“Thank the stars!” Sorcha said.
At first, Ronan had the same reaction. He assumed Teal’s verbalizations were a positive sign.
But then Teal’s mumbling escalated. The noises escaping him sounded less like words and more like frantic gasping. His body twitched violently. He punched one of his hands against his stomach. With the other, he grabbed his throat as he fought for breath.
The machines near his bed beeped like crazy, and Ronan watched in horror as Teal began convulsing violently on the bed. His husband had gone from being perfectly still to beating his head against the pillow within a minute.
The door flew open and Dr. Kinzinger entered, followed by two nurses. They looked quickly at the machines before a nurse injected Teal with a syringe.
Ronan, Sorcha, and Jax stood against the wall as the professionals did their work.
After a few more harrowing seconds, Teal settled back against the mattress. He’d never opened his eyes, but they were doing something new. Fluttering.
“Well,” Dr. Kinzinger said. “He’s awake.”
***
Teal’s seizure was the scariestthing Ronan had ever seen, and he’d been in the room when the twins were born. But the doctor assured him it wasn’t totally unexpected for Teal to wake up that way, since they still weren’t entirely sure of how the poison was affecting his system, and the medication they’d given him sometimes acted like a shot of adrenaline.
The thing the doctor seemed most worried about was that the medication had taken so long to kick in. He didn’t say so directly, but Ronan gleaned that Dr. Kinzinger thought the delay translated to the poison having significantly affected Teal’s bodily functions.
The omega lay on the bed mumbling incoherently but quietly, as he slowly reawakened.
“It’ll probably take another half hour for him to be fully lucid,” the doctor told Ronan. “And he’ll continue to be in and out of awareness for a few days.” Glancing toward Sorcha and Jax, who sat next to Teal but didn’t touch him with the doctor in the room, Dr. Kinzinger shifted his eyes, signaling to Ronan he was about to say something for the alpha’s ears only.
Ronan wanted to assure the doctor that there was nothing he couldn’t say in front of Sorcha and Jax, but decided it wasn’t time for that battle. “Yes?” he whispered.
“Look, Ronan, I don’t want to be indelicate, but my theory is that part of the reason this poison is acting so unpredictablywith Teal is because of his heat being overdue. As you know, preparing for heat can take a toll on an omega’s body. I imagine that’s what made him so susceptible to this, and I’d guess it’s what’s keeping him sick.”
“Teal is struggling to improve because his heat is imminent?”
“Yes. And if it comes on in the next few days, it could further impact his recovery.” Dr. Kinzinger cleared his throat. “We can, um, give him a suppressant just to be on the safe side.”
“No.” Ronan exhaled heavily enough to cause Jax’s head to turn. “He was very clear that he wanted to try for a breeding this time—”
“I wouldn’t recommend that, Ronan. Even if he comes out of this, his body has been through a terrible ordeal. A productive breeding heat right now might be too much, especially since he’s over thirty.”
“Fuck.” Frustration laced Ronan’s voice. “It’s so unfair. He was excited.” Ronan ran a hand through his hair. “Thank you, doctor. I’ll need to discuss this with my part—… Um, I’ll need to think about this and I’ll let you know.”
The doctor darted his eyes at Sorcha and Jax but didn’t say anything. He nodded as he left the room, closing the door with a soft click behind him.
After Dr. Kinzinger’s departure, Ronan called Niall and put him on video chat, asking the beta to find a private place to talk away from the boys. Ronan relayed the doctor’s thoughts to Niall, Sorcha, and Jax.
“My gut tells me to wait on the suppressant,” Sorcha said. “Teal wants to be bred, and that’s a powerful thing for an omega. After everything that’s happened, he should be involved in the decision.”
“That’s what I’m thinking,” Ronan replied. “Unless his pre-heat becomes life-threatening with everything else going on, I don’t want to take away that choice from him.”
“Makes sense,” Niall offered from behind the screen.
At Jax’s silence, Ronan asked the stoic beta, “What do you think?”
Jax shoved his hands in his pockets and looked intensely at Teal. “You know what’s best. This really isn’t my decision.”
Sorcha reached out and took Jax’s hand. “Jax—”
“No, little one. Let me.” Ronan moved to stand behind Jax, who continued staring down at Teal with a mix of love and fear in his eyes. Sorcha angled the phone so Niall could see and hear them.
Jax tensed when Ronan pushed his chest against Jax’s back, stiffening his spine as Ronan placed his hands on the beta’s hips.
