Page 12 of His Pretty Omega (Sweet Alps Mates #7)

Chapter Eight

Seth

My feet swung idly against the examination bed; the stupid paper gown they had made me put on crinkling with the slightest movement I made.

Or maybe that was the wide strip of white paper my bare ass was sitting on that was rustling.

Either way, had I known I was going to have to strip down and be poked and prodded on this first doctor appointment, I wouldn’t have invited Alex along.

I didn’t remember them doing this to Bennett at his first baby appointment.

Since Bennett hadn’t told Shay he was pregnant right away, because reasons, I had gone with him to a lot of his first appointments.

I had asked him to come today, but when he found out I had told Alex about the appointment, he had opted out.

He did let me know that if Alex was a no show, he would be at every doctor visit I had for the rest of my pregnancy.

That he’d be there, holding my hand and cheering me on, when I had this baby.

Bennett was my ride or die. I was honestly closer to him than my siblings. Not that I didn’t love my older brother and younger sister, we were just all very different people. We didn’t have the same relationship that I had with Bennett.

But now I was sitting, bored, anxious, staring at the clock that showed fifteen minutes past my appointment time (which in doctor world wasn’t all that terrible), and I was completely alone.

It was fine .

I hadn’t really expected Alex to show up.

Sure, he had said he would be here, but alphas said all kinds of things. Most of them seldom meant any of the bullshit that came out of their mouths, especially once they came.

We didn’t even know each other, and I had dropped the whole, Hey, remember that hot as fuck night in the hotel New Year’s Eve? Surprise! You knocked me up , bombshell. The man didn’t owe me a thing.

But I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t been playing out every scenario of how today would go in my head, and Alex was front and center.

Prince Charming to my Cinderella. A very tiny part of me hoped he had meant it when he had said he would be here today.

But I refused to be disappointed that he hadn’t shown .

“Barf,” I muttered, trying to wrap the sheet more firmly around my lower half and covering my ass. “I think I just made myself throw up a little in my mouth. Seth, get it together! This ain’t no fairy tale, doll.”

Resting a hand across my slightly rounded stomach, I whispered, “We’re going to be okay, little one.

Papa’s got this. We don’t need no alpha.

And you’ll have lots of uncles and family in your life.

” Smiling, I thought of our little omega friend group that had become like family.

They were always there, in our chat, with all kinds of parenting advice.

Or life advice. Or just down for a good bitch session.

Everyone but me had kids, mates, and husbands, so I was privy to all kinds of venting.

Even the best alphas got on their omegas nerves at some point or another.

And kids were kind of my thing. I was a pediatric nurse, after all. I did actually like kids, even if I had never wanted any of my own.

“I changed my mind though, okay?” I whispered to my belly. “I want you. It’s important that you know that. You are wanted.”

The soft tap on the exam room door brought me out of my wayward musings. My mind tended to go off in about a thousand different directions most days, but since I had found out I was pregnant it was about a hundred times worse .

The nurse, Amber, poked her head in and gave me a small smile. “There’s someone here for you. Is it okay to let him in?”

My heart stopped, then pounded so fast I thought it might jump right out of my chest. Nodding briskly was all I could do to answer. She stepped back out of sight and then he was there. Slipping into the room, looking frazzled, running a hand through his messy dark brown locks.

“I’m so sorry!” Alex said, looking around the room with wide eyes.

“My client ran over with a problem we hadn’t planned on–” he stopped with a shake of his head.

“It doesn’t matter. I’m sorry I’m late. It won’t happen again.

I’ll make sure to not book anyone before your appointments.

At least not anyone that might run over. ”

“You came,” I blinked rapidly, willing the heat and wetness I felt swelling in my eyes to disappear.

I would not cry over an alpha showing up for me.

I would not be one of those omegas. Damn these pregnancy hormones!

I cried last night over an episode of 9-1-1 .

Like what the actual fuck? Who even did that? This guy, apparently.

Alex frowned, then noticed the empty chair next to the exam bed and folded his long form into it. “Of course I came.” He stared at me for an uncomfortable minute where I tried not to squirm, then he asked, “Did you think I wouldn’t? ”

Shrugging, I gave him one of my well-rehearsed I don’t care either way looks. “I didn’t think about it one way or another.”

“Liar,” he crossed his arms over his chest, and I couldn’t help but notice how his light blue dress shirt stretched over his chest muscles.

