The call

Kiki

———

My phone buzzed, and before I could even say hello, Tia’s voice blasted through like a trumpet.

“Kiki, oh my Goddess, you are going to die.”

I groaned, pressing the phone against my shoulder. “If this is about that guy at your gym again, I’m already dead.”

“Not him, girl! I’m serious this time.”

“You always say that.”

“No, like serious serious. You might want to sit down.”

“I’m already lying down.”

“Good,” she said. “You’ll need the floor for this one.”

“Tia,” I warned, “I swear if you tell me you joined another pyramid scheme—”

“Girl, shut up and listen.” Her voice suddenly dropped, soft, almost shaking. “Remember that blood test you did last week at the clinic?”

“Yeah?” I said, cautious now. “You told me it was routine.”

“Well… routine came back with a surprise.”

My stomach twisted. “What kind of surprise?”

“The crying-over-your-man, craving-spicy-noodles-at-2-a.m. kind of surprise.”

I sat up. “Tia. What are you saying?”

She didn’t answer right away. I could hear her breathing on the other end which was terrifying, because Tia was never quiet.

Then, softly: “Kiks… you’re pregnant.”

For a second, I thought she said something else. My brain refused to compute. “I’m… what?”

“Pregnant,” she said again, gentler this time. “I ran the test three times.”

I laughed, but it came out shaky. “You’re joking.”

“I wish I was, boo.”

“But I had wine last night—”

“Yeah, you might wanna stop doing that.”

“Tia!”

“I told you not to drink on an empty stomach!”

“Oh my Goddess, this can’t be happening.” My hand flew to my belly before I even realized. “I didn’t even— I mean, we weren’t even—”

“Oh, you definitely were,” she said, a grin in her voice.

“TIA!”

“What? I’m just saying, biology did its job!”

I covered my face with my hands, half laughing, half crying. “This is insane.”

“You’re telling me. I’ve been your doctor and your best friend for years, but nothing could’ve prepared me for this call.”

“Tia…” My throat tightened. “Are you absolutely sure?”

“Positive. And before you start spiraling, no, it’s not a lab mix-up, and yes, you’re healthy. You just… have company now.”

I sank back onto the bed. The room felt too small for my heart. “A baby,” I whispered. “Dan’s baby.”

“Yeah, boo,” she said softly. “Dan’s baby.”

I started laughing again, watery and wild. “He’s going to lose it.”

“He’s going to faint,” she said. “Then wake up, then faint again. I can already hear him.”

“Tia?”

“Yeah?”

“Thank you. For not letting me find out from some cold-ass report.”

She sniffed. “Don’t make me cry, hormonal mess. Go tell your man before I do it for you.”

When we hung up, the silence swallowed the room whole. My heart beat slow, steady, loud.

I walked to the window, the moonlight painting my skin in silver. My reflection looked different softer, scared, but glowing with something new.

“Dan,” I whispered, my hand still pressed over my belly, “you’re going to be a daddy… finally.”

I don’t think I can keep this news till I see him.

Goddess, I don’t even think I can sleep tonight.

I need to see my man.

My heart was racing so hard it felt like my ribs were too small to hold it. I kept pacing the room, one hand on my belly, the other clutching my phone like it could magically bring him home.

Being married to Dan came with a lot.

Especially for someone like me, a girl who grew up in the human world. I didn’t know much about werewolves even though I was one of them. Didn’t even know much about my kind or their culture.

Everything about their world was strange to me. Their rules, their language, their wild energy. I didn’t speak like them, didn’t act like them. I was the outsider who kept tripping over pack customs and calling elders by their first names like a city girl with no sense.

But Dan… oh, Dan made it easy.

He made this world feel like mine.

He’d always say, “You don’t have to behave like us to belong, Kiks. You already do.”

And somehow, I believed him.

Dan was my choice.

Not some goddess’s decision. Not a fated bond that tied my life to someone I barely knew.

I never believed in that mate bond crap. I saw what it did to people how it destroyed my mother when my father died. She didn’t just lose him, she lost herself. I promised I’d never let something that cruel own me.

So when I met Dan, it wasn’t destiny. It was me. Choosing him.

He was my chosen mate. My love. My home.

No Moon Goddess. No invisible pull. Just us.

It had been over a month since I last saw him.

A whole month since I’d touched his face, kissed him goodnight, or heard that deep, rumbling laugh that made the world feel right again.

He’d left with his warriors to guard the northern border rogues had been slipping through nearby territories, wild and desperate. He refused to come home until it was safe.

