Chapter 354

Judy’s POV

“I got here as soon as I could,” Gavin said, rushing through the doors of the clinic. “Where is she?”

I could see the pure panic on his face and the sweat that beaded on his forehead from his run. I doubted he even had his car on him; he was most likely still on post when Irene mindlinked him. He had to have been in his wolf form; he only wore a pair of shorts that rested at his knees.

His full muscular torso was on full display, and my Goddess, he was a gorgeous man.

“Babe, I’m right here,” I tell him, trying to ease some of the tension in the room.

Once his eyes landed on me, he rushed towards me, his arms wrapping gently around my body and pulling me into him.

“What happened?” He asked, murmuring against my hair. “Is it the baby?”

“No, I’m okay,” I whispered. “I don’t really know what it was. But both me and our baby boy are okay.”

The tension in his body didn’t lessen at all.

“I was so worried…” he whispered, peppering kisses along my hairline.

“It had to have been dehydration,” Eliza said, looking over the charts for the hundredth time. “I can’t think of another reason as to why she would pass out like that.”

“All her test results came back normal?” Gavin asked, not releasing his hold on me.

“As far as I could see, yes,” Eliza replied, though I could see the uncertainty in her eyes.

Being dehydrated was an assumption I didn’t believe. I drank plenty of water throughout the day. No, this felt like something else entirely, and I couldn’t figure out what it was. My heart raced at the thought that something could be seriously wrong with me or my baby. I instinctively put my hand on my belly, which Gavin noticed and placed his own hand over mine.

His eyes were warm and his expression gentle.

“It’ll be okay,” he assured me softly. “We are going to be okay.

I nodded, nibbling on my lower lip for a moment before I released it and looked up at Eliza.

“Am I okay to go home?” I asked her.

“Yes, of course,” she answered with a small smile. “I’ll schedule a follow-up appointment for a couple of days from now.”

“Thank you,” I said softly.

Gavin helped me out of bed, his arms still wrapped around me like he was afraid I’d fall over at any moment.

“Are you okay?” He asked once we were out of the clinic and into Beta Taylor's waiting car.

“I will be once I’m home,” I told him. “Just a little shaken.”

“Irene was worried about you,” he murmured, pressing his lips to the side of my face. “Why didn’t she stay with you?”

“Matt had just gotten home from school, so she went there to wait for him,” I explained. “I didn’t want him to know that I passed out because it would only worry him.”

Gavin hummed.

“He thinks of you as his mother,” he said softly.

I couldn’t help the smile on my face.

“I know,” I replied. “And I love that he does.”

“It doesn’t scare you?”

“Not anymore. Not while I’m carrying my own little pup inside of me. I’m already feeling like a protective mother. I love Matt and have since the moment I started as his tutor. I would want nothing more than to be his mother.”

Gavin tightened his hold on me.

“I want that too,” he whispered. “And when we get married, we’ll talk about adoption.”

My eyes lit up and my heart swelled as I stared at him.

“You think Matt would want that?” I asked. “Having me adopt him?”

“I think he would be thrilled by it,” he admitted. “I think it’s something he’s been wanting for a while. You know, he told me before I even realized how I felt about you that he wanted you as his mother. That he trusted you the most. He loves you.”

“I guess I have a way with the Landry boys,” I teased.

Gavin laughed, and it was a hearty sound that went straight to my core. My wolf purred in satisfaction, loving how our mate sounded when he was happy.

By the time we got home, I was beyond exhausted. All I wanted to do was take a nice hot bath and then get into bed and sleep for the rest of the night. Much to my appreciation, Gavin carried me inside, where a worried Irene greeted us.

“How are you feeling?” She asked, her eyes scanning me for any signs of injury.

“I’m fine,” I assured her. “Just a little dehydrated.”

I didn’t actually believe that I was dehydrated, but it was the best way to explain for right now.

“Are you sure that’s all it was? I never saw anyone have trouble breathing due to their lack of water,” Irene said, her brows pinching together.

“You had trouble breathing?” Gavin asked, his brows dipping as he stared down at me.

My cheeks flushed; it’s not that I was lying to Gavin about the symptoms I was having, but I also didn’t tell him the entire story. I just didn’t want to worry about him or anyone, for that matter.

“It was just a little. I think it was just a panic attack because my body knew something was wrong,” I tell him. “It’s nothing to be concerned about.”

“When it comes to you, I am concerned about everything,” he said, pressing his forehead against mine. “I’ll draw you a bath and then we’ll get you into bed. Irene, can you get some water sent to the master suite?”

“Of course,” she said, hurrying away without another word.

I rested my head against Gavin’s shoulder as he carried me upstairs and into our bedroom. He walked into the bathroom, kicking the door shut behind him. He sat me down at the counter, pressing a gentle kiss to my lips before he went to our large and glorious bathtub. He sprinkled some lavender bubbles into the tub before filling it with hot water.

As the bathroom grew steamy and the scent of lavender became potent, relaxing my body and my soul, Gavin walked over to me and stripped off my clothes, layer by layer, until I was bare in front of him.

His eyes were dark with desire as he stared at me, scooping me into his arms and placing me in the hot water. I let out a breathy moan as my body relaxed even more. It didn’t help matters any; Gavin’s eyes grew even darker, and a low growl escaped his lips.

I opened my eyes to see him at war with his wolf, nearly losing control.

I smiled.

“Join me,” I all but pleaded as I reached my hand out to him.

His nostrils flared as he looked into my eyes.

“Are you sure?”

I nodded.

“More sure than I am about anything else in my life.”

I didn’t have to ask him twice; he was quickly stripping off his clothes and getting into the tub behind me, wrapping me in his arms so my back was to his front, and his legs were sprawled out beneath mine. I felt his erection pressing into my back, but he made no movements to stick it inside of me… not like I wanted.

“I want you,” I whispered, resting my head against his chest as he ran his fingers all along my smooth skin.

He nipped at my ear, sending a warm wave of chills coursing through my body.

“And I want you,” he whispered, his tongue licking the nape of my neck where he had marked me repeatedly. It was almost back to a slight pink line, so I knew his wolf would want to mark me again to keep it fresh. My wolf didn’t hate the idea.

“Then take me,” I whispered. I reached my arms up to wrap them around his neck, but his hands came up to stop me.

“You can barely keep your eyes open…” he said, his voice almost hoarse.

He was right; my eyes had been closed the entire time, and I was practically sleeping on him, despite how badly I wanted him.

“That doesn’t mean I don’t want you…”

“It means you should be resting, not fucking. As badly as I want to make love to my mate, your well-being is more important. Let me make you feel good for a little while, and then I’ll take you to bed.”

He ran his fingers all along my body, and I trembled against his touch. He washed me and massaged me, but that was as far as it went before I started to drift off to sleep, relaxed and feeling safer than I ever had in my life.

….

I stood in the middle of the forest. A woman stood nearby as well; her back was to me, but I could tell she was older from the way she stood and the way her silver hair glistened in the moonlight. When she turned, I saw eyes that almost looked like mine, staring back at me.

She gave me a warm smile, like she hadn’t seen me in so long, and she was happy that I was there. I honestly wasn’t sure how I felt. I had never seen her before.

She reached her hand out to me, but I didn’t take it; I just stared at it, a frown marring my lips.

“Who are you?” My voice echoed as though I were in an empty room.

The woman stared at me for a moment longer before she parted her lips and said in a raspy tone, “Blood calls to blood.”