Page 12 of Cyrus

“Ewing?” Before I realized what I was doing, I glanced over at Cyrus. He just gave me a slight, superior smirk.

“She had a bit of a mishap last night. Doc gave her some fluids and took her blood to make sure nothing else was wrong.”

“You know Dr. Ewing?”

“I do. We’re Air Force buddies.”

“Well then. Thank you for your service. As to this little mishap?” He raised an eyebrow. At Cyrus, the fucker.

“Let’s just say she imbibed a little too much and got herself dehydrated. Dr. Ewing was just covering all the bases.”

“Hmm.” Dr Redding frowned at me. “It’s not healthy to be doing that. Not while you’re pregnant and certainly not in early pregnancy.”

“I’m aware of that,” I snapped.

“All evidence to the contrary.” Cyrus never took his gaze from me. The frown on his face said he severely disapproved. He also didn’t show any surprise at my little… surprise.

“Mr. Wolfe. Did you bring her to Dr. Ewing?”

“I did. Like I said. We’re old buddies. I found her in a bad way and kept her safe.”

“I have you listed as her husband. I take it you’re the father?”

I gasped, staring at Cyrus. What the fuck?

“I am.” He met and held my gaze, daring me to contradict him.

“Good! I’m not sure what happened, but I’m glad she has someone looking out for her.”

“She does now.”

The rest of the visit passed in a blur. The doctor did an ultrasound and confirmed the baby was where it was supposed to be inside me, gave me a prescription for some prenatal vitamins and nausea medicine, then set me up with another appointment in a month.

“Don’t hesitate to let me know if you’re excessively sick or have any problems whatsoever. If you can’t reach me at the office, have Dr. Ewing contact me.”

“Trust me,” Cyrus said. “We will.”

The doctor left and Cyrus moved to the door and stood in front of it. “Get dressed. I’ll take you home.”

For some reason, that hit me like a punch to the gut. Tears burned my eyes and my throat tightened up. “I don’t… I don’t have a home.”

“Yeah, you do. I’ll take you there. Get dressed.”

I shook my head, but did as he instructed. I managed to get my underwear and shorts on but struggled with my bra. Cyrus was there, helping me straighten out the pullover sports bra before putting my T-shirt over my head. When I turned around, he settled his hands on my hips.

“You good?”

Was I? “I don’t know.” Tears I’d been holding back for a week overflowed and fell down my cheeks. Gazing into Cyrus’s eyes, I’d never felt more vulnerable in my life.

“You held it together this long. Hold on a little longer. Can you do that? For me?”

I sniffed and wiped the tears from my face, nodding as I did. “I’m good. I won’t embarrass you.”

He growled and pulled me into his embrace, holding me tightly. “Never, Odette. You could never embarrass me. For any reason.”

I trembled, struggling to keep myself together, all the while wondering how long I could manage. Now that the secret was out, all the emotion I’d held inside wanted to break free and rid my body and mind of everything I’d been holding in.

Cyrus stood with me, holding me securely while I gathered myself, trying to put the genie back in the bottle. It was hard. So very fucking hard. It took several minutes, but I finally managed. The second I tried to step away from him, Cyrus let me go. His arms dropped to his sides, and all the emotion I’d fought so hard to contain threatened to burst free again. Instead, I put my chin up, took a breath, and opened the door to leave.

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