Chapter 253

Chris

Pregnant. Ava was pregnant.

The other Alphas and I raced across the battlefield, finally finding our opening. But my mind was only on Ava—the knowledge of her pregnancy was propelling me forward, driving me with an even greater purpose than anything else. The war, protecting Moonstone… It all paled in comparison to the sudden, profound meaning to my life now.

I was protecting my mate and my child. That was all that mattered.

Winston’s scent grew stronger as we approached, mingling with the metallic tang of blood and the acrid smell of fear. We found him in the heart of the chaos, his massive black form a whirlwind of teeth and claws as he fought off our warriors.

He was alone—his own warriors had been subdued.

The fight was intense, unlike anything I had experienced before. Winston fought like a cornered animal, all strategy abandoned in favor of raw, primal fury. But we had numbers and strategy on our side.

Slowly but surely, we wore him down, closing in until he had nowhere left to run.

As Winston’s movements began to slow, I saw an opening. With one last powerful leap, I knocked him off his feet, throwing him to the ground. The other Alphas quickly moved in, surrounding him completely.

Panting heavily, I leaped back and shifted back to my human form. “You’re surrounded, Winston,” I called out, my voice hoarse from the battle. “It’s over.”

For a moment, Winston continued to snarl and snap, his yellow eyes blazing with defiance. But Bernard, Edward, and Fabian pressed closer on him, nipping at him, and he was weak and tired.

Soon, the mighty wolf was replaced by a man, kneeling in the dirt.

I stood over him, my chest heaving as I caught my breath. “Are you ready to talk now?”

Winston’s icy eyes darted around the battlefield, taking in the scene. All around us, his warriors had been subdued, surrounded by our forces. There were no dead bodies, only captured fighters. The fight had gone out of them, just as it had gone out of their leader.

Finally, Winston nodded, his shoulders sagging in defeat. “Very well,” he said, his own voice hoarse and raw. “Let’s talk.”

…

As we led Winston back to the warrior camp in shackles, my eyes scanned the field, that newfound mate bond tugging at me. Ava was alive and unharmed, I knew that much—I would have felt it in our bond if that wasn’t the case.

But I needed to see her.

“I’ll catch up,” I told the other Alphas as they escorted Winston away. They nodded in understanding, leaving me to search the battlefield.

As I looked around wildly for any sign of Ava, my wolf’s voice echoed incessantly in my mind: “Pregnant... Our mate... Pregnant... A pup... Mate... Mate…”

The realization still felt surreal. Ava and I hadn’t yet had an official mating ceremony. While I loved her more than anything, our mate bond hadn’t been solidified, which meant our Mindlink shouldn’t have properly been established yet.

But during the battle, when I found myself in serious danger, I had suddenly felt her presence in my mind. Our mate bond had snapped into place without warning, filling me with a newfound strength and clarity I hadn’t felt before.

And then I saw her, bursting out of the fray in her wolf form, looking like the most beautiful and majestic creature I had ever laid eyes on.

In that instant, I knew what had happened. There was only one thing that could make our mate bond snap into place without a ceremony: pregnancy.

Ava was pregnant. We were going to have a baby. The thought made me feel lighter than air, even as I worried about her safety on the battlefield.

As we fought side by side, I couldn’t help but notice how her fur seemed to glow, almost as if it were bioluminescent. It was a sight I had never seen before, but I hadn’t had time to dwell on it, too focused on surviving and protecting her and our unborn child.

My thoughts were interrupted when I finally spotted her, standing outside the medical tent looking dirty and tired but unharmed. Relief washed over me, and without thinking, I broke into a run.

Ava saw me coming and met me halfway. I swept her up in my arms, peppering her face with kisses as I twirled her around before pulling back to look her over for injuries.

“What the hell were you thinking?” I scolded, even as I held her close and kissed her cheeks, her forehead, her nose, her neck. “I told you to stay at the cave where it was safe.”

Ava slumped against me, smelling like sweat, dirt, and blood that wasn’t hers. “I couldn’t let you go alone,” she said. “And I’m glad I came. The father of my child is alive thanks to us working together on the battlefield.”

I couldn’t argue with that. The memory of how seamlessly we had fought together wasn’t one that I would forget anytime soon.

“I have to admit, I was impressed with your fighting skills,” I said. “Especially considering you haven’t had formal training.”

A look of confusion passed over Ava’s face. “I don’t know what came over me out there,” she admitted quietly. “I just knew I needed to help you, and I suddenly felt strong and powerful, like something deep inside of me took over.”

“Well, you were incredible,” I murmured, cupping her face in my hands. “But please, don’t ever scare me like that again.”

Ava smiled, leaning into my touch. “No promises,” she teased. Then, more seriously, “Is it over? Did we win?”

I nodded. “Winston has surrendered. We’re going to talk things out now.” I paused, my thumb tracing her cheekbone. “Where is Leonard?”

She nodded her head toward the medical tent. “Hurt his leg, but he’s alright.”

I nodded stiffly. “There’s something else we need to discuss.” I raised my eyebrows meaningfully.

Ava’s eyes widened slightly, and I knew she understood what I was referring to. “Chris, I—”

I cut her off with a searing kiss, pouring all my love and joy into it. When we finally broke apart, we were both breathless.

“We’re going to have a baby,” I whispered, resting my forehead against hers.

Ava nodded, tears shimmering in her eyes. “We are,” she confirmed.

“How long have you known?”

“I only just started having my suspicions yesterday. I haven’t taken a test yet. I wanted to tell you, but with everything happening…”

“It’s okay,” I assured her. “All that matters is that you’re safe. Both of you.”

She laughed softly, the sound like music to my ears. “So, you’re happy about this?”

“Happy? Happy doesn’t even begin to cover it,” I said, pulling her close again. “I love you so much, Ava. You and our baby.”

I pulled her close again, my arms like steel wrapped around her. I wanted to wrap my entire being around her, become her armor, protect her forever. For a moment, my hand twitched toward my pocket; even though we were both covered in dirt and blood and were standing in the middle of a muddy warrior camp, I wanted to propose to her.

And I was going to.

“Ava, I—”

“Alpha Chris?”

Ava and I turned to see Bernard’s Beta standing not far away, wringing his hands nervously. I knew, then, that my proposal would have to wait. Sighing, I stepped away from Ava, although I didn’t release my grip on her hand.

“Come on,” I said softly, tugging her along with me. “Let’s talk to Winston.”