That was my husband. Stubborn, brave, too loyal for his own good.

The first week apart was hard.

The second, unbearable.

By the third, I’d stopped counting the days because it hurt too much. Every morning I woke up hoping to find him beside me. Every night I went to bed alone again.

Dan wasn’t just my husband.

He was my choice. My proof that love could exist without the Moon Goddess meddling in it.

Tonight, I couldn’t take it anymore. I needed to see him to tell him the news myself, face to face. But the good thing about tonight was that he was on his way back already, and I couldn’t wait till tomorrow morning to see him. I thought it was best I waited with his men at the pack gate.

I threw on my jacket, grabbed my keys, and walked out into the cool night. The wind brushed against my skin, sharp and clean. The moon hung high and heavy, lighting the path like it knew where I was going.

I got in the car, started the engine, and just drove.

The silence was thick, but my mind was full…. full of him.

Every mile was a memory.

The first time he kissed me.

The way his eyes softened when I laughed.

The sound of his voice calling me “my fierce little Luna” whenever I tried to argue my way out of trouble.

“God, I miss you,” I whispered to the empty road. My throat tightened. “I just want to see you. Just for a minute.”

The last message he sent still echoed in my mind…

I’ll come home soon, my love. Just a few more days.

That was two days ago.

I pressed my hand over my belly again, whispering to the tiny life inside me. “Let’s go see your daddy.”

The car’s headlights cut through the night, slicing into the forest shadows ahead. The further I drove, the stronger my heart pulled me forward.

I didn’t care if it was reckless.

I didn’t care if it was midnight or dangerous.

I just needed to see him. To tell him that after three years, he was about to become a father.

The pack gate glowed in the moonlight, the night air buzzing with excitement. Warriors were gathering, laughing softly, relief all over their faces. Dan’s patrol was finally back.

My heart raced so hard I could hear it in my ears. I stood on my toes, scanning the line of headlights cutting through the trees.

And then… there he was.

Dan.

Tall. Broad. Moving like the night itself.

My chest tightened so fast it hurt. I almost called out his name. I was already smiling before I even realized it.

Then I saw her.

A woman in his arms. Small. Pale. Her head rested against his chest like she belonged there. His hand cupped the back of her neck, gentle, protective.

I froze.

The smile died before it even reached my face. The air felt colder suddenly, heavier.

No. That’s not what it looks like. She’s hurt. He’s helping her. That’s all. That has to be all.

I walked closer, my pulse thudding in my throat. “Dan!” I called out. “What’s going on? Who is she?”

He didn’t look at me. Not right away.

Instead, he turned to his beta calm, steady, almost like I wasn’t even standing there.

“How’s her condition?” His voice was low. Too low.

“She’s weak, Alpha,” the beta said quickly. “But she’ll make it.”

“Good,” he murmured. “Take her to the hospital.”

He adjusted his hold, careful as if she might break. When he passed her to his beta, her fingers caught his sleeve not wanting to let go.

He leaned down, said something I couldn’t hear. His tone was soft, coaxing.

The kind of tone he used on me when I was angry.

When he wanted me to calm down.

She nodded finally, eyes closed, and let them lead her away. I stood there, numb. Everyone was moving, talking, but I couldn’t hear a word.

When she disappeared from sight, I finally found my voice.

“Dan,” I said quietly, “who was that?”

He stopped. Didn’t turn around immediately. Didn’t meet my eyes.

When he finally did, I saw something strange there guilt, maybe. Or pity. I couldn’t tell.

He swallowed hard. “Her name’s Rita.”

I waited. My heart was already bracing for something bad.

Then he said it.

“She’s my fated mate. I found her in the rogue camp.”

For a second, I didn’t move. Didn’t blink. The words just floated there, stupid and heavy. My brain couldn’t make sense of them.

My mouth opened, but no sound came out.

Fated mate. No. That doesn’t make sense.

We talked about this. We didn’t believe in that. We said love was a choice. Our choice.

So why now? Why her? I stared at him, my throat closing up. “You found your… fated mate?”

He didn’t answer. Just looked away.

That silence was worse than any truth.

Something cracked inside me then not loud, just a small, quiet break.

The kind that doesn’t heal right.

The wind picked up, tugging at my hair. I pressed a trembling hand over my stomach over the secret he didn’t know yet.

The life we’d made.

What a cruel joke, Moon Goddess. What a cruel, damn joke.