Chapter 107

No matter how many times Jason saw Amelia lying in a hospital bed, he could never get used to how horrible it made him feel. He hated himself for always failing to protect her, but this time he had truly come close to losing her for good.

He sat impatiently in a chair as he held onto her hand while waiting for Doc Miller to get back with her test results. He was glad to at least have Thomas and Pete there with him through this ordeal. The McKinley brothers had always played such major roles in their lives, and this time was no different.

The door to their ward swung open, drawing everyone’s attention to it. Although Jason had expected Doc Miller, he saw Sarah and Michelle walk into the room instead. Michelle immediately ran to Thomas and jumped into his arms while Sarah rushed to Amelia’s side to check how she was.

“How is she?” Sarah asked as she picked up Amelia’s other hand.

“She’s been through a lot…”, Jason sighed. “Doc Miller’s running a few tests to make sure she’s okay.”

Although Amelia’s wounds had been dressed and she had been changed into clean clothes, it was still obvious at first glance that she was still in bad shape. He wished with all his might that he could take away the pain she was feeling at that moment, but all he could do was raise her hand to his lips.

“Jason…” Sarah said, using his name without any titles because she was addressing the man and not the Alpha. “You need to be strong for her. Amelia can survive anything, but she’s going to need you to be strong for her.”

Jason looked up at Sarah as he let her words sink in before he nodded in understanding and kissed the back of Amelia’s hand again.

They sat in silence for several more minutes before the door finally opened and Doc Miller entered with Amelia’s chart in hand. Everyone in the room immediately sat up in anticipation to find out if their Luna was going to be alright after her ordeal.

“We got the results from the Luna’s tests”, Doc Miller said as she stood at the foot of the bed. “She has traces of the silver-laced tranquilizer in her system. And although she seemed to have been dosed quite heavily, she seemed to be burning through it quickly. Her injuries were also quite severe, but her Lycan healing is doing its job. I can’t say much about her psychological well-being until she wakes up, but I think she’ll be okay… and thankfully, so will the baby.”

The whole room fell silent at the doctor’s words. This was not news that they had been expecting.

“What…?” Jason asked, completely dumbstruck by the discovery.

“She’s pregnant”, Doc Miller continued. “By about a month if my guess is correct. Congratulations, Alpha.”

Jason was initially overjoyed by the knowledge that they were expecting a pup, along with everyone else in the room. But his joy was immediately replaced with dread when he realized what that meant.

“She was pregnant while she was going through all that?”, Jason asked as he shifted his attention back to his mate.

Sarah gasped before she covered her mouth with her hand and Michelle wrapped her arms around her mate’s waist as she buried her face in his chest. Pete raised his laced fingers in front of his face while Thomas held onto his mate as he thanked the goddess for keeping her safe. Expecting a pup was usually a joyous occasion for Silver Lake wolves, but Thornbury had managed to mar such a special occasion.

His heart dropped at the thought that she might have lost the baby after everything that had happened at Half Moon. Brushing her cheek with his knuckles, Jason swore to himself that he would make sure that she never experienced anything like this ever again.

*****

Although she still felt sleepy, Amelia was woken up by the sunlight gently illuminating the room she was sleeping in. She didn’t want to see that gaudy and extravagant room or that cold and damp dungeon first thing in the morning, so she took her time opening her eyes.

However, when she did so, she was faced with the most beautiful sight in the world. Her mate’s sleeping face as he lay next to her in the hospital bed. Although she was confused for a moment, the memories of the night of the attack on Half Moon began to surface.

Remembering how she had taken her father’s life herself, she didn’t know if she should cry or laugh at the turn of events that had transpired. She took a deep breath as she tried to calm her racing mind before she tried to raise herself to study where she was. She hadn’t realized that Jason had his arm around her waist, so he tightened his grip when he noticed her stirring.

“It’s okay, we’re back home”, Jason said as he opened his eyes. “Stay with me.”

Amelia smiled when she looked down and saw Jason looking back at her with those eyes that always seemed to know what she was thinking. So she lowered herself back to the bed and shuffled so that she could be even closer to Jason.

As she looked at him lying there next to her, she ran her fingers through his hair and watched as he seemed to relish the feeling as much as she loved doing it. For the last two weeks, she never thought that she would be able to see his face again. And now that he was lying in front of her alive and well, she was struggling with believing her own eyes.

“I thought I lost you…” Amelia said as tears began to fall from her eyes.

“For a moment back there, you did”, Jason said as he opened his eyes and used his thumb to wipe away her tears. “But you brought me back and I had to come and get you.”

Amelia smiled broadly at her mate, thankful that she had someone so dedicated in her life. She leaned in close to him as she placed a gentle kiss on his lips.

“Thank you for coming to get me”, she said as she lowered herself to the bed.

Wanting to kiss her some more, Jason removed his hand from her waist and held the back of her hand to his lips as he placed small kisses all over.

As she watched him fawn over her, she knew that the goddess had given her the perfect mate. One that she would love to grow a family with and she realized that it was time he knew about her pregnancy.

“I need to tell you something, Jason…”, Amelia said as he continued to kiss her hand.

She watched as a slow smile spread across his lips before he looked back at her.

“It’s okay, Doc said the baby was okay”, he said as he held her hand to his chest. “Don’t worry.”

“The baby is okay?” Amelia asked as she broke into a quiet sob.

“Yes, the baby is okay”, Jason said as he pulled her into a tight hug.

Amelia wrapped her arms around his waist as she buried her face into his chest and allowed herself to finally cry all the tears that she had been holding back. That was when she heard that strong heartbeat that was proof that he was still alive.

“You’re really here with me, aren’t you?” Amelia asked as she was seeking the confirmation that she desperately needed at that moment.

“I’ll always be here, Lia”, Jason responded reassuringly.

*****

He was glad that Doc Miller had given her the go-ahead to go back home because he couldn’t stand seeing Amelia in a hospital for much longer.

Even as she lay in their shared bed, he had to continue telling himself that she was back in their home and that she was finally safe. And he had to summon all the self-control he could muster to pull himself away from her side. They had a briefing that morning, but all he wanted to do was watch her sleep.

He finally managed to kiss her temple and brush her hair away from her face before he pulled the covers over her body. He then stood and quietly walked into the living space of their home where he found Thomas and Michelle waiting for him.

He had felt incredibly guilty that he had pulled them away from each other, so he had specifically asked both of them to come to his home and keep an eye on Amelia.

“Thank you for coming you two”, Jason said as he approached the couple.

“It’s okay”, Thomas said. “We’re more than happy to make sure she’s okay.”

“We’ll make sure she knows where you are if she wakes up”, Michelle said reassuringly.

“Thank you”, Jason said. “I’ll try not to be too long.”

“We’ll be here as long as you need, Alpha”, Thomas said decisively.

Grateful to his Gamma, Jason nodded and patted Thomas’s shoulder as he headed for the door. The short walk to the pack house was a quiet thoughtful walk as he tried to unpack everything that had happened in the last few weeks.

When he arrived at the pack house, he made his way to the conference room on his floor. And when he walked in, it was filled with the leaders and commanders of their invasion force. He took a seat at the head of the conference table before he laced his fingers together.

“Let’s begin”, he commanded to the whole room.