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“Unfortunately, if she returns, we may have a legal battle on our hands. We have custody, but courts are very favorable to an omega mother. We are prepared for that eventuality, though,” I explained.

Bethany nodded. It warmed my heart that, despite her stress, she was still concerned for Joey.

“Whatever happens now, we are in this together,” I assured her. “We aren’t going anywhere. You aren’t on your own anymore.”

Chapter 27

Beth

After we found out about the baby and I learned all about Joey’s mother, life returned to a semi-normal state.

Well, as normal as it could be while knocked up.

Morning sickness was also part of my new routine. Every morning when I rolled out of bed, I was immediately grabbing my favorite cheese-flavored crackers that were shaped like fish.

The guys quickly picked up on my coping mechanism, and every time I saw them, they had little snack packs of crackers stashed in various places for me in case I got nauseated.

It was adorable, really, that they cared so much.

Every now and again, I found myself watching Joey as she did her homework, played in the den, or cuddled up with her fathers, watching TV. How her mother had been able to just walk away from her blew my mind. I wasn’t even biologically connected to the child, but I knew that walking away would be impossible for me.

I had a couple of hours between classes, so I sat in the library, looking through my meticulously labeled and color-coded planner. I relied heavily on it to keep track of everything, given all my activities.

Pulling up a web page, I started researching the phases of pregnancy and things I needed to know. I marked down when each trimester would end, when I would need to book a sonogram appointment, and even roughly what size the baby would be.

In my mind, the baby was the size of a chicken nugget, and that wasn’t going to change. The idea of me carrying something the size of a watermelon in my stomach was terrifying, and I didn’t want to linger on that thought too long.

As I turned the pages, I frowned to myself. Something was going to have to give. My schedule was jam-packed, even now that I’d finished my shifts at the café. I hadn’t even known about my pregnancy for that long, but I was already exhausted.

“It’s about time I saw you!” a familiar, sweet voice called out before a set of arms wrapped around me from behind, her violet and vanilla scent making me smile.

“Hey, Kennedy,” I greeted, standing up so I could hug her properly. The woman was just a few months postpartum, but she looked phenomenal. Her skin was clear, her hair shiny, and she was beaming like there was no tomorrow.

“We havesomuch to talk about. Come on. We are getting lunch. I am so mad at you. I don’t know why you think it’s acceptable to answer my texts with simplyI’m pregnantthen refuse to answer your phone!”

I smiled sheepishly. That hadn’t been my best moment, but I’d been somewhat overwhelmed after learning I was pregnant.

“I’m sorry. There was a lot going on.”

Kennedy waved off my concern. “I assumed so, which is the only reason I didn’t come to your place to find you, though I had a feeling I wouldn’t find you there. Come on. We can talk about this while getting lunch. I am baby-free for a few hours, and I plan to enjoy it.”

“Who’s on baby duty?” I asked as I shoved my books into my bag.

“Storm and Charlie have the babies. I think they’re taking Charlotte to get new shoes because she’s growing out of hers so fast. Children grow like weeds, I swear.”

There was a little Italian restaurant on campus we both loved, and thankfully, it wasn’t busy so early on a Thursday. We were seated and ordering our food within minutes.

“So, how far along are you?” Kennedy asked, taking a sip of her soda.

“Ten weeks, roughly? I found out last week, but we only had sex during my heat, so it’s pretty obviouswhenit happened. That was early August, before Joey had her break.”

“And how are you feeling?”

I didn’t meet her eye as I stirred my soda with its straw. “Physically, I’m feeling great. I’ve had a bit of morning sickness, but nothing more than that right now.”

“And the dads? They’re Joey’s family, aren’t they?”

I nodded. “They seem really eager to help.”