Page 27 of Two Wrong Turns

His scent wasn’t.

“See something you like, mate?” I said as I cocked my hip to the side.

“Always. Every inch is delectable.”

I shook my head at him. “Enough sweet talk from you. I’ve got a very delicious meal planned for us. You can save that type of hunger until after your stomach is fed.”

He didn’t reply to my comment. Instead, he stalked over, halting the turn I was doing to go back to mashing the potatoes. When he was close enough, he tugged me forward. I felt the hard length of his cock against my hip and whined.

Fuck.

These days, it didn’t take much to have me undone. Ever since that first knot I’ve craved him in a way I can’t explain. I’ve never wanted someone as much as I want him. He takes up more of my mental space than anyone should.

Then again, he was my mate. And Fate had deemed us the perfect pair.

It would be dumb to try and fight what we had. Not that I really wanted to.

Being here with him, building a life together — it was magnificent. Like I’d finally figured out why nowhere else really worked for me. Why the city never really felt like home.

“What if we put dinner in the warmer and take a little side quest to the bedroom? Then I can be fed in both the ways I like,” he said as he nipped along my neck.

I sank into his touch. For how eager we both were, it made no sense to delay what was coming. Besides, it’s better to be knotted on an empty stomach. Found that out the hard way yesterday. Worst stomachache of my life. I even threw up after, which I felt horrible about. I had to explain to him it wasn’t because I was disgusted or anything. My mate assured me he understood and that he wasn’t mad at all.

Nolan peppered kisses down my neck until he reached my collar. Then he tugged at it as if he was going to continue the path. Instead, he froze.

“Mate,” he growled.

I laughed. “Yes, baby. I’m your mate. We’ve established this.”

He pulled back, shaking his head. “No, not that.”

When our eyes met, his were filled with tears. He was upset about something. Or maybe it was happiness he felt. His smile screamed happiness.

“You’re pregnant.”

The words were said whisper soft, as if he were afraid that uttering them too loudly would cause a disruption in Fate’s plans. I knew better than to think so. I mean, the dang high being tampered with my perfectly reliable GPS to get me to this tiny town. She wasn’t going to let a pregnancy announcement deter her. Her? Him? Them? I didn’t know.

“How can you tell? Do you hear the heartbeat or something?” I’d wondered about that. Since we already knew I was in ideal shape to get pregnant, I figured we’d do what other pregnant people did.

Worry about it.

Eventually get a test.

Then demand to see a doctor right away to monitor things.

But instead, I got an announcement far sooner than I thought. And while we were gearing up for some fun sexy times. It wasn’t a mood killer. More like a big-time distraction.

“I can smell the change on you. Your scent is lighter. I thought it was because you were happy, but the closer I got, the more I could pick up the subtle notes of our cub.”

“Our cub,” I choke out.

For some reason, it didn’t sink in that I was getting a baby bear shifter until that moment. Holy shit! I was going to be a dad to a baby bear.

My scent must have flared with panic because the next thing I knew, I was lifted from the ground and surrounded by my mate’s scent. The palm of his hand pressed my head to his chest, while the other held me up. He took us over to the couch, where he sat with me in his lap.

“It’s ok, baby. Everything is wonderful. This is good news. What has you upset? Do you… do you not want a cub?”

He was hesitant to ask. There was a definite strain in his tone.

---