Epilogue
CHASE
Snow is drifting down in heavy flakes as I tromp up the hill behind my cabin, dragging the perfect blue spruce.
My mate let it slip that she’s never had a real Christmas tree before.
And even though we’ve been busy renovating the Blue River Lodge to get it ready for the grand reopening, I’m determined to give her the very best this year.
It’s warm inside the cabin as I burst through the front door. We’ve had a fire going since this morning, and the place feels cheery despite the thick gray clouds overhead.
Lizzy emerges from the kitchen as I wiggle the tree through the too-small opening, showering the hardwood floor in needles and snow.
One glimpse at her face tells me something is off, and I stop with the spruce half wedged in the doorway.
“What’s wrong?” I ask. Lizzy swallows, her gaze darting to the enormous tree behind me.
“It’ll fit,” I say, my eyes smoldering as I flash her a wicked grin. “I measured.”
“What would you say if I told you this might be our first and last Christmas together, just the two of us?”
For a moment, I gape at her, not quite understanding.
Then I take a deep breath, drawing her warm, cinnamon-and-vanilla scent into my lungs. There’s something different about her natural fragrance — something musky and slightly sweet.
My jaw drops and I cross the room, forgetting all about the tree. “Are you . . .?”
Lizzy’s eyes fill with happy tears as she nods. Warmth explodes in my chest, and a ragged chuckle slips out of me as I wrap my arms around my mate and pull her against me.
My throat burns as I bend down to pepper her face with kisses, tasting the salt on her cheeks. I catch one as it drips from her bottom lip, then draw her in for a searing kiss.
Lizzy’s arms come around my neck, and I lift her up so that her legs are wrapped around my waist.
“Does this mean you’re excited to be a dad?” she asks tentatively.
“Baby, excited doesn’t even begin to cover it.”
My wolf roars with pride and happiness as I devour my mate once more. My heart is so full it feels as though it could burst. “You’ve made me the happiest male alive.”
Lizzy’s lip quivers as fresh tears well in her eyes, and I gently dry her cheeks with the pad of my thumb.
“A baby,” she murmurs, a watery grin stretching across her face.
“A baby,” I repeat. “Our baby.”
She sniffs, and her eyes dart once more to the blue spruce stuffed in our doorway. “Is that our Christmas tree?”
“Do you like it?”
“I love it. Although I thought Christmas trees were supposed to be vertical.”
Another laugh shakes out of me, and I start carrying her toward our bedroom. The tree can wait. What I want now is to celebrate this incredible new life growing inside my mate.
Carefully, I lay her down on our bed, pushing her shirt up over her breasts so I can drop a trail of wet kisses over her skin. Lizzy moans, arching into me, and I feel a smile tugging at my lips as I capture her nipple between my teeth.
She lets out a needy whimper, and I lick away the small hurt. She shivers as my hand slips beneath the waistband of her leggings, finding her already wet and wanting.
I start to move my fingers in slow, firm circles, still teasing her nipple with my tongue.
Lizzy’s hands fist in my hair, and I’m about to rip her clothes off to worship every inch of her when I hear the rumble of an engine, followed by the slam of a car door.
We both go still, and then there’s a crunch of footsteps on gravel.
“Later,” I growl against her lips, disentangling from my mate and tugging her shirt back down.
Going into the living room, I yank the tree the rest of the way inside just as two wild pups come tearing toward me. Cinders darts behind the couch just as Wilder careens into my knees, and I let out an exaggerated “oaf!” before wrapping my arms around him.
Riley and Jonas appear next, my pack brother holding a squirming baby in his arms as Riley balances several large Tupperware containers.
This is something we’ve done every Saturday since I moved back, but I’d almost forgotten they were coming over.
I grin as my family files into the cabin. Wilder and Alice start jumping up and down, squealing with excitement over the tree. I oblige them by dragging it over to the corner and setting it up straight, though my eyes keep flicking to my mate.
Lizzy is already chatting with Riley, her cheeks still flushed from our earlier activities. Riley and Jonas keep glancing at me, and I know they’ve picked up on the subtle shift in my mate’s scent.
Or maybe they’re staring because I’m beaming in a way I never did before this wonderful human came into my life. As I watch her hand drift to her stomach while my niece and nephew careen around the cabin, I’m filled with so much joy it steals my breath away.
How did I almost miss out on this? The chance to make a life with the woman I love, surrounded by pack and family? Lizzy is my center. My heart. My home. She’s the one I look forward to seeing at the end of each day. The person I feel grateful I get to wake up to every morning.
Now that I know what home is, I wouldn’t trade it for the world.