Page 28 of Rejected and Pregnant by the Lycan King

“Sweetie, talk to me. What’s going on?” Amara asked as she rubbed her hand up and down my back in a vain attempt to soothe me.

I tried to find the words to explain, and tears started to run down my face. There were no positive thoughts going through my mind right now, only the negative possibilities of things that were likely to happen. My mouth was dry, and my stomach remained in knots.

“I don’t know what to do!” I wailed as I crossed my arms over the toilet bowl to lean my forehead on it. “Our Ironhide p-pack d-d-doctor once s-s-said I was too weak and wouldn’t c-c-carry to f-f-full term if I ever got pregnant!”

My friend pulled me from the toilet and pressed me against her. My head became buried in the crook of her neck as she continued to rub my back.

“Doctors don’t know everything, Ky. Ours in Ironhide wasn’t a good pack doctor, either. He hated everything about being part of our pack and just didn’t want to do his job. Maybe you should get checked out by the doctor here.”

I shook my head. It was futile. Maximus didn’t want to touch me throughout the night already. What if this made that worse because I had been sick throughout the day? He seemed to be annoyed about me not getting better after our bonding. The pup could drain me more than before, so I’d need his touchmore.

No words could form while I sobbed into my friend. Nothing she said felt reassuring. The black cloud only grew in darkness because it felt like no matter what happened, my life would not get better.

“Stop it. I know what you are doing.” Amara told me before pulling me away from her enough to see my face. “Just because things don’t look good right now doesn’t mean a damn thing, Kylie. Your body could grow stronger because of your little pup’s energy. Max will be thrilled to find out you are pregnant with his pup. If things get a little screwy, you’ll have the pack doctor to help you through it.”

“What if they can’t?” I sniffled. “What if they are like the one from Ironhide and they don’t know how to help me?”

She growled. “Then we will find one that can. Max would probably go to the ends of the earth to find a doctor who could help you through this.”

“You think so?” I whispered, still not convinced that my mate would love me enough through this.

The grip on my shoulders tightened. “I know so. He is your mate, Kylie. Destined to love you through everything. So let’s get you cleaned up and you can go tell him about this.”

“No!” I shouted, and she recoiled, not expecting me to react that way. “We can’t tell him. Not yet.”

Her eyes narrowed at me as her face scrunched in confusion. “Why not?”

My hand found my belly, and the fear increased again. I didn’t want to tell Maximus because it was still far too early in the pregnancy. “What if something goes wrong? It’s too soon to tell him. Please, Amara,” I pleaded. “Don’t tell Max until I do. Let the pregnancy progress a little longer so we don’t tell him and risk something going wrong. I don’t think he would handle it well if I lost the baby.”

Amara sighed and nodded. “Fair enough. You may only be a few weeks along, if that. But you need to tell him before he figures it out, Kylie. He will be even more upset if he finds out the hard way.”

She was right, but I couldn’t risk telling him and then something happening. Too much was going on with my lycan being frail. This didn’t need to be added to the pile for him to regret bonding himself to a weak lycan like me.

It would end everything as I knew it.

14

Maximus

The hardwood was marred with scuff marks from constant pacing. My mind was weighing the pros and cons of choosing to bond with Kylie. There were so many other things I should be focusing on, but those duties had to wait as I considered this matter.

After sealing the bond, I should have prioritized her happiness, kept her close, and enjoyed building our life together. I had imagined her by my side, reluctant to leave our bedroom, her belly swelling with my pup. When I was with Kylie, everything else fell away. Every second in her presence consumed me. Nothing else mattered.

Yet every time I was away from her, I questioned whether she was the better choice for me as a mate.

Something was wrong with me or the bond itself. There had to be a reason Kylie hadn’t grown stronger since our bonding ceremony—a reason I could walk away from her so easily when that should have been impossible.

Eli and Amara were inseparable, and their bond thrived with an intensity that left no room for doubt. Eli gravitated toward his mate, always seeking her out and tending to her. He wasn’t calculating his devotion; it was entirely instinctual. It was an undeniable force driving him to be near her, to protect her, and to cherish her.

But for Kylie and me? That pull wasn’t the same, and I didn’t feel the same sharp and overwhelming attraction as Eli did. That single thought gnawed at me more than I wanted to admit.

It wasn’t the same, and I didn’t know why.

Kylie was mostly out of sight, out of mind. The more time I spent away from her, the more I focused on her as a concern for myself as the king and alpha. This wasn’t normal. This was more concerning than I had originally thought.

I dragged my hands down my face, releasing a frustrated groan. None of this made sense. The weakness of her lycan was a mystery beyond my abilities.

The bond should have fixed this. It should have fortified her, mended whatever flaw had kept her weak, and given her the strength she lacked. My immense power should have flooded her and forced her lycan form to come forward in its intended state.

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