Chapter 86


    Somedays… I question getting out of bed.


    I’d add today to that list because… dying.


    And I really don’t want to d ie. But how cr uel is this world


    that the one thing I wanted… The one thing I hoped could be


    granted to me finally is.


    Only when I’m too si ck to see the dream be a reality.


    I think of the little boy or girl who I’ll probably never get to hold. The eyes like mine or dark like Aaron’s.


    If they’d have his strength and mypassion. If they’d like chocte or vani


    ice cream.


    I close my eyes and imagine theirughter. Their first steps.


    Seeing them grow up and marry and start their own families.


    The hugs and cuddles I’ll never feel. The baby I’ll never get to feed or rock to sleep.


    Every beautiful milestone of a child’s life. Walking, talking, learning to read, to ride a bike. Teaching my


    child to swim and


    climb trees.


    Holding them in my arms when they’re si ck or scared.


    Telling them I love them each night before they fall asleep.


    A hundred thoughtse to me and melt away.


    I grab my phone. I scroll to Aaron’s contact.


    want to call him.


    I shouldn’t. But part of me wants him to have the truth. To share this joy-however brief it may be for


    me.


    At least…I think he’d be happy.


    I probably shouldn’t assume.


    I don’t know that my pack would be pleased. It cements Aaron’s im to this pack through my baby. I


    touch my


    stomach.


    So much love swirls in my heart I feel like I can’t contain it.


    Adam texts me: We need to abort. You can undergo


    treatments tobat the ca ncer. You can try again for a baby, Leah.


    He values my life over my child’s.


    And it’s probably the right choice, objectively.


    But it doesn’t feel right.


    This baby deserves a chance.


    I scroll through my phone to another name. The one person


    who is never far from my mind, no matter how much I need him to be.


    Scr ew it. I hit send.


    My call is answered on the second ring. “Hey Leah.”


    That voice.


    It’s deep and raspy. A rumbling bass that I can feel to my


    extremities.


    “Hi Aaron.”


    Material ? of N?velDrama.Org.


    “You okay?”


    My eyes water at him asking about my health.


    “There’s something I need to tell you,” I whisper.


    “Soe downstairs.”


    “What?”


    “Look out your window.”


    I scurry off the bed and yank open the blinds. The phone falls from my hand.


    Aaron is here. His hair moves a bit in the wind, and his huge shoulders seem to cast a long shadow


    behind him. He’s smiling. Well, what passes for a smile. He sports that crooked grin that means he’s


    amused.


    James is absent. Cedric too. He’s brought about a dozen men with him and though they aren’t armed,


    they are surrounded by my packmates.


    No one has shifted and the situation doesn’t seem vtile, but I’ve seen how quickly that can change.


    What does this mean? Why is he here?


    I don’t bother with socks or shoes, I just take off running. I grab the bannister and run down the stairs


    and through the foyer to the back of the house. There are several wolves in the kitchens and more


    seated in the formal living room. I haven’t seen them before, and I should stop for an introduction, I’m


    sure, but just now, I’m too focused on seeing Aaron and figuring out why he came back to me.