Chapter Twenty-Four
Colin
I clenched my jaw as we waited for the compound iron gates to swing wide. Once they were open, we drove through slowly as the security guard waved to us. Depressing memories assaulted me as we parked in front of the medical center. Riley looked curious as he scanned the area and climbed out of the car.
When I opened my door, the pungent scent of pine trees filled my nose, bringing back thoughts of my time at the compound. I’d thought about the day Garrett died a million times, and it never seemed to get any easier.
“You okay?” Riley asked quietly.
I shut my door and nodded. “Of course.”
He sighed.
I knew he got tired of how stoic I could be, but I needed to be that way right now or I might completely break down. That wouldn’t do anyone any good.
Trina skipped down the steps toward us. Her eyes were wide as she stared at Riley. “It really is you.” She sounded breathless.
Riley laughed. “Were you expecting someone else?”
She shook her head. “No. But we don’t get many celebrities up here on the mountain.” She turned to me and gave me a warm hug. “It’s good to see you again, Colin.” She smiled. “You look a little different than last time you were here.”
I patted my stomach, my face hot. “You can blame Riley for that.”
Riley grinned. “In my defense, I’d never heard of a solar eclipse omega.”
Wincing, Trina waved us toward the entrance to the clinic. “We get that a lot up here.”
We made our way up the steps, and I was panting by the time I reached the door. “I don’t remember these stairs challenging me this much in the past,” I huffed, cupping my stomach.
“Well, at least you look nice and healthy,” she said in a perky voice.
I met Riley’s amused gaze. “I think she means fat.”
She giggled. “We don’t use that word around our expectant fathers.” She led us into a small room off the lobby. “You probably know the routine since you were here with—” She grimaced. “Your brother.”
I stiffened but tried to keep my face pleasant. “Yep.”
Once she’d left, I stripped down to just my underwear and slipped into the blue robe she’d left out for me. Then, with Riley’s help, I sat on top of the examination table.
Riley studied the posters on the walls that showed the inside of the solar eclipse omegas. He frowned and shivered when examining the detailed drawing of the little omega pouch that all solar eclipse omegas had inside.
He leaned against the counter and met my gaze. “I’m not gonna lie, I’m pretty freaked-out right now.”
I smiled because he really did look rattled. “I felt the same way the first time I was here with Garrett.”
“Did he die the day you arrived?” he asked softly.
“The next day. By the time I found him and got him here, he was too sick to save.”
“God, I’m sorry.”
I lifted one shoulder. “I don’t blame the medical team here at all. They did their best.”
He moved closer. “I’m searching for words that will comfort you, but I know there’s nothing I can say.”
“Just having you here helps.” I held his gaze. “It was pretty traumatic.”
“Of course.”
I rubbed the back of my neck. “They really tried. Dr. Peters was amazing. He wouldn’t give up; he just kept trying to resuscitate Garrett and the baby.” My voice was hushed. “But they couldn’t do it.”
“God. How awful.”
I sighed. “For a long time I kept beating myself up thinking if I’d just found him a day earlier, maybe…”
“You can’t think like that.” He squeezed my shoulder.
“I know.”
The door opened abruptly and a slender guy with dark spiky hair stepped into the room. He immediately froze. “Shit. Sorry. I didn’t know anyone was in here.”
“Pierce?” I spoke quickly because he was backing out of the room.
The guy stopped and squinted at me. “Holy crap, Colin? You’re back?” He widened his eyes as he took in my bulging belly. “And you’re pregnant?” He looked almost horrified. “How?”
“How?” I laughed.
His face flushed and he winced. “I mean congrats?”
“Thanks.”
Pierce’s light blue eyes slid to Riley. He blinked a few times, and then he said, “Are you Riley West?”
“I am.” Riley held out his hand, and they shook.
Pierce squinted at Riley. “Are you the father?”
“Yes.” Riley nodded.
“Huh.” Pierce looked like he had a bad taste in his mouth as his gaze returned to me. “I can’t believe you’re pregnant. You seemed as against it as me.”
My face warmed and I met Riley’s irritated gaze. “I’ve changed my mind.”
Pierce snorted. “Better you than me.”
“Are you a solar eclipse omega too?” Riley asked.
“Unfortunately, yes.” Pierce scowled.
“Why unfortunately?” Riley asked brusquely.
Rubbing his chin, Pierce said, “Gee, let me think.” He smirked and said, “Who the hell wants to be pregnant? Frankly, I can’t think of anything worse.”
“Oh, really?” Riley bristled, bunching his shoulders.
Pierce grimaced. “You wouldn’t understand. You’re an alpha.”
“So you work at the clinic now?” I decided to change the subject because Riley was beginning to look really annoyed.
“I assist Dr. Peters where I can.” Pierce looked at the broom in his hand. “At the moment that means cleaning the clinic during slow times.”
“Are you a doctor?” Riley asked.
Pierce’s mouth hardened. “Hell no.”
