Sixty-eight.

Sixty-eight.
The rest of their wedding day went perfectly; everyone who attended was filled with joy, laughter and just the right amount of alcohol to make the whole experience magical. When the evening did come to a close in the smaller hours, Calum whisked his wife home, refusing to spend their wedding night anywhere else; despite the objections from his mother and uncle.

Colt's family left for home in the following days, filled with congratulations and tear filled promises of swift reunions.

Now it was just over two weeks later, and the newlyweds were back at home, returned from their honeymoon in Indonesia. Calum had booked the trip as a surprise two days after he had proposed. They were to stay on the beautiful islands of Nusa Penida, on a resort made up of luxurious safari style tents that gave the illusion they would be aloft in the trees, while still giving the comforts a resort stay offers.

Currently, Colt was making both Calum and herself a late breakfast in the kitchen while her husband was upstairs getting showered. She was looking forward to a fresh start in their married life, and excited about sharing an easy day at home together, and she was stirring the egg mix as it it cooked in the pan, having just turned the bacon in the grill, when there was an unexpected knock on the front door, which pulled her attention.

Quickly, running through to the front of the house, she opened the door while detecting Iona and Alasdair's scents, "Come in," she called, without waiting and ran back through to the kitchen before the eggs began to burn.

"Settled right in to your wifely duties, I see," Iona smirked a few moments later, as she rounded the corner with Alasdair at her heel.

"Shut up," Colt shot back, with a poorly concealed smile, "Besides, everything was so hectic after the wedding, and this is, our first real, settled alone time here at home, now Felix is gone, so I thought I would make it, I don't know, special, or something." Colt shrugged.

Alasdair gulped awkwardly, but before Colt could question his reaction, Iona chimed in, "Speaking of which, do you know what we should do with Felix's stuff? It's all still in the caravan."

"Oh? That bloody lion," Colt sighed, surprised. "Sorry, I'll move it into the byre. May as well, there's also a storage area full of his stuff in Montana as well, from when he just upped and came here. I'll sort it tomorrow if that's okay? Get your aunt her caravan back, Alasdair."

"Aye, no rush. She isn't exactly looking to use it just now," Alasdair stated awkwardly, scratching te back of his neck as Calum started to come down the stairs.

"Hey, hows it going, Man?" Calum stated, walking in the kitchen and slapping Alasdair on the back. "Iona," he nodded.

"Macgregor." She simply nodded back with a half smile.

"Love the neck scarf, but it's not fooling anyone." Calum smirked, giving Alasdair another pat on the back.

"Shut your face, Macgregor," Iona snapped back, smiling through gritted teeth, as she adjusted the scarf that was concealing her mark from view.

Colt was laughing as she put the eggs, and bacon, with the potato scone, and link sausages on two plates, enjoying listening to the friendly banter going on around them all. But, she froze when she heard her husband's next words.

"You ready to go?" Calum asked Alasdair, who just awkwardly cleared his throat, and nodded in Colt's direction with a furrowed brow.

Calum looked at his wife to see her shoulders were rigid, a sign he had become all too familiar with while they were away. It normally meant he had made a mistake, and judging by the two plates and the looks on their guest's faces, it was a big one.

"Love?" He asked, almost sheepishly.

"I take it you are going fishing?" Colt seethed through gritted teeth.

"Aye, Alasdair volunteered to give me a hand setting the creels out again, I'll be done quicker that way." Calum explained, hoping to earn some brownie points.

Colt put the plates that she had lifted, back down on the countertop and turned to face her husband, red hot fury rolling down from her side of the bond.

"Are you fucking kidding me!" She spat, her temper finally breaking. "You couldn't even do me the courtesy of mentioning you had made plans, not twelve hours from returning from our honeymoon? Our honeymoon, which for the record I spent most of alone! While you went, that's right, fishing!"

"Colt, I thought you were okay with..." Calum went to justify himself, he had asked her of he could go on the fishing trips, she always said it was fine.

