I blinked, trying to accept what Linc was saying. He was right, Phillip was out of my life, but seeing him…
Linc pulled my arms free and held my hands. “Want me to go back in there and beat him up? He’s already in the hospital…”
I laughed, and the jolt of the laughter shook me out of the numbing fog. But I still felt a lump sitting uneasily in my throat. “Let’s just go,” I managed to say. Linc opened the door for me and I slid into the passenger seat.
“Are you sure you’re alright?” Linc asked after a few minutes of silence on the way home.
“I’m a little shaken up, to be honest,” I said. “Seeing Phillip reminded me how it felt to be drop-kicked out of his life. Ever since then I’ve been afraid of it happening again. Sometimes I’m so afraid it gets to a point of being irrational…” I looked over at Linc to see if he caught the reference to my hysterics the other day after I found out he wanted to delay the claiming ceremony.
“Mm…” Linc said diplomatically.
“It’s just that now I have to think of the baby too,” I said, feeling despondent again. “What would we do if you left us? It’d just be me and the little one against the world.”
Linc glanced at me and reached out to squeeze my knee. “I’m not going to abandon you. You’re my fated mate. Shifters never abandon their mate. You’re everything I’ve wanted. Everything I’ve been searching for. Nothing is going to pry me away from you. Besides, Phillip was a jerk. He probably still is.”
I sighed and placed my hand over Linc’s. I leaned my head back against the seat and closed my eyes. I felt so lucky to have met someone capable of fully committing to me. I took another deep breath to shake off my residual panic. “Thanks for saying that, Linc. I know you’ve said it so many times before, but…it helps.”
“Anytime, my love. I’ll say it as many times as you need me to.” Linc flashed me another smile. “I love you, Shawn. We’re meant to be together, and I am going to make sure we get to stay together, whatever happens.”
When we got back to Linc’s house, I decided to take a nap. I got out some comfortable pajamas from the drawer Linc had cleared out for me and took off my shirt. Linc walked into the room but stopped just a few steps from the doorway.
“Oh my god, Shawn!”
“What?” I turned around to see if he was gasping at something on the wall behind me. I didn’t see anything unusual. “What is it?”
“Your baby bump is showing,” Linc said, sounding giddy.
“Really?” I looked down at my belly. It seemed the same as it normally did from that angle.
“Yes. Come here, look in the mirror.”
Linc grabbed my hand and pulled me over to the full-length mirror. He rotated me to the side so he could show me a profile view of my torso. “See?” He pointed just above the waist band of my pants.
I cocked my head to the side and squinted, and my heart started racing when I realized he was right. There was a slightly curved bulge happening. “Oh my god, you’re right.”
“I know! And it looks…so good on you,” Linc said, his voice suddenly growly and husky.
“You’re really into me being pregnant, huh?” I grinned.
Linc nodded and bit his lower lip. He slid his hands over my slight bump, caressing the soft skin. Then he slid them around to my ass and pulled me gently against him. His thickening cock immediately made my cock stand to attention too.
I inhaled sharply, intensely aroused by just standing here, being held by my alpha. Linc slid his hands off my ass and took a step back before grasping my fingers and pulling me with him toward the bed. We tumbled into the mattress, and I eagerly stripped out of my pants and underwear, watching as Linc did the same. I slid one of my legs between his as we lay facing each other. Linc kissed me, his lips sweetly addictive. I pressed closer to him, parting my lips to taste him better, moaning before sliding my tongue inside his mouth.
My cock was wedged against Linc’s meaty thigh, and I gave in to my urge to rub it against him. I started leaking precum making the glide easier, but I wanted more. I slid my hand down Linc’s torso to reach for his heavy cock. He followed suit, grasping my cock and starting to stroke it. I groaned as a sizzle of desire seared my nerves. I loved it when Linc touched me, when he looked after me like this. He wasn’t like other alphas who demanded to be pleasured without caring about their omega’s gratification. Linc was always so considerate and attentive. It’s what made him so special.
