Epilogue
Zale
Twelve Months Later
“ S hit, too much flour.” I curse as half the powdery flour lands outside the bowl and onto the worktop in a small cloud. “Why did I decide to do this again, Cari?”
She doesn't answer me, not that I’m expecting her to as I whisk in the eggs. In fact, if my three-month-old did reply, I’d be very fucking worried. Glancing down at the wrap she’s currently tucked away in, I can see she’s fallen asleep with her chubby little cheek pressed against my chest.
Parenthood is hard in ways I didn’t expect. Shiloh had struggled towards the end, balancing pregnancy with university, but we’d gotten through it and both graduated with honors thanks to the support from both of our parents and our friends.
It had taken a while for people to wrap their heads around me and Shiloh being together, but once they saw us together, they realized that we just made sense.
He made me laugh, made me feel free to be myself, while I made him feel like the strong independent omega he was in public, and a needy, desperate slut who whimpered for me behind closed doors. It worked for us.
Adding Cari into the mix only made me realize how lucky I was to have my Mate, and this little bundle who smelled like milk with hints of caramelized sugar.
Our parents had come together to buy a home and furnish it near the campus as a wedding gift, and while we’d offered to let Bell move in with us, they’d declined. Apparently listening to us go at it was worse than hearing your parents have sex. Still, that didn’t stop them from camping out in our pool house fairly often. In fact, between Bell, Blake, Hunter and Evans, there was usually a houseguest with us on the weekend. They were all eager to be near their goddaughter and watch her grow up.
The sloppy mixture comes together, and I dip my finger into the batter tasting the raw sweetness. I add more vanilla, and a dash of cinnamon before mixing it in and tasting again. Accidentally dropping a dollop of cake batter on my infant's head, I glance around, checking for an audience before I lean down and lick it off. Whoops .
Well, it didn’t taste awful, so let’s just hope it tasted good once it was baked.
Pouring the mix into the tin, I place it in the oven and set a timer. Bell would be here in a few hours to take Cari for the night, and I intended to enjoy every moment with my Mate.
The same Mate who was currently out having lunch with his parents, celebrating after receiving a job offer from a company he’s been interning with. He was going to be an Omega Resources Officer at a corporation supporting omega rights. I couldn’t be prouder of him for continuing to chase his goals, even if Cari made things a little trickier.
I should have known from the first moment I laid my eyes on Shiloh Vos that he was going to change my life.
Every time I think back to that party, I want to kick myself. I knew Millie. We’d hung around in the same circles and I knew she’d been interested in me, but for some reason, I’d always held back.
With Shiloh, I’d seen him around school, but it wasn’t until our final year that we ended up in the same classes. He rarely came out to social events, never came to the football games and it was proving impossible to get closer to him, even though I’d thought about it on occasion when I’d see him in the library or in the corridor.
Memories of that night had started coming back to me in snippets. I recall how when I finally saw Shiloh at that house party, I’d decided to work up the courage to try talking to him. I was taking it as a sign because I was sure there was something there. Something between us. It didn’t even occur to me to think about his secondary gender, there was just something about him that called to me. But I’d chickened out pretty quickly when I saw him with Bell.
Several beers and some tequila shots later, I finally made my move. Swept up in a haze of skin, laughter, the scent of toffee and kisses, the rest of the night was a blur until I woke up the next morning with Millie naked in my bed.
She’d always smelled wrong, sweet but in a cloying way. If I had known that Shiloh was an omega, or even remembered that he’d been at the party, I might have realized what happened sooner. We could have avoided a lot of hurt on all sides.
Romilly pulled out of school before graduation, refusing to face what she’d done and Shiloh hasn’t spoken to her since. She hadn’t even called after Cari was born.
His parents tried to raise the issue every now and again, but until Millie apologized, he wasn’t interested and they were trying to respect his choices. That was my stabby little Hedgehog for you.
The oven timer dings and I pull out the sponge, setting it on a cooling rack. This year, his birthday was all about him. And I couldn’t wait to see his face when he realized that we had a child-free evening, homemade cake and I may or may not have bought a red ribbon for my cock. I was going to get him worked up, and push my knot inside him until he was begging for me. Until he forgot his own name. Shiloh Blackwood.
This was going to be the first birthday celebration of the rest of our lives, I think to myself as I dollop the frosting onto the cake.
This was our happily ever after.