Page 12 of Curtis & Jae (Mate Match #1)

Twelve

Curtis

Held in my hand was the proof that my life was about to change in the best of ways. Jae was pregnant with our child! I was over the moon. I just hoped he was, too.

Whatever happened next was entirely up to him.

If he wasn’t ready for a baby, then I’d just have to accept it.

Pregnancy was hard. I had no right to demand it of him just because I wanted to be a dad.

His body, his choice. I just hoped he would pick a future with me and our baby. It’s what I wanted so badly it hurt.

I resumed rubbing Jae’s back, feigning calm. “Can I get you anything?”

“Is that all you’re going to say?” Jae closed the lid of the toilet and rested his face against it.

His face was flushed, a sheen of sweat was on his brow.

From his pheromones, I could tell he was struggling, even if his expression hadn’t given that away.

We’d only been together barely a month, but I could read him well despite him trying to hide his panic.

Reaching for a shelf, I found a washcloth and dampened it so I could wipe his face for him with cool water. Anything to hide the trembling of my fingers and growing anxiety.

“How you feel about it matters more than what I do. I don’t want to influence you, but I’m really happy at the thought of being a parent with you.”

“You are?” He looked utterly shocked. Had I been hiding my feelings for him too much?

While I didn’t want to scare him, I was in love with him.

He needed to know that this felt like the natural evolution of our relationship.

Sure, a little sooner than maybe was wise, but it was happening.

All we had to do now was decide how we navigated it.

“Yes. I know it happened quickly—”

“How did it happen? We were so careful.”

He looked so mournful. Did he not want our baby?

My heart sank at the thought before I reminded myself he was going through a massive change and deserved grace.

Him ending the pregnancy wouldn’t mean things would be over between us, at least not on my end.

Maybe it wasn’t the right time for him. That was okay.

Yeah, the idea stung, of course it did. Still, I’d get over it. I wouldn’t lose him over it.

“We were. The Duostop was done properly, and we stuck to the timer.” I reminded him with as much patience as I could muster. I wanted to be celebrating, not consoling. “We should have been covered. It isn’t fully effective, though. Guess we were the point five percent or whatever.”

“Curtis…?” Jae looked at me with worry, yet it was tinged with something else.

“Yeah?”

“Point five percent is special. Like it’s supposed to be.” A giddy feeling rose in my stomach. “I think… I think I want this baby. I don’t know what that means—”

Putting a lid on my excitement was hard.

My omega was pregnant with my kid! “I’ll be by your side the whole time.

This baby,” I got to my knees to cradle his face with the gentlest of touches.

“Means everything. Just like you.” I tried to let him see all the love I had for him, though neither of us had dared to speak the words.

“I’d like to be with you while we do this, as a family. ”

“A family?”

“Yeah. You and me as a couple, raising a baby together.” It was like a dream come true to speak those words to him.

He smiled. It trembled as his tears fell. “Mate Match really works, doesn’t it?”

“It does. Now, why don’t we get you some water and crackers while we pack up some stuff?” My alpha instincts were screaming at me to protect, to care for our pregnant omega. He had to be with us, where he was safe and loved. I carefully helped him to his feet.

“You still want me to stay over?” He clung to my hands in a death grip.

“I’d have you move in if you wanted to.” The truth of the statement was a shock to my heart, making it race faster. Truthfully, the thought of him living so far away from me made me feel ill.

“Really?” He looked at me in wonder.

“Hell yes! It’s super fast, I know that.

” I squeezed his hands, still clasped in mine.

“We’re such a good match and you make me feel so good.

Being around you, Jae, fills my life with light and happiness.

I’d gotten into a rut before you, just working all the time.

You give me a reason to slow down and enjoy more things.

” I could have gone on forever about how having Jae in my life made it better.

“Oh, wow! I… you make me feel cherished, not smothered. Like you value my opinions and actually want to hear them.” I stole one of my hands back so I could wipe away his tears.

