Chapter 9 - Distracted

Cassie - 

I roll my eyes the heavens before I look her straight in the eye and reply, "Plenty of people call me Luna, you are my friend, not to mention you are a ranked member of this pack, you are free to call me by my given name, please Tara, I thought we were friends by now?"

"Of course we are, I wouldn't have survived without you and your kindness," she exclaims.

"And I would not have managed to become the Luna you see before you without your help, please, I don't want to have this argument again," one good thing about repeating this conversation with Tara is, it has driven the ghosts of my past to the back of my mind and we have managed to arrive at the hospital.

"Very well, Cassie, I will try not to call you Luna as it seems to be such an issue for you," she concedes finally, this is the closest we have gotten to her agreeing to call me Cassie and I take it as a small victory.

"Thank-you, now let's get this over with" I pull my shoulders back and head into the hospital with my head held high, confident that the only thing wrong with me is stress.As soon as the thought crosses my mind I see them, right there, as if I had summoned them, my mother and father, waving at me from across the street, I blanche, then move to go towards them, but Tara's arm looped through mine pulls me back to the present and they vanish.

Sitting in the freshly decorated office of the man who saved my life not so long ago, I told him of all that has been happening over the last few days that has brought me to his doorstep, his frown deepens with every occurrence I mention, but he doesn't speak, instead he begins checking me over in a professional manner. I watch him as he takes my vitals, as he listens to my heart and checks my eyes, ears, nose and throat, with each note he jots down on his notepad, he seems to cheer up a little more. By the time he has finished he hasn't spoken a word and I am on the edge of my seat waiting for his verdict. I am sure nothing is wrong except stress and watching his reactions throughout the exam, I am still confident in my assumptions, however his excitement seems a little odd to me.

"Well, you aren't sick Cassie, but you knew that already," he finally said, "You are in peak health, which I must confess is wonderful to see, having seen you at your worst."

I redden slightly at the reminder of how we met, when he cared for me after I collapsed in the kitchen after finding out Ace was my mate and that he had mistreated me whilst knowing I was his.

"I'm sure it is just the stress and worry that have me out of sorts Doc, but I needed you to confirm it to get Jack to relax and stop worrying about me. This will pass, once Ace has been handled and my friends are all safe."

Felix takes a seat behind his desk and faces me with a solemn expression in his eyes. "Now Cassie, while I agree the stress is a factor in what is happening with you there is something else the stress could be affecting. When I listened to your heartbeat there was an extra echo I could hear…"

"An echo? What does that mean, is it bad?" I interrupted him.

"No, no, not bad. I may be mistaken but a quick test will confirm my suspicions."

"Ok, I have no clue what you are talking about but I can do another test now if it won't take long?"

It is a quick one, I assure you, I just need a little blood and then we should know within the next 15 minutes."

I roll up my sleeve as concern begins to seep in, he takes my blood and asks me to wait in his office while he goes to the lab to check it himself.

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Coming out of the hospital my mind is blank, I am vaguely aware of Tara gripping my arm as though I might fall flat on my face, I can see my feet moving, one then the other, moving me towards the pack house, to my home. But that is about all my mind seems to be able to handle at the moment, everything else seems to have shut down, I can't feel the breeze brushing my hair from my face, I can't hear Tara talking to me, I can't see beyond 2 feet before me, I can't smell the newly bloomed flowers lining the walkway, there is nothing, just one word that seems to take all my senses from me and it cycles around in my head trying to find purchase, trying to get a reaction from me. BABY, the word almost screams itself at me in an attempt to get some recognition. Suddenly, Jack is there, I see Jack, I feel him scoop me up into his arms, I feel the sparks that erupt at our touch, I hear him breathe my scent in and I am able to smell his rich scent, I hear him whispering my name as I feel him pressing kisses all over my face. I feel the rumble of his chest as he looks at Tara and speaks to her quietly and finally I am able to react, I am able to see and hear and feel and smell. Finally I am able to understand the words that Dr. Felix Thorne seemed to have such great joy in telling me. Suddenly the words Baby doesn't seem so scary, the word pregnant sinks into my consciousness and I wrap one arm around my mate and the other swoops down as I place a hand over my flat stomach. Jack's and Tara's words begin to register and I hear Tara speaking softly, explaining that she doesn't know what happened but that this is how I came out of Dr. Thorne's office, explaining that my reaction is one of shock according to the good doctor and that she was told to call him and stay with me until he arrived, she also added that Dr Thorne was waiting inside in case Jack had any questions. Jack holds me closer, pulling me into his chest tightly as Tara says goodbye and walks away at a fast pace, as though desperate to get away from the drama that is about to unfold, leaving me in the arms of the one person that makes everything better.

"A Baby," I whisper and I bury my face in Jack's neck breathing in his calming scent and allowing the sparks to wash over me, offering comfort and warmth.

"WHAT?!"