Chapter 359 The Backup Plan

Emilia’s POV

With Mila and Titus keeping vigil at Tiffany’s bedside, Sebastian and I had no real excuse to hover. So we went back to work.

I was halfway through a stack of contracts when my office phone buzzed.

“Good afternoon, is this Simons Imperial Group?” A brisk voice filled my ear. “I’m calling from Everbloom Surrogacy Agency. Mr. Titus Simons arranged a surrogacy program some time ago on behalf of Mr. Sebastian Simons. We’ve secured a suitable surrogate, and everything is ready. We’re only waiting on Mr. Sebastian’s sample. Might we schedule an appointment?”

I set my pen down.

A surrogacy program. This had to be the one Titus had arranged. I’d forgotten all about it. Clearly, so had Titus, since he’d never canceled it.

“That won’t be necessary,” I said smoothly. “The arrangement has been called off. You can close the file. Thank you.”

I hung up before she could mention refunds.

But the call had planted an idea.

Once Margarita’s spell restored my ability to carry a child, I’d still need time. Spells were finicky, bodies were slow, and the Moon Goddess had never hurried for anyone.

If Sebastian and I banked a fertilized embryo now, we could skip months of waiting. Once my body was ready, we could transfer it and move on.

Efficient. Clever. Exactly kind of plan.

It was also something I couldn’t tell Sebastian outright. Mention backup embryos, and he’d hear an accusation against his virility.

Then I’d spend three days listening to wounded masculine sulking.

No, thank you.

“You’re plotting something,” Eve said from the back of my mind. “Your heartbeat skips whenever you’re about to be devious.”

“Hush. This is strategy,” I told her.

I called a private hospital known for discretion, made an appointment for that afternoon, and walked to Sebastian’s office.

He was bent over his paperwork, sleeves rolled to the elbow. He looked up when I came in.

“I need a fertility workup,” I announced, dropping into the chair across from him. “A full one. Would you come with me?”

He blinked. “When?”

“This afternoon.”

He checked his schedule. “Fine. I’ll clear it.”

The private hospital was spotless and discreet. A nurse led us to a consultation suite, and the doctor went through the preliminaries with the careful politeness reserved for wealthy clients who valued privacy.

I let them draw blood, poke, and scan to their hearts’ content. Then I turned to Sebastian with my most innocent smile.

“You know, it might be worth having you do a fertility assessment while we’re here. Just to be thorough.”

His head came up. “Why on earth would I need that?”

“Thoroughness.”

“There’s nothing to assess, Emilia. I’m in perfect working order.”

“I’m not questioning your prowess, Alpha.” I held back a laugh. “I’m saying that actual data would help us plan. It’s science, not an insult.”

He wrestled with his wounded pride and the irritating logic of my argument.

Finally, he exhaled through his nose. “Fine. If it’s for the planning.”

He stood and straightened his collar, summoning all the dignity a man could manage while being handed a specimen cup. “But I want it noted that this is entirely unnecessary.”

“Noted and filed.”

A nurse appeared to escort him away. He shot me one last warning look.

I folded my hands in my lap and said nothing.

Privately, I wasn’t worried about his results. Sebastian and I hadn’t shared a bed in weeks. The man was practically overflowing. If anything, his count would be off the charts.

“Wow.” Eve’s voice dripped with dry disbelief. “That is genuinely the least romantic thought a mate has ever had about her Alpha. ’Overflowing.’ Honestly, Emilia.”

“It’s a compliment to his vitality,” I told her.

“It’s a compliment to his vitality,” she mimicked. “Moon Goddess help this man.”

When Sebastian returned, he looked like a man who’d suffered a grave personal indignity. I rose to meet him, biting the inside of my cheek to keep my face straight.

“How was it?” I asked. “Did everything flow smoothly?”

“Not another word,” he warned.

“I was simply expressing wifely concern.”

“You were enjoying yourself.”

“That too,” I admitted.

He growled something unflattering under his breath, but the corner of his mouth twitched. Then we walked back to the car, back to the office, and back to our towers of paperwork while the lab quietly did its work.

***

“Do you want to swing by the hospital and look in on Tiffany?” I asked as we clocked out.

Sebastian considered it for half a second. “Why wouldn’t I?”

So we went.

I stopped on the way to pick up a few things Tiffany loved, hoping to coax a smile out of her and keep her calm, just as the doctor had ordered.

We reached her room. I lifted my hand to knock, then stopped.

The door stood ajar. Through the gap, I saw Tiffany propped against her pillows, color back in her cheeks, while Fynn leaned over the bed rail.

Their heads were bent together, their voices low and soft. She laughed at something he said, bright and unguarded, and he smiled back at her.

In less than a day, they’d gone from pushing each other away across an ocean to this. Soft laughter. Stolen glances. The kind of easy closeness most couples needed years to build.

I should have been thrilled. This was everything I’d meddled toward for months.

Instead, the scene left me uneasy.

I glanced at Sebastian, bracing for the explosion. He should have been bristling, with a growl building in his chest and green fire burning in his eyes.

He wasn’t.

He stood there, perfectly calm. Not a flicker of surprise. Not a trace of the fury I’d come to expect.

Huh.

“That’s strange,” Eve murmured.

“Isn’t it?” I thought back.

I shook it off. I was reading too much into it. Fynn and Tiffany were happy. What could possibly be better than that?

I knocked and pushed the door open.

“Knock, knock. Hope I’m not interrupting anything scandalous.”

Fynn straightened fast. Tiffany’s face went pink.

“Emilia!” She reached for me, and I piled the gifts into her lap.

“Macarons, magazines, and the fluffiest stuffed animal in Silverlake. Try not to inhale the macarons. The doctor would have words.”

“Thank you for thinking of me.”

“Always.” I looked between her and Fynn. “You two seem awfully cozy for a pair who were supposedly finished with each other. Should I come back later?”

Tiffany went even pinker. “Fynn and I have always gotten along just fine.”

“Mmhmm. When you landed in the hospital, a certain someone caught the first flight back from Paris. He flew across the ocean without even changing clothes. He looked so worried, I thought he might chew through the floor tiles.”

Fynn fidgeted.

“Some people only learn to treasure something once they’ve nearly lost it,” I said.

“You’re not wrong,” he admitted.

“Oh, that’s enough.” Tiffany pointed at me. “You can torment my brother all you want, but Fynn is off-limits.”

I pressed a hand to my chest. “Understood. Fynn is now a protected species.”

I caught Sebastian’s sleeve and tugged him toward the door. “We’ll leave you two alone. Wouldn’t want to be a third wheel.”

Sebastian followed without protest.

Another strange thing to add to my growing collection.

“Rest up,” I called to Tiffany. “I expect you radiant and insufferable by the weekend.”