Epilogue
Five days later
“Sable!” I hiss, startling her. She frowns at me as I gesture frantically for her to get over here before we’re spotted. “Hurry up,” I say through gritted teeth.
“What? What’s wrong?” she asks. Sable and her mates arrived about fifteen minutes ago so they could spend Christmas with us on the farm. Kai left to go pick his mom up not too long ago, so I don’t have a lot of time before they get back.
I drag her by her arm into the small guest bathroom in the hallway off the kitchen and shove a stick in her face. She squints at it, confused until she reads it.
“Oh my fuck,” she gasps, jaw dropping as her eyes bug out of her head. “Oh my fucking fuck… Is that yours?”
“No, I had someone else pee on a stick for fun, Sable. Yes, it’s mine!” I snark, placing it on the sink and stepping away from it, as if that will protect me from the results. “What do I do?” I mumble, watching the stick like it’s the one responsible for my current predicament.
“Should I go get Nick? Or Benson?” she asks gently, and I snap my head around to stare at her like she’s lost her mind.
“No! No way.” I shake my head. “No. Nope…” I cross my arms over my chest, trying to hold myself together as panic starts to take over.
“They can feel your panic,” she adds softly, moving to place her hand on my shoulder, but I dodge it.
“Don’t comfort me; I’ll cry,” I hiss, and she fails to hold back her snort.
“Right. Do you want me to give you space?” She offers, and I shake my head.
“No…” I can’t take my eyes off the stick. There are six others in the trash, all having given me the same exact result. “Nope, nope, nope,” I add, and Sable sighs.
“My guys are feeling anxious. I think your alphas have alerted them to your distress, and they no doubt felt my shock. I give them thirty seconds before they’re all trying to get in here.” She grabs the doorknob and pauses. “I’ll hold them off.”
“Don’t tell them anything!” I yelp, glancing away from the stick to make sure she heard me. She nibbles her lip, frowning. “No hugs,” I add, before she can offer again.
Once I'm alone, I lock the door behind her and then sink to the floor with my back pressed against it.
“What’s wrong? I can feel her panic. Is she okay?” I hear Nick’s rapid-fire questions. Then lots of footsteps and other voices join the fray—Sable's mates checking on her, and my alphas demanding access to the door.
“She isn’t hurt, and no, she doesn’t need medical attention, but you will if you try to shove past me again. She needs to be alone for a little bit. You’ll respect that, or I’ll start breaking things that aren’t meant to be broken,” Sable threatens, and I suck in a sharp breath.
I love her so much.
“What’s going on?” I hear Kai shout, but Sable must successfully drag them away from the door because it’s quiet for a little while after that, until someone knocks lightly.
“You ain’t got to come out, but you’re going to have to let me in,” Bee says firmly.
I don’t even try to say no. I just stand up, unlock the door, and open it for her. She doesn’t say anything once she steps inside, simply tugging me in for a hug. We stand hugging for a long time, until I finally figure out why I’m freaking out and start pulling away.
“I don’t know if I can do this. My mom died when I was young. I don’t know anything about taking care of someone, let alone a baby,” I confess as she releases me. She grabs the positive pregnancy test off the sink and reads it.
“Yes, you do,” Bee says, placing it back down and turning back to me. “You take care of yourself. Been doing it a while, too. You take care of the people around you, the ones you love… You know what not to do better than most.”
“Knowing what not to do is not the same as knowing how to raise a kid. Just like taking care of my alphas is not the same as keeping a baby alive! Very different things, Bee,” I argue, and Bee nods.
“True.”
“Bee! How does agreeing help me? You’re supposed to tell me I can do this.
That I’m strong and smart and that I’ve got a pack that will help me.
Friends and family that won’t let me fail!
Things like that, not just agreeing with me when I argue!
” I lift my hands and drop them against my legs dramatically.
Bee lifts a single brow, tilting her head, and waits.
“Kai said he helped set up a community food bank with Nick and his brothers,” Bee says, and the abrupt change of subject catches me off guard.
“And that he’s been talking to Benson about opening a bakery.
He also mentioned donating money to the library he worked for years ago.
He doesn’t have any plans of returning to his old job, it seems. He’s going to have plenty to do on the farm, though. ”
“Um?” I frown, a little confused.
“Nick’s got plenty of staff working the farm, but he loves the work too. Benson would probably love opening that bakery, from what I understand, but that will take a good while to plan. Maybe even a couple of years. Long enough to dedicate his time to fatherhood, hmm? Kai and Nick too.”
“Oh.” Rather than telling me generic things that everyone always says in a situation like this, she took the focus off of me and reminded me what I have with my men. My mates.
My pack.
“Oh, holy shit…” I gasp, tears filling my eyes. “I’m going to be a mom!”
