Chapter 49
“What do you think, Lucy?” I held Nathan’s niece on my lap, showing her the website progress for my new business.
She mumbled a little sound and I looked down to find her asleep against me.
“You look so fucking cute with a sleeping kiddo in your arms,” Nathan said quietly, his head peeking around the corner and into my office. He slipped inside, kissing my hair, then Lucy’s, gathering her into his arms. “She’s getting an early start on our sleepover.”
My stomach clenched, something feral purring deep in me to see him holding a child.
Didn’t matter if it was our child or not.
I guess I’d probably been gone for him from the first moment I’d seen him with Lucy.
Though, him telling me to get a better boyfriend had kinda clinched that crush.
Lucky for him, I was eventually a good listener, and he just so happened to be one of those better boyfriends.
“Probably tired out from all the excitement of her mama going into labor.”
Nathan’s gaze swept over me. “You keep looking at me with those eyes and that energy in the bond and I’m gonna have to go put Lucy down for her nap in the nursery.”
Jude laughed, looking in on us, Alve and Leo on his heels. “Okay, makes sense now.”
I blinked, tilting my head. “What does?”
“What we felt in the bond,” Jude explained. “We were trying to figure out what would’ve caused the opposite reactions in there. I get it, though. Nathan’s fine as hell in dad mode.”
A full body shiver rolled over me as the rest of the pack wholeheartedly agreed in the bond.
“You guys missed her in mom mode. Haven’t seen anything that sweet in a long time.”
A meow sounded from the hallway, Poppy and Pepper coming to see what the commotion was, and possibly protest that they were the sweetest thing he’d seen.
Alve scooped up Poppy, my tabby letting him cradle her like a baby.
Jude hoisted Pepper like she was more parrot than cat, slinging her over his shoulder where she closed her eyes in contentment.
“Everyone needs to stop looking so hot while holding cute babies.” I squirmed in my seat, trying to focus back on my work.
The website would be ready soon, though my client list was getting pretty extensive without it.
I had a ton of work to do before our baby made its appearance, but I was pretty sure with some careful planning I could manage it.
And, failing that, Nathan’s invitation to let me boss him around while helping hadn’t expired.
I switched over to my calendar. Preliminary designs for the new OHI building were due soon.
I’d be starting on Farrah’s nest in a couple of weeks, then Scarlett’s, followed by the Les Bijoux omega break room, before moving on to a few of the other nests for omegas working there who’d inquired about my services.
The work was expensive, but none of them balked at the price.
Pride infused me.
They thought I was worth that much.
No, they knew I was.
Leo came to lean on the back of my chair, looking over my shoulder. “Which one are you working on today?”
“Mostly Farrah’s nest. Best of Nests has the prettiest royal blue pillows and I want to order them early in case they alter the shades.”
He brushed his cheek against mine, dipping to kiss the curve of my throat and making me shiver. “I like watching you work. You’re so focused in the bond when you get into a groove.”
“It’s nothing compared to watching you work. I can’t be graceful sitting at a computer the way you can riding Eclipse.”
Leo sighed, breathing deep against my skin, his hand slipping down to rest over my little bump. “You’re plenty graceful when you’re riding us.”
I let out a cackle, taken off guard by his statement. “That was terrible.” I turned my head so I could meet his mouth for a kiss. “And I loved it.”
My pack whispered among themselves.
“What’re you guys being sneaky about over there?” I glanced past Leo to see what information I could glean.
A notification caught my attention out of the corner of my eye and I turned back to the screen. Why was Alve emailing me when he was standing right there? Confused, I clicked on it, the message opening to…an itinerary?
I stared at it for a moment, scrolling through. A flight from Vegas to New York, two overnights there with city tours, then a flight from New York to Paris. “Are we going to France?”
“And Spain.” Leo grinned, nuzzling my cheek. “If you can clear your schedule.”
Words failed me. Disbelieving excitement all but punched me in the chest. We were going on a trip. We were going on a trip! My pack had done this so we could have a vacation together.
“We figured France and Spain would be a good choice,” Nathan explained, slinking around to my other side, still cradling Lucy. “This way you don’t have to be a slut for palaces in theory only, you can be one in practice.”
I laughed, the sound probably bordering on hysterical. “I can’t believe you remember me saying that.”
“Sweetheart, our first conversation is branded into my brain for the rest of eternity.”
I was so fucking happy my eyes started burning from tears trying to escape, my overwhelmed emotions made manifest.
“Have a look through and see if there’s anything we forgot that you want to see.” Jude dipped down so Pepper was within reach for me to kiss her forehead and his cheek. “If it’s all good, we can go ahead and book.”
“I need a group hug.” Pushing back on my desk, I stood up from my desk chair, instantly cocooned by my pack, cats and niece included. “We really get to go somewhere together? And not just somewhere, but a place I’ve been dying to go for decades?”
“We do.” Alve let his forehead rest against mine. “We thought it would be a perfect birthday gift for your first one with us.”
My brain stopped short. “You know when my birthday is?”
“It was on your intake forms when you were onboarded with the OHI. I put it in my calendar and gave myself a three-month reminder on my phone so I’d have time to figure out the best way to celebrate.
Nathan suggested somewhere with palaces, and Jude said you’d always wanted to visit Versailles, so we started there.
Leo’s birthday is only a couple of weeks after yours, so we’re spoiling both of you. ”
Lucy fussed, rejoining the waking world.
“You hungry, cutie?” Nathan asked.
