Page 50 of Briggs
“I do. I just…” John nodded but didn’t finish his sentence, which left me even more confused.
“I’m sure the pregnancy will be discussed more after our meal,” Alpha Babak said. “John, you and Tracy haven’t met Briggs yet.”
“Not formally, no,” Briggs said. “I have talked to John a few times on the phone, but he’s more of a texter,” Briggs said as he took a step forward. “It’s very nice to finally meet you both.” Briggs held out his hand, and although John shook it, Tracy didn’t seem interested in having anything to do with Briggs, or me, for that matter. She wouldn’t even look my way.
I sighed internally. This wasn’t really how I wanted this meeting to go, but I didn’t have too much of a choice. We needed to figure out what was going to happen with all of us, and soon.
“Why don’t we go out to the table, and we can talk after we get some food in us,” Alpha Mate Mina said as she wrapped her arm around Tracy. The smile that my sister gave her told me everything I needed to know. My sister was where she needed to be. She was withdrawn from me because not only had I let her down twice already, but she finally had stability, and I was able to take it away simply by saying it was time for her to come home with me.
Briggs was immediately at my side, and with his arm wrapped around my shoulders, I had the strength to push forward and try to get through this dinner.“Why would he ask that?”I asked Briggs through our bond.
“I couldn’t say. He scented unsure about something. But I don’t know him at all, so I couldn’t even begin to guess what about.”
Tracy helped Alpha Mates Mina and Victoria carry bowls out to the table that was on the screened patio. Some of the houses had decks that were open; others opted for enclosed spaces. Alpha Babak had obviously chosen a combination of the two, and although his back area was open to the weather, it was screened, and the bugs wouldn’t be an issue.
“Is there anything that you have found that you can’t keep down, Todd?” Alpha Mate Mina asked.
“No. I don’t have any foods that bother me. Early on, it was just any and everything, it seemed. I know I didn’t have it nearly as bad as others, and I’m thankful for that,” I responded. I couldn’t help but look at my brother repeatedly because I wanted to know what was going on with him. I understood that I had stopped our runs, but I simply couldn’t. My cheetah was very much asleep, and he wasn’t waking anytime soon.
“That’s good to hear,” Alpha Mate Mina said. “I only asked because I didn’t want to serve you something that would upset your stomach.”
“I appreciate it. I’m eating just about everything I can find at this point,” I said with a smile. Briggs gave my shoulders a gentle squeeze before he pulled out my chair. I was right beside my brother, which was hopefully a good thing, and I’d get a chance to talk to him a bit while we were enjoying what smelled like was going to be a delicious meal.
“It’ll be all right,”Briggs told me. When he smiled as he sat beside me, I felt that he was probably right. It would. Why? Because I had my mate, and he loved me. I wasn’t alone in this world any longer, and I wasn’t going to ever be alone again. Briggs might have to go out on assignments, but he would return to me, just as the others did.
“Can I ask you something, Briggs?” John asked as soon as we all sat.
“Of course. What is it that you want to know?” Briggs placed his hand on my upper back and rubbed gently. I knew it was to calm himself just as much as me. We were now the center of attention, not that we weren’t going to be anyway with all that had been happening.
“Do you love my brother?” John asked. Briggs’s hand stilled for a fraction of a moment before it started rubbing my back once again.
“Very much so.” Briggs looked at me and smiled. The way he was looking at me, he’d done so before. Even before we’d shared those most important words with each other. I now knew that he was looking at me with all of the love he felt for me. “I love Todd more than I’ll ever be able to convey to him. He is my entire world, and I’m thankful that he’s going to be the other daddy to our babies.”
There was anawwthat came from Alpha Mate Mina, I was certain, but I was too busy staring into Briggs’s blue eyes to focus on who exactly had made the sound.“I love you too,”I whispered to him through our bond. I wasn’t ashamed of Briggs, nor was I unwilling to share my affection with him around others. It just seemed more fitting to tell him privately in that moment because this washismoment. He’d been asked the question by John.
I realized the room was quiet, and when I turned to look at my brother, he offered me a smile. “You’re lucky, and I’m happy for you.”
I leaned over and put my arm around John’s shoulders. “Thanks. I know I’m lucky.” I wanted to ask so many questions, but now wasn’t the time. Maybe I’d get a chance to later. What I did notice was that Tracy was on the other side of the table, sitting next to Alpha Mate Mina. I smiled at that, and John seemed to pick up on it. “What?” I asked him quietly.
John shook his head. I dropped it for now. I would make sure I got the chance to talk with my brother after dinner. What started out as small talk quickly turned to my pregnancy being the center of attention. I understood to some extent, but it seemed like the more the babies were discussed, the more withdrawn John became.
Tracy didn’t seem to care one way or another. I did understand. She was ten, and, well, she was all about Alpha Mate Mina. It was so obvious now that I was seeing it from a different perspective. Tracy didn’t dislike me, but she didn’t really know me. She’d been through a lot, but thankfully not nearly anything like what I’d been through. But now she had stability, and it was obvious that she adored Alpha Mate Mina and Alpha Babak. I had no doubt that Tracy would flourish with them as her adoptive parents.
“You’ve gone quiet, Todd,” Alpha Mate Victoria said. “Have we been too intrusive?”
I focused on the wolf shifter and shook my head. “No. I have a lot to think about lately, and it can be difficult to shut the thoughts off at times. Twins are one more than I was expecting, but I’m not upset. But we’ll have to get two of everything, and now we have to pick two names.”
There were chuckles around the table. “Yes, but think of all of the adorable names you can give them,” Alpha Mate Victoria said.
“True. We’ve not really started thinking about names.” I looked to Briggs for help. He smiled and shook his head in agreement. “I’m sure that will be a stressful thing once we do.” We had to come up with good names for our little girls. They would have them for the rest of their long lives, and the last thing I wanted was to name our daughters something horrible and they ended up hating it for centuries to come.
“It’s on our list of things to do, but we just had the scan yesterday, and we didn’t know what to even consider just yet,” Briggs added. “And with everything else going on, we’ve been incredibly busy. Todd was sick, then overly tired, but he’s finally starting to feel better.”
“And your due date?” Alpha Babak asked.
“November twenty-fifth,” I told him. “Dr. King doesn’t think I’ll carry them that long though. Not with me having twins.”
Alpha Dane spoke up. “All children are such a blessing,” he said, and I noticed he placed his hand on top of Alpha Mate Victoria’s. “I’ll make sure you have plenty of time off starting in November,” he told Briggs.
