Epilogue
Gus
Two years later…
Ember was my little shadow, but I didn’t mind one bit.
Wherever I went, he went too, following me around as he quietly discovered the world around him.
Two months ago, we celebrated the twins’ second birthday with my family, our family!
It was still surreal some days that I could now see my omega family whenever I wanted.
They lived close by, my father only a few miles outside the city walls in a small village, and Lio one hour away, where he owned a paper mill with his alpha husband, Kal, whom he no longer needed to only see in hiding.
Yes, my eldest brother had fallen in love with an alpha years ago and had fathered two children.
Bram was overseas. He had been for six months now.
When Seb had decided that he was finally ready to learn the destiny of his fathers, Bram had volunteered to lead a royal expedition to find them.
And then there was Corin, my twin. I’d convinced him to stay with us, and he now lived at the palace, where he mostly helped Adrian at the stables.
Ember frowned at me, his sky-blue eyes not leaving my hands for one second, as I sanded down the owl I’d just finished carving from a piece of walnut tree. My little son was so like his father, my beautiful mate. A mini-Seb. So serious. So unlike his carefree brother, Lumi.
We were sitting in the open doorway to the stables, the early spring sun warming our faces.
Laughter sounded from outside the stables where Hal was pulling Lumi around on Grace, one of our many horses.
Briar sat behind Lumi, his arms wrapped protectively around my son.
Hal grinned dopily, like he always did when Briar was close.
It was no secret that my best friend was smitten with the tiny omega, but Briar seemed mostly indifferent, although my clever king assured me he wasn’t. He was just… Briar.
I looked back at Ember, whose frown had increased, his cute little nose all scrunched up, a handful of freckles scattered across his cheeks.
Ugh, my son had better not be working on one of those logic-defying diapers of his.
For some reason, he always made them when he was alone with me and never around Seb.
Almost like my little omega son made them out of spite to tease me.
I couldn’t wait until the boys were out of their diapers.
I narrowed my eyes at Ember. “You better hold it in, Little One. I’m not done with the owl yet.”
He sniffed, then rolled his eyes. I never knew toddlers could roll their eyes, but then again, Ember wasn’t just any toddler.
“I mean it.” I smiled at him, shaking my head.
The amount of love I held for Seb and our boys was ridiculous.
Like all-consuming and limitless. I would walk through the pits of hell just to protect them from any harm.
Luckily, I wouldn’t have to since our kingdom had thrived immensely under Seb’s new order, and everyone seemed to be as content as they could be.
“Corin says it’ll only be a few more days,” Adrian called out to me as he appeared from around the corner of the building. Corin trailed a few steps behind him, a light blush on his cheeks, his face dipped toward the ground.
“Yeah?”
Adrian nodded. Corin had a weird way of predicting when a mare would foal. Like he could feel it by just stroking her belly, or leaning his cheek against her. He was so sensitive and intuitive, which was why my twin was perfect around the animals. “Corin gets to name this one.”
Corin smiled softly as he looked up, and his gaze found mine. “I think it’s a girl,” my brother spoke in his hushed voice.
“He’s right!” Adrian laughed. “Corin’s always right.” Corin blushed even harder, then steered toward where Hal was still pulling a giggling Lumi around on Grace.
“All right, Little One.” I winked at Ember. “Let’s finish up this owl and then go find your daddy.”
“No!” Ember balled his little fists in his lap, where he was sitting on the ground. No was the only word he ever spoke, and he did it with such fierce determination he could make a grown man break a sweat. Uncle Hal could testify to that.
“Look, buddy, I know you hate baths, but your daddy is a clean freak if I ever saw one. I’ll have to take one too.” I sighed as I reached for my son, but he just shook his head. “Don’t be cross with me, My Heart. It’ll just be a quick one, and then you can go play with Lumi in your room.”
Ember perked up slightly at that. He loved his twin as much as I loved mine, and I’d be eternally grateful that they’d never have to be apart. Grateful to my king for changing the world for me and our sons.
Ember pointed his small index finger at me, an unusually tender look in his eyes.
“What is it, My Heart?”
He continued to point at me as he seemed to contemplate something. Then, with a sigh, he spoke. “Da-Da.”
His small voice lingered in the space between us, and I wasn’t sure I’d heard him correctly at first. Ember frowned at me impatiently as he dug his finger through the air, as if he were trying to stab me with it.
