The Girl He Marked by Laila Callaway novel Chapter 4

Orelia's POV.

I give myself five minutes to get my shit together. I'm a midwife. I deal with stressful situations daily.

I need to think of this as being no different. I need to keep my game—face on, remain calm and deal with this logically.

He has a family with another woman. I do not want to be involved with a father.

How can I have children with him The birth of our first child will only be a first for me, not for him.

How can I ask him to leave his girlfriend She's a new mother, I would never want her heart broken like that.

How would it even work

It wouldn't, that's the thing.

He might not even choose me. Let's be honest, he's already made his choice.

Goddess, this sucks.

What did I do to deserve this I'm not a saint, but I really don't think I deserve to be punished like this.

I need to reject him, get this bond over with before it even starts. This needs sorting.

Resolved in my decision, I stand up and steel myself. I leave the break room and head to the reception. I'm surprised to find my mate leaning across the desk and talking to the nurse.

He looks up as I approach, and his eyebrows shoot up in surprise.

'It's okay, she's here,' he says to the nurse and then looks at me. 'Please, could we talk'

'I think that's a good idea,' I reply tersely. 'Let's step outside.'

It's a warm night. We both go through the revolving doors in separate compartments and step outside.

I move out of the way of the entrance, and he follows me. He stands before me, nervous and sheepish. He shoves his hands into the front pockets of his jeans.

'Congratulations,' I tell him bitterly.

He frowns and I roll my eyes.

Is he really going to play dumb

'Congratulations on becoming a father,' I snap, annoyed that he has made me spell it out.

Xavier's eyes widen and he puts his hands up in defense, as though I'm going to hit him.

'I'm not the father!' He blurts, looking worried. 'Goddess, no!'

Sorry, what now

I stare at him, shocked and dumbfounded.

'I'm not the father,' he repeats quickly. 'I'm her friend.'

He's not the—

'You're not the father'

His eyes are wide as saucers as he shakes his head emphatically. 'No!'

Relief barrels through me and my shoulders sag. I feel elated and exhausted at the same time, it's a strange combination.

'She's my friend,' he tells me, his eyebrows drooped at the end in sympathy. 'I had to tell the nurse I was the father to be able to be there for the birth. They were trying to stop me from coming in.'

Goddess, this is a lot.

I lean back on one of the metal posts that stop cars from coming onto the pavement.

She's his friend. He's not the father.

'I would never do that to you,' he says. 'I know that we haven't met, but I knew you existed, and I wouldn't do that to you, have a family with someone else.'

I cannot explain how much better I feel. My mind is still reeling, but I feel a darn sight better than I did five minutes ago.

'I, I don't know what to say,' I reply tiredly. 'I'm so relieved.'

He smiles sheepishly. 'I'm sorry. I know it looked so bad. I was so caught up with Lettie.'

Lettie.

I check my watch.

'She'll be going into the third stage of labor soon. We should go back inside.'

My mate glances anxiously over his shoulder, at the door.

'Can we talk after this When she's recovering'

'I think that's a good idea,' I agree.

We go back inside and head to Lettie's room. I stand to one side and watch the nurse deliver to the placenta. My mate holds her hand, and it doesn't bother me half as much this time.

She's his friend, nothing more.

Once Lettie has recovered, I give my mate my number and then, I have to leave them. I still have four hours left on my shift and after that, I want to sleep for twelve hours.

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I collapsed on my bed a few moments after I got through the door after my shift. I was emotionally and physically drained.

After doing as I promised myself —sleeping for twelve hours— I felt much better.

I wake to a text from my mate, Xavier. He said that Lettie and the baby are doing well. He invited me to meet him for lunch.

I check the time. I have two hours before he wants to meet. I take a shower and make myself a small breakfast.

I take my time getting ready for our date. I want to look good for him. I cover up my tired bags with concealer and choose an outfit more flattering than my scrubs.

He offers to pick me up from my place, but it seems easier just to meet him there. He tells me that he lives on Bell Avenue, which I know is closer to the café than it is my apartment.

I arrive ten minutes early out of nerves and wait in my car, calming myself down. I have a view of the entrance from my spot, and I notice him approach the place.

He stops outside the window and pulls out his phone. A second later, I get a text from him.

I'm here )

I grab my bag and get out of the car. I lock it and approach him. A smile breaks out on his face when he looks up and sees me.

'Hey,' he says when I get close enough. His eyes trail up and down my body. 'You look great.'

'Thank you,' I reply. 'So do you.'

With all the usual nerves of a first date, I follow him into the café. He's reserved a table for us, and we get one in front of one of the windows.

I start looking at the menu, even though I already know what I'm going to have. I love this place; I've been coming for years. Their bacon and cheese toasties are to die for.

'What are you thinking of ordering' Xavier asks.

'The bacon and cheese toast. It's my favorite,' I confess.

He grins and puts the menu down. 'It's settled, then.'

The waitress comes over and he orders two lots of the toasties for us. I order some lemonade and he gets a coke.

When the waitress goes, we're left alone again.

'I'd like to apologize again,' he starts. 'For the way things came across yesterday. I honestly did not expect my mate to be in the delivery room, that was a hell of a shock.'

I chuckle at that. 'Yeah, I bet it was.'

'I'm sorry about what you must have gone through, I can't imagine it was a nice surprise for you to meet your mate in those circumstances.'

'Not how I imagined it would be,' I mutter, and he nods sympathetically.

'Well, I'm sorry. Letitia and I have been friends since we were kids. She met her mate about ten months ago. They got pregnant and he was killed in a rogue attack before they could finish the mating process.'

My eyebrows shoot up in shock at his admission.

'I think that's why she managed to get through it; because they hadn't completed their bond and because she was carrying their baby. She had a reason to live for.'

'That's so awful,' I murmur. 'I'm so sorry.'

'It's been a tough couple of months,' he says, sounding tired. 'She doesn't have any family other than an elderly aunt. I've been trying to support her as much as I can. When she asked me to be her birthing partner, I couldn't refuse her.'

'No, I get that. Don't worry.'

The waitress interrupts our moment, bringing over our drinks.

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