"Just fucking go!" Colt growled interrupting him.

"Love," Calum spoke softly, moving towards her, as Iona and Alasdair subtly moved out of the room, and then the house.

"Don't," Colt hissed, "Just go, Calum. It's not like you want to be around me anyway."

Calum moved towards his wife in an attempt to calm her. "Love, that's no true, and you know it." He corrected her with a pointed look on his face.

"Do I?" Colt scoffed in response, "Because, actions speak louder than words, Calum, and over the last month your's have been roaring! But, maybe it's just your wildcat independent nature right? Convenient that, huh?"

Calum attempted to pull Colt towards himself, "Love, what are you on about?" He asked attempting to comfort her in his embrace.

But, Colt had had enough, "Just get your damn hands off me, and go to your precious fucking boat," she stated, not noticing that her claws had extended, till they sliced into Calum's arm as she pushed him away.

Calum winced, looking at the small trail of blood trickling from his arm, with mild annoyance. When he looked back at his wife though she had turned away, and he could smell the salt of her tears that were cascading down her face.

"Colt, please..." He all but begged to be let back in.

"Get out, Calum." Came her cold response. "I don't want you here, not when you so clearly don't want to be here yourself!"

Calum's hand hovered behind her for a moment, before he dropped it, and sighing, turned towards the door, "I'll try to be home as soon as I can, okay? I'm sorry." He stated before exiting the kitchen.

Colt laughed bitterly, "Don't rush on my account. I would hate to get between you and what you love most."

Calum heard her muttered words and froze in the hallway, before heading outside to meet Alasdair with a sigh. He had definitely messed up, but Colt wouldn't even let him attempt to make it right.

"You're not the first wildcat to end up in the dog house, you know?" Alasdair commented, from beside Calum's van when he appeared outside. "Also, you owe me big time, for agreeing to get into this monstrosity." He added with a chuckle, as he nodded at the van.

Calum just nodded with a frown, ignoring the last comment and getting into the van. As Alasdair climbed in he found Calum punching the life out of the steering wheel, until his knuckles split, and he let out a frustrated roar.

"Better?" Alasdair asked.

Calum sighed, "She is bloody nuts. I love her, but she is bloody off her head! I can't seem to do anything fucking right," He complained, before turning the ignition on and driving off.

Iona watched the green van disappear from her spot leaning against the wall of the house, and an errant thought climbed into her head and latched on with a vengeance. She went back inside, dropping her handbag by the door, then marching straight through to the kitchen, she found her cousin crying on the kitchen floor.

"Colt, get up." She stated without sympathy, "Come on, you look pathetic. Get up and come talk to me. Also, you know I love a good fry up, so let's not let this food go to waste." She added matter of factly.

Colt looked up, and laughed under her breath at her cousin's tone, before Iona heaved her to her feet. She quickly splashed her face with some cold water, while Iona grabbed the plates and took them through to the table, before grabbing the cutlery and following her cousin.

They ate in relative silence, well, Iona did, Colt mostly just nibbled at her bacon and pushed the rest around her plate with her fork, while Iona watched her. Until that is, Iona had enough of her cousin's moping.

"Right, talk. What happened in Nusa Penida?" Iona asked, putting her cutlery together in the centre of her empty plate.

Colt rolled her eyes before looking at Iona, "Well, it was beautiful, the waters were the most amazing shade of blue, the greenery everywhere was so vibrant, and the beaches were so perfectly white, that even I looked tanned on them. Not to mention the warmth, it's a perfect place, with beautiful coves and trails. Gorgeous shaded woodlands and spectacular birds. It is a complete paradise, Iona. Not to mention the mangroves in Nusa Lembongan, they were just stunning."

"Sounds to die for," Iona smiled wistfully at her cousin's description.

"Yes, there was only one thing missing in all that perfection," Colt lamented.

"Oh?" Iona asked, smiling

"Yes, my husband." Colt responded dryly.