“What was that, Little One?” I placed the owl on the ground between us.
“Da-Da,” Ember repeated. “Da-Da Gu-Gu.” Oh gods. My heart nearly imploded in my chest with unspeakable joy. Tears burned in my eyes. Ember tilted his head, then smiled with surprise at his own words.
I patted my chest and repeated my son’s words. “Daddy Gus? I’m Daddy Gus?”
“No!”
“No?” I grinned at him.
“Da-Da Gu-Gu!” He stabbed his little finger into my sternum.
“All right, all right,” I laughed. “Da-Da Gu-Gu.”
Ember offered me a toothy grin, then laughed too.
The sound of Ember’s laughter was such a rare gift.
He usually only did it when I tickled him or when he played with Lumi in their room.
I had no idea why my little guy was so serious, but I think it only made me love him more.
Because when he then gave you a smile or laughed with you, it was like sunshine on the grayest of days.
“Da-Da Gu-Gu,” I repeated, and then, without another word, Ember threw himself at me, wrapping his chubby little arms around my neck. Gods, could life get any better than this? How could one man experience such overwhelming happiness?
I breathed Ember in, and his sugary honey breath wafted along my chin. I stroked his hair, and he sighed against me. “I love you, My Heart,” I whispered, just as he started breaking free from my hold. “I love you more than anything.”
“Emmer!” Lumi called out from the round pen. “Emmer!” he waved, and Ember got to his feet and took off as he ran toward his brother, his dark hair bouncing like a halo around him.
I sighed, tilting my head back toward the sun.
Closing my eyes, I breathed in the early spring air, filled with promises of honey and purple roses.
The smell of fresh grass and the woods flooded my senses before another, more overwhelming and alluring scent permeated the air.
My mate. My mouth watered as the small hairs at the back of my neck rose to attention.
My heart started racing in my chest, and my nostrils flared with desire.
My cock filled with blood as it strained against the fabric of my pants.
Seb. It was time. There was no question about it.
This was the smell of heat, of passion, of love. I would breed him again.
“Look after the children, Hal!” I blurted as I cupped my now painful hard-on and stormed toward the palace on wobbly legs. “For the rest of the day!”
“Only the rest of the day?!” He laughed after me.
“Whatever! You know what I mean,” I groaned, then started running in earnest.
“Did you want something, my love?” Seb blinked at me innocently as I nearly crashed through the door to his study.
His heady arousal hung in the air like a thick carpet of lust and heat.
I narrowed my gaze on him as I stood panting in the doorway like a wild beast. “Did Lumi get another tooth?” he smirked, going for indifference, but my little omega couldn’t fool me.
I could smell his slick a mile away, and the beads of sweat pooling on his forehead were a subtle reminder that he, too, was burning up with want.
Prowling toward him with determined strides, I licked my lips as more saliva pooled in my mouth.
I inhaled deeply, and my balls swelled with seed that I longed to pump into Seb’s slick hole.
As I tore at my shirt, Seb gasped with ill-disguised delight, but he continued to play his game called “I’m not soaking my chair with horny-ass slick this very minute. ”
“It’s hot outside,” I growled as I threw my shirt over my shoulder. Seb’s hungry eyes danced over my chest, zeroing in on my nipples, while he squirmed in his chair. “I see it’s hot in here as well, my love.”
“Really? I hadn’t noticed.” Seb coughed, picking up a letter from his desk. “I was too… busy reading the latest letter from Bram.”
“Yeah? Any news?” I moved around Seb’s desk and hovered over him as I filled my lungs with his omega scent.
It was like a drug. He was like a drug. I would breed him this time.
I would fill him with my seed and get him pregnant again.
We had already agreed upon it after his last heat.
We longed to have more children. More mini-Sebs and mini-mes.
“Not really,” Seb gulped, staring a hole into the paper as he squirmed some more.
I chuckled under my breath, and Seb looked up, his eyes locking onto mine, two pools of green. His eyelids were puffy, pupils dilated—clear signs he was in heat.
“You are so beautiful,” I murmured. “So, so beautiful when you try to hold back, my love.”
“Hold back what?” he huffed. “What on earth do you mean, Alpha?” His lips trembled as he clung to every last bit of restraint. I loved this game. Who would be the first to crack?
“When you try to hold back how much you want my big, fat alpha cock tearing up your wet, little omega hole.”