“I do! My crew has been teasing me about you.” I could feel the grin on my face. “They say I smile more since I’ve met you. I delegate more, too, since I want to make time for you. They like that we’ve been dating. They’ll be over the moon about the baby.”

“The baby… are you sure?”

“Never been surer,” I affirmed, wrapping an arm around him to lead him out of the bathroom. “So do you want to try staying a couple days, try the living together thing?”

“That sounds good. A trial run.” His eyes scanned his apartment. “This place isn’t baby friendly at all. There’s all the stairs and no elevator. It’s fine for just me, but with a baby…”

“Which is why we’re lucky we have my house. You could rent this place out if you decide to make the move. I’ve got my office. We can turn it into your office for you to continue working. There’s a room for the baby. We have a yard and room to build on if we need to.”

I was probably getting ahead of myself in my excitement. After a trial run, he could decide to return to his apartment.

Proving he really was on the same page as me, Jae beamed. “You’ve really thought about this.”

“I’m thinking on my feet.” Taking his hands, I led him to his bed and got him to sit down.

“We’ve got this. You and me, we might have just started, but we feel solid.

Together, we can do this parent thing. We’ve got, what, eight months to prepare?

We’re gonna have bumps, I get that, I just know we can do it. The way I feel about you—”

“How do you feel about me?” Jae looked as if he was waiting on a fatal blow.

“I’m in love with you, Jae.” He let out a deep breath with a smile. “Everything about you is perfect. Your view on life, your kindness. I miss you when you aren’t next to me.”

“Same. I—I love you, too, Curtis.” My heart felt like it was about to burst. I couldn’t believe how happy Jae made me with those three little words.

Then he continued. “Whenever something happens, I want you to be the first person I tell. We’re doing this so fast, but I don’t care. All I want is to be with you.”

“Well, direct me to what you need, and rest for a bit. You’re growing a person now. You need to take care of both of you.”

He cupped his stomach, a sweet smile played about the corner of his lips. “Okay. I’ll need my drawing tablet.”

It took me an hour to gather up everything he wanted for a few days, and to wrangle Percy into his carrier. I dealt with his litter tray since I’d heard pregnant people weren’t supposed to.

Once fully packed, Jae cast his eye over the apartment, took my hand, and led me out to my car.

Living with Jae was just as easy as dating him had been.

Sure, we were bound to get on each other’s nerves after a while, but so far, so good.

Okay, it had only been a week. Still, I loved having him to come home to.

We were keeping a lid on the pregnancy until we shared the news with our closest loved ones.

Jae’s relationship was strained with his parents after his split from Hwan, so I understood he was wary about telling them until he was further along.

The first Sunday was my brunch arrangement with my family.

It was Lara’s turn to host, so after Jae’s urging, I decided to go.

As much as I wanted to tell my parents, I agreed it was better to wait.

It was something he wanted to do together.

I suggested he invite his friend over to keep him company while I was out and prepared some granola bars for them to enjoy as a healthy treat.

Jae had me eating better because I was making sure he had all the good things he needed to grow our little bean.

“Nice to meet you properly this time. Heard good things,” Brady said as I answered the door to him. I was minutes out from leaving.

The young omega had brown hair and warm tan skin. He was around the same height as Jae, with a slender build and forest green eyes. I liked the vibe he gave off. Protective, yet willing to give me a chance.

“Yeah, nice to meet you under better circumstances. D’you mind making sure Jae eats something? We’ve switched to decaf coffee and tea, so he’s good there, but I worry about him not eating. His sickness is pretty bad.”

I was aware Jae had told Brady about the baby to ask him for his advice about our setup. Surprising us both, Brady had been all in, telling Jae to go for living with me and having our kid. He said he was looking forward to being an honorary uncle.

Needless to say, I liked the omega.

“Got you covered. Been reading articles online and they recommend ginger, so I picked up this tea he might like. Kitchen through there?” He patted my arm as he swept by me.

The scent of his pheromones washed over me, with no reaction.

