The sickened luna’s last chance

Chapter 92

Ella

The ultrasound appointment card was sitting on the breakfast table when Alexander walked into the kitchen

three weeks later, I'd set it down for two seconds while | grabbed my coffee, and he had spotted it immediately.

“What's this?” He picked up the small white card and inspected it.

“My first ultrasound. It’s today.” | reached for the card, but he held it just out of my reach. “Can | have that

back?”

“Were you planning to go alone?”

1 shrugged. “It’s just a routine checkup. Nothing exciting. We won't know the gender for another couple of

months.”

Alexander's eyebrows shot up. “Ella, this is our baby’s first ultrasound. Of course I'm coming with you.”

“You don’t have to-"

“I want to.” He set the card back down on the table and fixedwith that familiar look of his that said the

discussion was over. “I'll clear my schedule.

Despite myself, my chest warmed pleasantly at his insistence. I'd gotten so used to doing things on my own over

the years, especially anything relatert my health, that | hadn't even considered he might want to be there.

“Okay,” | said quietly. “If you're sure.”

“I'm sure.” Green eyes flickered with something that | could have mistaken for the very stenderness he

showedat the banquet three weeks as “Get dressed. We'll head out soon.”

| nodded, and once | finished my coffee and gobbled up a couple slices of toast with jam, | hurried upstairs to

change. | threw on a comfortable sundress -summer had brought with it a hot and humid spell that was not doing

any favors for my early pregnancy discomfort-and ssandals, then pulled my hair up into a simple bun and

headed out.

Alexander was waiting by the car when | found him. He opened my door forlike a perfect gentleman, and |

tried to ignore the discomfort | felt when | saw Gabriel sitting in the driver's seat.

The Beta didn’t look at me, which | wasn’t complaining about. | didn’t want to look at him either after what he'd

done.

Throughout the entire drive, Alexander's leg was bouncing in the seat beside me.

“You seem more anxious than | am,” | pointed out with a smirk as we pulled into the parking lot of the clinic a

little while later.

“I'm not anxious.”

“Right. And I'm the Alpha King.”

He shota look, but | caught the hint of a smile tugging at his lips. It had been more common lately, that

damn smile. He thought | didn’t notice, but ! did.

| knew it wasn’t because of me, necessarily, | knew he was just happy about the baby.

But damnif | didn’t find it utterly captivating. How many times had Alexander smiled throughout our

marriage? | wasn’t even sure if | could count them on one hand. Not until now, when they were becoming more

common than seeing him in a suit, which was every day.

The appointment itself was everything I'd hoped it would be. Dr. Evelyn squirted cold gel on my slightly swollen

belly and moved the ultrasound wand around until a grainy black and white image appeared on the screen.

“There's your baby,” she said, pointing to a tiny blob that looked more like a bean than a little life. “Everything

looks perfect so far.”

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Chapter 92

My eyes blurred with tears as | looked at the screen. That little blob was our child. Mine and Alexander's.

ts that the heartbeat?” Alexander asked, pointing

tis. Strong and steady, exactly what we want to see.” Dr. Evelyn made snotes on her clipboard. “The

pregnancy is progrensing beautikdily, Fla. Your wolf's strength is clearly providing excellent support for the

baby’s development.”

“And my condition...?”

Evelyn beamed. “It's remarkable, actually. Your wolf seems stronger than ever despite her dormancy. In fact, |

dare say you're on track to have the healthiest pregnancy I've ever seen.” She leaned forward and patted my

hand. “You look fantastic, Ella. I'm so glad to see you recovered.”

Unbidden, my fingers fluttered toward the mark on my neck. It was a scar now, a raised patch of flesh in the

shape of a crescent. Perhaps it wasn’t evidence of Alexander's true love, but it was evidence that he'd cared

enough for our child to mark me.

And that was something, wasn't it?

We left the office with a strip of ultrasound photos and matching grins on our faces. | kept looking down at the

pictures, trying to make sense of the tiny form that would becour son or daughter.

