Page 59 of Rejected and Pregnant by the Lycan King

“Yes. Your mate had a pup.”

28

Kylie

My eyelids felt too heavy to lift, and forcing them open wasn’t easy. Streaks of light flooded in once I opened them slightly, but they immediately shut again. There were voices nearby, ones I wasn’t sure I recognized. My lycan whimpered and then told me,Pack, so I knew the people I heard had to be Charlotte and Nathaniel. Knowing they were here helped me find the strength to pull my eyes open. A film across my vision took several blinks to clear, and once my vision sharpened, I saw I was still in the clinic. There were machines everywhere, and an IV was still in my arm. It took me a moment to get my bearings, but once I did, I noticed something.

Something had changed.

I felt different.

Better. I felt better.

Stronger and healthier than I had all my life. I didn’t know how, but I finally felt as I should have felt my entire life. My lycan was more present than ever, and it felt like I could run a marathon right now.

Was this how I should have felt my entire life? This was what I had been missing all this time?

As I moved around on the bed, testing my movements and relishing how easy it felt to do anything, my heart was so full of relief and happiness that tears welled in my eyes.

It took me a moment to realize my stomach was now flat, and I recalled blacking out because of the baby coming. I had a baby. Where was the baby? Did something happen to it?

I looked around and didn’t see a bassinet or anything else. A snarl erupted from me as I struggled in my bed to find the button to call the nurse. Instead, I screamed, “Nurse!” The door opened and closed, and a tall blonde in nursing scrubs walked into the room. Her face was scrunched, and I could feel her annoyance as she approached me. When she noticed me looking at her, she composed herself and smiled.

“How are you feeling?”

“Where is my baby?” I demanded, ignoring her question.

She patted my leg, and her smile didn’t fade. “In the nursery. I can go get him if you want.”

Him? I had a boy. Oh my gods, I had a boy. “Yes! Bring him to me. Is he okay?”

“Yes, he is perfect. Nothing happened to him during the delivery. It just took you a bit to wake up from everything. We had to give you a small dose of anesthesia to keep you under during the surgery.”

The deep breath I took as she spoke slowly escaped, and the relief I felt at hearing her say those words was overwhelming. My lycan howled in relief, too, both of us eager to see our pup. The nurse disappeared, and I could hear some arguing again in the hall. If Charlotte and Nathaniel were out there, it should be on record that they are my emergency contacts and could enter. She returned with a blue blanket nestled in her arms, and I scooted further up on the bed to have a better position to receive him.

The feeling of love and happiness didn’t quite capture it as the nurse transferred the bundle over to me. My heart exploded at the sight of the tiny face. He was so perfect. I couldn’t even describe how perfect his little face was as I unraveled him a little to see more of him.

“Hi, little one. I’m your mom.”

The baby let out a deep breath, content to hear my voice. I rubbed my nose against his face, breathing in his scent. The hint of mint made my heart jump until I remembered how pups could carry the scent of both of their parents until around puberty, when their lycan would slowly start to emerge. I’d just have to deal with him smelling like Maximus until then, which was something I could handle. The baby sighed again, and I could see his eyes opening. I couldn’t wait to know what color his eyes would be and to hear his little voice. And as he stared up at me, I knew everything in my life would be so different.

Better. It would be better.

This entire pregnancy, I knew my life would change. I worried so often about dying, but I should have known I would survive it since I had endured so much worse. Maybe I shouldn’t have listened to that voice in my head all that time. If I survived the beatings and was told I wouldn’t make it far in life without my father, I could accomplish anything. I just needed the right people in my life for that to happen, and now I had them.

When I looked around the room again, the nurse had disappeared, and I wanted to ask if Charlotte and Nathaniel were out in the hall. If I could have some alone time with my pup, then I would make it count.

With my new strength, I got out of bed and walked over to a changing table. My pup wasn’t too happy about the warm blanket being removed, but I quickly finished the task and swaddled him again. Once back in bed, I adjusted myself and my gown to pull out my breast for him to nurse. He latched on easily, and the sensation of him nursing was strange at first. The tugging of his mouth hurt initially, but that discomfort slowly faded as he nursed. I couldn’t pull my eyes away from him, and the love I felt consumed me.

The door opened again, and the nurse approached my bed, her voice louder this time. When I looked at her, the smile was gone, and she looked more annoyed than anything.

“You have a visitor, Kylie. Would you like them to come in?”

The ambiguity of “them” made me think it was Charlotte and Nathaniel. I smiled and told her yes. Of course, I wanted them to come in and meet my pup. They were the reason I had stayed alive this whole time, and they deserved to meet the bundle of joy that had come from the last nine months.

It wasn’t Charlotte and Nathaniel who walked through that door, though.

A powerful presence swept through the room first, making my lycan whimper. My jaw dropped, and my stomach twisted as it felt like my heart was going to explode from the way it was pounding in my ears.

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