Annie
She waited until she heard the Hummer’s tires hitting pavement to bolt into the bathroom. After yesterday Annie knew Nathan would be furious with her for testing again. Especially so soon after a negative test. But what Nathan didn’t know couldn’t hurt him. She’d have to be a big girl and deal with this on her own.
Her morning routine dragged on in the guest bathroom. Annie wanted to make sure she didn’t peak. Although, now, she wished she’d just gotten ready in the master bath. Praying to see a plus sign, Annie took a deep breath, turning the test over.
Negative. Before Annie could berate herself for getting her hopes up, the sobs started. Her knees stung from their impact on the cold tile floor. This was becoming too much for her to handle. The urge to throw up hit Annie suddenly.
How long she hung her head over the toilet, Annie had no idea. But, after what seemed like forever, she scented Nathan. Then felt one hand pulling her hair back, with the other rubbing her neck. His cursing echoed in her ears, “Damn it, Annabeth.” Nathan’s anger and disappointment crashed into her through their bond.
“Enough is enough. I’m taking these fucking things and throwing them out. No more testing, understand?” Nathan’s tone left no room for arguments. He rarely gave her a tough time about something.
For him to be so angry meant she’d fucked up, big time. “I’m sorry.” She whimpered, laying her heated forehead against the cold lid.
“Annabeth, there’s no reason to be sorry. You didn’t do anything wrong.” He had her wrapped in his arms before she could voice her protest. “Shush now, honey. I should be the one apologizing. You don’t need me growling, throwing a fit like a cub.”
“No. You have every right to be angry with me, I’m the one who knows better. I know not to get my hopes up.” She curled into her mate’s strong arms, wrapping herself around him. “We do need to get rid of those little devils.”
“And no more testing without me. If we do get a positive, I want to be here with you.” He snuggled her closer, nuzzling her. “I love you more than life itself. We’ll get through this together.”
Her husband wasn’t like her friend’s mates. Nathan held back on his emotions and actions when they were around others. But in private, he was the sweetest, most passionate man she knew. “I’ve been thinking this is all on my shoulders and I know when to admit when I’m wrong. I’m wrong, aren’t I?”
“Yeah, but it’s alright because I haven’t been very vocal about how this affects me.” He paused, lifting his head to look around their little bathroom. “I didn’t think we’d have this conversation in here. In fact, let’s not.” She thought he meant the conversation was over.
Instead, he stood with her in his arms, carrying her to their bed. After getting them situated up against the headboard, he started again. “Every time I look at my buddies, I’m jealous. Then I feel like I’m lacking in my manhood somehow because they got their mates pregnant, and I haven’t. At least not yet.”
He winked at her, pulling her closer until Annie couldn’t tell where she began and he ended. “But it will happen, I know it. In the meantime, we lean on each other. We’re a unit Annabeth, you’re not alone in this.”
“I love you so much, Nathanial. You are my whole world, I just want to make our dreams of having a family come true.” Her mate got a guilty look on his face. “What? What have you done this time?”
Nathan had a way of trying to fix things without telling her. She knew exactly what the look on his face meant. He’d done it again. Sweet bear, always trying to make our life easier. “I may have kickstarted the whole family thing.”
“How? What do you mean?” Swinging her leg around to straddle his hips, Annie now faced him.
“Don’t think I did this because I don’t believe we'll have kids on our own. This could only help us in the long run. After seeing how happy Carter, Grace and Stella are, I realized adoption could be an option for us.” He cradled her face in his hands, leaning in to give her a soft kiss. “I should’ve talked to you first before I submitted the paperwork.
“I may have gotten a little excited. Just think about a little one who needs parents. We could give a cub or pup or whatever they are unconditional love. A good home-”
“A family,” Annie whispered, her lips brushing against Nathan’s as she formed the words. “It’s wonderful. I don’t know why we didn’t think of it sooner. Did it say when we’d hear anything back?”
“No, it could take years.”
“But Stella-”
“Stella’s case was an emergency, that kind of thing doesn’t happen every day. Don’t forget, Carter and Grace already had some kind of claim on her. We don’t have any sort of sway over Shielded Shifters or Child Protective Services.”
“At least it’s a step in the right direction. For the first time in so long, I feel like I can breathe easy again.” Her lips peppered his jaw with kisses. “Will Mason care if you take the rest of the day off?”
“No,” he growled. Then groaned when Annie ran her nails over his hard chest and abs. Her mate was a handsome bear. “He’ll understand when I tell him my wife needed me.” Nathan rolled them over, pinning her to the bed under his weight.
“Needed me to comfort her.” His hands slipped her top off, leaving her bare for his ministrations. “Needed me to help her relax.” Nathan’s lips teased the mating mark on the top of her left breast. “Although, I won’t mention how she needed me to make her fall apart in my arms.”
Now, his hands pushed up her skirt, leaving her thigh highs and lacy, pale pink thong on display. Nathan growled as his fingertips traced up the inside of her trembling thighs, sliding to where she wanted his talented fingers most. “Or how she melted at my touch. Damn, I love your fascination with sexy lingerie. You drive me wild, you know that?”
Any reply she had disappeared the moment his fingers entered her. All she could do was hold on to her husband as he proved how true his excuses to Mason would be.