“Good to have you home, Em,” he says warmly. I purr in contentment.
“Good to be home, boss,” I say, turning in his grasp. He smiles at me, and I don’t think twice about backing my ass against his cock. He takes the hint and doesn’t waste a second before sliding into me and covering my groan with his kiss.
Home has never felt so fucking good.
Epilogue 1
Gage
“Riley! Kendal! Get back here before your mother has a fit!”
Riley, the blonde-haired, blue-eyed twin, stops dead in his tracks, just inches from the edge of the cliff. Kendal, his brown-haired, green-eyed brother, skids to a wobbly stop, but the only thing keeping him from going over the edge is his slightly larger brother’s grip.
Kendal pouts. “Mommy jumped off this cliff.”
I pick up Emmett’s son and take Riley’s hand, leading him away from the edge. “Your mommy was a lot older than you at the time, and bigger. Just because Mommy survived it doesn’t mean you will. You’re little, too little for base jumping.”
“Did you have to bring us here for the picnic, Gage?” Olly wrings his hands. “It’s kind of dangerous up here.”
I shrug and hand Kendal over to Em. “They wanted to see where their mommy met most of us. It was this or the cave, and last time I was in that cave I noticed a slight black widow infestation. So, in a way, this is safer.”
Auryn rubs her round belly with one hand while patting Olly’s shoulder with the other. “It’s okay, Olivander. I won’t go near the edge, and I’m sure Riley and Kendal will behave better now.” She glares at the twins. “Right, boys?”
“Yes, Mom,” they say in unison, hanging their heads.
It’s tough raising twin alpha boys. I don’t remember being this headstrong when I was a kid, but if I was, I owe my dear, departed mother an apology for what she put up with. Riley is so like me in every other way that I can only assume he gets his wild streak from me, too. But the stubbornness? That’s probably Auryn.
“You holding up okay,princesa?” Diego pauses in his setup of the picnic lunch to check on our mate. “I brought a chair for you if you need to sit.”
She dismisses him with a wave of her hand. “I’m fine. I killed a man while pregnant with two babies; one is easy.”
“You were barely pregnant enough to show positive on a blood test when you killed Sneed. You’re much farther along now.”
“Olly’s got a point,” I say. “You should rest for a bit.”
The air in the clearing fills with the aroma of lavender and cinnamon. “I’m telling you; I don’t want to sit right now. Let me stretch my legs.” She crosses her slender arms over her ample chest, but the pose is wasted on us. Alpha hybrid or no, all four of us are dead set on tending to her every need–whether she wants us to is irrelevant.
While Auryn’s back is turned, Emmett sets Kendal down and sneaks up behind her. Kendal’s giggle gives him away, but it’s too late for Auryn to react, and Em scoops her off her feet.
“Quick, Diego, while she’s distracted!”
Diego leaps into action, pulling out the hammock chair and setting it up in record time while Auryn giggles and struggles in Em’s arms. His grip on her is too strong to break, though, so she can’t get free. Em dumps her in the chair, though I know he’s taking more care than it seems.
“Hey!” She tries to get up, but physics prevents it. As far along as she is, she’ll need our help to get out of the hammock.
We all burst out in laughter. Riley and Kendal try to take advantage of the distraction, but I grab them both by their collars before they can make another run for the cliff.
While I wrestle our kids, Diego finishes putting out lunch. He brought empanadas, something easy to eat with our hands. A pitcher of sangria–non-alcoholic, since we have Auryn and the twins here–accompanies the meal, as well as an assortment of smaller finger foods for snacks.
Once lunch is ready, the kids calm down. They happily munch on Diego’s empanadas, and, much to Auryn’s chagrin, Olly hand-feeds her lunch to her. I can tell from her eyeroll when he’s not looking that she’s irritated by the doting, but she beams so brightly when he looks at her that I swear she’s trying to outshine the sun.
Moments like these are what I live for now. Not the excitement of chasing runaway alphas and omegas, which used to be my reason for living. Instead, I crave these family memories, the bonds that build with each day.
“So,jefe,” Diego says between bites, “how have the Orion omegas been doing at the academy? They should be close to graduating by now, right?”
“Next fall, yeah. There have been some … interesting hiccups along the way, but they’re all surviving. Thriving, even.”
“Hiccups?” Auryn asks, a frown marring her radiant face. “What kind of hiccups?”