“Home?” | asked as we got back in the car.

“Nope.” Alexander directed Gabriel to drive toward the shopping district. When the Beta parked outside of the

biggest baby supply store in the teritor turned to stare at Alexander.

“Alexander, what are we doing here?”

“Shopping for the baby.” He was already getting out of the car, and when he opened my door, he was in such a

rush that | practically had to jog to cate up with him.

“Isn't it a little early for that? I'm barely three months along.”

“It’s never too early to be prepared. I'm just being practical.” Right. Practical. As if | couldn't see the excitement

in his green eyes. “Besides, the good stuff

takes tto order.”

The store was massive, with different sections for furniture, clothes, toys, and feeding supplies. Everything was

displayed in little mock nurseries that made my heart leap and my mind race with all kinds of ideas for our future

baby’s room.

“Alpha Alexander! Luna Ella!” A cheerful woman in her fifties approached us with a clipboard. “I'm so honored

that you're considering my humble shop for your little heir.”

“Hardly humble,” | laughed, gesturing around at the massive space and making the woman blush.

Alexander placed his arm around my shoulders, and now | was the one who was blushing. “We're just looking for

the essentials for now. Crib, changing table, that sort of thing. But | only want the best.”

“Wonderful! Congratulations. When are you due?”

“January,” | said.

“Perfect timing for our holiday sales.” She gestured for us to follow her toward the furniture section. “Let me

show you sof our most popular pieces.”

For the next hour, we wandered through displays of cribs and dressers and rocking chairs. Alexander was

surprisingly opinionated about everything, rejecting anything that looked “flimsy” or “impractical.”

He spent twenty minutes examining the safety features on one crib before finally approving of the locking

mechanism.

“This one,” he said decisively, running his hand along the smooth wood of a beautiful cherry crib. “What do you

think?”

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Chapter 92

I had to admit it was gorgeous. Classic but not fussy, with clean lines and expert woodworking, “I love it.”

“We'll take it. And we'll need the matching changing table,” Alexander told the sales associate without

hesitation. “When can you deliver?”

“For the full set? About six weeks.”

“Perfect.”

| was starting to understand why people said pregnant women nested. There was something deeply satisfying

about picking out furniture for our baby, even if we wouldn't need it for months.

There was also something deeply satisfying about seeing Alexander in such a state of glee.

We were debating the merits of different rocking chairs when | heard a commotion near the front of the store.

Voices, car doors slamming, the sound of running feet.

“Oh my Goddess, is that really them?”

“I told you they were here!”

“They're buying baby stuff! This is so cute!”

Alexander and | exchanged a look of horror as a group of about ten people burst through the store entrance,

phones already out and recording.

“Luna Ella! Alpha Alexander! Can you tell us about the baby?”

“When are you due?”

“What are you hoping for, a boy or a girl?”

The sales associate looked panicked as the fans swarmed toward us, knocking over a display of stuffed animals

in their excitement.

“Fuck,” Alexander muttered under his breath. He grabbed my hand and steeredtoward the back of the store.

“Is there another exit?” he whispered to the associate.

“Service entrance,” the woman stammered. “Through the stockroom.”

We hurried through a door marked “Employees Only” as the crowd/grew louder behind us. | could hear the store

manager trying to restore order, but it wasn’t working.

The service entrance led to an alley behind the building where Gabriel was already waiting with the car running.

“How did they know we were here?” | asked as we climbed into the backseat.

“Social media,” Gabriel said grimly, pulling out of the alley. “Someone posted about seeing you at the doctor's

office, and it spread from there.”

“Goddess.” Alexander's serene smile had been replaced by a look of utter disappointment. “Can’t we buy baby

furniture without it becoming a spectacle?”

“Apparently not.” Gabriel glanced at us in the rearview mirror, eyes briefly meeting mine. “Maybe from now on

you should just order everything from a catalog.”

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