The Gold Queen (Prequel)

***Sofia***

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…December 2001…

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I wake up with Mateo’s arms wrapped around my waist, holding my body against his chest. I try my best to get comfortable as I toss onto my side but my stomach starts churning. The taste of bile fills my mouth and I quietly roll out of Mateo’s arms, running straight for the bathroom to empty the contents of my stomach into the toilet.

“Sofia?” Mateo’s sleepy voice calls out. I can hear him shuffle out of bed as I spit out the last of the bile. “You okay?”

“I’m fine!” I call back, grabbing a tooth brush and cleaning the taste out of my mouth. “I think the tacos we had last night didn’t agree with my stomach.”

He laughs as he approaches the bathroom, hugging me from behind and resting his chin on my shoulder. “They were good tacos though,” he grins, kissing my cheek. “Come back to bed with me. It’s too early to be up.”

I roll my eyes at him. “We can’t,” I mumble, spitting out toothpaste. “We have training today, remember?”

“No!” he g****s, peppering k****s on my bare shoulder. “No, we need to go back to bed.”

…Sometimes, I swear I’m married to a toddler…

“Get dressed,” I snap, Mateo pouting as he marches back to the bedroom.

“Fine!” He grunts. “I guess you don’t want to know what I planned to do to you once you got in bed,” he calls back.

My mind wanders to what positions he had in mind and my body shivers at the possibility of his tongue on my clit.

…Maybe just one round… Solana giggles, my legs already running to the bedroom to pounce on my mate.

—

One round turns to three with Mateo using his skillful tongue to make me reach new heights. After our fun, Mateo and I finally make it to the training grounds. Most soldiers are already well into their workouts so Mateo and I decide to stretch and jump into a sparring circle.

Mateo and I were usually evenly matched in hand to hand combat but after only a few minutes, I find myself growing tired fairly quickly.

“Hey there slowpoke,” Mateo grins when I fail to block his attack, allowing him to easily wrap his arm around my neck in a choke hold. “Did I tire you out this morning?” he smirks. “Or do you just want me to choke you again?”

Solana purrs at his words and I feel my cheeks flush with embarrassment as a few soldiers walk by.

“Shut up,” I hiss, pulling myself out of his grip. “Let’s go again.”

Mateo smacks my butt and I yelp in annoyance, getting back into a fighting stance. We circle each other and as he lunges at me, I once again move too slowly and get myself caught in his arms.

“Got ya again,” he smirks, kissing my cheeks. “You’re very slow today.”

I try to hide my concern but he sees right through it.

“You sure you’re feeling okay?” He asks, placing his hand on my forehead.

“Yeah, I just think I’m a little stressed,” I sigh in defeat, taking his hand and kissing it.

He frowns at me. “Don’t worry, my love. We’ll have Julian’s head served on a silver platter soon enough, okay?” He presses his lips against mine and dips his tongue into my mouth. “I won’t let him hurt you .. Or our pups when the time comes,” he adds, placing his hand on my stomach.

We k**s a little longer until my stomach growls and I burst into laughter.

“Join me for breakfast?” I tease, pecking his lips.

He sighs at me. “I would love to but Danny and I are heading down to the southern borders today. The Alphas have noticed some activity outside the territories and we just want to make sure Julian isn’t trying anything.”

My heart sinks. Tampico was a few hours away and I was suddenly feeling clingy. I wanted him near me. He picks up on my disappointment and tucks his fingers under my chin, forcing me to look him in the eyes.

“I can stay,” he murmurs, pressing his lips against my own. “Danny can handle this by himself .”

Guilt overwhelms my heart and I heave a heavy sigh.

“Go,” I say, resting my palms on his shoulders. “I’ll be fine. Emiliano can take care of me while you’re gone. I’ll be good as new by the time you get back.”

He doesn’t seem convinced but I stand on my tippy toes and k**s his cheeks. “Just come back to me in one piece. I’ll be fine.”

He presses his lips firmly together but doesn’t argue. “I’ll be back to join you for dinner,” he reassures. “Get some rest, chaparrita.”

He k****s my hand and rushes off to meet Danny. Stuffing my hands in my pocket, I make the trek back to the Hacienda, walking slowly and enjoying the winter breeze.

When I reach the house, Emiliano and Chavita are already in the dining room having breakfast, Chava’s upper l*p covered in black beans.

“Good morning, your majesty,” Emiliano says as he wipes Chava’s face with a napkin. “How was training?”

“It sucked,” I sigh, plopping down on my seat. “Mateo beat me.” Emiliano grins at that and I throw a tortilla at him. “I’m just having an off day,” I huff, my ego a bit wounded.

Cassandra walks in and sets my plate of eggs, Chorizo, beans, and salsa in front of me. The stench makes me gag and I pinch my nose closed and breathe in through my mouth, pushing the plate as far away from me as possible.