We started up a rhythm of soft squeezes and slick strokes, until I was so close I could barely keep my hand moving, so lost in the need to come nothing else seemed to matter. Linc must have known because he gripped both our cocks in his big hand and increased speed. I cried out just as Linc grunted, and then I felt a warm splash against my stomach, realizing a split second before pleasure blasted through me that Linc had come all over me. Gasping, I shuddered and shivered through my release, whimpering as Linc continued to stroke me until he’d squeezed every last drop of cum out of my cock.
Afterward, when my senses returned, Linc reached for a tissue to wipe us off, and then I snuggled into his arms for a deep, blissful nap.
13
Linc
Early June, and the cottonwoods were flowering, spring birds were chirping, and Shawn's tiny baby bump had turned into a full-on basketball belly. I glanced up from the kitchen bench to see his silhouette lit by lamplight as he leaned over Cole's desk in the living room, helping him with his homework.
“Twenty-two times three…” Cole was mumbling, then quickly jotting down the answer.
“Great job,” Shawn said, encouraging him. “What about this one? Looks tricky.”
“No way, it’s easy!” Cole insisted.
Shawn laughed, and rubbed the top of Cole’s head. Cole grinned, and I realized how much they’d gotten close over the last few months. Cole truly adored Shawn, and I knew Shawn loved Cole. Shawn was good with kids, and there was no doubt he’d be a good father.
Once I had the roast vegetables in the oven, I looked up again and saw Cole was working on his own with LuLu asleep at his feet. Shawn was on the other side of the room, sitting on the couch with a stack of medical books beside him and one open in his lap. I wiped my hands on a dish towel as I hurried over to stand behind him. I put a hand on his shoulder as I leaned over and kissed his cheek before gazing down at the research he was doing.
“That looks, uh… Gross?”
A full-page illustration showed a comparison of the internal organs in wolves and humans in way too much detail for me to stomach.
“Just trying to learn everything I can about the bite. The medical books I got from Jaxon were helpful to a degree, but they didn’t actually mention the claiming ceremony. Greer lent me this one…” He picked up a book from the pile. “But it’s written in a way that the existence of shifters, and the bite to convert humans into shifters is nothing more than folklore,” he mumbled.
“That’s probably because if a human got hold of that book or others like it, then it would seem more like fiction than reality. We’ve had to keep it that way.”
“Yeah, but it doesn’t help me now.”
I squeezed his shoulder then came around to sit beside him. I couldn't help but gaze at his beautiful belly. I loved the way it pushed out his shirt. He'd put on a little baby weight, and it seriously turned me on by how his hips had filled out.
“I'm sorry we've had to wait for the ceremony,” I said softly, dragging my eyes up to look at his face.
Shawn sighed and looked at me with pleading eyes. “We haven't spoken about it for a while… Can we? Dr. Reed said it was safe…”
“We don’t know for certain though. You’ve done research, and there isn’t anything to indicate it’s safe for you.” My heart started racing at the thought of hurting my mate and unborn baby with my bite.
“There’s nothing to say it’s not safe either,” Shawn insisted.
“Are you talking about the baby?” Cole asked as he spun
around in his chair.
Shawn glanced at me to say this discussion wasn’t over, and then he turned to face Cole. “Yeah, buddy we are,” Shawn replied, and patted the seat beside him. “You know what? We're going to see if it's a boy or a girl tomorrow.”
Cole hurried over and LuLu lifted her head for a moment before resting it back down with a sigh. She'd calmed down now that Shawn was really showing. I wondered if she'd just been anxious about the change in his body and had now gotten used to it.
“I think you should call it Errol,” Cole said as he sat on the other side of Shawn.
“Errol?” I asked.
“Errrrol!” Cole said, rolling his r's for as long as he could manage.
“We'll take it under advisement,” I said.
“What if the baby is a girl?” Shawn asked.
“It won't be a girl.” Cole scrunched up his nose.
“Uh, it might be,” I warned him. “What would be so bad about that? Liam has a little sister, and that's cool, right?”
“Yeah, so we have one little sister in our pack, and now we need a little brother,” he explained to me in a tone that suggested he thought I was an idiot.
Shawn laughed and nodded. “Duh, Dad.”
“Yeah, duh, Dad.”