Riley flushed. “It was just a question.”
“I prefer to work behind the scenes.”
“That’s too bad.” I met Pierce’s wary gaze. “The other omegas love you.”
Pierce stared at the ground. “I don’t like being around the alphas who come through here. You know that.”
Riley shifted uneasily.
“Understood,” I said softly.
Pierce straightened, and when he spoke his voice was falsely cheerful. “Anyway, it was good to see you again.” His gaze dropped to my stomach. “Good luck.”
“Thanks.”
He left the room, and an awkward silence fell.
“He was a little odd.” Riley sounded hesitant.
“Sorry about that.” I sighed. “We got close when I was here.”
“How? He seems so prickly.”
I studied my cuticles. “Oh, he’s friendly so long as you’re not an alpha.”
“Really?” Riley leaned toward me, his eyes inquisitive. “Just how friendly was he with you?”
“We almost had a thing.” I grimaced. “But he was as fucked-up emotionally as I was, and we both valued our friendship enough to avoid it.”
“Huh.” Most of the tension left his jaw. “Why is he fucked-up emotionally?”
I twisted my lips. “He was in an abusive relationship with an alpha.” I met his gaze. “His alpha used to sell him to other alphas for the night.”
“Shit.”
“Yeah.” I exhaled roughly. “That’s why he can’t stand to be around alphas.”
“Makes sense.” Riley shuddered. “Jesus. What is wrong with these alphas? I had no idea there were so many alphas abusing omegas.”
I shrugged. “How would you? No one wants to talk about it.”
There was a knock on the door, and Trina came in rolling a tray with a stethoscope, two syringes, and a tube of some type of lube. “Dr. Peters is right behind me.”
Riley looked at the syringes. “What are those for?”
“Vitamin B and blood work,” I answered for Trina.
“Very good.” Trina grinned.
I held up my hand. “I’ve also been taking my prenatal vitamins, so don’t worry.”
“The model patient.” She smirked.
“I keep forgetting you’re an old pro at this,” Riley murmured.
I winced. “Not exactly a pro. I’ve never been on this side of it before.”
Dr. Peters appeared in the doorway. “Any room in here for me?” he asked with a smile.
Trina chuckled. “I was just leaving.” She slipped past the doctor and left the room.
“How are you, Colin?” The doctor went over to the little sink and then washed up with soap and water. “I didn’t expect to see you back here and certainly not pregnant.”
I rubbed my stomach and smiled at Riley. “My plans have been derailed in a good way.”
Dr. Peters flicked his gaze to Riley. “I understand you’re famous or something?”
Riley grimaced “Kind of.”
“I don’t listen to anything but country western, but from what I gather, Trina and a few other nurses are impressed with your presence in our humble clinic.”
Riley’s face was red. “I’m really just here to support my omega.”
With a smile, Dr. Peters approached me. “Go ahead and lie down.” He glanced at Riley. “Take a seat if you’d like.”
“Thanks.” Riley sat with a little laugh.
Dr. Peters went to the cart in the corner that had an ultrasound machine on it. He rolled it closer, and then he squeezed a big blob of gel on the probe. “I’m sure you know this might be cold.”
“Yep.”
“Is that an ultrasound machine?” Riley asked quietly.
“It is.” Dr. Peters nodded, pushing open my smock. “Are you familiar with them?”
Riley laughed. “Not really. I know a few women who’ve had babies, and they were showing everyone the little ultrasound photos.”
“You can basically do an ultrasound on any human or animal. The machine transmits a high-frequency sound into the body, and it hits the area between the soft tissue and fluids, or soft tissue and bone. Then the sound waves create a photo of the baby. ”
“It’s not painful, right?” Riley asked.
“Not at all.” Dr. Peters laughed. “Completely pain-free.”
When he pressed the probe against my skin, I jumped. “Oh, wow. Cold.”
“I did warn you.”
“Yep.” I gripped the table.
A dark image appeared on the screen, but it was hard to make out anything. The doctor moved the wand around until a rapid swishing sound became obvious.
“Heartbeat,” Dr. Peters muttered as he continued to drag the probe over my skin. “Sounds good.”
The image on the screen was white, gray, and black, and a small pulsing movement appeared in the center of the image.
Riley pointed. “That moving thing is the heart?”
“It is.”
I glanced over at Riley, and his face was slack with wonder. He met my gaze and shook his head. “That is so freakin’ amazing.”
Smiling, my heart squeezed. “Right?”
He shook his head. “I mean, I know there’s a baby in there, but hearing its heart beat makes it all so real.” His voice was hushed as he pressed his hand to his chest. “I’m afraid I’m gonna cry like a big baby.”
Dr. Peters chuckled. “Don’t worry about it. Parents cry all the time.” He moved the wand around. “That’s the omega pouch right there,” he said softly. “That’s where the fetus is.”
Riley glanced to the poster on the wall. “I saw that on the diagram.” He looked less grossed out than earlier. “Is it like a womb?”