“Even better? I’m going to be a grandma!” Bee smirks, and I can’t help but laugh. “Come on, let's get out there before your men start ripping the walls down trying to get to you.” She chuckles, opening the bathroom door.
I nod, grabbing the test off the sink, and follow her to the den.
All three of my men are pacing around. Sable’s in Rhian’s lap, her alphas on either side of them on the couch.
“Surprise!” I announce, holding the stick in the air when they turn to see me. “Sorry, had to freak out about this first.”
“I knew it,” Kai says, grinning. Benson relaxes but stares at the stick for a long moment. He’s probably never seen one of these.
“Congrats, Plum,” Rhian says. “Looks like I’m going to be an uncle. That kid’s going to have the best aunts and uncles ever.”
“Oh… Oh!” Benson’s eyes go wide, and then he’s smiling. “Holy shit, you’re pregnant!” He scoops me up into his arms, nuzzling my neck.
“You’re having a baby?” Nick asks, looking a little dazed. “I’m going to be a dad?”
“Yeah.” I nod.
“Hottest mom ever,” Kai teases, pressing a kiss to my cheek. Nick joins us, and the three of them hold me in their arms as we soak in the moment.
None of this was planned, but as they hold me, our bond buzzing with love and joy, I can’t help but be grateful for all of it.
For these men I get to call mine.
For the little life that will soon be a part of our family.
My life hasn’t been easy, and there were days when I thought I might never find happiness again, but I’m so glad I never gave up that little spark of hope.
This is my happily ever after.
“Merry Christmas!” I say, as tears of joy fill my eyes.
“Merry Christmas!” Everyone shouts together, and I know that I won’t ever be alone again, and neither will my child. Even if the unthinkable happened, and I couldn’t be with them as they grow up, this room is filled with so many people that will love them so much.
“If it’s a girl, we should name her Noelle, for your mom,” Kai whispers. I can’t speak as I nod my head, my throat too tight with all the overwhelming emotions.
I place a hand over my belly as my eyes fall shut. I don’t know if this baby is a boy or a girl. We haven’t had much time together yet, but I can’t wait to get to know everything about them.
“Noelle Berrywill, for a girl.” I smile. We decided to take on the pack name Berrywill, in honor of Bee.
“Tony Berrywill for a boy?” Nick asks, and I nod.
“Hear that, Mom?” Kai asks, and we turn to see the older woman crying.
“You punks,” she scolds, making us all laugh.
“Surprise!” I say, pulling her in for a hug. “I’m officially Plum Berrywill as of yesterday.”
“I always knew you’d be my daughter one day.” Bee sniffs, “Just had to wait for Kai to screw his head on straight,” she snarks.
“My heart has been with Plum since the day I gave it to her. I’ve always known where home is,” Kai says, kissing my cheek and then his mom’s.
“Sorry I’m late. I was trying to get everything in one go and ended up dropping a dang cookie box, so now they’re just cookie crumbles!” Nick’s mom says as she huffs her way into the den. She pauses when she sees us, though, clearly picking up on the emotional vibes. “What did I miss?”
“You’re going to be a grandma,” Nick says, and his mother’s eyes go wide. She looks between me and Sable, jaw hanging open. “Plum is pregnant,” Nick clarifies with a chuckle.
“You’re pregnant?" she asks, and when I nod, she starts squealing. “Congratulations! This is amazing! You four are going to be fantastic parents! What a wonderful Christmas surprise!” she hollers, and when she’s done freaking out, Rhian clears his throat.
Sable pulls me in for a hug while Rhian takes his mom’s hand. They’re both acting odd, and her other mates, Colter and Taron, look like they’re about to explode as they join their mate, one on either side of Rhian.
“I’m pregnant too. I found out last night,” she whispers in my ear, and now it’s my turn to freak out.
“We tried to convince Sable to share the news after dinner, but she wanted to tell Plum the second she walked through the door,” Rhian says, but I’m still staring at my teary-eyed bestie, who is nodding at me as I try to work through my shock. “Sable’s pregnant!”
“Two grandchildren? I’m gonna pass out,” Rhian’s mom says, pulling him into a hug.
“Oh Sable, I’m so happy for you.” Bee is teary-eyed as she pulls my best friend into a hug. “Your Grams would be so proud of you too.”
“Thank you.” Sable swipes at her tears. “I miss her every day.”
“Me too.” Bee smiles sadly, patting her heart. “But she’s with us.”
“Okay, who wants pie before dinner?” Benson teases, breaking the emotional tension, at least until Sable and I both growl.
“Me!” we say in unison, then link arms and push past the others to get to the kitchen first.
Having this happen for us at the same time is like magic. Our babies are going to have lifelong friends and have more love than they will ever know what to do with.
Getting here might have hurt like hell sometimes, but my life is beautiful, chaotic, and all I want.
The End