“Is something wrong, your Majesty?” Cassandra asks, taking the plate away from me.

The nausea becomes overwhelming and I rush to a nearby restroom, retching and vomiting into the toilet.

“Oh goddess,” I mumble, sitting down and wiping the sweat that had gathered on my forehead.

Emiliano is at my side, rubbing my back and holding my hair as I once again start retching.

“What’s wrong?” he murmurs as he brings me a glass of water.

“I don’t know,” I shrug, taking the glass from him and gulping down the cool liquid. “I just smelt those eggs and I couldn’t help it.”

He helps me to my feet and walks me back to the dining room.

“Reminds me of Karina when she was pregnant,” he chuckles. “She hated the smell of chorizo. It made her sick to her stomach every time she smelt it.”

We both pause and stare at each other the second he stops talking, neither one of us making a sound. I slowly move my eyes to my flat stomach as I try to figure out when my last cycle was.

“Sofia.. C-could you be-“

“Don’t,” I stop him, shaking my head as I desperately try to keep the butterflies from fluttering in my belly.

I couldn’t dare let myself think I was pregnant because I knew I would only disappoint myself. After our meeting with Moon Goddess, I took so many pregnancy tests every week, each time bursting into tears when the tests all came back negative. I couldn’t let myself dream anymore. Teo told me to be patient… that he would do all the work so I needn’t stress anymore but I couldn’t stop. I wanted to give him his pups.

“Sofia…” Emi murmurs, taking my hand in his. “This could be it,” he smiles.

I shake my head at him as tears well up in my eyes. “No…. I-It’s just wishful thinking.”

“Take the test,” he argues, placing his hand on my stomach. “Then you’ll know for sure.”

The thought of another negative test terrifies me. I couldn’t do this alone.

“Will you help me?” I whimper, my body shaking like a leaf.

His smile widens. “Always.” He walks over to pick up Chava from his high chair, wiping his bean covered cheeks with his bib. “Come on. Let’s go,” he says quietly.

We head up to my bedroom where I find my stash of tests. Emi waits patiently outside the bathroom door as I pace back and forth inside, working up the courage to pee on the stick.

“Sofia?” He calls out when nearly ten minutes go by. “Did you fall into the toilet?” he chuckles. When I don’t respond, he stops laughing and sighs. “Come on, your Majesty. It’s just a test… Regardless of the result, Mateo will love you. He always will. Just relax…” he soothes.

I take a few deep breaths and finally pull the stick out of its wrapping. When I’m finished, I place the stick on the sink and run out of the bathroom. Emiliano pulls me into his arms and just holds me as we wait for the results.

A jolt of energy flows into my body and my anxiety slowly dissolves, a small peace settling into my racing heart and calming the butterflies down.

Chava waddles around the room looking for a toy to play with and I grab a sock from Mateo’s drawer and hand it to him. The little boy studies the fabric, stretching it to its maximum capacity and inspecting it with his mouth. Satisfied, Chava swings it around and begins chasing me with sock while I scream in fake terror, making him laugh hysterically.

I can’t help but let my mind wander. Would my pups chase me with a sock? Would I make them laugh? Would I make them happy? Would I be a good mom?

“Time’s up, Sofia,” Emi says as Chava catches me and wacks me with the sock.

A feeling of dread settles in my stomach and I shake my head at him. I had let my mind wander too much and I could not bear to shatter my dreams again.

“Y-you do it,” I stammer, my lower l*p quivering. “If it’s negative, don’t say a word. We’ll just pretend I never took it, okay?”

“And if it’s positive?” He asks.

“It won’t be,” I reply, forcing a smile.

He frowns at me. “Sofia…”

“Just make it quick,” I interrupt him, lifting Chava into my arms.

He nods and marches into the bathroom. I hold Chava to my chest and he seems to understand that I am upset. Chava wraps his arms around my neck and lays his head on my shoulder, my heart caught in my throat as I wait for the terrible news I knew was coming.

Emi walks out of the bathroom, holding the test by its wrapper and staring at it. I can’t see the expression on his face and my heart once again starts pounding in my chest.

“Sofi…. It’s…”

I close my eyes and take a deep breath.

“It’s positive.”

I open my eyes, unsure if I heard him correctly and find him looking up at me, smiling from ear to ear.

“It’s positive,” he repeats, his eyes welling up with joyful tears as he holds up the test for me to see. “You’re pregnant, Sofi.”

I stare at the two bright blue lines on the small screen, trying to convince myself that I was dreaming. Tears fill my eyes as I take the test from him and confirm for myself that the test was indeed positive

Doubt still creeps in my mind as I remind myself that false positives happen all the time and I hand Chava to Emi before rushing into the bathroom for another test. Five minutes later, the second test also displays a positive result and I could deny myself my happiness no longer.

