Chapter 42

XAVIER

I can't breathe.

"Remember me, Red," I gasp as my knees give out. I fall on all fours, trying to fill my lungs with oxygen.

Your scent. Release it all. Now, my feline says, ready to take control of my suffocating body.

I do as Leao says and release everything I've got. Housecats always feel overwhelmed when smelling it. Maybe that'll wake her up.

Black dots are appearing in my vision, and panic settles in me. "Red, please. I love you," I whisper, fighting my body that is ready to pass out or worse.

Just when I thought it was over for me, my throat gets released as I see the blood that was squeezing it drip down my arm, staining my black shirt.

I gasp big chunks of air as I look up to Alexa. Her eyes are back to the beautiful green, and the horrified expression she has on her face makes me realize that whatever happened here wasn't her conscious doing.

She drops the bag of candies on the ground and rushes to me. Tears are in her eyes. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry," she repeats over and over again as I sit on my knees and pull her down with me, engulfing her into a hug.

Her shaky arms wrap around my torso as she buries her head onto my neck, inhaling my scent. "It's fine, I'm alright," I say and repeat it every time she apologizes.

Her body shakes as she quietly cries. Witnessing her cry makes me feel powerless. I want to stop her tears and see her smiling again, but sometimes, crying is needed. I don't know what happened here, but it looks like she won't know as well. "Everything is fine," I murmur as my heart clenches for her.

She shakes her head. "I was killing you," she says in-between hiccups.

Richard and Nala walk back inside at that moment. I quickly put my index finger near my lips, a sign to not interrupt us. Richard nods while Nala narrows her eyes at me. She takes a step forward as he grabs her wrist, effortlessly dragging her away.

I sigh, rubbing Red's back in a circular motion.

She's been crying so much lately. It's not like her at all. Red is someone that would prefer jumping over a cliff before letting a person see her tears. I'm happy she doesn't mind showing her vulnerable side to me, but I feel like she's been crying for the most useless stuff ever since we came back to the clowder.

"What happened?" I whisper when I can't hear her hiccups and sniff anymore.

She shakes her head. "I don't know. I don't remember anything. It feels like I just woke up from a deep sleep," she says.

"Do you remember what happened before you got here?" I ask.

She slowly nods her head. "Michael chased me from the forest. I should have jumped on Richard's back, but I was waiting for you."

My jaw clenches at the mention of Michael. I wanted to be the one to kill him.

Alexa lifts her head, and I melt at the wide-eyed look her glowing green eyes are giving me. The urge to kiss her sends my blood rushing south, and I have to remind myself of the situation we're in, but damn, it's hard.

Her bow-shaped lips are red as if begging to be kissed, her cheeks are covered in dried blood, hiding the freckles I love so much, and her upturned nose is red from crying earlier.

"I'm sorry I didn't come in time," I say, kissing her forehead.

A smile tugs at her sexy lips. "It's fine. You're here now, so I'm safe."

My eyes move upward as I try to contain myself. Gods, I don't think she realizes the effects she has on me when she's looking at me like that and telling me all this stuff.

I like sexy and witty Alexa, but the vulnerable, adorable version of her is by far my favorite. My lion takes control of my body and makes my lips meet hers in a blink of an eye.

Red gasps, and I take that chance to slide my tongue inside her heart pounding mouth. Her hands fist my shirt as she follows my lead. I slightly open my eyes, loving the way her eyebrows knit in an upward motion every time we kiss.

Her eyes are closed, with her long eyelashes brushing her cheekbones. My hands come to her cheeks as I release a pleasant hmm that makes her quietly moan.

She's the first to pull away. "What was that for?" she breathes out.

I chuckle, kissing the tip of her nose. "Just because," I say to her.

Her face loses all its flush right then. I frown, confused. "What's wrong?"

She pushes my hands away from her face before getting back to her feet. I stand up as well, crossing my arms over my chest while she's pacing back and forth in front of me.

"I remember a bit more of what happened when I came here," she starts, "I should have been dead by now, but an unexpected fact surprised both me and the faery who kidnapped me."

My eyes widen. "A faery?!"

Her head nods. "Yes, and whatever he injected on me got taken by the baby," she halts, facing me. "I'm pregnant, Xavier."

I swallow a dry lump at the news. My heart drops as I can't seem to move my body. All I can do is silently look at Alexa. How can she be pregnant? Wasn't she on the pill? Did she lie to me?

No, no. Red would have never done that. How is this possible, then?

"How?" I murmur out.

She snorts, tilting her head to the side. "Are you really asking me how babies are made?"

"N—no, just how— how is it possible? I thought you were under the pill," I stutter, feeling my brown skin burn. I hope it's not noticeable.

Her eyes narrow at me. "Are you or are you not taking responsibility for what's inside me? Mind I remind you that it saved my life, so choose wisely your answer Mr Lyon."

The fire on my face gets worse from the embarrassment. "That's not— I am taking responsibility for it, of course, I'm just... confused."

Red sighs. "I stopped taking the pill when we ran away from Dante's place for obvious reasons and started it again when we were back at the Clowder."

I cover my face with my hands. I can't believe this. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I completely forgot about it," she murmurs.

"How can you forget something so fucking important?" I say, realizing too late that my voice level got higher.

"Don't you dare get mad at me now. I made a mistake, I admit it, but you—"

I cut her off, releasing a laugh."Don't even try to turn the tables. That's entirely on you," I say, uncovering my face to look at her pissed off expression.

She purses her lips into a thin line. "I know! But how didn't you realize that I stopped taking the pill?"

My eyes are throwing plastic daggers at her. "Because you're the fucking woman, and I trust your ass, what the fuck?!" my Portuguese accent slips from my tongue, but I'm too caught up with the red-haired feline who's trying to put the blame on me.

"Well, I'm keeping the baby anyway!" she yells, getting angrier.

My jaw drops for a second. "I wasn't going to ask you to abort it! What do you take me for?!"

"It looked like it from how angry you're being right now!"

"I'm like this because you're trying to put the blame on me for your mistake!" I take two long strides forward as she walks backward. I don't stop until her back meets the grey fridge.

I trap her by putting my hands on the fridge. Red nervously swallows a lump. "I'm sorry," she whispers, lowering her gaze.

The adrenaline pumping in my veins instantly vanishes. Red will really be the death of me. I chuckle, shaking my head. "How strange, you're about to have my child, and we still have to mate properly."

Her face flushes. Adorable.

"And it won't happen now," a new voice speaks up from behind me.

Red peeks over my shoulders. "I'm in trouble, aren't I?" she asks as I turn around, going face to face with Richard.

He nods his head. "I just finished a call with one of the members of the Creatures Council, and they asked for you."

"What does that mean?" I ask.

Richard sighs. "We need to take her to Washington. Now."

Nervousness overcomes my feelings for her. The Creatures Council rarely asks for a direct face to face meeting. But when they do, it's usually not a good sign.

A warm hand slips down my arm, intertwining our fingers. I look down, seeing Red squeezing my hand.

She nods her head with fierce determination. "Let's go."

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