Claire stood in the small bathroom of the east wing suite, staring at the two pink lines on the pregnancy test in her trembling hand.
Positive.
The word echoed in her mind like a thunderclap.
She had suspected for weeks — the constant fatigue, the nausea that came and went, the way her body felt different. But seeing the confirmation on the test made it real. Joy, fear, and excitement crashed over her all at once.
She sank down onto the cool tile floor, back against the wall, knees drawn to her chest. Tears slipped silently down her cheeks as the full weight of the realization settled in.
She was pregnant again.
With Xander’s child.
A baby.
Their second baby.
Flashbacks flooded her mind — the ritual that had saved Xander’s life, the three days of fire where they had come together