And dammit! He had the cuffs rolled back, exposing a couple of inches of his forearms, sprinkled with dark hair, and why the ever-loving fuck was that sooo hot?

Shifting slightly on the bed, I hoped the trickle of slick I felt dribble from my hole was wiped away on the paper under me. Because how fucking embarrassing to have a slick hole if I was about to get poked on by my doctor.

Alex stood up, coming to stand in front of me, and tilted my chin up with one gentle finger. “Seth, I will always show up for you. And our pup.”

“Why?” the word was whispered, because I could barely get it past my tight throat, staring up into his dark brown eyes.

“Seth, we’re fated,” he said gently, and I jerked out of his grasp. “You don’t remember.” The sentence was more statement than question, and he shook his head ruefully. “I was afraid of that. You had a lot to drink that night. More than I realized, I think.”

“I…I remembered enough,” I whispered, breathing the scent of him in. Immediately, I felt less tense, calmer. “I…I never really believed in all the fated mates nonsense. Not unti l Bennett. And a bunch of our friends, I guess. I just wasn’t sure that’s what we are.”

I fought the urge to start swinging my legs once more out of nerves, afraid I would kick Alex by mistake. Instead, I let him tilt my chin up with his finger, not fighting him this time or jerking from his touch. My skin tingled under his finger, warmth engulfing me.

“I think we have a lot to talk about,” he stared deep into my eyes and I was lost in the brown depths. “I brought you something. It’s in my car. Can we talk then?”

“I need to get back to work,” I shook my head and he frowned. “I’m not trying to put this off, even though I keep making the work excuse. I’m really not. But we’re short staffed right now and I really do need to go back to work when this appointment is over.”

“I don’t even know where you work,” he told me, smiling wryly.

“Oh!” I exclaimed, “I work for Asher Pierce, the pediatrician. I’m his nurse.

We’re in the process of hiring another nurse, but we haven’t found anyone yet.

Our office manager quit too, so it’s a bit of a mess.

Bennett is interviewing for the position, and I’m hoping Asher hires him.

Bennett’s leaving the hospital, did you know?

With the new baby he needs steadier hours and weekends off.

Of course, you know. Because you help him, right?

Take on cases he would send you. And you were Shay’s lawyer for a bit, I guess?

Until his ex…well, you know what happened th ere.

So yeah, anyway, it’s just me for now. The docs are running the show while I’m here, and I can’t even imagine how that’s going.

Not that they can’t take vitals, they so can, not that that’s all I do.

It’s not. I do tons of things, but…I’m rambling.

” I cut myself off. “Sorry. I can be a lot sometimes. You should know that up front. I’m a lot.

It’s okay if I’m too much, fated mates or not.

I’ll understand, trust me. I know I’m a lot. ”

Alex’s brows came together, the skin of his forehead wrinkling adorably, as he deciphered all my rushed, rambling sentences. After a minute, he gave me a pointed look. “I can handle it.”

He leaned in closer, crowding me a little, and I looked up into his dark eyes, mine wide with anticipation. He was so close I could feel the heat of him, and desire swooped low in my stomach.

He bent his head, the warm air of his words ghosting my lips. “I can handle you.”

His lips captured mine in the sweetest caress of my life, that still managed to curl my toes inside my fuzzy pink socks. No one had ever kissed me with such tenderness as this man was doing at that moment. The kiss left me foggy, dazed and confused, yet every cell in my body felt alive.

The door opened, and we sprang apart like two teenagers caught by their parents, as Dr. Finn Sinclair entered the room, my chart in his hands. The man’s handsome, serious face didn't change as he looked both of us over, but his lips quirked knowingly.

Alex ran a hand through his hair, then moved back to the chair he had been occupying earlier.

“Congratulations, Seth,” Finn told me, sitting on the little rolling stool and placing my file on the small desk in the room. “Your urine test confirmed your at home test. We’ll still take some blood today though, so we can check your HGC levels.”

“His what?” Alex asked, leaning forward in his chair.

“Human Chorionic Gonadotropin,” Finn explained, and I added, “It’s a hormone that tells them I’m pregnant. As the baby grows, the HCG numbers grow.”

Alex nodded his head, and I wondered if he was going to pull out a notebook and start taking notes. The image almost made me giggle.