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“I’ll call the nurse to get you some more pain medicine,” said Davy quickly.
“Okay, I need to use the bathroom,” I said, my voice croaking from the long hours of sleep. Rufus jumped out of his chair and helped my feeble body out of the bed. Jasper was asleep on one of the chairs in the corner of the room.
“I got you,” said Rufus, holding my arm as I slowly walked beside him. My brain was foggy, but sleep helped.
“I want to shower too,” I said. “Did anyone bring me a change of clothes?”
“Yes, Jasper went out to buy some clothes for you,” said Rufus, helping me into the shower as he untied the hospital gown from me. A flashback of my sundress stained with blood from giving birth hit me, and my breathing quickened. “I smell your stress. What’s wrong, love?”
“Nothing just remembered some of the traumatic birth,” I said, taking deep breaths as he adjusted the temperature of the water.
I looked at my belly, which was still swollen, and I felt self-conscious of all the blood seeping down. Rufus was oblivious to that as he gently washed my arms, and I began to relax when I saw that I didn’t gross him out.
“Good morning, Ruby,”the doctor greeted me with a warm smile as he entered the room. He was a man in his thirties, wearing glasses and sporting a mole on his cheek. “It looks like you and baby Ella are both doing well.”
“I think so,” I replied softly, grateful that we were alive.
“Would you like to put the father’s name on the birthcertificate?” he asked, glancing at the alphas around me. He was probably wondering who they were and who the hell the father was.
“No, thank you,” I said after hesitating for a moment, confused. I realized that in a human hospital, paternity was important, but in wolf culture, it was frowned upon to designate a specific father. The responsibility of raising a pup belonged to every pack member, creating a strong sense of belonging.
“Alright then,” the doctor nodded, confused by my decision. He then gestured towards the car seat on a chair. “I’ll need to see you secure your baby in the car seat before you leave.”
My hands trembled slightly as Wayne helped me adjust the straps. Because of how tiny she was, I nervously placed her into the car seat.
“Aw, she disappears in it,” chuckled Wayne, and I smiled, looking at her cute sleeping face, oblivious to the world.
The doctor approved and summoned an assistant to bring in a wheelchair. With Rufus and Jasper supporting me by my hands, I eased into the chair, feeling the excitement of finally going home build within me.
Davy carefully carried the car seat while Wayne held the keys, leading us through the hallways of the hospital and out into the sunny daylight. As we approached Wayne’s car, I noticed all the alphas were dressed in clothes this time instead of being completely naked.
“Davy, how long have we been here at the hospital?” I asked, suddenly realizing that time had slipped away from me.
“A week,” he replied softly, concern etched on his face.
During the car ride home, I sat between the car seat with Ella in it and Jasper to my right. The atmosphere felt awkward between us, so I kept my eyes on my sleeping baby girl, gently adjusting her blanket. My mind raced with confusion over why Jasper was here. I thought I had moved on from him, but sitting beside him now, I couldn’t fight the attraction I felt for him, which was still there.
Groaning, I shifted in my seat, trying to find acomfortable position as the car moved. My body was still sore from everything I’d been through. As I reached for something to support myself, my hand unintentionally grabbed onto Jasper’s arm. I quickly released his arm when I realized what I had done.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
I nodded, feeling a blush creep up my cheeks.
“Why are you here?” I asked him straight out. I needed to know what was going on because I couldn’t have him around me anymore.
“I joined Wayne’s pack,” he said, looking at me and gauging my reaction to the news.
“What?” I asked, surprised. That was the last thing I expected Jasper to do, knowing how much he hated packs and all. My heart started beating fast, realizing what it meant. He was my alpha automatically now that he was part of the pack.
“I did it for you,” he said, taking my hand and placing it on his lap. “I love you, Ruby, and I would do anything to protect you. When you were taken, I had to do everything in my power to keep from losing my mind. And I realized how much you meant to me in that moment.”
I blinked in shock.
I had done a lot to move on from Jasper, and it was hard to pretend nothing had happened. Our history was rocky, and we needed to start from a clean slate.
“I’m…I’m happy you’re here,” I said. “But we need to go slow.”
“We’ll go at whatever pace you need,” said Jasper, squeezing my hand as the car began to move. The rest of the pack was quiet as they listened to our conversation.
