases they can win while the bad ones only take cases they can get money from." Seth looks me in the eye and lays a hand on my knee. "Zach, darling, I love you to death, but it's clear that you haven't gotten a lot of real world experience under your belt. Please, please, don't keep stuff like this from me in the future. We could've avoided a lot of stress and heartache over the last few days if you'd just told me the truth."
I can't bring myself to look away from him. I hear what he's saying, and I know that he's right, but my brain is still caught up on one word.
"You love me?" I say like a drunken idiot.
He smiles indulgently. “Of course I do.”
"I love you too, Seth. So much. And I'm sorry I didn't tell you the truth. At the time, the trauma of facing my mother was so intense that I couldn't bring myself to relive it by telling you. After that, I felt like this was something I needed to work through on my own. I'm supposed to be the alpha. I'm supposed to be the one taking care of you."
To my surprise, Seth laughs. "We're a couple, babe. We work together. The most important thing now is, are we going to have the funds we need to get started on the rewiring?"
Reality drags me back down to earth, and I try to run the numbers in my head. "Maybe. I need to get a few more quotes from contractors, but we should be able to get the ball rolling. We'll definitely have enough money once I get back to work with my clients."
"Great!" Seth seems delighted. "Now, let's turn the power back on and try cooking a real breakfast."
"But the lights…"
"If they flicker, they flicker. We'll deal with this one step at a time. Besides, how are you going to get any work done with the power off?"
I sigh and climb to my feet. "I'm not going to get any work done if the computers don't behave," I remind him as I make my way to the basement.
When I throw the power, the basement light comes to life without hesitation. I can hear the furnace begin to run through its normal startup sequence, and when I return to the living room, Seth's already in the kitchen making breakfast.
I relax a bit, suddenly feeling like everything is just a little more normal. Trying to hold back a relieved smile, I plug the computers back into their sockets and start each one up. With a baby coming, I definitely need to get some extra money in my pockets, even without having to pay my mother any rent. And now I’m even more grateful for all the extra work I’ve committed to.
21
Seth
The room Zach and I picked out for the nursery is upstairs and down the hall from our bedroom. Despite his insistence that I not be around the paint fumes, I can’t resist prying open the lid to one of the cans while he’s working downstairs. With a brush in my hand, I submerge the tip into the royal blue paint and begin spreading it over the wall in front of me.
I keep painting, covering the wall in the beautiful, rich color that makes me think of the ocean. I hope the baby likes it too. We just found out we’re having a boy, and I think Zach is even more exited about the baby than I am, which is hard to believe because I’m absolutely ecstatic.
Deciding to get as much done as possible before I get caught, I swap my brush for a roller and dump some paint into a tray. The paint goes on more quickly, and before long, I have the first coat covering the outside wall. A soft knock sounds on the door jamb, and I freeze, feeling like a kid with his hand caught in the cookie jar.
“I thought we agreed that I’d do the paining.”
I turn, shrugging slightly. “You were working, so I thought I’d get started.” I give him a sweet smile, begging for forgiveness with my expression. “Why aren’t you working?”
“Well, even though the lights aren’t flickering as much now that the contractors have started upgrading the electrical lines, my computers are still messing up. I swear, I don’t know what’s going on. So, rather than throw them all through the windows, I thought I’d take a break.”
Zach walks over to me, wrapping his arms around me and staring at the wall. “It looks great. But I think I know something that could help make this room look even better.”
“What’s that?”
He kisses my temple then rubs his hand over my protruding stomach. “Follow me.”
Looking at him curiously, I follow him down the hallway to the door at the end.
The attic.
I’ve never been up there, mainly because the spookiness of the house from before we started getting things fixed really had me nervous to explore. The door opens with a squeak, but the air doesn’t seem as stale as I imagined it would be. The creaking stairs lead up to an open area with several boxes stacked in the small space.
I take a look around as Zach walks to one end of the space and begins pulling boxes away from the corner.
“Here we go.” He pulls a white sheet up and beneath it is the most beautiful wooden rocker I’ve ever seen. The dark wood is lacquered to a lustrous shine under the low light from the bulb Zach turned on.
“Zach, it’s beautiful!”
“I thought it would be perfect for the nursery. When I was a kid, my grandma used to rock me and tell me stories before bed.”
“And now you can do the same for our boy.”
A tear forms at the edge of his eyelid as he nods. “I’d like that a lot.” Zach grabs the large rocker, moving toward the stairwell. “Will you pull the string for the light, and please be careful coming down these stairs. I don’t want you to fall.”
Just before pulling the power line on the single light hanging from the ceiling, I pause momentarily. “Zach?”
“Yeah?”
“I know I’m not a computer genius like you, but why do you have a modem up here?”
“I don’t…” Zach is almost in the stairwell when he sets the chair down and turns toward where I’m pointing.
“Then what is that?”
Zach walks closer to the small black box with wires sticking out of it and a small light glowing on the top. “That bitch…”
I have no clue what he means. “What is it?”
“I have a feeling I know where our ‘ghost’ numbers have been coming from…” He pulls the wires from the wall, disconnecting the small box. “I’ve been hacked.”
“Hacked?” I study him curiously.
“Yeah, it’s when…”
“I know what being hacked means.” I stop him short and laugh. “But who do you think did this?”
“My mother. I’m sure she didn’t do it herself, but she’s definitely behind this. She probably got some junkie friend to do it for her. But it would explain why the screens are still acting up occasionally.”
I pick up the modem and inspect it from all angles. “With
this little box?”
“It’s not a typical hack job, but by splicing into my connection, whoever was working for her was able to disrupt my operations. Now that it’s disconnected, I shouldn’t have any more issues.”
“So all this time…”
“My mother has been up to usual shit. She probably knew about the electrical issues and hoped to scare me into selling the house.”
“Wow,” I say in awe. “She’s the reason we’ve been having so many issues…”
“I think some of it was coincidence, but I’m not surprised she’d stoop so low. Honestly, nothing about my mother surprises me at this point. Thank god you noticed that thing. Now I definitely won’t believe anything she ever says.”
“You would have figured it out eventually.” I give him a soft smile.
He closes his arms around me and pulls me into his warm embrace. “But I’m glad I have you to help me now.” His lips cover mine in a passionate kiss. When we part, desire still lingers inside me as he gives me another warm peck. “Let me get the chair into the nursery, and then I’ll come back up here and clean up the remnants of our haunting problem.”
I follow Zach down as he carries the rocker to the baby’s room. He’s right. It looks absolutely perfect in the corner of the room. And once we have a crib and changing table in here, we’ll be ready to welcome him home.
I step over to the rocker and sit down on it, eager to get off my swollen feet. The polished wood is smooth, and the seat is comfortable.
I sit and rock for a few minutes, placing my hands over my stomach and talking to my sweet little one. “I always felt lonely before, but you and your daddy have made me the happiest man alive. And now I’ll never be alone again.”
Not only do I have my family and friends now, but I also have a husband and child to love.
Forever.
