Hybrid

Chapter 42

Hayden waits down in the cells for Kai to wake up. Max and I are in Mara's bedroom, waiting for Hayden to call me when Kai wakes up so we can here exactly what he says. This set up was the best way to do this since Max and I can't be down there and there's no way Mara will be the person questioning him.

Max and I are on the floor with our backs against the bed, and I'm resting my head on his shoulder with my eyes closed. The little sleep from the last two nights has caught up to me again, and I'm taking advantage of the down time we have right now. Mara's out on a run right now, blowing off some anger that's been growing in her since last night.

I suddenly remember something she told me the other night, and I abruptly lift my head off of Max's shoulder, bumping his jaw a little with the side of my head. "Ouch," he says softly, smiling down at me.

"My bad," I whisper, kissing his jaw right where I hit it. "I just remembered something. The night that you mind linked me about the hybrids, Mara said that I should find us a house and start decorating to help keep my mind off of everything. Plus, we do need a house. With everything's that happened in the last sixty or so hours, it completely slipped my mind."

"So you're saying that you want to move in together?"

I burst out laughing at the happy-questioning tone in his voice. It almost sounds like he can't believe I, his mate and the person carrying his child, want to move in with him.

"Of course I want to move in together. I've wanted to since I woke up the morning after we met and you were gone!" I say, my tone teasing even though my words are one hundred percent true. Waking up the morning after we met and having him not there made me not want to wake up without him ever again.

"So before that, you didn't?" Max grins, teasing right back. I smile and lean forward, pressing my lips to his for a short and sweet kiss. Max has other plans, and he tightly wraps his arms around my waist to maneuver me into his lap. I tangle my fingers in his hair while simultaneously pulling him closer to me, deepening the kiss as much as I can.

As much as I want to rip his clothes off and make love to him, I really don't want to get hot and heavy in my best friend's bedroom and risk her walking in on us at any given moment. Before Max or I (or both of us) starts to lose control, I reluctantly pull my lips away from his. I leave my forehead resting against his, both of breathing heavily.

"I love you," I whisper quietly, opening my eyes because I want to see his dark ones. "I missed you so much it hurt."

"It hurt me too, B. But we're together now, and that's all that matters." He softly kisses the top of my nose. "We have Kai. This is all over." I nod and kiss him on the lips one more time beside shifting in his lap so I can curl up in a ball. I lay my head against his chest, listening to the soft thumping of his heartbeat as we wait for Mara to get back and Hayden to call.

In the silence of Mara's bedroom, my ears suddenly pick up on another noise. It's so faint that I move my head away from Max's chest so his heartbeat isn't right in my ear to listen. After a few seconds, I gasp.

"B, what's wrong?" Max rushes out. "What happened? Are you okay?"

I nod vigorously as he continues to worry over me, and I stop his words in his tracks. "Max, shhh! Listen." Max stops mid-sentence, and in the silence that follows, I know he picks up on it too.

"B," he says, his voice so quiet and happy and amazed that tears form in the corners of my eyes.

"Max," I whisper. "It's our baby's heartbeat."

"It's beautiful. B, that's our baby! We made that!" Max says excitedly, his voice back to a normal volume as his happiness and excitement takes over.