Cadence did so, quickly, tugging at the hem of her white shirt, not that he’d moved it. “What is it? Am I going to die, Doc?” The amount of drama infused in her voice got the laugh she was looking for, but part of her was truly beginning to question how serious this situation might be.
“Someday—but not from this. Cadence, I’m not sure I want to tell you right now, since we’re headed into a pretty big battle, but you’re not sick.”
“Huh?” she asked, bracing her hands on the edge of the table. “Isn’t that a good thing?”
“It could be. But I also don’t think you’re going to be particularly happy to hear what it really is.”
She took a deep breath, the edge of the table cutting into her hands. “What is it, Jame? Just tell me.”
“You’re... pregnant.”
Cadence’s face was frozen, and once again, she felt the blood draining from her cheeks. It took a full minute, maybe two, before she managed to say, “Come again? What’s that now? I’m sorry. I think you have me confused with your fiancé. I am not among the two percent.”
Jamie thrust his hands into the pockets of his white lab coat, chuckling, as he rocked back and forth on the balls of his feet. “I know you’ve been on birth control for a long time, Cadence. But... I think there’s something in the Transformation serum that’s interacting with it, making it less effective. When we found out that Ashley was pregnant, I did some tests. I wanted to see if I could find anything conclusive. I didn’t get to finish all of them, so I can’t say for sure, but I think that’s likely the case.”
“Wait—so you think the second dose of serum knocked me up?”
“Uh, no. I think your husband did that. But I think the serum may have made it possible. Just like certain antibiotics can interfere with birth control, I think the serum made it less effective.”
Tears stung her eyes before Cadence could even consider trying to keep them at bay. While she wasn’t opposed to being a mother someday, she hadn’t been planning on it right now. She was just barely twenty-one, and while age didn’t make that much of a difference with the life she lived, the news was both shocking and overwhelming.
“Listen, Cadence, I know you weren’t expecting this.” He rested his hand on her arm. “We weren’t either. But... this could be a really great thing, you know? I don’t have to tell you how badly Aaron wants kids. And... you’re going to be a great mother, assuming that’s what you choose to do.”
His tone changed with the last part of his comment, and for a brief second, Cadence considered the alternative. The thought was fleeting. Not only did it not line up with her beliefs, she would never consider asking her husband to give up something he so desperately wanted. Swiping at a tear, she said, “I do. I’ll... just have to figure it out later, though. Okay? I mean... I don’t want to tell Aaron right now. And I can’t let it distract me.” She wiped her hand on the leg of her black leather pants, which did nothing to dry it. “I still have a job to do.”
“Right. And this shouldn’t interfere. I can take away the discomfort for a little while, but I’m just masking the symptoms. As long as you’re pregnant, you’re going to have typical human reactions to growing a child.”
She nodded while Jamie removed his gloves and placed his hand on her head. The pain left immediately, as did the unsettled feeling in her abdomen, one she could hardly believe was occupied by another independent being. So much for going into battle without any distractions.
“I won’t say anything to anyone,” Jamie assured her before she even asked. “Would you mind telling Aaron I’ll be a few minutes late to the meeting? He’s pretty busy on the IAC, and I don’t want to interrupt him. I’ve got an experiment I’m working on with this gal,” he said, thumbing in the direction of the creature, “and I’m hoping it works. If I can get the formula right, there’s a possibility I might actually be able to use the Transformation serum to reverse this condition.”
Cadence hardly understood a word he was saying, she was so caught up in her own jumbled thoughts. “Sure, I’ll tell him,” she said, processing the first part of what Jamie had said.
“Thanks. I don’t think it will work on the ones that’ve been incubating for as long as this woman, but maybe some of the ones that haven’t fully changed over yet.”
“Yep,” she said, her feet headed toward the door, and her mind not comprehending a word of his message. “I’ll let him know.” She reached for the door handle but stopped. “You’re sure, right? I mean... you saw it? The baby?” Slowly, she turned and looked over her shoulder at the doctor.
Jamie nodded. “Yes, I’m sure, Cadey. There’s a baby in there. I saw it. I didn’t do as thorough an examination as I would have if you were in my office and I could use a sonogram to measure, but I’d say you’re probably about three weeks along, maybe a little more. Not even enough to miss a period yet. But your hormones have already started to kick into gear. Lucky you. Ash is the same, just a little further along.” He smirked, thinking of his pregnant girlfriend, but Cadence couldn’t smile over it. Not yet.
“’Kay,” she said, turning to go again. Once more, she stopped. “Hey, could you tell what it is? I mean, is it a girl or a boy?”
“It’s definitely a girl or a boy,” he joked, making her roll her eyes at him. “No, not yet. But whatever it is, you’re going to love it, I promise.”
She nodded, thinking he was probably right. Eventually, she would love any child that was half her, half the man of her dreams. But for now, she needed to concentrate on killing Vampires, not loving babies. “Thanks, Jamie.”
“You’re welcome.” He smiled, and she finally opened the door, ignoring that the hissing monster seemed to be calling her name as she walked out into the hallway.