“Bingo.” Dr. Peters continued to slide the probe over my slick abdomen.
“But only solar eclipse omegas have those pouches?” Riley asked.
“Yep.” Dr. Peters frowned. “But that’s where the similarities with the female anatomy end.”
Riley nodded. “I see.”
“Obviously, men don’t have a birth canal.” Dr. Peters lifted the probe from my stomach. “Everything looks great by the way.”
“Oh, good.” I sighed.
Dr. Peters wiped the probe clean, and then he wiped my stomach. “So, as I was saying, the solar eclipse omegas don’t have a birth canal. That makes the delivery twice as stressful as in a normal female.” He glanced at me. “Sorry if this is boring. I know you already know all of this stuff.”
I swallowed hard. “It… uh… bears repeating. It’s important.”
“When it’s time to deliver, things become very serious for a solar eclipse omega.” Dr. Peters faced Riley. “There’s a serious time crunch.”
Riley pulled his brows together, looking nervous. “Okay. How much of a time crunch?”
“About thirty minutes or so.” Dr. Peters’s voice was hushed.
“Shit. Okay.” Riley widened his eyes.
Dr. Peters’s expression softened as he took in Riley’s uneasy demeanor. “In a woman, the baby comes whether you like it or not. But in a solar eclipse omega, the baby has nowhere to go if a doctor doesn’t perform a C-section.”
“Right.” Riley looked pale. “So if the omega has no birth canal, I assume there’s nothing to signal labor like water breaking or anything?”
“No.” Dr. Peters’ expression became more serious as he frowned. “The disintegration of the air and feeding tube inside the womb is what starts labor. It usually accompanied by pains that the omega would have to be crazy not to notice. They’re intense.”
“Okay.” Riley nodded and then frowned. “So without the air tube, I’m assuming the baby can’t breathe?”
“Correct.” Dr. Peters pushed the machine into the corner of the room. “That’s why everything has to be on such a tight time schedule. The baby needs to be removed so it can breathe and also to prevent the spread of infection to the omega.”
“Sepsis is what ultimately killed Garrett,” I said softly.
Riley bit his lip. “This is terrifying.”
“That’s why we encourage omegas in their last month to stay at the compound at all times.” He spoke reassuringly to Riley. “I have a nearly perfect track record, Riley. If you’re at the compound when labor begins, there should be no reason Colin can’t safely deliver your baby.”
Riley nodded. “Okay.” He still looked uneasy.
“The baby looks like the right size for eight weeks, and Colin is healthy. I see no red flags.” Dr. Peters picked up one of the syringes, and he met my gaze. “Ready for me to draw blood?”
“Sure.” I winced when he stuck the needle into my arm, and the little vial filled with my blood. Next he gave me the vitamin B shot, and then he tossed the used needles into a little receptacle.
Dr. Peters moved to the door. “You’re all set. I want to see you next week. Obviously, if you feel anything unusual come in sooner.”
After the doctor was gone, Trina came in. “There is an omega support group meeting tonight if you’re interested.” She handed me a sheet of paper. She also handed something to Riley. “There’s also an alpha group. It’s smaller, but the alphas there are good guys.”
Riley frowned at the paper. “I’m almost afraid to ask why the alpha group is smaller.”
Trina shrugged. “Over half the omegas who come here have no permanent alpha.”
He wrinkled his brow. “You mean their alpha abandoned them?”
She sighed. “It’s more complicated than that. A lot of the solar eclipse omegas are embarrassed to be pregnant. They don’t always tell the alphas.”
He slid his gaze to mine. “That’s awful.”
She nodded. “I agree.” She straightened. “Your cabin is ready. It’s the same one you had before, Riley.”
“Okay.”
She laughed. “Colin knows his way around the camp, so I won’t bother giving you the usual boring speeches.” She smiled at us. “See you next week.”
We left the clinic, and I gave Riley directions on how to find our cabin. As we pulled into the driveway, the tires crackling on the gravel, a lot of memories assaulted me.
“Are you glad or sorry they gave you your old cabin?” Riley asked quietly.
“Both. On the one hand it’s familiar, and that’s comforting. But it also reminds me of Garrett’s death.”
“I can see that.”
Riley got out of the car and hurried around to help me out. It was annoying that things as simple as getting out of a car or off a couch were becoming a chore because of my big stomach.
When we entered the cabin, the scent of the pine walls and wood smoke from fires past filled my nostrils. My heart felt heavy at first as I thought about all the lonely nights I’d spent here. But then Riley came up behind me and slipped his arms around my waist.
“You’re not alone,” he whispered, as if reading my mind.
I put my hands over his as they rested on my belly. The heat of his skin sank into me, comforting me, reassuring me he was with me. “Promise?”
His embrace tightened. “With all my heart.”
I rested my head against his broad shoulder. “We’re gonna be a family.”
He kissed the side of my neck, his breath hot against my flesh. “I can’t wait.”