"I don't want to slow down," I admit. "I just want to feel like I deserve this. Like I'm not going to wake up one day and realize it was all too good to be true."
"Youdodeserve this," Silas says firmly. "You deserve to be happy and safe, and to be part of a family that values you. Don't let your ex’s voice in your head tell you otherwise."
I lean into Wyatt, letting his warmth and scent wrap around me. "I'm trying. It's just hard to believe sometimes."
"We'll remind you," Wyatt promises. "Every day if we have to. Until you believe it."
Hunter returns a few minutes later, the kids successfully tucked into bed. He settles into the armchair across from us, his eyes soft as he watches me nestled between his packmates.
"Thank you," I say quietly. "For wanting me here. For giving me a place to belong."
"Thank you," Hunter counters, "for being brave enough to stay."
Epilogue
Amelia
The end of summer came faster than I was ready for, autumn already around the corner. The days are still warm but the nights have started to cool, and there's a sense of transition, of change, of moving from one season into another. It's been a few more weeks of pure bliss since Marcus Richardson was arrested, weeks of learning how to exist without constant fear, weeks of building this life with my Alphas and the kids.
We took a small trip to a lake with Dylan and Maddox, renting a house for the weekend to get away from everything. From the city and the memories and the lingering shadow of what happened. It's been great to get out, to watch the kids have fun splashing around in the water without a care in the world, to see them laugh and play like the normal, happy children they deserve to be.
I've spent most of my time glued to one of my Alpha's sides, still a little skittish after everything that went down earlier in the summer. The fear hasn't completely left me yet, that instinct to stay close to my protectors, to never be too far from safety. But I'm coming back out of my shell again, slowly, day by day. Learning to trust that Vincent really is gone, that he can't reach me here, that I'm allowed to relax and enjoy this moment.
Sitting at the edge of the small lake, I dangle my feet in the cool water, watching the kids play. Isaac keeps running up to me with rocks he likes, dropping them beside me before running off to find more. Each one is apparently special in some way only he understands. This one is smooth, that one has sparkles, this one looks like a dinosaur if you squint really hard.
Riley is a bit further down the shoreline, crouched in the mud, creating what I think is supposed to be a sandcastle but made entirely of lake mud. She's covered in it, streaked across her arms and legs and even a smudge on her cheek, completely absorbed in her construction project.
Wyatt is sitting behind me, his chest solid against my back, his arms loosely wrapped around my waist. I'm leaning into him completely, his citrus scent mixing with the smell of lake water and summer air. It's peaceful in a way I didn't know life could be, this simple moment of existing together without drama or fear or urgency.
I look around, taking inventory of everyone. Hunter and Maddox are at the grill up by the house, playfully arguingabout charcoal versus propane and the proper way to cook burgers. Dylan and Silas are mysteriously absent, but that makes sense. They've been conspiring about something all morning, disappearing into the house with knowing looks.
Then I hear laughter as they stumble out of the small rented lakehouse, both of them carrying armfuls of beers and passing them out. Dylan makes his way over to me and hands me one of the bottles, already opened, condensation dripping down the green glass.
"Your favorite," he says with a grin. "That fancy IPA you've been obsessed with lately."
I smile and accept the beer, but immediately set it down beside me in the grass without taking a sip. The smell of it, which usually makes my mouth water, is suddenly unappealing in a way I can't quite explain.
Wyatt shifts behind me, his arms tightening slightly. "Something wrong? Dylan said these became your favorite."
I chew my lip, trying to keep my expression light. "Nothing's wrong. I just don't feel like beer right now. Do you have some ginger ale? Or maybe lemonade?"
Dylan frowns, his big brother instincts immediately kicking in. "Are you sick? You've been tired a lot this trip. And you didn't eat much breakfast this morning."
My cheeks go bright red. I hadn't planned on saying anything until I was sure, until I could get to a doctor and have it confirmed. We haven't even talked about the bonding part of our relationship, of me having their marks on my skin showing everyone that I truly am theirs. Which makes all this that much more confusing and panic inducing. I'm not even sure if they want more kids. We've literally never talked about it. But we also haven't been using any kind of protection. I've been on suppressants to manage my heats which have some birth control protections but apparently all those fail once a heat actually hits.
I hadn't even thought about it at the time, too consumed by need and want and the overwhelming presence of my Alphas. But I've been thinking about it for the past week. The exhaustion that won't go away. The way certain smells make my stomach turn. The tenderness in my breasts. The fact that my period is late, likereallylate.
My silence draws everyone closer. Silas moves to crouch beside us, his dark eyes studying my face with concern. Hunter abandons the grill and even Maddox turns his attention to me, spatula still in hand.
"I'm fine," I say, but my voice comes out all wrong.
Hunter crouches down in front of me, his hazel eyes going wide as he sniffs at the air. His whole body goes still, tension radiating from him in a way that makes my heart race. "Are you..." He trails off, like he can't quite bring himself to finish the question.
I take a shaky breath. "I think I might be pregnant," I admit quietly. "I'm not sure yet. I haven't been to a doctor or taken a test, but everything feels different and certain things that should have happened,haven’t, and I just..." I trail off, tears gathering in my eyes despite my best efforts to hold them back.
The fear crashes over me all at once. What if they don't want this? What if this is too much too fast? What if I'm trapping them into something they never agreed to? What if the baby makes me vulnerable again and gives my ex something to hold over me? I know that fucker isn’t getting out but I just...
What if I'm not ready to be a mother, not after everything I've been through? What if my body fails me, what if something goes wrong, what if I can't protect this tiny life growing inside me?
