Page 72 of His Bullied Fated Mate

I just wish she’d told me. Why hadn’t she told me?

“Riley?”

I turned as Sherry stood just behind me. She offered me a small smile. “She’s ready if you want to come back.”

I nodded and headed back. Janella was lying on a bed with some blankets thrown over her. She was rubbing her fingers together as I came in.

“She’s healed. But she will need to stay in bed rest for a couple of days to let everything settle. We caught this early and fixed it with magic, but with how the baby grows, we can’t do it again.”

“Baby?” I looked between Sherry and Janella. Sherry’s eyes widened, and she looked at Janella.

“You didn’t tell him?” Sherry whispered to her.

Janella slowly shook her head. “Not yet.”

“Well…I’m going to slip out in the hall and question my life.” Sherry offered me a small smile before slipping out, shutting the door behind her.

I swallowed as hundreds of questions filled my head. “When did you find out?”

She chewed on her lower lip. “About two weeks ago.”

I frowned. “You’ve known for two weeks?”

She looked down, refusing to meet my gaze. I sighed, moving closer to pull a chair up to her. I took her hands. “I just…why didn’t you tell me?”

Her fingers were tight against mine. “You already have so much on your plate. I didn’t want to add to it. I'd been meaning to, but I kept chickening out.”

My heart twisted at her words. “Add to my plate, Janella. This isn’t you helping at the infirmary or looking for the cauldron. This is a child. Our child.”

“I know,” she whispered. “I was trying to think of a way to tell you. I didn’t want you to be mad or to stress about it.”

I squeezed her hands. “I’m not mad about this. I’m hurt you didn’t come to me.”

“I just…” She wiped at her eyes. “We already are afraid for the pack, and adding a baby into that mix is like adding fuel to a fire. A baby is so much more of a responsibility.”

“This baby is a blessing, Janella.” I cupped her face. “We didn’t plan it, but it’s still a blessing.”

“Are you just saying that to make me feel better?”

I shook my head. “No. If anything, this just makes what we have more real.”

I wiped at her eyes. “Are you okay? Why were you bleeding?”

She nodded. “I had a minor tear that they fixed. I’ll be fine but just need to rest.”

I nodded as I realized that the infirmary visits made sense. What I didn’t understand was the trip into town.

“What were you doing in town today? Why did you lie that you were at home?”

“I was…buying stuff.”

“For the baby?”

She nodded. “I was talking with Sherry about what I would need. So, I was going out shopping. I bought some prenatal vitamins. I was looking for baby clothes and baby bottles. I was trying to figure out what kind of breast pump I would want, but I wasn’t sure. They kind of scared me.” She rubbed her hands together. “I didn’t buy anything too important that you would maybe want to join in on.”

I pulled her hands up, kissing the back of them. “Can we make a deal? No more secrets between us?”

She nodded. “Is your anger worse?”