Epilogue
The cool autumn breeze rippled over Tripp as he lay in his mate’s arms. Their pup slept soundly on the blanket beside them among the remnants of their picnic lunch. There wouldn’t be too many more days for them to while away the afternoon in their special spot by the mill. Winter was coming with the bitter cold that would force them inside. That would be fine, too. They could do this very thing in front of the fireplace of their house, snug and warm and in their own little world. Life was as perfect as it could be, bearing no resemblance to what it had been only a year earlier.
With a sigh, he rolled onto Graham’s chest to look at him. “This time next year, I want to be breeding again.”
He’d given this a lot of thought and Wren had assured him that he had control over this aspect of his life in a way that he typically didn’t. While Graham had dominion over him in all other matters, the fate of his body belonged to him. That was the Green Mountain rule—no pack member could be forced to breed against their will.
“Hmm, okay.” Graham’s eyes popped open. “Wait, what?”
“I’m going to ween Grace after a year and trigger my heat so that you can breed me next summer.”
His mate frowned and looped a strand of hair behind Tripp’s ear. The beta did seem to enjoy playing with his hair and sometimes Tripp let it get messy to give him the opportunity.
“You don’t have to. I know some dominants like to impregnate their omegas every year, but I don’t approve of that. You’re far more than just a pup-making machine. Nurse Grace as long as you want.”
“That’s exactly what I’m going to do. I asked Cora and she said a year is a good long time, and Grace will be on solid foods by then. I won’t be denying her anything she needs.”
Graham had their positions reversed in the blink of an eye. He stared down at him, cupping his cheek with one hand.
“What if I tell you to nurse her longer?”
Tripp sighed. He had expected a little pushback. His mate was always looking to protect him, even when such worry was misguided.
“I’ll obey you, naturally. But I really want this and it’s my body. Shouldn’t I have the last say even if what you want is supposed to be for my own good?”
Graham frowned. “Don’t confuse me with logic and fairness.” He gave Tripp a quick kiss. “I’m worried you’re doing this because you believe I need to breed a pup myself, that I don’t consider Grace as really mine.”
In this matter, at least, he could reassure his mate. “I’m not worried about that. Truly. I can see how much you love her. It’s…” He struggled to come up with the right words about how he was feeling, even though he’d given it a lot of thought. “For my entire life, I hated being an omega without any say over what I could do, and no control over how my body was used.
“You’ve changed all that. I love who and what I am now. And I want to have lots of pups because it makes me happy to be a father. Maybe after the second one, I’ll space them out further, but for now, I can’t wait to go into heat and do it all again. You’ve given me that gift of self-worth. What would my life have been like if I’d never met you?”
Tripp had to blink back sudden tears. It seemed that he was prone to crying from happiness as well as sadness. But he no longer hated doing so because Graham was there to wipe them away with his gentle love.
The beta did so now, using his thumb to dry his cheeks and kissing him with a deepness that chased away all thought and feeling except the driving need to be claimed.
His mate, as always, took care of him. Graham rolled his hips as he continued to kiss him. Their cocks, trapped by clothing, nevertheless greeted each other with mounting friction. Tripp panted into his mate’s mouth as the climax built, and he dug his fingers into the man’s shoulders. It took no time at all for them to both utter muted cries down each other’s throats.
It took several deep breaths for Tripp to regain his voice. “See? You make me so glad to be who I am. You saved me.”
Graham rubbed the tip of his nose against Tripp’s cheek. “No, my darling omega. You saved yourself.”