CHAPTER 3: PREGNANT

~Celina ~

Opening my eyes groggily, it took me a moment to remember the day’s events. Sitting up suddenly, I felt wide awake, and my eyes met the anxious gaze of Katie. 

“Thank Goddess you are alright, Luna. I was scared,” Katie cried out, and I forced out a smile.

“Don’t worry, Katie. I was stressed and just fainted due to that,” I tried to reassure her.

“Well, that’s not why you fainted,” Katie said awkwardly, and I froze. Wait. I didn’t faint due to stress? Did that mean I had some illness that I didn’t know of?

Seeing my worried look, Katie smiled at me.

“Don’t worry, Luna. It’s nothing bad. In fact, it’s the best news this pack could ever hope for. I checked your pulse when I found you lying unconscious. You are pregnant with the Alpha Heir. Congratulations, Luna!”

Pregnant… For a moment, I just stood there blankly. 

“You must be mistaken. There is no chance I am pregnant. Aren’t you the one who always gives me herbal tea to prevent pregnancy? Then how could I get pregnant?”

“I am not mistaken, Luna. I have worked for three years as an assistant to the pack midwife. Remember? No contraceptive guarantees a hundred percent prevention of pregnancy. You are most definitely pregnant. Maybe this baby was just meant to be,” Katie said with a smile, and I sat there numbly.

For three long years, I had wished for a child, and now the wish was coming true. But the timing was all wrong. Will Logan even want this baby anymore now that Clara is awake?

I tried to muster a smile at her, but I simply couldn’t. Seeing my lack of excitement, Katie’s eyes lost their sparkle, and she stared at me in confusion. 

“Why aren’t you happy, Luna? Isn’t this such a great thing?”

I shook my head at her.

“I don’t know, Katie… If it were yesterday, I would have been excited too. But now, I am not sure if it is a good thing anymore.”

“Why?” she asked, and her eyes widened in realization. “Is it because of Ms. Clara?”

I just gave a slight nod in response.

“Don’t worry, Luna. Ms. Clara is the Alpha’s past, and you are his present as well as future. I know how much you have suffered these past three years, and just when the Alpha had finally softened up, why are you giving up this easily?” Katie asked anxiously, and I bit my lips. 

“But Logan just wants Clara. He doesn’t care about me…” 

“Don’t be so pessimistic, Luna. What if the Alpha was just overwhelmed by the news of Ms. Clara’s recovery? I am sure he will be ecstatic about the baby once he calms down,” Katie said, her eyes twinkling. “And even more importantly, you are pregnant with the Alpha heir. The council will protect your legal status as Luna. You have nothing to worry about!”

I sighed, pondering her words.

“Maybe… I will find him and talk to him about the baby. Only then I could know what he really wants.”

With determination, I once again marched to the very hospital I was banned from visiting. But all my bravado vanished the moment I reached Clara’s room, only to see Logan fast asleep in her arms. As I stood there staring numbly, Clara smiled at him gently, her hand running through his hair lovingly. Then, as if sensing my gaze, she looked up, her eyes calm as they met mine.

Slowly, she put Logan’s head down as if afraid of waking him. Then she slid off the bed and glided towards me. Wearing a pink sundress, she wore flawless makeup on her face, her hair glossy and pin straight. She looked nothing like someone who had been bedridden for three years.

“You must be Celina,” Clara said with a gentle smile, and I flinched.

“Yes, I am,” I replied, my eyes meeting hers.

“I have heard a lot about you, Celina. It’s good to meet you finally.”

I just narrowed my eyes at her in response. She was just sitting there with my husband’s head in her lap, and now she was acting all friendly towards me? How does this make sense?

Sensing me staring towards Logan, Clara smiled, her eyes mischievous. 

“Well, you know Logan. He doesn’t know when to stop. He had been up all night taking care of me even though I asked him to rest. And now he is worn out. How silly! He had always been like this. Always just thinking about my needs…”

Though she still had that gentle smile on her face, now I knew for sure that she was anything but innocent. Each word out of her mouth was carefully selected to pierce my heart. Still, I just stared at her silently, refusing to react to her taunts and bragging.

