“I don’t know about that…” Smokey muttered, frowning.
“I think that’s an excellent idea,” Mac said, turning on the machine before moving out of the way. “Here, Oliver…it’s all ready for you.”
Before Ollie could squirt the warm gel on his cousin’s belly, he heard a menacing growl from the bear, who was responsible for nearly shaking him senseless. Unwilling to anger Theodore’s mate again, he slowly set the bottle down and took a step back from the exam table. Looking over his shoulder at Mac, he murmured, “I think you’d better do it.”
“No…Theo wants you to do it, and a pregnant Omega always gets what he wants,” Mac replied. Turning his head, he glared at Smokey and said, “Isn’t that right, Smokey?”
Norm grabbed Smokey’s hand, squeezing it reassuringly, then murmured, “Ollie’s family…and you can’t growl at him or it’ll upset our mate.”
“Pooh Bear’s right,” Theo agreed, reaching for Smokey’s other hand. “Ollie always took care of me when we were younger, and I know he’ll do the same for our cub.”
“And need I remind you,” said Mac, keeping his voice quiet, but giving Smokey a dirty look, “that Jackson forbids any aggression in the hospital.”
“Please…” Theo murmured, smiling softly up at Smokey. “I really want Ollie to see his new cousin.”
Sighing heavily, Smokey knew when the battle was lost. Turning to Ollie, he nodded for him to go ahead.
Ollie glanced at Mac and, after getting a nod, he picked up the gel and squirted it on his cousin’s belly. Then placing the transducer on Theo’s bulge, he moved it slowly while watching the screen. Pleased with what he saw, he glanced at Mac and asked, “Do you want me to snap a few pictures?”
“Sure…and take some measurements as well. It’ll be helpful to compare them to the previous ones to see how fast the cub is growing.”
Nodding, Ollie did as his mate instructed and within ten minutes, had everything they needed. Then, setting the transducer down, he grabbed a towel and wiped the gel off his cousin’s belly. “There…good to go.”
“The baby’s all right?” asked Norm.
Mac handed one picture to Norm. “Healthy and growing…see for yourself.”
“Let me see,” Theo said, sitting up. Studying the picture, he grinned before passing it to Smokey. “Look at how big our cub has gotten.”
As he stared at the photo of their cub, Smokey’s expression softened. Turning to Mac, he asked, “How long before…”
“Maybe four months,” Mac said. “According to these latest measurements, your cub is growing faster than I thought he would.”
“Congratulations, Cousin,” Ollie said.
“Thanks, but now we need to talk,” Theo said, hopping off the table.
Chapter 2
Jackson hurried along the hallway leading to the hospital, eager to check on Theo’s condition. Dakota had filled him in on the sudden arrival of Ollie—a cousin of Theo’s he’d known nothing about. And as he thought further about it, Jackson realized he knew little about the families of Theo or Norm. When they’d arrived with Cody, their faces had reflected the trauma they’d suffered under Arald’s harsh hand, so he’d refrained from asking them. And when they finally settled in and seemed happy, Jackson decided it wasn’t necessary for them to relive their horrors by questioning them about their families. The only thing he needed to know was that both sets of parents had abandoned any claim to them, and that was perfectly okay with him since both the Ghost Bears had become valued members of the Blackwood Pack.
Arriving at the examination room, Jackson pushed open the door and saw Theo standing next to Smokey and Norm. Glancing quickly around, he found another man near Mac at the ultrasound machine. After seeing Mac’s reassuring nod, Jackson looked at Theo and smiled. “You okay?”
Ollie studied the wolf shifter, feeling the overwhelming power emanating from him, and concluded the man was the Alpha of the Blackwood Pack. He waited for Theo to answer the man’s question.
“Dakota told ya, huh?”
“Yeah…he was quite worried about you and your cub,” Jackson replied. “I take it everything is good?”
Grinning, Theo held up the recent picture of their cub. “He’s growing like a weed, and Mac thinks my due date is four months from now.”
“Hey, that is good news,” Jackson said, looking at the photo for a moment before handing it back. “Just take it easy for now…no more fainting spells.”
“That’s what I told him, too,” growled Smokey.
Norm shook his head. “Not gonna happen.”
“It will if you back me up.”