28. Reconnection
Reconnection
Dakota
“L ong ago, packs were led by alpha females, until there was a war. All the alpha females were killed or fled the rising alpha males. Shifter fertility suffered, it decimated the population. There was a sickness, similar to that of the beta sickness. After, far fewer children were born and heats began.”
The room lapsed into silence while we digested ívarr’s words.
The weight of this sat heavy on me. Kade and his children were going to be targets when this got out.
The pack members that knew were sworn to silence.
A few had shown disgust and fear over the massive change that Elliotte represented.
We were keeping a close watch on them, but there was only so much we could do. This would get out.
The female betas loved their little alpha princess.
To them, she was an inspiration. I wasn’t so fragile in my masculinity that I was frightened of her.
It gave me hope women would be treated more equally.
I saw how beta females suffered, deemed to be less than their omega sisters, and I feared for Angelica.
Living in a pack with an alpha female, though, would give her hope to aspire to something more.
“I believe The Luna is working through this pack.” ívarr paced as he spoke.
“That more changes are coming. I won’t pretend to know what or even to guess, but I have records of alpha females here that should allow some protection for the pack from the council.
” He paused next to the stroller and lowered his voice as he gazed at the babies.
“I cannot lie. There are tough times ahead for this pack. Just know the elves are here with you. Say the word and I can bring more here. I will insist that the council allow a portal in Sweetwater for the purpose of protecting this pack.” He lightly ran a finger over each baby’s head and muttered something in Elvish. “A blessing for each. Such treasures.”
Dakota, I’m scared for Kade and the babies. ívarr sounds like he’s readying for war.
Me too. I didn’t downplay Jasper’s fears or minimize my own.
We’ll help protect them. We have so many friends.
The Sweetwater pack embraced other supernatural races, unlike many other packs.
We were regular users of magic. We had ogres, vampires, and a nymph working for us.
Those people had offered to come here and had integrated well.
Despite my issues with Isaac, I knew the other vampire covens would stand with us, if only for them to look good in the eyes of the other races.
The only race that we couldn’t count on was the fae, and perhaps some of our own.
It would divide shifters. We could only hope that they would see it as the blessing that it was.
A return to the ways before, when children weren’t so rare.
Much to my annoyance, Grady and Trey had settled in the house they had fallen in love with near to the compound.
It was one of the old sleuth houses before the bears had returned to the main Sweetwater pack months ago.
While their recovery had been faster than Axel’s and Angelica’s, they had still taken a few weeks to be fit to leave our house and live alone.
They weren’t ready to work for the council in the same way they had.
We could count on them at least because they had put down roots here and made friends.
It was possible that we could use them to speak to the council for us if there were any issues.
Jasper must have read some thoughts flitting through my brain.
Yes, Grady and Trey will help. They were there for Angelica her whole life.
They can see for themselves how much better she has it here.
His confidence in his friends eased my growing panic.
They’d likely never be my friends. We’d gotten off to too bad of a start, but I appreciated how much they cared for Jasper and Angelica.
My mate squeezed my hand in support. Blake rested his hand on my shoulder. This was my family and my home. No harm would come to those babies.
The meeting broke up soon after. My parents had checked on Hiroshi, who was in surprisingly high spirits considering having fled from his home with nothing. The betas were healing up well.
“I’d like to meet Hiroshi soon.” Jasper said as we walked home through the omega area.
There were only five weeks left before we could expect to meet our son, and I couldn’t wait.
I’m sure Jasper wanted it to be sooner, judging by how difficult walking had become for him.
Often he shifted to make the journey between the house and the mansion, like Angel and I did each morning.
The shifting was good for him, helping heal any aches and pains caused by the pregnancy. His fox looked so proud when they strutted about with their distended stomach, bushy tail in the air. They had every reason to; they looked amazing. Both did whatever form Jasper was in.
“You and Hiroshi in the same room doesn’t sound safe for me,” I joked. Jasper laughed, a pure, joyful sound. “I’d love for you to meet him. I think it would be good for Kade to have another omega male as a friend.”
“That’s a great point. They met before, didn’t they?”