“Thank you for keeping Logan company when I was in a coma. He wouldn’t have taken care of himself otherwise,” Clara said, and I clenched my fists. 

“He is my husband. You don’t have to thank me for taking care of my man,” I said, emphasising the words ‘my man’. 

Suddenly, the smile vanished from Clara’s face, and she narrowed her eyes at me. Well, that looks better than her fake smile.

Clara’s gaze fell on my neck, and I followed her gaze only to freeze seeing the hickey Logan had left there. For a moment, Clara looked angry, but then she smirked. 

“Ah, Logan was drunk when he left those hickeys there, wasn’t he?” she asked out of the blue, and I straightened up. 

“How do you know?”

“Well, he told me he couldn’t touch you while sober. The poor man had to get himself drunk so that he could pretend it was me he was sleeping with.”

My breath hitched as I stared at her mocking smile. My first instinct was to retort that she was lying. That Logan didn’t think of her when he was with me. But deep inside, I knew she wasn’t lying. 

Suddenly, Clara stepped closer to me, and my hand flew to my stomach instinctively, wanting to protect my baby. Clara’s sharp gaze didn’t miss my movement, and she froze, her eyes narrowing slightly.

“Are you pregnant?” She asked suddenly, and I gazed at her in panic. 

“Relax. I am not going to hurt you. Do I look foolish enough to hurt the Alpha heir and risk the entire pack’s wrath?” Clara asked with a teasing smile, and I gulped nervously. She didn’t look upset that I was pregnant with Logan’s baby. But why?

“I just want my baby to have a complete family,” I said, watching her closely.

Suddenly, Clara burst out laughing, and I felt goosebumps rise on the back of my neck.

“Oh, don’t worry, Celina. Your baby will absolutely have a complete family. A handsome father- Logan and a pretty mommy- me!”

“What?” I asked in confusion.

“You know, Celina, when I woke up from the coma, the doctors told me that I had turned barren because of the rogue attack. I was devastated to know I could never provide the pack with an Alpha heir,” Celina said, shaking her head. “But Logan had the perfect solution for my problem. He told me that you would have a baby for us. And now you are pregnant, just like he wanted. You will carry this baby and hand him over to me. You will just be a surrogate of my baby. Got it?”

“You want to snatch my baby and pretend to be his mother? Are you crazy?!”

“Sh! Can’t you see Logan is sleeping? Keep your voice down. And no. I am not snatching your baby. The baby is meant to be mine. If you try to resist, Logan will simply kill you once the baby is born.”

I just stared at the lunatic in silence as she sashayed back to Logan, humming merrily. 

Escape! I need to escape before this crazy woman actually steals my baby!

Panicked, I rushed back to the pack house and started packing haphazardly. 

“Are you leaving somewhere, Luna?”

Seeing my hasty packing, Katie asked in confusion, and I nodded.

“Yes. I have to leave this place before they steal my baby from me,” I replied while searching my wardrobe in a rush.

“Have you really thought it out, Luna? Do you have any plans?”

“Yes. I know what I am doing,” I said just as my gaze fell on the old wooden chest hidden beneath my clothes. Got it!

Excitedly, I opened the chest, taking a small box from inside. Opening it, I took an old-fashioned ruby ring. It had once belonged to my late mother. I still remembered her words as she passed the ring to me. 

“Celina, if you ever need help, you should go to the Alpha King and show this ring to him. He will help you.” 

Rumors painted the Alpha King as cruel and ruthless, but I had no other choice. I had to meet him and ask for help. Nothing can be worse than being here, anyway.

After assuring Katie that I will be fine, she reluctantly left the room, leaving me to pack in solace. Once I was done, I closed my suitcase and turned, ready to run away. But as I stepped out, I collided with someone. Slowly, I looked up, only to freeze as I met Logan, who stood there with a smirk.

“So, I heard you are pregnant?”