Four years later…
“Why did I let you convince me home birth was a good idea?” Rex grumbled as he handed our freshly born son to Bat who immediately got to work cleaning the squalling infant with a damp cloth.
“Because I told you I would throw a fit until I got my way?” I asked sweetly, my voice exhausted. I smiled up at Podcast who had held my hand through the entire four hours of labor. “Besides, Doc had it handled.”
“Doc is not a licensed medical professional,” Rex continued to hem and haw as the alpha in question helped me deliver my afterbirth.
“Hey, I am a licensed doula and I think I did a great job, asshole,” Doc protested with a glare.
They had all been tense ever since my water had broken in the kitchen earlier. Everything had been a flurry of activity after that and Rex was now making up for time lost as he fussed.
“You did a wonderful job,” I assured him with a soft smile.
‘Top ten births I’ve ever been at,’Podcast signed, smirking.
Doc shot him a withering look from in between my knees. “You’ve only been at two. Your own and this one.”
‘Okay so it’s definitely in the top two,’Podcast shot back earning him an eye roll from our alpha.
“What if she gets an infection?” Rex asked, continuing to flutter around Bat as he finished cleaning our son.
“Rex,” I called, drawing his attention. “Come here,” I crooked my finger at him and when he came close I grabbed a fistful of his shirt and pulled him in for a kiss.
“Stop worrying so much, in my time most women gave birth at home,” I murmured against his mouth. “Now shut up and tell me how perfect our son is.”
Bat came close to show the baby to me. He was a perfectly chunky newborn, still red from being born only a few minutes ago. He didn’t have much hair, but most Wilde children were bald when they were born, so I just assumed he would have the same hair color as me. He had one of Bat’s tattooed fingers clutched in his little fist as his bow lips opened and closed.
“I saw this—in my visions I mean.” Rex’s voice was awed as Bat situated the baby at my breast for his first meal.
“And did it mean something good?” I asked him with a yawn.
Rex nodded, all of his worries seemingly evaporating as he leaned forward to press a kiss to my forehead. “It means happily ever after, princess.”
The door to the nest opened and Storm stepped inside carrying a huge paper bag. “Daddy’s back with our food order. Mama, I’ve got two cheeseburgers with your name on them.”
“Huzzah!” I cheered quietly so as not to scare the baby. I was starving after not even being able to eat my breakfast this morning thanks to my impromptu labor.
“AndI’ve brought visitors,” he finished and stepped out of the way so that I could see the BBs standing outside of the nest.
“Hello, sweetheart!” Wren waved the arm of the teddy bear she was holding. “I heard the baby decided to make an early appearance.”
“Just by two days, Wren,” Taz said as she held up a bottle of champagne. “I brought the booze, Mama.”
“Will you two chill out?” Legs asked as she elbowed the two betas out of the way so that she could get a better look at the baby. “Aw, my grandson is so handsome! Have you all decided on a name for him yet?”
We had gone through every name in the book over the past nine months, but nothing had ever seemed right… except for one name. I exchanged looks with my pack and they nodded in encouragement.
“We’d like you to meet Nicholas. We’re going to call him Nicky for short.”
Nicky had written in his letter that we would meet again, and he was right. Looking down into the face of my son, I could see all of my family members in it. I knew that they were there with me.
After all, once a Wilde, always a Wilde.
Aurelia Peterson has always been the rock of her family. Daughter, cousin, sister, mom. She used to be a wife too, but that ended violently, leaving Aurelia with mobility issues and trauma that haunts her dreams.
All Aurelia wants is to raise her son, Tobey. She is not looking for love, especially when she made the wrong choice the first time around. Unfortunately, Pack Stone didn’t get that memo.
Physical therapy sessions aren’t nearly as grueling now that Pack Stone has barreled into her life and Aurelia starts to wonder if all those romances that she’s read aren’t so impossible for her after all.
