Page 25 of Our Accidental Christmas Mating

“Because I suspected for two days now, and this proves it. You’re pregnant.” And suddenly his happy face made sense.

We had both talked about wanting a family, a large one at that. Although we also admitted we probably weren’t quite ready for triplets. This was good news… amazing news. But also… I wasn’t quite ready to believe it yet. What if he was wrong and I got my hopes up for nothing?

“I need to take a test. How can you be sure?”

“Let’s buy our land and head to the market. I can sense it, but if a test will make you feel better, then we’ll get one.”

We flew through the paperwork. By the end of it, my signature was more of a scribble than an actual signature. The place was ours.

Our realtor handed us the keys. We could take immediate occupancy of the place, but it wasn’t actually livable. There was a lot of work to do first.

It was all ours and we had big plans for it.

I was reluctant to leave, but Nicholas reminded me of our next adventure.

“Get in the car, we can stop at the store on our way home,” Nicholas said. He held my hand like he always did. It was rare for the two of us not to be touching each other.

After two months I would have expected the honeymoon phase to fade, but it did not. Based on the behavior of the mated couples I’d met in the past few weeks, it wouldn’t ever fade. Some of the couples I’d met had been mated for two decades and had several children, yet they still looked at each other with stars in their eyes.

I wanted that with Nicholas.

“How can I be both simultaneously thrilled and terrified?” I stared at the stick in my hand, the one ready to be peed on.

“Because this is a big deal, and we both spent the last two hours excited for this baby.” He opened his arms and I fell into them. “And because you are human and like proof, and are worried the proof won’t be there.”

“I really do.” I nibbled on his mating mark. “But I have you by my side. And if I’m not, we can keep trying.”

“I do like the trying part a lot.” He playfully smacked my ass. “Now go pee on that thing so we can celebrate.”

How I wished I had his confidence. I went in, took the test, and set it on the back of the toilet. There was no way I wasn’t going to be staring at it the entire time instead of waiting the two minutes if I held onto it.

“Now we wait. Waiting is hard,” I whined.

“I know a way to pass the time.” He pressed his lips against mine. Unbeknownst to me he had set a timer, which was good. Even with all that was happening around me, I was lost in his kiss and would’ve missed the window to read the test.

The siren sound of his alarm had us jumping apart.

We stared at one another, and after a moment we laughed.

“I trust my scent, mate, and I’m confident that you’re pregnant. Go on and see for yourself.”

Over the past few months I’d learned to trust his instincts also. It was handy having a man around who could scent or hear things that I couldn’t. It was also a nuisance at times.

I snatched the test off the back of the toilet and held it in my palm. A plus sign stared back at me.

A child.

We were going to have a baby.

I gasped. “It’s positive.”

Nicholas wrapped me in his arms and lifted me in the air, spinning as he did so. It was a good thing my stomach had calmed down.

Once he set me back on my feet, he held my shoulders. “This is a good thing, right? The timing is a little soon and we’re young. But I’m excited for this.”

Tears burned in my eyes, but I blinked them away. “I’m excited too. So much. I can’t wait to have your baby, mate.”

He kissed my lips. “You’re going to be a great dad.”

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