Page 13 of Agony of Our Regret (Sorcerer’s Society #11)

THIRTEEN

The next open appointment wasn’t until the end of the week because, contrary to what Noah said, his vision didn’t constitute a medical emergency. I had a hard enough time getting the doctor to let me come in two weeks before my scheduled twenty-week check since I wasn’t experiencing any concerning symptoms. The woman on the phone only took pity on me when I told her about some light cramping and discomfort.

It was more likely gas pain, but she didn’t need to know that.

At least Noah and Sky had been better about showing up unannounced and uninvited. Since they started working, they were very busy. Their unique abilities were useful, especially Sky’s. He and Luca would likely team up regularly for missions. I still didn’t love the idea of them in potentially dangerous situations, and I probably never would, but at least they could look out for each other.

“Hey, are you ready?” Noah knocked on my open office door and leaned against the frame. He’d gotten his long curls trimmed, but they still fell over his eyes.

I finished an email and closed my laptop. “Yeah. Where’s Sky?”

He took my hand as we headed down the hall toward the elevators. “Meeting us downstairs.”

My favorite bright smile greeted us as we stepped into the lobby. “There’s my Sweets.”

I kissed him quickly before we headed outside. The office was only a few blocks away, and since the three of us were together, we walked instead of fighting to find a parking spot.

“How was your day?” Sky asked, as we crossed the first street. His eyes tracked each car as if daring any of them to come at us.

“Fine.” I tugged on his hand to get him to catch up. “Having Gwen back in the office is nice.”

“Does she have to travel a lot?” Noah asked.

“She’s been going to and from the new school location every few weeks,” I replied. “We decided I shouldn’t, given my condition and the threats.”

“Good,” Noah agreed.

When we arrived at the doctor, I checked in and then sat between them in the lobby decorated in warm neutral tones and pictures of happy families, waiting for my name to be called.

My favorite thing about my doctor was that she was also a member of the Society, and no one in her practice batted an eye when I showed up with multiple men, or new ones in this case. I didn’t have to explain or come up with lies. They simply smiled and got on with the appointment.

“Avalon?” a smiling nurse called, as she held open the door.

She paused on our way back to take my weight before I followed her to the exam room. She went through the standard routine, checking my pulse and blood pressure while asking me questions.

When she was done, she sat in front of the computer. “There’s a note that you asked to move up your appointment. Did you have a specific concern?”

Noah put his hand on my knee as I nodded. “I’ve had some cramping and discomfort. I’m probably being overly cautious––”

“With your first pregnancy, it’s to be expected.” She smiled warmly. “You’re due for another ultrasound, so I’ll have the tech come in and take a look before Dr. Gracie sees you.”

“Thank you.”

She left us alone for only a few minutes before another woman came in.

“Good afternoon.” She grinned. “I’m Stacy. Go ahead and hop up here.” She patted the exam table.Each room I’d been in was painted a different shade of blue, this one closer to purple, but instead of the familiar charts and posters of the growing phases of babies, there were paintings of the female reproductive organs as flowers. It was an unexpected, but appreciated, distraction from the worry in my mind.

“Hi.” I stood and unbuttoned the top of my pants before lying back in the now familiar position. I pulled my shirt up to uncover my growing belly. Sky beamed, and Noah stared. It didn’t look much like I was pregnant yet, more like I had a big lunch, or was bloated from my period.

Stacy moved the ultrasound machine closer and drizzled the gel over my stomach before pressing the wand to my skin. She moved it around for a second before a loud swooshing filled the room.

Sky and Noah were on their feet, moving next to me while staring at the screen.

“That’s the baby’s heartbeat,” she announced.

“Wow,” Sky whispered.

Noah shook his head. “It’s incredible.”

My heart swelled. They were seeing our baby.

Shit. Our ?

Was I letting them back in so quickly?

I wanted to.

Did they still have to prove themselves?

Vince should be here.

Double shit.

I had to stay strong with him. We had no future if he didn’t work through his demons.

Maybe by the next appointment, he could come.

“...and there is the left foot.”

I only caught the end of what Stacy was saying.The guys were frozen, staring at the screen and soaking in the images.

“We can try to see if we can tell the baby’s gender if you’d like?” She looked at me.

I glanced from her to the screen and back. “You can tell?”

“If baby wants to cooperate today. We’d have to check.” She didn’t move the wand away from the foot.

“We’re planning on waiting,” I finally answered. I couldn’t find out without Gavin and Luca.

“But––” Sky started before Noah nudged him.

“Why don’t I finish taking some measurements and see if we can even find out today? If I can, I’ll note it but won’t say anything. Then if you want to know, all you have to do is ask.” Stacy gave me a smile when I agreed.

