Page 74 of Omega's Refuge

“Huh?” I frowned. “What does that mean?”

Rex scratched his head. “Yeah, I’m confused too.”

The doctor smiled patiently. “In layman’s terms, it merely means that your blood isn’t clotting properly at the moment. That will no doubt clear up in a couple of months.”

I widened my eyes. “It takes that long?”

“Well, sometimes it’s quicker.” Dr. Jones tone was reassuring. “But to be safe, you’d want to avoid anything that break the skin for a fewmonths because there’s a significant risk of hemorrhaging. So no sports or things like that for a while.”

Uneasiness shifted through me. “What about surgeries?”

The doctor frowned. “Surgeries?”

I nodded. “Yes. I… I’m not sure I want to keep this baby. Would an abortion be risky?”

Dr. Jones recoiled. “Most definitely. That would be incredibly risky.” He flicked his astonished gaze to me. “Are you actually considering terminating your pregnancy?”

My face warmed at his accusing tone. “I… I… yes.” I wasn’t completely surprised by his negative attitude toward me terminating the pregnancy. Many of the older generation disapproved of ever ending any pregnancy, unless medically necessary. “I need to terminate the pregnancy.”

“But why?” Dr. Jones looked baffled. “You’re young and, once recovered fully, in good health. Why wouldn’t you want to carry the baby to term?” He glanced at Rex. “Are you okay with terminating the pregnancy?”

Rex stiffened. “It’s not up to me.”

“Of course it is,” exclaimed the doctor. “It’s a decision you both should make.”

Face red, Rex said, “I’m not Tanner’s alpha.”

Dr. Jones looked confused. “You’re not?”

“No.” Rex met my gaze.

Cheeks hot, I interjected, “My alpha abandoned me. I can’t keep the child.”

Dr. Jones looked even more horrified. “Heabandonedyou?”

“Yes.” I hated the look of pity he shot me, but it wasn’t a huge surprise. “So, I’m sure you understand why I don’t want to carry the baby full term.”

“Right. Of course. I… I suppose that would be impossible now. If you’re single, you definitely don’t want to have the baby. That wouldn’t be proper.” He huffed. “Your alpha should be ashamed of himself.”

Rex moved closer to my bed, almost protectively. “Getting back to the matter of an abortion, are you saying Tanner has to wait to have an abortion because of the blood clotting issue?”

Dr. Jones tore his pitying gaze from me and answered Rex. “Most definitely. There’s no way Tanner can have a surgical procedure at this time. He’d most likely bleed out on the table.”

Horrified at his words, I gasped.

Rex’s mouth tightened. “Maybe you could be a little more tactful, doctor?”

Dr. Jones blinked at Rex. “Oh, sorry.” He gave me an apologetic smile. “That was a crass thing for me to say. I’m simply trying to express that there’s no way you can have an abortion right now. Any respectable doctor would refuse to dothe procedure. They could lose their medical license if anything bad happened. It’s far too risky.”

“How long do I have to wait?” Even I could hear the panic in my voice.

Rubbing his chin, Dr. Jones said, “Well, I’m notexactlysure. As I said, sometimes it can take months for the blood to return to normal. We’ll have to do periodic tests on you to see if your platelet count or blood clotting abilities go back to normal.”

“Months. I… I can’t wait months.” My voice shook.

Rex put his hand on my shoulder, but he didn’t speak.

“I’m afraid you have to wait.” Dr. Jones grimaced. “I’m serious when I say only a quack would consider performing any surgical procedure on you in your condition. But regardless, I’m sure in a few months’ time, you’ll be fine and you can terminate the pregnancy then.”

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