“He’s lying about getting the pack,” Dax growled. “There’s nothing in it for him to help us.”
I opened my mouth to reply but a shock of pain hit me and I hissed in agony. Dax’s expression turned to sympathy and worry. He rubbed my belly to soothe me.
“Are you still stuck?” I asked weakly.
He nodded, biting his lip. He looked upset with himself. “I’m sorry. This is my fault.”
I groaned. “Oh, shut up, I’m the one who begged you to fuck me.”
Dax paused, then we both laughed.
“I’m glad you’re here,” I said softly. “I couldn’t do this alone.”
“Of course not. Why would you?”
“When you spend your whole life alone, you get used to it.” I smiled. “But I’m glad I don’t have to be alone anymore.”
Dax shook his head, pressing his forehead to mine. “Never. I’ll always be by your side, Morgan.”
The rush of love I felt for my mate helped the following cramps. I steadied my breathing and weathered the storm. They were tolerable as of now, but I was anxious they would get worse. I’d watched younger omega bucks give birth in my old herd and they had varying degrees of pain. I wondered where I’d end up on the scale.
Something moved inside me.
“Ah!” I yelped.
“What?” Dax cried. “Is it the baby?”
“No.” I hesitantly slid my body away from Dax, then felt overwhelming relief. “Your knot is going down!”
“Oh, thank fuck,” Dax muttered. He gently peeled himself away from me and sighed when our bodies came apart properly. “That took long enough.”
“And just in time for us to put our clothes back on before the others arrive,” I said with a laugh.
Dax shook his head. “Don’t trust a word that fox says. He was just screwing with us. He has no intention of actually being useful.”
“Hm…”
Maybe it was an innate prey animal instinct, but even in my human form, my ears were sensitive to certain noises. One of those included the sound of canine paws padding on the grass and I heard that exact sound now coming from the distance.
“Are you sure about that?” I asked.
Before he could investigate, a wolf’s howl travelled through the night sky to greet us. All the hairs prickled on the back of my neck—not from fear, but from joy and relief. Itwasthe pack coming to us! Never in my life had I been so happy to see two wolves running towards me.
There was a smaller shape running beside them, too. At the last second it picked up speed and launched itself into our vicinity, his long ears perked up straight and his little chest visibly beating hard.
“Is it true? Is it happening?” Len asked between panting breaths.
In the corner of my eye I saw Dax’s back turned to us as he scrambled to put his clothes back on. But Len wasn’t looking at him at all. The kind omega’s attention was solely on me. He shifted to human form with a sympathetic gleam in his eyes and he took my hand.
“It’s gonna be okay, Morgan,” he said, smiling. “If I could do this, so can you. And you’re a lot stronger than I am.”
“Thanks, Len,” I murmured. It was difficult to admit I was scared, but if anyone understood what I was going through, it was him.
“It might be easier in your buck form,” Len suggested.
I nodded. “I was going to do that but we were, um… Otherwise preoccupied. Let me try now.”
Len helped me up and Dax, now clothed, hurried to assist. When I was fully standing, the other two pack members arrived. Hugo shifted immediately. His expression was a mix of excitement and worry.