Since Jae had come into my life, I’d stopped noticing attractive omegas like Brady.

His scent was probably enticing to other alphas, but for me, there was only one scent I loved. Jae’s pheromones were like home to me.

“Yeah. I better get going. Thanks for coming over.”

“No worries.”

Before I left, I went to the living room, where Jae was curled up on the sofa with Percy.

The cat loved the house and had made himself at home.

Work would start on the catio as soon as I was sure they were there to stay.

I was hopeful it wouldn’t be long before he gave his old place up.

“Heading out, babe,” I said, dipping down to kiss him. “Brady’s in the kitchen making tea.”

“Hey, I was thinking. Next brunch will be after our first appointment. Can you move it here, then we can tell everyone? Then we can have dinner with my parents or something.”

“Sounds good to me.” More than good. I was relieved he was ready to tell my family. It sucked to keep such good news from them, though I understood him wanting to be there.

His grin made me smile in return. There were nerves at the thought of telling my family. I was pretty sure they would adore Jae and be excited about the baby, but they might voice concerns about how quickly things were going.

The drive to my sister’s house didn’t take long. She lived in a nice area with sprawling homes fairly close to her clinic. I pulled in and was barely out of my truck before Milo came rushing out of the house.

“Uncle Curtis!” He jumped into my arms. “I missed you!”

“Missed you, too, little bug. Sorry I’ve not been around much.”

“It’s okay. Mama says you have a boyfriend. Can I meet him?”

I carried Milo into the house as he spoke. Dad was at the table with Jennie while Lara served them.

“Hey stranger!” my sister called as the others made their greetings.

“Can I meet your boyfriend? Mama says he has a cat. I want a cat, but I’m not allowed.” He pouted at his moms.

“That’s what I was going to ask. Jae would like to meet everyone. How about instead of at Dad’s we have brunch at my place next time? He’s been staying with me, so it’s familiar territory.”

“Sounds good, means I don’t have to cook,” Dad said enthusiastically. He was a great cook, but it was a lot of effort for him now that he was getting older.

Jennie nodded. “Milo can skip practice if necessary. I’m looking forward to meeting the man keeping you so busy! It feels like forever since I’ve seen you!”

Keeping her and my sister in the dark about Jae made me feel bad.

They were my closest friends after Marty.

We reasoned there was no point until we had the check up and knew everything was going okay, but I thought it was more about Jae’s nerves than worry over the pregnancy, which was fine.

My family could wait. They’d still be there.

I went to both of my sisters to kiss their cheeks before I hugged my dad. Milo clung to me the whole time.

“Little bug, you are going to love Percy,” I told him as I went to grab a plate, holding him in one arm. He was a skinny kid for his age. So bright, though.

“Who’s Percy?”

“He’s Jae’s cat. He’s been living at my house, so you’ll get to meet Jae and his cat at the same time.”

He hugged me close with a squeal. I put him down so he could return to his mom’s side. Jennie stroked his hair while he excitedly chattered.

“How come Jae’s been staying with you?” Dad asked.

I hated the idea of lying, so I stretched the truth. Jae had been planning on staying for a couple days to work before we found out about the baby, so I made an excuse about the light and the room, giving Jae inspiration.

“Huh, well, your house is nice, I guess. He’s got his own place?”

“Yeah, he bought it a while ago. We were struggling to get time together properly with how busy I was at work. His hours are more flexible, but he doesn’t have a car and lives across town.”

“You’ll need to make sure he gets a car, so he doesn’t feel trapped if it ends up being a long-term thing,” Dad advised. He was right. Jae would need a car, one with enough room for all the baby stuff. I made a mental note to talk to him about it.

“Will do, Dad.”

When I returned to the house, Brady was just leaving. “Jae just fell asleep. He ate some of those bars. I’m taking some home. Hope you don’t mind.”

“Not at all. Thanks for hanging out with him. You’re welcome over any time.”

Brady patted my arm. “Maybe not anytime, but thanks.”

Watching Jae rest, I felt hopeful for our future.