Chapter 22 - Kaleem
Instead of the hospital, Diana wanted an at-home birth. We were a few months away from the day our bundle of joy would make his or her entrance into the world, and today we’d be finding out if we were having a daughter or son.
It was a given that the baby was a boy, though. Strangely enough, all firstborns from alphas were boys.
That was how it had always been, so a gender reveal wasn’t necessary.
Marian, however, insisted on having a gender reveal and baby shower, and after plaguing Diana for months, my mate gave in. As much as this baby shower was a human thing, I believed it would be fun. The packs hadn’t come together since Mathieu’s party as Alpha, and a gathering was long overdue.
“Hide me!” Diana whisper-screamed while rushing into my office, and she pushed me out from behind my desk and crawled under.
“Diana, what are you doing? Be careful,” I growled, but she’d tucked herself and her massive belly under the desk.
When a knock came at my office door, and Marian poked her head in, I connected the dots.
“Sorry to disturb you,” she whispered. “Have you seen Diana? She didn’t like the dress I brought yesterday, so I have another. She needs to start getting dressed before the guests start to arrive.”
I looked under my desk, and Diana was staring daggers at me.
I wanted to laugh, I truly wanted to, but I cleared my throat and shook my head. I preferred lying to Marian than being murdered by Diana.
“I think she might be on the roof. You can check there,” I answered, and Marian grinned. “Thank you, Alpha. Not to, you know, be bossy, but you should start getting ready too.”
I nodded. “I was just about to do that.”
She giggled with excitement and closed the door, and I stood up and helped Diana stand. She bent backward to stretch with her hand on her back while rubbing her belly.
“I love her, I do, but she’s driving me nuts,” she growled while walking to the sofa, and I helped her sit. “Why did I agree to this again?”
I sat down beside her. “Because she wouldn’t stop asking, and you wanted her to,” I replied, and she groaned and tipped over like a boat to lie on my lap.
She wiggled and adjusted herself and her belly until she was lying comfortably, and I’d never been more in love with her.
Diana was carrying our son. We created a life together, and I was going to be a father.
Every day I woke up, I stared at her for a few minutes while she slept, thanking the Goddess for blessing me with such a fantastic mate and life.
For the first few weeks, I, too, had been overbearing. I hadn’t given Diana a moment to breathe until she snapped that she could take a bath alone, and I was stifling her. I’d been too horrified of her tripping in the tub, falling down the stairs, rolling off the bed, or just not having me around to leave her be.
I honestly hadn’t seen anything wrong with offering her support, but I tried to give her space. Marian, however, was relentless and over the moon about being an aunt.
“Hey,” I caressed Diana’s hair, and she hummed her response. “She will come back when she doesn’t find you on the roof.”
Her eyes popped open, and I jerked with a strangled laugh before covering my mouth. She glared at me from the corner of her eye, and I cleared my throat.
“Come now, babe, you’re going to have fun. Your Dad’s coming, so is Nazanin and the entire pack. Everyone will be here, and it’ll be a nice celebration.” I helped her to sit up again, and she sighed.
“You’re right,” she mumbled and puckered her lips.
I kissed her and then her belly. I’d gotten used to her mood swings after the first couple of weeks, and although she was being sweet now, she’ll be crying at something as simple as an advertisement on television in an hour.
It was exhausting and saddening seeing her so torn, but an experience I would never want to trade. She might disagree, though.
She-wolves and human women experienced similar hormone imbalances and cravings while pregnant. At least that was what I’d read because my entire life now revolved around reading pregnancy books and preparing for my first child.
His nursery was already furnished, and everything was purchased, so all that was left now was for us to pick a name.
“I’m going to be a mother,” Diana mumbled suddenly, pulling me from my thoughts, and I smiled lovingly while wiping at her tears.