“Don’t look,” I told the guys.

“As if I know what I’m looking at,” Noah scoffed.

Sky had a harder time tearing his eyes away. “I probably could.”

Stacy quietly laughed.

“This isn’t my first time, and I can barely tell the difference between the baby and the rest of my uterus,” I countered.

That got all of them laughing while Stacy clicked and typed. She offered me a towel. “I’ve got all I need. Get cleaned up, and I’ll send your doctor in.”

“Thanks.” I waited until she was gone before wiping the goop from my skin and standing up to close my pants.

“That was so cool.” Sky took the towel and put it in the used bin.

Noah shook his head. “It’s one thing when it’s your siblings, but it’s a whole new level when it’s yours.”

I sucked in a breath. His ?

Sky nodded. “It was so cool to see yours and Vince’s mom bring those back, but this is something else.”

They both thought of this baby as their own? Already? They barely had a week to accept this news, and they were already on board?

“It doesn’t bother you?” I asked. “Not knowing who the biological father is?”

They shared a look, and Sky replied, “I don’t know who my bio dad is.”

“Me either,” Noah agreed.

“That doesn’t change anything. They’re all our dads whether we share DNA. They raised us, cared for us, loved us.” Sky shrugged like it wasn’t a big deal, and I let out a breath that seemed to lift a boulder from my shoulders.

“Ave.” Noah knelt in front of me. “We love you. We love the baby. That’s all that matters to any of us.”

He loved me? Still?

“That’s the first time you’ve said that.”

His brows furrowed. “That we love the baby?”

“Well, yes. That too.”

His confusion grew. “Who the dad is doesn’t matter?”

I shook my head. “No, that you love me.”

“That’s definitely not the first time I’ve said that.” He frowned, but I nodded.

“Since I saw you in the Philippines. You didn’t say it on the phone or when we texted.”

His eyes dropped as if thinking about it.

“You haven’t said it since coming back.”

He blinked several times and rubbed his jaw before finally looking at me again. “I’m so sorry. That’s something I should tell you every single day.”

I cracked a smile. “It would be nice to hear.”

He was still frowning. “I don’t express myself very well.”

I smirked, and Sky scoffed.

Noah ignored us. “It’s not something that comes naturally to me, and I’m so sorry it took me so long to say it again. But please know my feelings never changed. I’ve always loved you and always will.”

“Even when you get a little lost?” I asked.

“A little?” Sky sniped.

Noah shot him a glare. “More than a little, but it won’t happen again.”

“Damn right, it won’t. Any time you leave for more than a weekend, you’re getting a travel supervisor. Maybe a shock collar that goes off every few minutes to remind you that you’ve been gone too long.”

“A shock collar?” I laughed. “Really?”

Sky shrugged. “First thing I thought of.”

Noah finally lifted the corners of his lips, just barely. “A bit kinky.”

I giggled at Sky’s horrified expression just as there was a knock, and Dr. Gracie came in.

“Hello.” She smiled at each of us and didn’t miss a beat with the new men joining me. “How are you feeling, Avalon? I saw the notes about cramping and looked over the ultrasound. Baby is very healthy and measuring right on track.”

Hearing that was a relief. “I’m doing okay overall. Still a lot of nausea and morning sickness. I get tired easily.”

She nodded. “That’s to be expected.”

“The cramping has come and gone, but I wanted to come and get checked.”

She sat and waited, so I continued.

“I’ve had a recurring dream,” I said, launching into the story I came up with at work. I didn’t want to mention Noah’s visions. Even though she was in the Society, not everyone knew about his rare ability, and it seemed wise to keep that to us. “I bleed. A lot.”

She folded her hands over her knee. “That would be concerning. You haven’t bled, have you?”

I shook my head.

“It’s always something we want to watch for. It can be normal at the beginning, and some women can confuse it for normal menstrual bleeding. But we’d want to know about any bleeding now—especially since the placenta is located at the front of your uterus.”

“Is that not normal?” Sky asked.

“It’s not uncommon and generally not something of concern. It should move up naturally, and we’ll keep a watch on it.” She gave me a gentle smile. “Have you been able to feel the baby yet?”

“I don’t know. I don’t think so.”

“You should in the next couple of weeks. It can be difficult to distinguish between you and the baby with your first pregnancy. It will take even longer for anyone else to feel movements when the placenta is in the front. It’s extra cushion between the baby and the outside, so you’ll either have to wait for baby to grow or it to move.”

Sky seemed disappointed. “How long will that take?”

Dr. Gracie grinned. “Every baby is different.”

Noah stared at my belly with his brows pulled tight. He was still worried, so I brought up the topic again.

