“Come on, Papa!” Ian shouts, grabbing his father’s hand and tugging him out towards the forest. “Ian,” Victor scolds, digging in his feet and refusing to be pulled forward without a plan. “Come on, you know better than this. A good soldier isn’t going into those woods without a plan.”Ian frowns at
Victor follows his pointed finger upwards, looking into the dawn sky. He blinks, surprised at what he sees there. The moon, full and rich, white and pale against the blue sky. Victor’s first reaction is simply to admire it – it’s a beautiful sight, and so rare to see the moon during the day. But…
“Oh my god,” I moan, letting my head fall back against the wooden chair as I slowly chew the last bite of the muffin that I’ve crammed into my mouth. “It is so delicious. I can’t stand it.”“Yeah!” I hear Alvin agree, even though my eyes are pressed shut. “Way better than a stinking granola bar.”I
“I think you,” I say, pointing a finger at the center of his chest. “Are the ultimate sneaky squirrel. Much sneakier than your brother. I always hear him coming.”Alvin laughs at his and the smile on his face warms my heart. I’m sorry to see, though, that after a moment it fades.“What’s still bothe
Victor raises his snout to scent the air, relishing the strength he feels in this form.He and Ian have been running through the woods for what feels like hours, doing nothing but searching for the scents which they know they have to follow. They haven’t found them yet, but neither of them is frustr
Evelyn sits in a comfortable, slightly musty old armchair pulled close to the fire with one arm wrapped around Alvin. With her other hand, she idly breaks one of those delicious muffins into pieces, occasionally raising a chunk to her mouth to chew. Alvin naps peacefully against her chest and Evely
He brings her mouth to his, then, kissing her soundly with an intensity that makes clear everything he learned about himself out in the woods today. No doubts at all. Not a single one. Ian looks up at his parents kissing for a moment and then grimaces. “Ewww,” he murmurs, catching Alvin’s eye. “Y
Victor pulls his face away from me for a moment, still holding him close against him, looking down at me intently. A low growl builds in his chest.And I want him, too, desperately. Want to tear his dirty shirt from his body and throw it to the forest floor – want – “Where,” I hear myself ask, my m
“Me me me,” he says, hardly able to contain his excitement. “My turn, mama. Please.” And he looks down, again, at his little girl. “Well,” I say, shifting her in my arms and leaning forward so Ian can better see her face. She frowns in her sleep, squirming a little and making me smile. “I was think
Several hours later, I’m changed and curled up more comfortably in my bed with Victor by my side, a baby in each of our arms, and our boys curled up like puppies at the end of the bed. Archie is on the bed too, cuddled between them. We sit quietly together, all still focused on the two little babie
“It’s all right, doctor,” I say, giving her a little smile and nodding towards the boys. “We found them.” “Oh my god,” she says, shaking her head and placing a hand over her heart. Then she frowns at them. “How did they…” “Window,” Victor says, gesturing towards it and sighing. “It’s all right. Th
“Come on, Evelyn,” the doctor says confidently as Victor squeezes my hand, his eyes darting between my face and the first baby, which the doula is now wrapping in her first swaddle. “One more push, and then you’ll be done, and you can hold your little girls.” “Okay,” I huff, sitting up and shifting
Slumped on the couch, Ian heaves a gigantic sigh. “What is taking so long,” he mutters, glaring angrily at the steps as if they’ve personally offended him. “You knew it would take a while,” Bridgette murmurs, running a hand over Ian’s soft brown hair and smiling fondly at her nephew. She sighs and
“Oh my god,” Victor gasps, instantly wide awake. “Oh my god,” he says again, grabbing my face and searching it like it has answers. “Are you – are you okay?” “Yes,” I say, nodding but then belying my answer with an immediate moan. I grit my teeth, my hand going to my stomach as I weather the contra
And between them, my three Alphas have kept me sane. Even though every other part of the end of this pregnancy has worked hard against that sanity. Very, very hard. Even though the TV is on, capturing both of our attention, Ian very suddenly turns his head towards my stomach, like a dog hearing a w
As it turns out…I cannot. I cannot spend 3 months in bed, waiting for my babies to be born. Two and a half months later, I’m basically climbing the walls, I’m going so crazy sitting here in this bedroom, waiting for my little girls to be born. I’ve done it this long, though. I’ve stayed in my bedr
“Why?” Victor asks, suddenly serious in the sea of merriment. “Evelyn, why aren’t you here? What’s wrong?” “Um…” she says, her eyes glancing away awkwardly. “Because…I went into early labor…and I’ve been put on bedrest…” The tablet cracks as it falls to the floor. Rafe gasps, reaching down for it