"What?" Iona asked with a frown, not sure she was completely understanding Colt's meaning.

"Oh yes, Calum booked himself a fishing expedition. It was every day straight, for six of the twelve we were there." Colt nodded, "He was up and away before I awoke, and returned late in the evening."

Iona hissed. She totally understood Colt's explosion this morning now. "And you let him?"

"I won't force any man to spend time with me, Iona. Of course he said I could join him, and I did, twice. But, there is more to life than fishing. Except apparently not, because here I am, and off he fucking went." She spat out annoyed. "Fishing, with Alasdair. Leaving me to unpack, and get everything sorted on my own. Again."

"But, Colt, you still have to talk to him, he is your husband afterall. Granted, he is an idiot, a massive idiot. But, then he is male, and a Macgregor," Iona pointed out.

"Watch it, so am I now." Colt playfully reprimanded her cousin, pretending to be offended.

"Nah, you're just an overly emotional hellion," Iona laughed back.

Colt sighed, "That's fair, I guess. I've been a complete mess these past couple of months. But, it's just been one thing after another, hence why I was hoping for some decent couple time this morning."

"Actually about that, the mess part, not the breakfast that is," Iona hesitantly began, "I want to ask you something, because you reminded me of how my Mum was, and I know you were told it wasn't possible, but what tests did the doctors actually do on you?" She blurted out, not explaining herself well at all.

"What are you talking about?" Colt asked, not following in the slightest.

"Your fertility diagnosis." Iona stated simply.

Colt blanched, "What! Iona, you have to be joking. I was told with my DNA it wasn't possible," Colt stated plainly, trying not get upset, "I think that is pretty damn conclusive."

"I know that, but a wildcat female behaves in very specific and somewhat aggressive ways, while in the early stages of pregnancy, and I don't recall you ever stating that your fertility itself, was actually tested. It was just your DNA, so I'm asking this, when was your last period Colt?" Iona asked clearly, not taking her eyes off her flustered cousin.

The wheels in Colt's head began to turn, she couldn't be pregnant, it wasn't possible. But, Iona was right she hadn't actually had any fertility tests done whatsoever, and it's not like she and Calum were using any protection. They didn't need to, right? Because she wasn't fertile. When Colt began to do the math though, a cold feeling of dread began to spread through her. Not at the possibility of Iona being correct, but more at the fact she was probably wrong, and going through these next steps for nothing, would be a very cruel blow to her heart.

"Colt?" Iona asked gently, seeing the tears forming in her cousin's eyes.

"I.. I..." Colt took a shakey breath, "My period was due the weekend of the blackening Iona." Colt stated warily, as if saying it too loud might change or scare away any potential positive outcome. "I thought it was late because of the wedding stress, but surely it couldn't be five weeks late right? It should have arrived by now," she squeaked.

Iona, went over to her handbag at the door, and put her hand in it, rummaging about for a second until she pulled out a pink and white box and brought it over to Colt. Sitting it in front of her on the table.

"Go take a test, Colt," she smiled at her cousin. "It's the next step."

"But, I haven't felt sick," Colt argued back, still guarding her heart by dismissing the possibility in it's entirety.

"And I'm sure many women would be jealous of that fact. Now, go pee." Iona scolded her, "Besides, your boobs are bursting out of that bra like nobody's business, and it's not all about nausea, you know?" Iona pushed her again, while pointing to the stairs.

"Fine," said Colt nervously, picking up the box and pausing, "Iona, why do you have a pregnancy test kit anyway? A two piece pregnancy test kit with one test already missing from the box, in your handbag to be specific?" She frowned, questioning her cousin.

"Later!" Iona snapped, "Pee, now." She all but shouted, as Colt began to walk upstairs, looking calculatingly over her shoulder at her cousin as she went.

When Colt had went upstairs, Iona sat back down quietly, softly placing her hand on her lower stomach with a settled smile.