Chapter 27
Emilio
Two months later, I'm lying in a hospital bed feeling like I just got hit by a truck.
Every muscle in my body aches, my entire lower half is numb from the epidural, and I'm pretty sure I screamed words at Liam and Akira that I'll be apologizing for later.
But none of that matters right now. Because my baby is here.
He's real. He's perfect. Quentin is here.
The baby is gorgeous, with a full head of dark hair and the tiniest fingers I've ever seen.
His eyes are closed right now, but when they opened briefly a few minutes ago, they were blue.
The nurse said they might change color over the next few months, but right now they're the most beautiful blue I've ever seen.
He's small but healthy, weighing in at seven pounds three ounces.
The doctors said everything looks perfect, that he's strong and breathing well and all the things they check for.
And really, that’s all that matters, Liam stealing Quentin from me so I can have a break.
The look on the Alpha’s face is something I'll remember forever. Pure joy mixed with wonder and a little bit of terror. He cradles Quentin against his chest like he's the most precious thing in the world. Which he is. Quentin is everything I’ve been working so hard for and I can’t believe I finally accomplished the thing I set out to do.
Become a daddy.
"He's so small," Liam murmurs, his voice thick with emotion. "Look at his hands."
Akira stands beside me, his hand gripping mine tightly.
He hasn't let go since the contractions started getting serious, staying by my side through every moment of the labor.
Even when I screamed at him that this was all his and Liam's fault, that I was never having sex with either of them again, that they could both go to hell.
He just held my hand tighter and told me I was doing great.
"You're gorgeous," Akira purrs, and it takes me a second to realize he's talking to me, not the baby. His other hand comes up to brush sweaty hair off my forehead. "Absolutely fucking gorgeous."
"I'm a mess," I protest weakly, but his words make something warm bloom in my chest.
"You just gave birth to our son," Akira says firmly. "You're the most beautiful thing I've ever seen."
The possessiveness in the word our makes my breath catch.
Our son. Not Liam's son, not my son. Ours. All three of us, a family in every way that matters. The thought makes tears prick at my eyes, hormones probably making me more emotional than usual. It didn’t take Akira long at all to hop onto the train, saying that this was going to be our family and that he would be by my side every step of the way.
The way I thought about Alphas has been all turned around by these two.
Akira reaches into his pocket and pulls out a small velvet box. "I got you a little something. To make this official."
Confusion must show on my face because he smiles, that soft smile he only ever gives me. "What do you mean?"
"I want to make you mine. Ours, officially. Legally," Akira says, opening the box to reveal a ring. It's gorgeous, a simple band with three stones set into it. Sapphire, emerald, and diamond, representing all three of us.
My heart pounds in my chest, faster than it has any right to after the marathon of labor. The heart monitor attached to my chest starts beeping and I have to take several breaths to calm myself to keep the doctors from rushing back in here.
Ever since my brother and Charles were sentenced two months ago, I've been feeling loved and cared for.
The mountain of evidence the officers found once they started looking revealed way more than I ever thought.
Zaden has his hands way deeper into corruption than what seemed possible, his gig ‘working with the police’ just a cover to set up the stage for what he thought would be his victory.
In the end it became his demise, including the plot to get rid of River.
Charles carried out but Zaden had approved it, neither of them able to talk their way out of the charges slapped on them.
With them gone, I've been free to build the club I always wanted.
Free to focus on my pregnancy, on my Alphas, on creating a life that makes me happy.
But this. Marriage. Making it legal and permanent? That's a level of commitment I never thought I'd want.
Sitting up a little with Akira's help, I watch Liam cradle Quentin closer to his chest. Liam looks up and meets my eyes, something soft and loving in his expression. There’s no shock in Liam’s eyes, which means he knows what Akira is doing and was probably in on planning this.
"But I also don't want you to think I'm overstepping," Akira continues, pulling out a folded piece of paper from his other pocket. "So I also drew this up as well."
Taking the paper with my free hand, I try to focus on the words. Legal terminology swims across the page, made harder to read by exhaustion and lingering pain. "I just had a baby, Akira. My brain isn't working right now. What is this?"
Liam snorts from across the room, careful not to jostle Quentin. "He would have given it to you weeks ago when he got it done. I’ve never seen him so excited about something and I had to fight him on it. Made him wait until after the birth. Apparently, this is what he calls after birth."
"Is this a prenuptial?" I ask, my eyes catching on some familiar terms. Assets, property rights, business ownership. "Why does it only have stipulations for you?"
The contract is one-sided in a way I've never seen before.
It protects everything I own, gives me complete control of Aurum Pulse regardless of marital status, and ensures that neither Akira nor Liam can make any claims on my business or personal assets.
There's nothing in here protecting them, nothing that gives them any rights to what's mine. It's entirely designed to protect me.
"Because nothing else matters," Akira says simply. "Only your comfort and what you need. I don't want you to ever worry that marrying me means losing what you've built. The club is yours. It will always be yours. This just makes it legally binding."
Tears spill over, running down my cheeks. Damn hormones making me cry at everything. But this is different. This is Akira understanding exactly what I need, what I've always needed. Proof that he's not trying to take anything from me. Proof that loving him doesn't mean losing myself.
"I love you," I say, my voice breaking. "I don't say it enough and I don't wish to ever do it again the way we got together. But fuck, I'm glad it brought us together."
Everything that happened, all the pain and fear and chaos, led me here. To this moment. To these two Alphas who love me enough to protect what matters most to me. To a baby who's perfect in every way. To a life I never thought I'd have.
"Yes, Akira, I do," I continue, more tears falling. "Let's make this legal."
The grin that spreads across Akira's face is blinding.
He leans down for a kiss, mindful of how exhausted I am.
When he pulls back, there's something wicked in his eyes.
"Firecracker," he murmurs, his hand moving to rest on my still swollen belly.
"The next time, it's going to be my child in that beautiful, swollen belly of yours. "
A gasp escapes me, shock and arousal and a dozen other emotions flooding through me at once before I swat at his hand.
“I know I said I didn’t mean all those awful things I said when I was giving birth to Quentin but I take it back.
No touching. No sex. None. I’m not having a baby for a really, really long time. ”
Liam steps closer, handing Quentin back to me before placing a kiss to my forehead. “Pretty boy, you’ll be begging the moment your doctor gives you the all clear. We’ll see who gives in first.” He gives me a wink and I just groan, knowing that I will absolutely be the first to start begging.
But I don’t mind.
Because these Alphas are mine and they just promised to preserve everything I’ve worked for. I didn’t think I’d be here, claiming my own little pack but I wouldn’t have it any other way.