Read Online Claimed by the Alphas: Part Six by Viola Rivard - Free Book Online Page B

said, feeling somewhat guilty. “He doesn’t talk much about his past with me. Did she…was she okay?”
     
    Fern gave her a slow, sad smile. “ None of us thought she’d make it through the night, but she did.” She looked down to fold a cloth in her lap. Quietly, she added, “Her mother didn’t, though.”
     
    The room was silent for a moment, save for the rustle of fabric and gentle sound of her daughter’s breathing. Mila was at a loss for words. She stared down at her daughter, blinking back tears.
     
    When Fern spoke again, her voice was barely above a whisper. “You’ll be easy on him.”
     
    It wasn’t a question, but Mila nodded anyway. Fern wrapped up the soiled laundries in one of the furs and then gathered them up in her arms.
     
    “Want me to send them down yet?”
     
    “No, not just yet,” said Mila. Fern nodded and headed for the doorway. “Wait,” she called out. Fern paused. “What was her name?”
     
    Not asking for clarification, she replied, “Dawn, and yes, I think that would be a good idea.” Then she was gone, leaving Mila alone with her daughter.
     
    If it weren’t for the hours of labor and the dull pain that she was still in, Mila wouldn’t have believed that she’d just become a pare nt. Her mother had once told Mila that she’d known that she had finally become an adult the day that she’d given birth. Mila, however, had never felt so much like a child.
     
    The moment Fern left the room, Mila unswaddled her daughter, as if she were opening up a birthday present. She counted every finger and toe, softly pinching each one for good measure. The baby seemed equally fascinated by her mother, and watched without complaint as Mila poked and prodded her.
     
    “Who thought it would be a good idea to leave us alone?” she whispered. “I have no idea what I’m supposed to do with you.” The baby just stared back at her through bleary eyes. Mila ran a finger down her daughter’s face, and then leaned down to place a kiss on her forehead. “I guess we’ll just have to figure it out as we go. ”
     
    Mila relaxed back on the pillows and brought the baby up to her breast to nurse. The worst wasn’t over, but she had Dawn, and right now, that was all that mattered.
     
    ~~~
     
    “Stop pacing,” Caim said irritably.
     
    “Stop tapping your knuckles on the damn floor,” Asch countered, matching Caim’s tone.
     
    They were alone in the main room. The rest of the pack had returned to the den just before sunrise , only to slink off into the lower chambers after gauging the moods of their alphas. Talon had left with River, Brae, and the pup several hours ago, reluctantly leaving what was left of his pack in Lazarus’s care.
     
    There were many things Asch and Caim could have discussed in the hours that they were sequestered in the room with one another, namely what they were going to do about the Blackthorn pack. But for the first time in a long time, they had nothing to say to each other.
     
    Fern came up periodically, updating them on their mate’s progress. She would say things like ‘she’s doing great’ and ‘everything’s going well’ . If everything was going so well, then why the fuck was it taking so long?
     
    It made no sense to Caim, just like it made no sense that she was giving birth so soon. They had taken perfectly good care of her, hadn’t they? He could not remember a time when he had felt so unsure of himself and so lost.
     
    He regretted not going to her. The last time had seen his mate, he had ordered her away. Then, he had refused to see her when she went into labor. If she died, these would be her last memories of him. Caim had never come so close to hating himself.
     
    Caim glanced over at Asch, who was still pacing. Before their mate had come into their lives, Caim had always relied on his friend to be his one, true confidant. Whenever something weighed heavily on his mind, he would speak frankly about it with Asch, who had never