don't know this. I want him seated in the morning parlor when those aristocrats arrive so they don't see him relying on anyone to find his place. Then..."
As Rehv continued to lay out the plan, Trez took a seat in front of the fire and nodded in the right places.
In his mind, however, he was in that kitchen, with that female....
What was her name? he wondered.
Just as important...
When could he see her again?
Chapter Fifty
Downstairs in the clinic's examination room, Qhuinn felt like he was up in the air, flying high. And not in a soon-to-crash POS Cessna with a wounded Brother in the back.
"I'm sorry, could you say that again?"
Doc Jane smiled as she brought a rolling table over to the bedside. Dimly, the stuff on it registered, but he was more focused on what might or might not come out of the physician's mouth. "You guys are still pregnant. Her hormone levels are doubling exactly as they should, blood pressure's perfect, heart rate's great. And still no bleeding, right?"
As the physician looked over at Layla, the Chosen shook her head, her expression as poleaxed as he sure as shit felt like. "None at all."
Qhuinn took a little walk, his hand dragging through his hair, his brain cramping. "I don't understand this....I'm mean, this is what I want - what we want - but I don't get why she had the..."
After having ridden the roller coaster down into hell, it was completely disarming to hit an unexpected rise back in the direction of earth.
Doc Jane shook her head. "This is probably not helpful, but Ehlena's never seen this before, either. So I get your confusion, and more to the point, I understand better than you know how treacherous hope can be. It's hard to give yourself over to any optimism after where you both have been."
Man, V's shellan was so not an idiot.
Qhuinn focused on Layla. The Chosen was in a loose white robe, but not the kind she'd worn as a member of the Scribe Virgin's sacred sect of females. It was an everyday bathrobe, and underneath was a hospital johnny that had pink and red hearts on a white background. And on that rolling table? Turned out it was a box of saltine crackers and a six-pack of little Canada Dry ginger ales.
Talk about your over-the-counter medications.
Doc Jane opened the crackers. "I know that the last thing you're thinking of is food." She handed one of the flaky, salty squares over. "But if you eat this, and have a little of the soda? Might settle things down in there."
And what do you know, it did. Layla ended up working her way through half a sleeve, and two of the small green bottles.
"That really helps, huh?" Qhuinn murmured as the Chosen lay back and sighed in relief.
"You have no idea." Layla put her hand on her lower belly. "Whatever it takes, I will do it, eat it, drink it."
"The nausea's that bad, huh."
"It's not about me. I don't care if I throw up for the next eighteen months, as long as the young is all right. I'm just scared that with the heaving, I'll lose...well, you know."
Okay, anyone who thought females were the weaker sex had their head fucking wedged.
He looked at Doc Jane. "What do we do now?"
The doctor shrugged. "My advice? Trust in the symptoms and in the test results, otherwise, you're going to go crazy. Layla's body is, and has been, driving all this. If right now there are no indications of a miscarriage, but in fact every reason to believe that the pregnancy has resumed a positive course? Take a deep breath and go one night at a time. If you look forward too much, or get stuck dwelling over the past couple of days? You're not going to get through this in one piece."
Word, Qhuinn thought.
The good doctor's phone went off. "Hold on a sec - shoot. I have to check on that doggen who cut his hand last night. Layla, as far as I'm concerned, there's no medical reason to make you stay down here. I don't want you leaving the compound for the next couple of nights, though. Let's get some time under our belts, okay?"
"But of course."
Doc Jane left a moment later, and Qhuinn was at a loss. He wanted to help Layla back to the main house, but she wasn't crippled, for godsakes. Still, he felt like carrying her around - for like, the rest of the frickin' pregnancy.
He