“Is there anything that can cause bleeding? Or anything I should watch out for?”

“Most of what could cause it doesn’t lead to major complications, but it could be anything from an infection or subchorionic hematoma.”

Sky sucked in a breath. “That sounds bad.”

“It’s just when blood gathers between the placenta and uterus. It’s nothing to be overly concerned about since it usually resolves on its own,” Dr. Gracie reassured him.

“My mother had a miscarriage after my youngest sibling. She was about twenty weeks along,” Noah explained. “She told me there was nothing that could have been done to save the baby––”

“There usually isn’t.” She gave the three of us a comforting expression. “Unfortunately, most miscarriages happen without warning. I won’t tell you not to worry. As new parents, that’s impossible, but I will tell you that your baby looks healthy. I don’t see any abnormalities that warrant concern.”

I took Noah’s hand and squeezed. “Thank you.”

“Of course.” She stood and headed to the door. “If you ever have any questions, don’t hesitate to call.”

“We will,” Sky assured her, as followed her out to the waiting room.

“We’ll see you again in a few weeks.” She waved and headed off down the hall.

Once we were outside, I turned to Noah. “Did that help at all?”

He shrugged. “I’m glad the baby is healthy, but I hate knowing there’s nothing anyone can do. If you miscarry, it’s out of our control.”

He was right, and with no way of preventing it, there was nothing I could say to make him feel better. “It’s a risk with every pregnancy.”

“Hey, let’s focus on the fact that we have a healthy baby and not worry about what might happen.” Sky patted Noah’s shoulder and moved in front of us to lead the way down the sidewalk. “Besides, I’m hungry, and I know baby is too.”

“Oh, you do?” I teased, as I took Noah’s hand again and followed Sky.

“Did she tell you?” Noah smirked.

“She?” Sky questioned. “See something you shouldn’t have?”

Noah shrugged. “No, but I don’t like saying ‘it.’”

“They?” Sky offered.

Noah shook his head. “No way. That’s just asking for us to get surprised with twins.”

“Dude, you just saw the ultrasound. They would know already if there were two,” Sky countered.

“Weirder things have happened than a hidden baby, dude ,” Noah shot back.

“Is it weirder than Stacy knowing what we’re having when we don’t?” I asked, hoping to change the subject.

Sky paused, and we nearly ran into him before he hurried to walk again. “Oh, I don’t like that.”

Noah turned to me with a frown. “I hate that, actually.”

I laughed. “I like the surprise.”

“No, it’s stressful,” Noah corrected.

“It’s an added unknown to an already unpredictable situation. If it were me, I would have done the blood test to find out immediately,” Sky said.

“Yeah, there’s only so much in this world we can control, and you’re choosing to ignore this one.” Noah reached out and tapped Sky’s shoulder. “Maybe we should call and find out.”

“Oh, no.” I swatted at Noah’s hand. “I already told the office to make a note on my file that I’m the only one who can get that information.”

“What?” Sky gasped.

“Just us, or does that apply to Gavin and Luca too?” Noah asked.

“All of you! I told them at the first appointment. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to find out, and I wanted to make sure no one could without me knowing.”

Sky smirked at Noah. “Luca would totally try to be sneaky.”

“No way,” Noah scoffed. “Gavin is the control freak. He needs all the information. It’s probably killing him not to know.”

Sky’s eyes widened. “We should pretend like we found out.”

Noah grinned, a sly, evil one he must have picked up during his travels. “Yes! That will drive them crazy.”

“Guys.” I tried halfheartedly to stop them, but they were already scheming.

“Boy or girl?” Sky asked him.

“Boy, but we can’t just come out and tell them. We’ve got to make them beg.”

I shook my head and continued walking. “I call the baby Lemon,” I told Noah once he caught up.

“Why?” he asked with a laugh.

“That was the size according to the weekly fruit baby chart when I told Gwen I was pregnant. It stuck.”

He nodded, “Lemon it is.”

“What is Lemon now?” Sky took my hand.

“A bell pepper.”

Noah scoffed. “Good thing you didn’t tell Gwen this week.”

“Oh!” Sky hopped, “If it’s a girl we should name her Lemon. Or use it as a middle name,”

Noah and I immediately shot that down.

“We’re not naming our baby after fruits, vegetables, or any other foods.” Noah leaned forward to stare down Sky.

“Boring,” he sang back. “So, when we get in, we have to say something sly like I can’t believe we’re having a…” he trailed off. “No, too obvious.”

“Yeah, we have to casually work it into the conversation then just stop and let Gavin and Luca realize we know.”

This was what it was like to have them all back together. The good, the bad, and the most likely going to end in a wrestling match in my living room.