Page 47 of Roman
I loved my brother, but I loved Roman and the baby I was carrying as well. I had struggled for a couple of weeks after Roman and I claimed each other, but eventually, I realized that if Evan couldn’t accept the fact that I was mated and starting a family and still be able to run the bakery, then Evan would need to not be as involved in my life going forward. That had hurt, but thankfully, things hadn’t come to that because Evan did accept the fact that I was mated, and he and I had talked at least once a week since.
I followed Sean through the door, and sure enough, there was Evan. When he saw me, his face lit up with a smile.
“Evan. I wasn’t expecting to see you today, but I’m not going to complain.” I rounded the counter and went to my brother’s outstretched arms. He wrapped me up in a hug, and I closed my eyes. I’d been hugged by him so many times in my life, and it was comforting that he was still in my life. Especially since he was going to be an uncle soon.
“I had a bit of time this afternoon before I have to leave.”
That completely ended the comforting feeling. “Leave?” I asked, looking up at him.
“Yeah. I’m an enforcer, Beau. I have assignments. My team is going out tomorrow.”
Oh. I guess I hadn’t realized that. It had been some time since he’d gone out on assignment. Or maybe it hadn’t and I just didn’t know? “Well, I hope you’ll be safe.”
Evan’s smile widened. “You know I will. But that’s not the only reason I’m here. I’m going to escort you over to theomega clinic. Roman messaged me, and he’s running about five minutes behind. There was a water main breakdown in Timber Valley, and he had to be detoured. But it was quite a detour.”
I narrowed my eyes at my brother. “Why are you telling me that instead of my mate?” I asked before immediately reaching out to Roman through our bond.“Roman? Are you all right?”
“I am, sweetness. But I’m still five solid minutes from the cabin. I didn’t want you to be late for our appointment, so I messaged your brother. I apologize for not reaching out to you directly. Evan is going to walk you over to the clinic.”
I sighed.“I am capable of walking over by myself. It’s not far. Or I could just wait here for you to arrive. It’s not like Dr. King will not see us if we’re late.”
“Please just let Evan walk you over? He hasn’t gotten to spend much time with you, and he is adjusting to things and how they are now as well.”
“Fine. Please be careful.”
“Always. I’ll see you in just a bit.”
I focused up at my brother and narrowed my eyes. “I’m not sure what’s going on, but seriously, five minutes late isn’t really something that he should be so worried about. But whatever.” I turned to Sean. “I’m headed out to my ultrasound.”
Sean offered a huge smile. “Exciting times.” He glanced at my brother. “But shouldn’t Roman be going with you?”
I nodded. “He’s on the way, apparently, but there was a detour or something. I’m not sure.” I didn’t think they were lying to me; it was just such an odd thing though. Why now? Of course, water main breaks could happen at any time, couldn’t they? I left with Evan, and once outside, I looked up at my brother. “Can you explain a little more what a water main break is?”
Evan smiled. “It’s my understanding that the water in the buildings is delivered through underground pipes. The mainis the big one that’s out by the streets or under them.” Evan shrugged. “They can break, and when they do, lots of water comes rushing out and floods the area. That’s why the road that Roman was taking was closed.”
I nodded, only somewhat understanding. “I guess they can’t just use magic like we do, huh?”
Evan chuckled. “No.” We walked a short distance, and when we made it to the store, I wondered if I would have met Roman sooner if he had still worked there.
“So where are you going? Can you say?”
“To Canada. We’re going to be sorting out some issues with a pack up there. There has been more than one report about them. It’s nothing too serious, just some issues with some in the alpha’s circle.” Evan shrugged. “I don’t quite understand all of the dynamics of packs yet, but it’ll be a good learning experience. I’m going more for the magical support. Although, Frederick is the lead, and he’ll be with us, so I don’t think he’ll actually need me. We’ll see though.”
“That sounds…interesting,” I said and chuckled. I didn’t know what else to say, really. I knew even less, and although I trusted Evan would be safe, I still worried a bit about my brother.
“It sounds boring if you ask me. But I work for the council now, and it’s something I have to learn all about. I don’t mind, and my team has been amazing at helping me to learn all that I need to, but it can be a bit confusing since we didn’t grow up with anything like this. What the packs have might not be the same in the covens. Or in the prides or dens. It’s different for even different packs. So you never know what to expect.”
“At least I’m just doing what I’ve always done. Although I didn’t really know all of the ins and outs of actually running a bakery from before. But Lewis and I have figured it out.”
“He’s quite the surprise,” Evan said. I nodded. I knew there was nothing between my brother and my friend and never would be, but I had to wonder if Evan wanted to find his mate. “And here we are,” Evan said. I looked up and realized we’d made it to the omega clinic. It wasn’t that it was such a far walk; I’d just not been paying attention.
“You know, I absolutely could have made this walk without being escorted. I’m not sure what you and Roman are up to, but I do appreciate that you let me know you are going to be out on assignment. Will you be gone long?” His previous assignments had only been about a week’s time. That didn’t mean that would still hold true.
“Should be only a week. It’s not a difficult assignment, and we’re not the only team going out. Atticus’s team, with the exception of Ramsey, is already out. You already know why Ramsey isn’t in the field at the moment.”
I did. Phineas was due any day now. He’d had a terrible pregnancy, but I’d heard that wasn’t uncommon when it came to gargoyle pregnancies. Roman had been in almost constant contact with Ramsey and had even come up to Treasure Ridge to visit a couple of times when Ramsey was “losing his mind,” as Roman had put it.
“I hope Phineas has their little gargoyle soon and that his delivery is so much easier than his pregnancy has been. I’ve sent him some of his favorites, frequently, and Roman has kept me up to date about everything that’s happening with them. I feel bad because he’s been pulled in two directions. He wants to be there to support his brother as much as possible, but he’s also been worried about me.”
