Pregnant And Rejected

Chapter 89 Breeding

Selene’s pov

“What?” I ask, unable to conjure any other words.

“I’ve been away too long,” Bastien sighs, “And so have you.” He adds pointedly. Suddenly I realize he must have dropped everything to come here. He has so many responsibilities in Elysium, I don’t know how he managed it. Who’s been running the pack while he’s been busy chasing me around Asphodel? The council?

Next I wonder how none of this occurred to me before. We can hardly be together while living in separate cities. In Bastien’s mind, I probably agreed to come back to Elysium the moment I let him claim me. The last card in my hand had been needing to keep Lila near her father, and that excuse went out the window when I told him the truth about the DNA test.

“Bastien, I have a life here.” I reply hesitantly,

“You had a life there too:” Bastien reminds me, brushing a few strands of hair out of my eyes.

“No.” I correct him. “I had you and nothing else. Here I have a business, friends, a purpose beyond standing beside you and looking pretty.”

“That’s not what I want for you, Selene. You can have all those things in Elysium. You could have had those things before if…” He trails off, uncertain why I hadn’t shown an interest in opening a cafe or having a life of my own when we were married. Puzzled and clearly concerned he asks, Did you think I wouldn’t let you?”

“No.” I exhale heavily, “It wasn’t anything you did, well, not in the way you mean.” I amend, reaching up to stroke my mate’s clenched jaw. “You have to understand. When you first rescued me I was completely helpless. I did need you to do everything for me, and you were so willing to take on that role that you never pushed me to step out of my comfort zone or do anything for myself. At the time I thought it was because you didn’t think I was capable of standing on my own two feet.” I share, reaching into my memories.

“If I coddled you, it’s because I love you.” Bastien informs me, looking perturbed. “I didn’t push you because taking care of you was never a burden to me, I wanted to do everything for you. I never wanted you to have to struggle again.”

“I know that now.” I assure him gently, but I never learned how to fend for myself. I never got far enough out into the world to find myself, to figure out who I was and what I wanted out of life.”

basement through your entire adolescence.” He reminds me as if I could forget. “You had to learn everything from scratch,

bubble.” I proclaim firmly, “When I came here I didn’t have a choice. Drake helped me get the apartment and provided for me financially, but I had to figure out how to survive on my own. I had to figure out what

those things in Elysium.” Bastien beseeches, “It won’t be

my words carefully, but I’m not sure how successful my efforts are. My mate is

when I claimed you Selene? That you and Lila would stay here when I went back home?” He

not sure I heard him

his eyes. “You’re in heat,

seems determined to tell me things I already know this evening. “So?” I exclaim, throwing my

palms together and speaking very deliberately, “You’re the most fertile you’ll ever be, and we’ve had unprotected sex a

my knees feel like jelly. How could I have failed to connect those dots? Without contraception heat cycles almost always result in babies

loud whirring. I’ve never considered having another pup. I wouldn’ t have ever wanted one with anyone but Bastien and I never thought

it might be from the first time with Bastien by my side.

thought, and I have to admit I am too. Now that I know it’s possible, I desperately want to have another child with Bastien, but I’m not sure I’m ready to do it right this minute. We still have a lot to figure out.

Bastien knew. He knew he might get me pregnant again. He seems to expect it, treating it like it’s a foregone conclusion. What’s more, we always used protection in the first year of our marriage, when having a baby would have been more traumatic for me than

eyes at my mate, I push away from the counter, stalking towards him. “Were you planning this?” I hiss, “Have you been trying to get

did occur to me,” He admits, “But in my defense, I thought you understood the

I declare hotly, “I know you didn’t believe I would thoughtlessly jump into such a big commitment when things were so uncertain between us when we live in different cities! When my first pup is already endangered because

try to back out of his reach, but he’s too fast. Before I know it the full length of my body is pressed against his, and his silver eyes are glaring down at me. “It’s instinct, Selene.” He states sternly,

they? I think. Was I subconsciously trying to seal our bond with another baby? Is all this lust really driven by that base instinct