Atticus jumped to his feet and smiled at me as he rounded the bed. He looked so proud. The way he admired the baby whenhe held her in his arms was all the assurance I needed that he would love her unconditionally.
After lifting the lid off the box, he set it on the edge of the bed. “Did you make these?”
“Only the blanket and booties.”
He twirled a little grey hat around his finger. “And this?”
“I bought it.”
“The wolf ears are a nice touch.”
“Help me.”
His brow furrowed when I set the baby between my legs. “I’ll have my assistant order diapers. These are too big.”
I giggled when her feet stretched up.
Atticus slipped the tiny booties on and pulled the little string that tightened them. Then he tucked the cuff over the strings and wrapped her in a green knit blanket. As soon as he put the wolf hat on her head, we both smiled.
“Someone looks adorable,” he cooed.
Hearing the way he spoke to her melted my heart.
Atticus bent over and pressed a lasting kiss to my lips. His forehead touched mine, reminding me that it wasn’t just me who’d almost lost everything.
While nursing the baby, I repositioned myself. “There’s something I need to tell you. I think I know why my heart stopped.”
He sat down on the edge of the bed. “Milly suggested a number of things could have caused the medical emergency. Stress, blood pressure?—”
“But none of those reasons apply. When I delivered, something else came out of me.”
He dipped his chin. “What?”
“One of my wolves. I felt her spirit leave my body as soon as the baby was born. Atticus, I think Gypsy’s inside her now. How is that possible? Babies have their own spirit wolves.”
He took my hand. “Their leader was playing God, and his intention was to weaken genes—perhaps even nullify gifts. He might have found a way for a Shifter to give birth to a human. If he could spread that like a virus, it would exterminate your kind.”
“But she’s not human.”
“Maybe she was at conception.”
When the baby unlatched from my nipple, I placed her in her father’s arms and pulled my robe closed. “Do you think my wolf has been inside her since the beginning?”
“That would explain why she was shifting in the womb. We’ll never know. Maybe your wolf sensed from the very beginning that your baby needed her, so she fused their spirits together. Your wolf is mature and would be naturally protective. All we can do is speculate. You said it was Gypsy. She’s the strong one, right?”
“Uh-huh. Bess is the submissive wolf.”
“Hmm.” He patted the baby’s back as if he’d been doing it all his life. “That makes sense. The strong one knew the baby needed her more. You’re a mother now. There’s no fiercer warrior, so she knew it was okay to leave.” After my little one let out a tiny burp, he returned her to my arms. “Should I call the pack in, or do you want more time alone?”
“I would be highly surprised if their ears weren’t pressed against the door.” I smothered a laugh. “Invite them in.”
Candles flickered in the room since it was early evening. It was surreal to think only an hour ago, I was suffering the worst pain. Now I felt like I could run a marathon. This day had gone from the worst to the best day of my life, and I had a newfound appreciation for each moment.
The pack quietly filtered into the room and surrounded the bed. Their jubilant expressions turned to tears.
Melody scanned everyone’s faces and laughed. “Looks like nobody wins the bet, including Krys.”
“It’s just dust,” he grumped.