“That's enough out of you two,” I growled. “Seriously, what girl names do we have?”
“Nicole!” Cole exclaimed and I raised my eyebrows.
“Sure, maybe,” I said, then gave Shawn a look that said “awkward”.
“Any other ideas, buddy?” he asked Cole.
“Hm, I don't know any other girl names,” he said with a shrug.
Over dinner, we ran through the names of all the women in his life to remind him that he knew plenty of girl names, and Cole scrunched up his nose at every one, though he conceded that “Sam” would be nice for either a girl or a boy. Shawn said that “Kyle” or “Kylie” were his favorites. I agreed with both of them.
Once dinner was done and Cole was asleep in bed with LuLu, Shawn and I hurried to the bedroom and closed the door. My breath hitched as I watched him shake off his shirt in the moonlight that spilled in through the window. I sat on the edge of the bed and watched attentively as he took off his pants while he looked at me with a sweet grin. My gaze flicked from his face down to his bulging belly, the tightness of his briefs over his crotch, and then back up to his eyes. He gave me a cheeky grin and stepped closer.
“Your turn,” he said, tugging at the hem of my sweater. I obediently lifted my arms, and he got me topless before running his cool hands over my shoulders, his long fingers pressing into the muscles there and sending a warm wave of relaxation through my body. I let out an appreciative sigh, closing my eyes for a moment before pulling him closer to me.
Shawn straddled my lap with a knee either side of my hips, and I reached down to hold his ass with both of my hands. He moaned and pressed his lips against mine in a soft, sweet kiss. I squeezed his ass and smiled into his kiss as he let out a short moan. He pushed me down onto the bed, and Shawn grazed his hand over my chest hair, tickling his fingers through it as he smiled at me. I ran a hand over his belly. A deep breath pushed into my lungs as a rush of excitement shivered down my spine. Shawn let out a groan and snuggled closer to me.
“I love you so much,” he whispered, planting soft kisses on my neck. I moaned from the tingle his lips evoked and wrapped my arms around him, bringing him closer to me.
“I love you, Shawn.” I sighed happily. “I've never felt this way before about anybody.”
He kissed me again, but then pulled away and sighed. “I want you to claim me so badly,” he groaned.
“I know.” I kissed the spot where I would place the bite. “I will.”
“Promise?” he asked.
“Yes, my love,” I said, tracing my finger over his neck. “I promise.” My heart ached with not being able to give Shawn what he wanted right now. I wanted to make Shawn happy, but I still felt like I couldn't risk it. I’d waited so long for a mate, for Shawn. I just couldn’t take the chance something would go wrong. As soon as he gave birth, however, I intended to claim him and make him mine forever.
I reached down and touched Shawn's belly again. He moved so he was lying on his back, and we both gazed at his protruding bump. I spread my fingers wide so I could hold his belly with as much of my hand as I could.
“Hey little babe,” I said, as I moved my hand in circles. “We can't wait to meet you.”
“And we just cannot wait to find out if you're a boy or a girl,” Shawn added.
“Oh yeah.” I smiled up at Shawn then turned back to talk to his tummy. “We're going to see a picture of you tomorrow. Wave for us, alright?”
I gasped and Shawn almost jumped out of his skin.
“What is it?”
“It moved. Look!” I took my hand away and revealed a lump protruding out of his belly, wriggling around and then disappearing. Shawn gasped and we stared at his belly, now still. In slow motion, we looked up and stared at each other, wide-eyed, mouths open, and completely amazed.
“Oh my god,” he said, and then burst out laughing. “I thought that feeling in my tummy was just gas!”
The stenographer's office was stark white, smelled like alcohol swabs, and was downright scary. Luckily, it was located on the far side of the hospital and Shawn got us in via a staff door so we didn't have to spend too much time in the stink of the main building. My stomach was still churning a little from the sterile smell of the office, but Cole didn't seem to care—he was happily sitting by a desk, swinging his legs and staring at the anatomical posters on the wall. Shawn certainly didn't have the heightened senses to care about the smell, and I almost said he should be happy he wasn't a shifter yet… But I wisely bit my tongue. I sat beside him and held his hand as he lay on the table waiting for the stenographer.