I coughed. Fuck . How did I explain that meeting to Jasper? He must have read something on my face, or through the bond. He broke into laughter, doubling over with giggles.
“Oh, my, goddess! Your face!” He slapped a hand over his mouth and tried to quell his mirth. I loved how his amber eyes were lit with delight. The teasing was fine, if he was happy.
“I don’t think that Kade would appreciate the reminder of seeing Hiroshi double teamed just half an hour after meeting him.”
That stopped Jasper short. “Seriously?”
It was my turn to laugh. “Oh yeah. Hiroshi gets off on being watched. So Kade might not want to remember they’ve met.”
Jasper made a weird face. Part amused, part disgusted, or maybe curious, it was difficult to read. “Okay, you can introduce both of us as if he had never met Kade before.”
“Let’s give him a few days and see how he’s feeling. He’s probably in shock.”
“True. Your dad said he was fine, didn’t he?”
“His contraceptive was strong. Poppy did a great job with it, but we won’t know for a couple of weeks if it did the job correctly. Dad gave him another one, just in case. It’s highly unlikely he’ll get pregnant. It’s in the hands of the goddess now.”
“The Luna save him! I’d hate to be in that situation. I’m so glad that Roan ran when it nearly happened to Kade.” Jasper had helped Roan get out of there, saving them all from a heartbreaking situation.
“He was quiet after Hiroshi arrived, wasn’t he? Do you think things have settled down with the alphas?” I was worried about the younger man. He’d become withdrawn since the beta sickness. The other alphas of the pack insisted he wasn’t with Kade because Blake didn’t trust him.
Georgia’s house up ahead pulled me from my thoughts. The sounds of children playing, shrieking, and laughing could be heard down the street.
“Papa! Can I have a sleepover with Grady and Trey?”
What do you think? A night alone? Images flooded my mind. Jasper raised an eyebrow. The suggestive turn of his thoughts sent heat through my body.
Sounds perfect.
“Of course, little kit.” Jasper said. “Let’s get you home and packed. Say bye and thank you to Georgia and Cadence, please.”
Angelica ran off to thank them and Jasper chatted with some others before we took our leave, heading along the path towards the back gate. Angel kept up a steady stream of chatter as we walked, our daughter between us, our earlier conversation forgotten.
It didn’t take long for us to pack her off to the enforcers.
Grady and Trey were trying to be friendly, at least. I wanted to let go of the hurt of that first week with them, but my heart wouldn’t let me.
I reminded myself of the advice Papa had given me.
It would take time. They had to show that they believed in our mating, that they supported it, in order to earn my friendship.
Perhaps it was petty of me. I just couldn’t let things go so easily.
“Hey, go get your feet up. I’ll clear up dinner.” I shooed Jasper off to the living room and our overstuffed couch.
“But you cooked!” He protested.
“You are cooking our baby in there! Rest. You heard the doctor.” I hit back.
He muttered as he took a seat about doctors being my dad and other less than complimentary things that I pretended not to hear. Jasper was tired after a long, stressful day, and he was grumpy about it. Guaranteed, he would fall asleep in front of the TV and wake up feeling much better.
Sure enough, by the time that I’d finished clearing the kitchen of the mess our meal caused, he was snoring lightly, his feet resting on the coffee table and a blanket covering him.
I sat in an armchair and surfed the channels for a bit, settling on some supernatural league football. There had been little time to keep up with the league or how each team I liked was doing, but the game was fast-paced and had me on the edge of my seat by the time it finished.
“Hmm.” Jasper let out a sleepy sound as I roused him from his nap with my enthusiastic encouragement of one team. “Did I fall asleep?”
“You did. Sorry I woke you.”
“No, it’s fine. Come here.” He held his hands out for me and I went to the sofa, turning him so he could rest his feet in my lap. I yanked off his socks and started massaging his feet while I caught him up with the game. He pretended to be interested, which was cute, but unnecessary.
My hands roamed up his calves, easing the tight muscles there. He wriggled and moaned. “Dakota, please.”
“Please, what?”
“Can we go to bed?”
“How about we have a bath first?”
“That sounds amazing.”