Page 9 of Raptor

Mallory

"Are you okay?" Ma asks as we sit on the plastic chairs in the waiting room.

Today's the day of my scan. I'm beyond nervous, but I'm excited too. It's sometimes still hard to wrap my head around the fact I'm pregnant. I'm thankful Ma's here with me, trying to make up for not being around when I was younger. "I'm sound," I reply with a smile. "Excited to see the baby."

She reaches for my hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze. "I am too. I'm excited to be a granny," she breathes, her eyes bright with happiness. "Thank you for letting me be a part of this."

We're both trying, and that's all we can do. We both want to build this relationship. We both want to have each other in our lives. The love I have for her is pure and deep, but I'm hurt about how things have happened. Ma has taken it all on board and is working hard to rectify it all. It's a slow process but there's been a lot of progress.

"Mallory Reagan," I hear the nurse call and get to my feet. My stomach starts doing somersaults as I walk toward the nurse. Ma's right behind me. I can feel the warmth of her body againstmy back. I take a deep breath and smile. Today is the day I'm going to see my baby.

"If you climb up onto the bed, we can take a look for you," the nurse says as we enter the room. It's a dim room with three tiny windows that don't let in much light. The room isn't huge, but it’s big enough to fit a bed and a few machines. I climb up onto the bed and Ma takes a seat on the vacant chair beside me. Once again she reaches for my hand, and I don't hesitate to take it, accepting the support she's offering me.

The room is filled with silence as the nurse begins to wave the wand over my stomach. Within seconds, the silence is pierced by a whooshing sound that has my heart swelling with love and pride. Tears fill my eyes as I look at the screen. My baby's on full display. I pull in a sharp breath and watch my baby on the screen. I'm fixated, unable to take my gaze away. God, so beautiful. Nothing, not one thing in this world, is as beautiful or perfect as my baby.

That feeling I had of it not being real has gone. Seeing my baby for the first time is surreal, and the excitement I have for my future is growing every second I stare at his beautiful face on the screen. God, I'm blessed. So damn blessed.

"Everything is measuring as it should do at fourteen weeks," the nurse tells me as she takes the wand away from my stomach. "You're up next to see the midwife to get booked in with your consultant. Any questions or queries you have, she'll be happy to help you with."

I smile at the nurse. "Thank you so much," I say, wishing I had a little more time to look at my baby.

She hands me tissue paper to clean the jelly off my stomach, and Ma quickly helps me clean up. Once I'm ready, the nurse hands me ultrasound pictures of my baby. I beam, unable to keep the smile off my face. God, this day has been amazing.

"Thank you," Ma says as we retake our seats out in the waiting room to wait to be seen by the midwife. "I'm grateful you brought me with you today, Mal."

I rest my head against her shoulder. "I wouldn't have had anyone else with me." Even if Raptor was somehow here, I'd still have Ma with me too.

"You're going to be a great mam, Mallory. You're so loving and caring," she whispers, pressing a kiss to my head. "I love you so very much."

I close my eyes to stop the tears from falling. "I love you too, Ma," I whisper, unable to say anything more as my emotions overwhelm me.

God, this day couldn't get any better.

"Mallory,"Chloe cries as I step into the Fury Vipers clubhouse. It's so strange that they have one here in Ireland now, but I'm so very happy for my girl. When I met Raptor that night in New York, Chloe met Pyro, and they fell madly in love. Pyro was given the opportunity to open a chapter of the Fury Vipers here in Dublin, meaning he could have the club and Chloe. The man didn't hesitate, and with Chloe's family being rich and powerful, it didn't take them long to have everything in order for Pyro to move here. My friend is happy, so very happy. I don't think I've ever seen her like this before, and I'm beyond excited for her new chapter in life.

"Hey," I greet warmly as I step into her embrace. "It's been a while since I've seen you."

I've been hiding. I wanted to take some time to think about what I plan on doing about the baby. I needed to have a clear head and come to a decision I was happy with, one that wasn'tinfluenced by anyone else, and I know if I tell Chloe about the baby then she'll urge me to talk to Raptor and come clean, something I'm still not entirely sure about. I don't want to upend his world. What good will come from me doing that? It's not as though he can move across the world to be here. He lives in New York. His entire life is there.

The gnawing in my gut is back. The guilt I feel lays heavily on my heart. I know he deserves to be told the truth. I just don't want to force him into doing something he never wanted to do. My reasoning is probably selfish, but for now, I'm leaning toward keeping him in the dark. That could change by the time our little one arrives into the world. But as of right now, it's my secret.

"You're not angry, are you?" Chloe questions. "About me giving your number to Raptor?"

"No," I say with a smile. I was at first. I was hurt that she'd done that without speaking to me. But the daily calls and texts I get from Raptor make me smile, and I love that he wants to continue speaking with me. However, with how close we're getting, the secret I carry grows heavier and heavier. I feel like shit for not telling him, but it's what I feel is the right thing to do. "I know you were trying to help."

She grins at me. "Good, because I'm really hoping you two can work things out."

I raise a brow. "How is that going to work exactly?" I ask. "I mean, he's in New York and I'm here in Dublin."

Her grin turns into a beaming smile. "Just have faith," she says as she takes my hand and leads me to a table. "To be honest, I'm just glad James is away from all the bullshit."

My brows knit together. "What's happened?" James is Pyro's real name. She's the only person who calls him that.

"When we were in New York, shit hit the fan. Some of the club girls?—"

"And they are?" I ask, wondering what a club girl is.

She pauses, her lips twisting. It's almost if she's contemplating telling me about them. She sighs, releasing a heavy breath. "The club girls are women who enjoy the men. Kind of like rockstar groupies. They're there to have fun and the men enjoy them."

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