…I really am pregnant…

Emi wraps me up in his arms and I let myself sob with tears of joy.

“I’m pregnant!” I giggle. “Oh my goddess. I’m really pregnant!”

Solana howls with joy and Mateo flashes through my mind. I have to tell him. I have to tell him right now.

Emi understands and immediately scoops up his son to give me some privacy as I search for the phone. My hands shake as I dial his number and it feels like an eternity before Mateo finally picks up.

“Hey baby,” he whispers into the phone. “I’m driving right now so-“

“Teo, come home,” I whisper, my voice cracking as I think of the news I was about to give him. “Come home right now. I need you … I need you here.”

I hear tires screech on the other side and my heart leaps into my throat.

“Teo!” I scream, fear pumping through my veins at the thought of something happening to him. “Teo!”

After a long pause, his voice finally chuckles into the phone. “I’m here,” the bastard laughs.

…I would wring his neck for scaring me if I weren’t so happy…

“Sorry, I was making a U-turn. Is everything okay? You sound like you’ve been crying?”

Goddess I didn’t think it was possible to love him even more for knowing me so well. I wanted to scream that I was pregnant but Mateo deserved to hear it in person and see the test for himself.

“I just need you home,” I whisper.

“I’ll be there in 20, okay? Just hang in there,” e says before hanging up the phone.

I climb onto my bed and rub my belly, wondering what it would feel like to have my pups move and grow inside me. Giddy with excitement, I start thinking of names when I hear a knock at the door.

Emiliano walks in, holding two stuffed teddy bears with little yellow bow ties in his arms.

“I’ve been saving these for a while,” he smiles sheepishly. “I knew it was bound to happen soon enough and I wanted to be the one to give your pups their very first toys,” he adds, placing the bears on the bed. “I stuffed them with lavender inside. Chava really liked the smell when he was a newborn and it helped him fall asleep. I figured it could work for your pups too.”

I take the bears in my hands, bursting with tears at the sentiment as I trace their little ears and face.

“Thank you, Emi,” I weep, jumping into his arms. “Thank you… for being my best friend.”

He returns the hug with a squeeze and a k**s on my cheek.

“Anytime,” he whispers. “But right now, I gotta go. Chava is still hungry,” he chuckles.

Emi runs off to feed his son and I set up the two bears on the bed and place the two pregnancy tests between each bears’ legs.

I find a blank sheet of paper and write: WELCOME HOME DADDY, placing the sign behind the bears.

With everything in place, I wait impatiently for Mateo to return and practically bounce on my toes when I hear the car pull up. I run to the window and my heart skips a beat when I see him race out of the car. Within seconds, the door to our bedroom bursts open and Mateo has me wrapped up in his arms.

“Baby, what’s wrong?” He asks as I burst into tears.

“Look,” I cry, pointing at our bed.

He turns to the bed and then back to me, confusion in his Silver eyes.

“I don’t understand…“

“Look closely,” I whisper, pulling out of his arms.

Confused, Mateo let’s me go and walks slowly towards the bed, picking up the teddy bears and letting the tests slip in between their legs. He picks the tests up and stares at them, saying nothing.

My heart starts to race again as I wait for him to react. He sees the sign and mumbles the words to himself before looking up at me, tears streaming down his cheeks.

“A-are you serious?” He asks, his voice cracking. “Sofi, are you serious?”

I nod my head slowly, unable to speak with the sob caught in my throat.

“I’m going to be a dad?” He asks, his lips curving into a smile. “And you’re going to be a mom?”

I nod again, fresh tears spilling onto my cheeks. He tosses the tests and paper off to the side, pulling me into his arms and lifting me off my feet.

“We’re having pups!” He shouts, showering me with k****s as he spins me around. “Oh goddess! We’re having pups!”

He puts me down gently and gets on his knees, placing both hands on my waist.

“Hi babies,” he whispers to my flat belly. “I-it’s me. I-it’s your dad.”

“Teo,” I laugh, wiping my tears. “They’re too young to hear you!”

“Shut up. I’m having a father-pup moment ,” he says, waving me off.

His face turns serious as he looks back at my stomach.

“I just want you to know,” he continues. “That you are very lucky,” he smiles. “Your mother… s-she is the most beautiful woman you will ever see. She is so kind and so caring, but she’s got a mouth on her so be careful not to piss her off,” he grins and I smack him on the head. “But she will love you so much,” he smiles. “And me? Well, let’s just say you hit the Jackpot of best looking Dads,” he grins and I roll my eyes at him.

“I want to make you a promise,” he adds. “I promise you I will love you both so much… And I always will…” He rubs my belly and k****s it softly. “And I will protect you and your mother until my final breath.”