I couldn't think of a singlegood reason that my boss’s omega would be cornering me in the hallway with that tone.
“You bondedwith Hailey. What about her…situation?” She said the last word in such a quiet whisper that I almost didn't hear.
“Situation?” I asked, playing dumb.
It was at that moment I realized I hadn’t told Hailey that I was going to the firehouse, and because she and Sunny were friends, they must have discussed this. But I had no idea how much Sunny knew.
“Don't play coy with me, Merrick. I know she accidentally bonded that convict firefighter. So, why areyou twosuddenly bonded?”
“Ugh, right. Well, she had separation sickness because he had to run back to the convict camp. You saw how unwell she's been lately.”
Sunny agreed. “She said it was the flu, but…it just wasn't getting any better. We were all getting concerned.”
“Well, it was basically the same thing that you had after bonding with Walker. Only, you could spend more time with your alphas and she can't. She came to me a few days ago and had a complete breakdown over the situation, and I…admitted that I had feelings for her.”
Sunny’s eyes flared. “You admitted you have feelings for her?”
I nodded. “I’d been doing my best to just keep going, but as soon as I saw her in my house, crying over her situation, I knew I would doanythingto make her feel better. Including bonding into a pack that I knew nothing about. This way, she has a lot of skin-to-skin contact with me, and she's getting better. She already looks twenty times healthier.”
“That's good. Gosh, this is such a mess. I've beenreallyworried about her.”
“I'm keeping her safe, I promise. Now that she's got a bonded alpha nearby, the pregnancy is making her a lot less sick.”
Sunny's eyes went comically wide, her voice strangled when she spoke. “Pregnancy?”
Shit.
“Crap, I didn't realize you didn't know. Hailey is keeping it all very quiet at the moment. Please, don’t spread this around.”
Sunny’s eyes filled with tears before she quickly wiped them away. “She must be so scared! Is there anything I can do to help?”
“Be there for her? She just needs time to figure it all out.” I sagged, running a hand through my hair. “Sunny, I hate asking this, but can you hold off from telling Walker?”
Sunny cocked her head to the side. “I know she's worried about her job. I won't say anything, but if he directly asks me, I'm not going to lie.”
That was the best I could hope for. There was an openness to bonded relationships. I would never ask someone to outright lie to their bonded partner.
“I appreciate that, and I know that Hailey will as well.”
“Get back to her. Tell her I’m here for her. I’ll reach out soon. Please, Merrick, just make sure she’s okay.”
“Of course. Nothing matters to me more.”
Sunny nodded again, something in her expression telling me that she’d determined something. She stepped forward and took my hand.
“You’re a good guy, Merrick. I know you’ll be there for her. And congrats.Truly.”
I smiled back at her. “It’s a little wild, but that leads to the best endings, doesn’t it?”
Sunny laughed, eyes rolling as she undoubtedly remembered her own situation.
“Yes. Yes, it does.”
Chapter 24
Wilder
“While your guard dog is away, do you want to go get snacks and more nesting things?” I asked, bounding into the living room where Hailey was lying on the couch, hand stitching some quilt pieces together.