He blinked suddenly, tears welling up in his eyes. He knew Raven was staring at him, but he couldn’t help it.They were good tears because suddenly everything was like he’d always envisioned it for himself—he had someone living with him who loved him, he was having friends over, and he could sit and knit all the while it was going on, which soothed him a little bit when he got nervous.
“Do you need me to go get Laird?” Raven asked softly as Nick trundled back out the door with a wave.
He tilted his head, wiping his eyes. “I’m fine. I was just having a moment of happy, actually. I never thought I would get all of this. You know?”
Raven just nodded, his hair swinging, his smile a little wry. “I know exactly what you mean, actually. I never thought I could find anyone local who would give me what I needed and who would be happy to just be with me. But Ben is wonderful that way.”
“And I’ve been so happy for you.” Devon shrugged, a tiny move of his shoulders. “I guess I was a little jealous too, though. I always felt so alone when I left the birth center and came home and just sat here taking up space.”
“You’ve never just been taking up space.” Raven made air quotes, letting go of his handwork to do it. “You’re amazing, and I know it feels terrible sometimes when you’re lonely. But you’ve always contributed to life in this town, always.”
“I try. I guess. I want to be a part of everything.” He wanted to be the good part. “Some days are harder than others.”
Raven chuckled at him. “Tell me about it. Especially on the days we have three omegas giving birth at a time, one of us is pregnant, and the other one is exhausted. Still, it’s kind of exciting. All of this new life.”
“It is. It’s exciting to be here right now. Do you realize our kids will all be in high school together?”
“I know. Iknow!” Raven stared and shook his head. “Every so often I think about it and it just makes me a little dizzy.”
“Me too. I haven’t even felt the baby move yet.” He knew it was coming. He knew exactly what was supposed to be coming the whole way, but it was still exciting. He still felt like a first-time omega. He was just a little less scared than the one who didn’t know anything yet.
“I can’t wait until you do.” Raven beamed at him. “Is Laird excited about that, too?”
Devon rolled his eyes. “I think Laird is dealing with all of this by being very practical. He’s an EMT and a trained paramedic. He knows all of this stuff, right? So he keeps telling me about blood pressure and blood sugar and heartbeats and on and on. He also tells me a lot of stories about people giving birth in ambulances.”
Raven laughed out loud. “Oh my God, that sounds so terrifying. Thanks for that, Laird.”
“Right? He’s just nervous and worried. That’s all. He’s an alpha, right? How many have we seen now who couldn’t stop pacing and cursing when their babies were being born?” Devon thought it was wonderful because that meant Laird really was invested in all of this. He wasn’t just doing the move-in and stay for the baby’s sake, because it was a duty.
Raven glanced over at him. “How many little sweaters have you knitted?”
He shrugged. “For this baby or for your newest?”
“For yours.”
“A couple. Lots of socks too. Baby socks are easy. I’m thinking about doing an entire layette. But I kind of want to know what the baby’s sex is first. Although part of me goes, I’m going to make pink, just because, or purple. Or mayberainbows. I like to do rainbows. I don’t want to do color work because I don’t wanna make little threads for the baby’s fingers to get caught in…”
“You’re such a geek. You’re a fiber nerd.” Raven winked at him.
Devon cracked up because truer words had never been spoken. “You know it. I am most totally a fiber nerd.”
Laird and Ben and Nick came in then, loud and bustling, filling the air with noise.
“A fiber nerd? What is that?” Nick asked, head tilting, and Ben rescued the tray of corn on the cob.
Raven snorted. “It’s someone who’s obsessed with things like strands and counting and knitting and purling and thread counts and stuff.”
“You don’t even know what you’re talking about,” Devon shot back. “Thread counts? No. Fiber content? Yes. You know, babies don’t need wool next to their skin.”
Raven winked. “See? Fiber nerd.”
Laird came over and kissed him. “Well, I like it. What are you making?”
“I’m making baby socks.” He held them up.
“Have you ever made me a pair of socks?”
“You know full well I haven’t.” Devon shook his head. “Would you like me to make you a pair of socks?”