Lucy nodded, hugging her uncle tightly around the neck.
“Okay, let’s wash your face and hands, and you”—Nathan looked pointedly at me—“are going to take a break for lunch.” He departed with Lucy into the nursery we had only just begun to set up.
She was old enough she didn’t need the baby stuff, which was good because we didn’t have most of it yet, aside from what came in the subscription boxes Alve had signed me up for.
The crib we had picked out had been sitting in a box when we got the call that Ava was going into labor, so that had been a quick construction to give Lucy somewhere to sleep.
Surrendering to the demand, I went downstairs with my pack. It wasn’t very common for everyone to be home at once with Leo’s alternate work schedule, but we got him most of Sunday and went to his show in the evening.
“My mom heard we had a guest,” Leo told me. “She’s bringing over some baby-friendly options for Lucy.”
As if on cue, the doorbell rang and I scampered over to answer it, greeted instantly with a smile. “Hello, mija. You’re looking so well. How are you feeling?”
“Pretty fabulous, actually. My pack is taking great care of me.” I inhaled the incredible fragrance clinging to her.
She held a big opaque container with something wrapped in foil stacked on top.
Leo took both from her so she could pull me into a warm hug.
“You didn’t have to bring us food, but I’m very glad you did. ”
She bustled along into the kitchen. Leo moved like she was communicating telepathically with him, setting a pot on the stove and getting a wooden spoon from the drawer. Mama Aleida poured the contents of the container into the pot and my mouth watered
“Sit,” she commanded. “The pozole will be warm in a moment.” She put Leo in charge of stirring and dug through our fridge, extracting staples he kept on hand for his own delicious cooking: avocado, limes, cilantro, and garlic.
I parked myself at the kitchen table to watch her work.
“I went light on the chilies for the little one and brought her some tinga de pollo. Where is she?”
“Right here.” Nathan came down the stairs carrying her. “Washed up and ready to eat.”
Lucy was still in her nervous phase with strangers so she stayed stuck to him, but offered a tentative smile when Mama Aleida unwrapped the foil for Lucy to peer in.
Mama Aleida had been bringing by whatever was left at their food truck at the end of the day, though I suspected she started prepping extra for the sole purpose of feeding us. I had no complaints about that. Every single bite I put into my mouth made by her hands was magnificent.
Her pozole was as delicious as everything else she’d made us. I dug into the bowl she set in front of me. It was spicy, but not painfully so, the other flavors exquisite.
“Could we hire you to cater the baby shower?” I asked when I surfaced to breathe, halfway through my bowl already.
“I will cook for it, but you will not pay me for it,” she insisted.
“You have to let us pay for the groceries at the very least, and I’m going to buy you so many presents if you won’t take our money.”
She gazed at me shrewdly before eventually nodding. “I will accept that.”
Leo whispered in my ear. “She won’t. It’s how she shows love, just roll with it.”
I would take love however Mama Aleida wanted to give it. With that settled, I enjoyed the rest of my food. I wasn’t sure if Mexican food hit the spot because I was carrying Leo’s baby or if my taste buds had simply adapted instantly to getting to eat Mama Aleida’s food every day.
“How long are you leaving Papi alone in the kitchen?” Leo asked, draping his arm over his mothers shoulders.
“Not much longer. I left him making the mole so he will be occupied for a few hours, but we’re catering an office lunch tomorrow, so I can’t stay long.”
Leo kissed her cheek, pulling her into a proper hug. “We’re happy to see you for however long you can stick around. Pass along our love to Papi.”
“Of course I will, mijo. You all be good.” She made her rounds, getting a hug from each of us. My cheeks got their obligatory squish before a forehead kiss, followed by a loving brush of her knuckles over my stomach. “You be extra good for your little one on the way. I love you, mija.”
I almost choked on my own tears returning her affection. When she left to go back to her husband, I pulled in a deep breath. “I know I say it every time she comes over, but she’s really nailing this mother-in-law thing.”
Leo’s easy smile was so sweet. “She knows you were lacking in the real thing. I think she mentally adopted you the second I mentioned that.”
Nathan was also lacking in the mother department, but between Leo’s and Jude’s, we were getting the proper experience. Alve’s mom was lovely too, but she wasn’t local, so we saw a lot less of her.
It was still wild to think how quickly everyone’s families had welcomed us in.
I was part of something I had always dreamed of.
Discussions happened a lot, with me often pouring out my various concerns that I was secretly a terrible person taking advantage of my new family’s love, but my pack was really good at shutting that thought down.
I planned to do plenty for all of them in time.
Nathan seemed to have figured out the exact sensation in the bond of my compulsion to overextend myself because I was feeling guilty, managing to stop me before I’d even opened my mouth.
I knew it would all take time and practice, but I was learning. Sometimes all someone wanted in return was company or a conversation, and that was a hell of a lot more practical than me offering to repaint someone’s whole house because of one offhand comment that they had been meaning to repaint.
Therapy would start soon, too, now that we were settled in.
That would help more. I had so much fucking baggage hanging off my shoulders, but I was determined to shed as much of it as I could to be the best version of myself for my pack and our baby.
Likely as it was to be a lifelong journey, I wasn’t about to discount the healing I could achieve along the way.
My pack hugged me without my needing to ask for it this time.
“Could we persuade you to indulge in some pack cuddle time before you get back to work?” Nathan asked, searching my gaze.
I loved them so much. “Try and stop me.”