Page 25 of Love Bites Hard (Mated to the King #2)

epilogue

PORTER—AT SOME POINT IN THE FUTURE

“Stop stalling, Iz. Just pee on the stick.”

“I told you, I’m not peeing in front of you,” she tossed back, waving the stick with her as she gestured toward the door. “Get out.”

“I’m a wolf, baby. We pee on things to mark them as our territory. It’s a miracle I haven’t peed on you yet. Let’s get this over with.” I waved her toward the toilet.

Her face was red. “What if it’s negative again? I could just be losing my mind. I’ve already had a dozen negative tests, and I think I’m going to lose it if this one’s negative too. People lose their minds when they try for babies. It’s a thing, okay? I don’t want to be crazy. I?—”

I kissed her hard, then pulled away. “If you’re crazy, we’ll deal with it. If you’re not pregnant, we’ll keep screwing until you are, the same way we always do. We can’t control what the test says, but it’ll happen when the time is right. Either way, it’s time to learn the answer.”

She sighed dramatically. “If you leave me because I’m crazy, I will kill you.”

“I like you crazy. Stop stalling.”

“Fine. At least look away.”

I did as she requested, turning my head as she did the deed.

When the toilet flushed, I grabbed the stick from her hand. She’d already capped the top of it, so the thing was close enough to clean.

“You’re supposed to put it on the countertop. Don’t tip it down like that. I’ve read the instructions like a hundred times,” she said, swiping it from my hand and setting it down.

“How long do we wait again?” I peered at the little window, where the lines were supposed to appear.

“Three minutes. One line means not pregnant. Two lines means pregnant.”

“What if there are three lines?”

“That’s not how it works. And it hasn’t been long enough. Distract me, please.”

I stepped back, pulling her between me and the countertop and opening her thighs with my knee. She leaned her weight against it, then plopped her face against my bicep. “I don’t want it to be negative. I hate seeing the negatives.”

We’d been trying for a baby for nearly a year, and it had been hard on Izzy.

So fucking hard on her.

I felt like shit every time I saw her try not to cry, but there was nothing I could do except hold her close and tell her I loved her.

And fuck her, again.

“It’s normal for a couple to take up to a year to get pregnant, baby. We’re normal.”

“Normal sucks,” she whispered, and I felt her tears leak through my shirt.

I pulled her close, looking back at the window. If it was negative, I’d need to prepare her. Fuck her against the countertop so it wouldn’t hurt as bad, or something.

But when I saw it, my heart nearly stopped.

“Izzy,” I said.

“Don’t look at it. I don’t want to know.”

“Izzy,” I repeated, my voice lower.

“Do not get my hopes up. The last thing I want to do is cry again.”

“Look at the test, baby.”

She spun around, and froze.

Just stood there, and stared.

Her hand was shaking as she picked up the test, staring at the window.

“Two lines,” she said, her voice faint. “I’ve never seen two lines before.”

“You’re pregnant, Iz.”

“I’m pregnant,” she breathed.

“You’re fucking pregnant!”

“Holy shit. Holy shit. Holy shit!” She flung her arms around me, and I hauled her off the ground as I hugged her tightly. “I love you so much,” she said into my shoulder, her eyes watering again. “I can’t believe it.”

“Believe it, baby. We’re going to be parents.”

Her gaze met mine, those beautiful eyes bright with deep, fierce emotions. “I love you so much.”

“I love you too.”

I did.

I loved her so much, it hurt.

She was the perfect mate for me, and she’d be the perfect mom for our kids.

She’d saved my life—and I was going to make her as happy as I fucking could for the rest of ours, together.