Page 43 of Where the Current Takes Him (Mermate #1)

Beau

I t was dark when Beau woke. He was still lying on the sofa. A warm hand was resting at the center of his back. Warm…

Beau yelped and jerked upright.

“Woah woah, calm down, it’s just me.” The outline of Jaime’s raised hands was visible against the red glow of the stove clock.

“Jaime? What are you…” Beau paused. There was a much larger figure seated on the floor. “Vuos?”

“Yes,” a deep voice replied.

Beau blinked, trying to piece together what had happened. His eyes were swollen and painful. He’d been crying. His mother…

A sharp inhale lanced through Beau’s lungs. Fresh tears welled up in his eyes.

“My mamá …”

Jaime’s hand returned, resting on his shoulder this time. “I know. We heard the news and came to check on you.”

“Where’s Loriun?” Beau’s voice was choked with grief.

“He will be here soon,” Vuos said. “There was something he needed to take care of.”

Pain stole Beau’s breath away.

How could he leave me now ? After what just happened?

“You should try to go back to sleep, Beau,” Jaime murmured. “I’ll help you to bed.”

Beau didn’t answer, but let the older Omega pull him to his feet.

He realized he was still wearing nothing but a towel.

A dull spasm in his belly made him wince.

Now that he was so close to his due date, he’d been dealing with occasional cramping, which Dr. Enas assured him was normal for this stage.

Just as it faded, another took hold, stronger this time. He stopped walking, bringing a hand to his abdomen with a grimace.

“Ow, shit.”

“What’s wrong? Jaime reached over and hit the switch on a nearby lamp.

Beau massaged the painful area. “Just cramps. Don’t worry, they’ve been happening recently.”

Concern was creased into every line of Jaime’s face. “Are they getting worse?”

The last of the ache faded, and Beau finished the short trip to his bed. He let his towel fall around his hips, covering only his lower half

“That last one hurt more than the others, but I’m probably dehydrated from crying.” As he said it, another tear streaked down his face.

“I’ll get you some water.” Jaime bustled out of the room, leaving Beau alone.

Inside him, a little body squirmed.

“I know,” Beau whispered. “It must be getting tight in there.”

He trailed his fingers absently over the distended skin, feeling it move with each kick. Sometimes, he wondered if he wasn’t feeling a foot at all, but a tail. It was strange to think about a half-Mer child, thrashing its tail around inside his body.

Jaime returned with a cup of water and a loose pair of shorts.

“How are the cramps now?” he asked, sitting beside Beau.

“They’re okay. Kid’s just moving a lot. Maybe that’s why.”

“May I?” Jaime gestured to Beau’s belly.

“Go ahead.” Beau leaned back and took a sip of water while Jaime laid his hand over his bare skin.

A little smile softened the worried look on Jaime’s face. “Strong and healthy.”

“That’s what I tell myself when they kick me awake at night.”

“Got a prediction on what you’re having?”

Beau knew the older Omega was trying to distract him, but he was grateful for it.

“I don’t know about the gender, but I’m pretty sure it’s an Alpha. Did I tell you Dr. Enas estimated they’d be twelve pounds?”

Jaime fought back an expression of shock. “That is a big baby.”

“You’re telling me.” Beau sighed. “You said your biggest was less than that, right?”

“Yeah, I never did hit that twelve pound mark.”

“Lucky you.” Beau leaned forward to peer around the doorframe. “How did you manage to get away with that when Vuos is so damn big?”

Jaime chuckled softly. “I think it might have helped that my Papá was five foot two on a good day.”

Beau grunted as another cramp burned through his lower belly. “I hate to ask, but could you help me with the shorts? I can’t reach anything past my knees these days.”

“I’ve been there,” Jaime said, nodding. “I’ve got you.” He swung the door shut and helped Beau tug the elastic waistband into place. But as Beau made to sit back down, Jaime grabbed his arm. His mouth was open in a little “o” and his eyes fixed on the spot Beau had been sitting.

“What? What’s—” Beau stopped speaking when he saw the sheet. A large, wet patch was spreading slowly across the fabric.

“Beau, I think you’re in labor.” Jaime’s voice was calm on the surface, but a note of panic ran beneath. “I’ll get Vuos. Do you know the number for your birthing center?”

The next five minutes was a flurry of action, from stuffing clothes into his hospital bag to calling Beau’s poor midwife in the middle of the night. Jaime came rushing back into the room and got Beau to his feet

“We have to get going now. The transport vehicle will be here in just a minute. Try not to panic, okay?”

That last part sounded like it was meant for Jaime just as much as it was meant for Beau.

“But Loriun isn’t here,” Beau gritted out as a contraction blazed up his lower back. “Where is he?”

Jaime glanced over at his mate.

“I will go get him Beau, I promise,” Vuos rumbled. “He will be here before you know it.” And before Beau could ask any other questions about why his mate had abandoned him to begin with, Vuos plunged into the pool.

“Do you know where he went?” Beau challenged, glaring at Jaime.

The older man chewed his lip. “Vuos didn’t tell me either. But after that awful stunt your dad pulled, I can guess.”

Beau gasped. An image of Loriun bursting into his father’s office and beating the shit out of him arranged itself in his mind’s eye.

“You don’t think he—?”

“I don’t know,” Jaime said quickly. The quiet rumble of an engine was now audible from the front of the house. “Let’s just focus on you, okay? Loriun can take care of himself, and even if he can’t, Vuos will.”

Beau fell silent, and let his friend escort him to the sleek, white van that awaited them in the drive.