Page 109 of The Beta's Blind Date

Haven yawns, covering her mouth with her hand, her eyes squeezing shut as she leans her head against Wesley’s chest. “Sorry,” she says through her fingers. “It’s been a long night.”

“Why don’t you go home and get some sleep, Sugar Plum?” Wesley says, patting her hip. “I will be there soon.”

He catches my eye over the top of her head, and I swallow but give him a brief nod.

“I’ll walk her home,” Nolan says, standing from his chair.

“Thanks,” Wes says as Haven gets off his lap.

She leans forward and presses her lips to his, then pulls away, holding his gaze as they share a mindlink. “I love you,” she murmurs.

He squeezes her hips and gives her one last kiss before she leaves with Nolan. Seb follows them out, clapping me on the shoulder and whispering, “Good luck,” as he does.

The door closes behind him, and I sit in the chair he vacated, leaning back and resting my head on my fist.

“I really am sorry I ruined your wedding,” I say.

He shakes his head and sighs, scratching his beard. “You didn’t. You helped save a whole pack. Not just from the rogues but from whoever was feeding them that poison. And you saved your mate.”

I nod and hold his gaze. His eyes bore into me, and he drops his alpha mask, his serious face, and lets me see the side of him a rare few ever see. He’s no longer my alpha. Right now, he’s Wes—my best friend.

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I didn’t want you to talk me out of rejecting her.”

“Well, it looks like I didn’t need to.”

“No, I guess not,” I say, my lips twitching into a half smile.

He leans back in his chair, crossing his arms. “Seriously, though. I understand why you went to Sebastian instead of me since it was the night before my wedding, but…” He clears his throat and looks down at the desk. “But I wish you would have trusted me enough to tell me sooner.”

“I do trust you, Wes.”

“Then why didn’t you confide in me? I could have helped you. I can understand why you didn’t at first, when you still thought you were going to reject her, but later? When you realized you couldn’t?”

I shrug. “Because I’m a dickhead?”

“You’re not wrong there,” he says with a laugh. Then he groans and leans his elbows on his desk, putting his face in his hands. “I’m sorry. I’m making this about me, and I know that’s not helping you.” He waves me away without lifting his head. “Get out of here. Go win your mate back.”

I rise from my chair, not needing any further prompting. I pause in the doorway, smirking, remembering what I told Maddie earlier. “Got any tips?” I ask, glancing at him.

“Nope,” he says, sighing and closing his laptop. “You’re on your own on this one, dickhead.”

I smile and leave his office without another word, my mind already forming a plan for phase one of “Convince Taryn I’m Awesome.”

Chapter 38

TARYN

“Theseareprenatalvitamins.You need to take one with food every day. If they’re too much to deal with—you know, because of morning sickness—we can look at trying a gummy vitamin or a powder option that you blend into a smoothie, but Dr. Russo recommends at least attempting the pill form first.”

I nod and take the bottle of vitamins from the nurse, adding them to the bag she brought me. It’s filled with brochures and pamphlets about prenatal care and tests, and a special packet that is filled with information specific to werewolf pregnancies.

“Dr. Russo wants to see you again in a few days to review the results of the blood work—the sex of the baby and its alpha blood status, plus anything else we find. And then you’ll come in every four weeks until you’re twenty-eight weeks pregnant, then every other week until you’re thirty-six weeks pregnant, and then every week until you deliver.”

I nod again. I have said little since she came back to discharge me. My mind and my soul are in too much turmoil, filled to the brim with information and emotion. And not just my emotions. Reid’s are there too.

I could only keep the wall between us up for so long before it became too much for my already strained body to handle. So I dropped it. And ever since, there has been a constant exchange of feelings between us. It’s almost as exhausting as processing the idea of having a pup.

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