“Look, Larem, I know about the pregnancy and that you’re the father. The ER doc saw no sign of any problems, but I’ll be setting Sasha up with an obstetrician for a full workup as soon as possible. It would help if you made a list of anything you know about Kalith pregnancies that might be helpful. For example, the normal human gestation period is nine months. If it’s different for your people, we’ll have to keep that in mind.”
Okay, he hadn’t had time to think that far ahead. In fact, he hadn’t let himself think beyond the next few minutes since the time of the accident.
“I’ll do that. I’ll also ask Hunter to contact Sworn Guardian Berk to obtain a medical book on the subject from my world.”
“Good thinking.” Laurel knelt down to pet Chance again. “And I think it’s wonderful that you’ve been practicing your mojo on the animals at the vet’s clinic. I assume you’ve also used it on Sasha.”
Larem nodded. “I eased the bruising on her ribs, slowed the bleeding on a few cuts, and repaired some of the damage to her head. My gift wasn’t strong enough to completely heal her, though.”
Judging by the way Laurel hesitated, she was about to venture into awkward territory. “And I’m guessing that’s how you discovered she was pregnant.”
“Yes.”
“Does she know about your gift?” Laurel stood and picked up her purse.
“Not yet. I was going to tell her, but it never seemed to be the right time. Now I guess I’ll have to.”
“You think?” Laurel said with a small smile. “And, Larem, sooner would be better than later. I don’t know how things are in your world, but the women here tend to take it badly when they find out their men have been holding out on them.”
“As I already pointed out to your mate, I doubt Sasha considers herself mine.”
“Larem, I don’t know what has happened between the two of you. Obviously you’ve got some serious stuff to work through, but stop and think for a minute. After almost being killed, Sasha has to be terrified, especially when she has no idea who’s behind the attack. Right now, she’s vulnerable, hurt, and barely able to take care of herself.”
Laurel tilted her head to the side as she looked up at him. “So who is the one person she trusts enough to protect her tonight? You. Just you. And don’t think we didn’t offer to run you off and take your place if she wanted us to.”
Then she gave him a quick hug. “Now, I’d better get out there before Dev decides to leave without me.”
They both knew her warrior husband wouldn’t do any such thing, but it was nice to part on a teasing note. He locked the door after Laurel and set the alarm.
“Well, boy, let’s make the rounds.”
The dog followed him from room to room as Larem checked to see that the windows were locked. It seemed unlikely that anyone knew for sure where Sasha was living now, but on the other hand, someone had evidently been following her.
He saved Sasha’s room for last, not wanting to disturb her. It was still another hour until the time Laurel said he should check on her. Chance quietly stalked into Sasha’s room, acting like a perfect gentleman. He walked around the periphery of her bed, testing the air and whining softly. Obviously, Larem wasn’t the only one who wished he could crawl under the covers and lay his head on the pillow beside hers.
After checking the window lock, Larem allowed himself the small privilege of watching Sasha sleep. The room was dark except for the light that poured through from the hallway. That didn’t matter; his eyes functioned better in dim light than a normal human’s, allowing him to drink in Sasha’s beauty. He wanted nothing more than to gather her up in his arms and hold her tight.
The thought of how close he’d come to losing her made him physically ill.
Chance moved up next to him and rested his head on the foot of the bed. Larem smiled at the dog. Boy, talk about kindred spirits. Both of them had it bad for the same woman. That was okay—he was more than willing to share her with his four-footed friend.
Sasha might not appreciate waking up to the two males standing over her, although she probably wouldn’t mind Chance sticking close by.
“Stay, boy. I’ll check in on both of you soon.”
• • •
The living room was a lonely place with both of the other occupants of the condo sleeping down the hall. Larem made the rounds again, more because he was restless than because he thought there was any immediate danger.
He stared across the street, trying to see where their Paladin guards were hiding. Even with his superior night vision it took him a while to spot them lurking in the shadows. It was doubtful that anyone passing by would see them at all.
Larem went back to trying to outdistance his demons.
Half an hour later, he finally admitted that no amount of pacing was going to help and stretched out on the couch. It was a few inches too short for comfort, but he needed to wake Sasha shortly anyway and didn’t want to risk falling asleep.