“Alright then, Mr. Drocella,” the young stenographer said as she came in the room, and then she quickly looked up from the chart she was staring at. “Oh! Shawn! Hi!”
“Hi there, Alice.” Shawn smiled warmly. “This is Linc, and his son Cole.”
“Pleasure to meet you.” Alice shook my hand. “Shawn is everyone's favorite nurse to deal with on the rounds, so I'm honored to have him in my office today.”
Shawn laughed and swatted at her to make her stop, but I could tell he was actually flattered.
“And you, Cole, do you like lollipops?” she asked.
“Hm, sometimes.” he said, swinging his legs.
“Well, if you want to look in that drawer there, you can take as many as you want.”
“Actually, he can have one,” I said, glaring at Cole to dare him to argue.
Cole jumped down to rifle through the drawer Alice had pointed out, triumphantly pulling out what must have been the largest in there. I shook my head, but I wasn’t about to take it off him. Hopefully he’d have enough sense not to try and eat it all at the same time.
“Okay, let's spread this goop,” Alice said as she held up a bottle of lubricant and motioned for Shawn to lift up his top.
“Oh my gosh, it's so cold,” he hissed as she smeared it on. “I thought patients were just too sensitive and whiny when they complained about this, but it really is cold. Every time it happens, I’m still shocked!”
Alice chuckled, pulled up a stool next to the stenography machine, and then grabbed the wand. “I'm going to push kind of hard so that we can get a good look, but let me know if you want me to stop or pull back, okay?”
Shawn nodded, and I grabbed his hand. He looked at me and gave me an excited grin. My heart was racing and my leg started bouncing. Alice moved the wand around Shawn’s belly for ages, and I kept my eyes on his face to make sure he was comfortable and not putting himself in any serious discomfort. He was staring at the screen for most of the time, but kept glancing back at me to give me excited smiles.
“Okay, here's a good angle,” Alice said, pressing a button that locked the screen. “Oh!” She quickly covere
d the screen with a hand. “Do you want to know the sex?”
“Yes!” Shawn said as I nodded.
“Cole, want to see?” I gestured for him to come closer.
“Is it a brother or a sister?” he asked with a lollipop stick hanging out of his mouth.
“It is…” Alice said, peeling her hand away. “A brother!”
“Yes!” Cole exclaimed before pumping the air with his fist and dancing around the room. I leaned down and kissed Shawn’s cheek as he stared at the monitor.
“He's beautiful,” he sighed. I looked up and suddenly felt my wolf's protective instincts more intensely than ever before. The silhouette of our son was wriggling around on the screen, and I could see his tiny nose was the same angle as Shawn's.
“He looks so much like you,” I said.
“His arms look so strong, like yours,” he said, beaming up at me.
“He looks very strong… Very large for this far along. But hey, he seems healthy to me,” Alice said, pressing buttons to take snapshots of the ultrasound. “I'll send these images to your obstetrician. Who is…” She glanced at her chart and frowned.
“Dr. Maddie Reed,” I interjected.
“Reed? Alright,” she said, making a note on her chart. “I'll get these to her this afternoon, and I'm sure she'll call you about scheduling an appointment if there are any results she wants to discuss.”
“Thanks, Alice,” Shawn said, reaching out and taking her hand.
“You're so welcome. And congratulations, both of you. Can't wait to meet this little guy!”
“Neither can we.” I smiled at Shawn again, unable to hide how thrilled I was we were having a healthy baby.
For the rest of the day, I couldn't keep my hands off Shawn's belly. Driving home, I reached over and rested one hand against his bulge. At home, I kept coming up behind him and rubbing his tummy with my fingertips. By the time we went to bed that night, I was practically drooling as Shawn took off his shirt. I grabbed him before he could put on his pajamas, and we fell into bed, kissing. This time, the sweetness of last night's cuddle was replaced with pure lust. Shawn hungrily slid his tongue into my mouth. I growled and greedily grabbed at anything I could reach—his shoulders, his ass, his belly and finally his cock. I moaned as I found him already hard.
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