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”Can I come in?”
Laura rolled over in the bed, groaning as the motion made her stomach churn.
“Mom? Is that you?” Trying to sit up, Laura watched as her mother entered the room, carrying a tray.
“It is indeed.” Talia placed the tray on the desk near the door before walking over to the bed. She plumped up the pillows but when she reached for a hug, the smell of her perfume hit Laura.
“Ugh – no!” Laura covered her mouth with her hand, struggling with the sudden urge to throw up.
“Oh, sorry darling – I didn’t realise how bad it was.” Talia didn’t appear confused or offended, merely walked back to the tray, picked up a cup and saucer and came back. “Here – try this. Peppermint and ginger tea – it always helped me.”
Accepting the proffered beverage, Laura took a tentative sip, relieved when her stomach didn’t instantly rebel.
“So, Uncle Peter, huh?”
“He didn’t break any confidences or promises. But, you know your Uncle.”
“Yeah. Just enough hints for you to guess but not enough to either make it easy or be accused of telling tales.” Laura drank a bit more of the tea, surprised but pleased when her stomach began to settle.
“He’s not the Left Hand just because he’s good at making problems disappear.”
“Hmm.” Knowing that she couldn’t hide forever, Laura let the cup and saucer rest in her lap. “Mom – “
“He seems nice – your hunter, I mean.” Talia sat on the edge of the bed. “Or, maybe not nice, but I can understand the attraction.”
“Yeah, Chris told me you paid him a visit.”
“I thought I was very well behaved.”
“Well you didn’t shove your boot up his ass for defiling your daughter, so yes, for you it was very well behaved. You did threaten him though.”
“I am the Alpha, darling – I could hardly let him think I was entirely alright with him having a clandestine relationship with my daughter for over a year. Added to which, you’re not that much older than his daughter!”
“I bet you haven’t given Uncle Peter any grief over how much younger Stiles is.”
“Not true – I have the same concerns.” Talia looked down at Laura’s stomach. “Well, not quite the same concerns.”
“Oh, here we go!”
“No, it’s not like that! I think it’s only natural for a mother to be concerned when her daughter is pregnant by someone who many would say is an enemy to our kind!”
“Chris isn’t like that! From the moment we met, he has never seen me as a monster or an animal – he’s nothing like his father!”
Agitated, Laura dumped the cup and saucer onto her bedside table before climbing out of bed on the opposite side to her mother.
“I know he’s nothing like his father, and I know that not all hunters are the same. I’m sorry if I’ve made you feel defensive, Laura – I know being away so much has meant that I’m out of touch with you children. I just wanted to meet the man my daughter is in love with. Is that so bad?”
Laura deflated. She, and the others, had assumed that Talia would be disapproving, even possibly condemn their romantic choices. Instead, she seemed to be doing her best to understand.
“No, of course, it’s not bad. And to be honest, I have no idea how I would have gone about introducing Chris as my partner if all of this hadn’t come up. I mean, we talked about it, but – “ Laura shrugged, unable to find the words.
“But he’s older, he’s a hunter, the whole situation in New York and our troublesome baby-Alpha – it’s a lot.”
“Yeah, exactly.” Laura sat back down on the bed.
“Well, now we’ve met and we didn’t kill each other. I’m not the bootie knitting type, but I’m not frothing at the fangs at your baby news. I think that’s a pretty good start, don’t you?” They shared a smile and Laura felt a weight lift from her shoulders. “I assume the baby wasn’t planned.”
“Hell, no! Call it full moon madness!”
Talia laughed. “That’s what Daddy used to call Cora – our full moon madness baby!”
“You don’t talk about Daddy often.”
“No. In the beginning, it hurt too much. And then – well, it was just easier not to. But I realise now that that wasn’t fair to you children.” Talia looked down. “There are things about your father that the three of you have the right to know and I will make time to tell you.”
“Is it bad?”
“Oh heavens, no darling! Honestly, it’s just family history really.”
“Okay.”
“Have you seen a doctor yet?”
“No. And when I asked Uncle Peter, he said not to talk to Deaton so – “
“We should contact Melissa McCall – she should be able to do the basic checks, make sure you’re fine. And I’ll speak to my contacts in New York, get some recommendations if that’s okay with you?”
“That would be great – Chris doesn’t have those kinds of contacts. Thank you.”
“I would do anything for you. For any of my children.” Talia stood up and walked around the bed, coming to a halt in front of Laura. “Hold your breath darling.”
Laura gave her mother a confused look but did as she was asked. Immediately, her mother enfolded her in a tight embrace, rubbing her cheek lovingly over the tangled mess of Laura’s hair. Tears sprang to Laura’s eyes as she wrapped her arms around her mother’s waist and buried her face in her mother’s torso.
“Oh, Mommy, I have missed you!”
“And I’ve missed you.” Talia stepped back, smiling softly. “But our Pack is back together now and we’re going to get some things sorted. Okay?”
Laura nodded, holding onto Talia’s hand. For the first time in a long time, it felt like everything was going to be alright.