Total pages in book: 63
Estimated words: 61468 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 307(@200wpm)___ 246(@250wpm)___ 205(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 61468 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 307(@200wpm)___ 246(@250wpm)___ 205(@300wpm)
She blushes and I can’t help thinking again how beautiful she is. Then her stomach rumbles and she puts a hand over it, her face flooding with embarrassment.
“Oh God—I’m so sorry!”
“Don’t be.” I almost laugh. She’s fucking adorable when she’s embarrassed—her cheeks get all pink and her eyes get wide.
“But I—” she begins.
“You’re hungry. That’s natural. Besides—you’re pregnant,” I remind her. “You’re eating for two. Are you having any strange cravings?”
“Not really strange, but…” She trails off and I can smell more embarrassment wafting from her. But she’s clearly hungry too—she wants something but she’s afraid to ask for it.
“What is it? What do you want, sweetheart?” I urge her. “Name it—I’ll get it for you.”
“Could I have…a cheeseburger? From Five Guys?” she asks, naming a fast food burger joint not far from us.
Suddenly I understand her embarrassment—society shames curvy women if they dare to eat anything but salad and steamed broccoli. Like they don’t deserve a burger like the rest of us. Sheila had the same problem.
“Of course you can have a cheeseburger. What do you want on it?”
I’m relieved to have this normal, mundane thing to talk about. The kiss we shared is in the past—I won’t dwell on it, won’t remember how soft her mouth was…or how sweet she tasted. I’m going to forget it and just concentrate on taking care of her, I tell myself.
But even as Poppy gives me her order, I know I’m lying to myself. I want her now—my Wolf wants her too. It’s going to be a struggle to keep my hands to myself when both of us feel like we need to claim her and make her ours.
13
LOGAN
“Well now, how was your weekend? I hope you clarified some things?” Dr. Elizabeth raises her eyebrows and looks at me significantly.
I nod.
“Showed her my Wolf.”
“He’s beautiful!” Poppy gushes. Since we clarified some things, she’s become more of her bright, happy self again. Things have been a little awkward and I admit we’ve been avoiding getting too close to each other, but she’s stopped acting like she’s a second-class citizen. Also, since she’s been eating foods on the approved list the doctor gave us—mainly lots of protein—she has more energy and bounce in her step.
“Well now—I’m glad to hear that!” Dr. Elizabeth smiles warmly. “Now we can proceed. Do you have any questions for me?”
“Yes—how is a Were pregnancy different from a human pregnancy?” Poppy asks at once. “I mean, it is different—right?”
“It certainly is. You need more protein to help the pup grow, for one thing…” Doctor Elizabeth ticks things off on her fingers. “And you’ll need more sleep as well. Your body is growing a two-natured creature—that takes a lot of energy. Also, the pregnancy lasts at least ten months, not just nine.”
“Ten months?” Poppy squeaks, her eyes going wide.
Dr. Elizabeth shrugs.
“Sometimes even longer. It depends on how fast the pup develops and what he or she needs. Female pups tend to have a shorter gestation—more like nine and a half months. Whereas male pups need longer. And Alphas need the longest of all.”
Poppy looks at me, as though for confirmation.
I nod.
“Yeah. My mom was pregnant with me for eleven months,” I confirm.
“And since you’re carrying an Alpha’s pup, your baby—if it’s a boy—is almost certain to be an Alpha too,” Dr. Elizabeth tells her. “The stronger the Alpha genes, the longer the pregnancy.”
Poppy looks stunned.
“Sorry to be the bearer of bad news,” the doctor says gently. “But the good news is, you’re in good health and so is the baby. Although the blood tests did reveal some interesting findings,” she adds.
My eyebrows shoot up.
“Interesting findings? What is that supposed to mean?”
“It means that I believe Poppy may develop Secundus Calor at some point. In layman’s terms, ‘Second Heat,’” Dr. Elizabeth says. “It happens sometimes with Were pregnancies—it simply means that the woman goes into a second Heat Cycle.”
“Heat Cycle?” Poppy frowns and shakes her head. “What does that mean?”
“That feeling you get when you need to be bred,” Dr. Elizabeth explains. “I’m sure you’ve had it before, many times. Maybe you called it something else since you were raised in the human world?”
Poppy shakes her head.
“I don’t think I’ve ever had any strong feelings, er, that way.”
Dr. Elizabeth frowns.
“What about before you got pregnant? Didn’t you need your husband to knot you and breed you often? That’s how most Were pregnancies occur.”
Poppy shakes her head.
“No, I mean, we had sex pretty often but mostly because he wanted it.”
Then she appears to remember that we’re pretending to be a married couple and it sounds like she’s talking about me instead of that no-good deadbeat, Dirk.
“Er—I mean, I wanted to it,” she clarifies hastily. “I just didn’t feel like I needed it. In fact, I’ve never felt like I needed sex.”
“Hmm…” Dr. Elizabeth frowns, her brow wrinkling. “Well. Maybe being raised in the human world, you’ve never gone through a Heat Cycle. But it appears that you might go through one now.”