Victor wakes the next morning with Evelyn curled in his arms, her head tucked neatly under his chin. He pulls her more tightly against him, lowering his face to get a good sniff of her still-damp hair, closing his eyes as he does. His mate gives a little mew of contentment in her sleep that makes hi
Ian grins at his dad as he climbs up to explore the cereal cabinet. “We covered all the bases,” he says. “Like good Alphas.” “Very good Alphas,” Victor confirms, putting a filter in the machine and starting to load it with coffee. “Listen, kid,” he begins, “I’m going to need your help today.” Ia
I wake at the sound of a drawer closing and the light click of ceramic on wood. I sniff the air and smile, opening my eyes to see a lovely cup of coffee just inches from my face. “Oohhh,” I say, pleased and sitting up. I smile up at Victor, standing next to the bed. “And to what do I owe this grea
“Yeah,” I sigh, handing the phone back to him. “She’s doing this to get at you.” He gives me a little derisive look, as if my methods for drawing this conclusion are ridiculous, but then he takes a second look at the images and shrugs a little. I smirk, pleased he sees my point. “Well?” I ask. “
Alvin gasps as Victor slows the car down, pulling up to their destination. “I know where we are!” he cries, pressing his hands eagerly to the car door and bringing his face close to the window. “You do?” Victor asks, frowning at his son in the rear view mirror. “Yeah!” Alvin replies, nodding eager
“You too,” Victor says fondly, meaning it. Working with the Betas hadn’t been the same since Edgar left. Victor looks hesitatingly at Alvin for a second, but Mark steps in. “The tyke can stay with me,” Mark says fondly, ruffling the kid’s hair, “if that’s helpful.” “Really?” Victor asks, pleased a
Ian and I are sitting at the kitchen table that morning, going through some of the books that his tutor sent for he and Alvin to explore this upcoming week. “I hate these books,” Ian grumbles, pushing them away from him and frowning petulantly at the pile. “What?!” I cry, genuinely surprised. “Wha
I roll my eyes a little, smirking at him and turning my attention back to Bridgette. “So, did you two…decide anything?” “No,” she says, sighing and looking down at her coffee. “It’s just so…complicated. I mean, I want to be with him – I think…I think that I love him, but…” “But…” I prompt, eager.
“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