I move my hand, letting hers go, and she instantly grabs my shirt again like it offers some relief from her fear. Cupping her face, I wipe the tear that slips away with my thumb, knowing she is looking off to hide how scared she is of Donnie and me being wrong.
“Ah, there we go,” Mathias says, making my head snap to him. “Now, let’s see, give me a sec. I am a bit rusty, this isn’t usually my job, one moment,” Doc says, fiddling with dials and buttons.
Sage’s heart is hammering in her chest, yet she never once looks at the screen.
Kneeling beside her, she is staring off, so I grab her hand. I place it in the center of my chest so she can feel the vibration, her eyes close, and she lets out a breath, her heart rate slows when I hear another come across the speakers attached to the ultrasound device.
Jonah leans forward as Mathias points to something on the screen as he glances over his shoulder and smiles. He looks at Sage, pressing his lips together, frowning before shaking her arm.
“Sage?” Mathias says, but she shakes her head.
“What is that?” Jonah asks.
“Well, that sound is your brother or sister, and this right here is a baby growing in your mommy’s tummy,” Mathias tells him, and he smiles.
“A baby,” He gasps excitedly.
I look down at Sage, who seems to be stuck in her head, muttering to herself. “That’s not your heartbeat,” I whisper to her. I get no reaction from her. Gripping her chin, I force her to look at me.
“That isn’t your heartbeat, it’s our pup’s, look,” I tell her. Her brows pinch together.
“You are pregnant, Sage,” I tell her, and Mathias turns the speaker dial-up, and the baby’s heart rhythm is easily noticed as it is faster than her racing heart. Leaning down, I press my lips to hers before smiling against her lips.
“I’m pregnant?” Sage murmurs, and I nod, unable to stop myself from smiling, and her head whips to the side to look at the screen. Mathias zooms in, blowing up the image on the screen.
“Yes, Luna, you are indeed pregnant, quite the miracle,” Mathias tells her.
Sage seems shocked as she looks at the screen when Mathias hands me some tissues without glancing behind himself. I take them, wiping Sage’s face as tears roll down her cheeks.
“We will have a baby,” She sobs in disbelief, and I nod.
Sage takes the tissues from me as she tries to stop her tears, while staring at the screen. Jonah is busy examining the screen when Mathias passes back more tissues.
“She still has some,” I tell him, my voice cracking slightly.
“They aren’t for her, Alpha,” Mathias says, and Jonah looks over at me.
“Why is everyone sad?” He asks as I take the tissues, quickly wiping my face, not realizing I am the one blubbering like a baby.
“They aren’t sad tears, Jonah, they are happy,” Mathias tells him.
“So that’s what cooties look like, huh?” Jonah says, and I snort, looking over at him.
Mathias gives him a strange look, and Sage chuckles.
“But how did the cooties get in there?” He asks, looking at me.
“Cooties?” Mathias asks him.
“Yep, Casen said Dad was giving mom the cooties, and the cooties would turn into a baby,” Jonah explains, and Mathias chuckles while shaking his head.
“Well, this Casen seems very knowledgeable about these cooties,” Mathias states.
“He is, so where is the spitting wand?” Jonah asks, looking at me
“The spitting wand?” Sage asks, looking at me, and I haven’t heard this part before.
“Yeah, Casen, said dad would use the spitting wand to give you the cooties.”
“Casen will be getting his spitting wand broken when we get home,” I tell Jonah.
His brows furrow as he looks back at the screen.
Sage stares amazed at the printout from the ultrasound the entire way home, like she is worried it will disappear and not be true if she looks away.
Pulling up out front of the packhouse, I am excited to be home and want to rest. Malik stretches, also tired, before hopping out of the car.
I open the door for Sage, and Malik unclips Jonah’s seatbelt. I can see some of our patrollers returning, and I tell Sage we will tell the rest of the pack tomorrow, wanting to let it sink first, and she agreed.
“Thanks, Malik,” I tell him.
“Anytime, Alpha,” he says before walking toward his house.
Jonah skips around the car and over to us when I spot Casen walking back from patrol. “Oi, Casen!”
“Yeah, Alpha?” He says with a wave. That little shit. He starts jogging over toward me, and I head toward him.
“I just want to check the spitting wand,” I tell him, and he stops in his tracks.
Malik laughs as Casen backs up.
“Run, Casen. He said he’s going to break it!” Jonah screams out to him from behind me.
Casen takes off running, only for Malik to chase after him and grab him. He starts squealing as Malik wrestles him to the ground, and Casen thrashes as he tries to escape.
“I warned you to watch what you tell Jonah,” I growl, and Malik pins him on his stomach with his hands behind his back before winking at me as I stop beside him.
“It wasn’t me, it was Vince, I only told him about the cooties,” Casen shrieks.
“Is that so?” I ask, looking down at him. Vince comes out of the treeline, also coming off patrol.
“Clay, grab him,” I call out to him. Vince looks over at me before looking at Clay, who gives him a little wave. Vince’s eyes go wide before he shrieks and darts off for the treeline, but Clay tackles him before tossing him over his shoulder.
“It wasn’t me, whatever it was, it was Casen,” he shrieks as Clay marches over with him before dropping him next to his twin.
“Do you know anything about the spitting wand?” I ask Vince.
“Huh, the what?” Vince furrows his brows.
“Spitting wand,” I repeat, and he seems to think before his mouth opens and closes like a fish.
“No… No, that was Casen. He told Jonah about Sage being in heat, telling him you would use a spitting wand to spit cooties in Luna,” Vince dobs.
“You traitor, I am your brother, and you just give me up like that! I would have taken half the blame for you!” Casen growls at him.
“Hey, I told you to let Malik explain what it was to him, besides, you don’t scare me, but the Alpha does,” Vince retorts.
“Traitor,” Casen sneers.
“You’re free to go home or watch,” I tell Vince.