by L. C. Davis
Kenneth could feel the pain turn to bliss as his mate's energy wove with his own, allowing him to feel the bond that had already formed between them even more fully. they shifted in unison and when he looked down, Jesse's eyes were full of need. The omega dug his nails into his alpha's back and pulled him in for a kiss that was sweet and sensuous all at once. Kenneth let out a low moan against Jesse's lips as he settled on top of him and the omega's legs wrapped around his waist, beckoning him inside.
It was a call the alpha was more than willing to heed. Buried deep inside of Jesse, his knot swollen to bind them together and their bodies moving in greater unison than ever, Kenneth finally realized what it meant to be whole.
It wasn't until Kenneth saw the outline of his mark forming on Jesse's neck that it occurred to him what that faint sound might be. Jesse's heartbeat was slowing down, but there was a fainter rhythm that was pattering away at a faster pace.
"Jesse, are you --?"
The slow smile that spread across his mate's face was enough to answer the question in Kenneth's mind. "I was hoping to wait and make it a special announcement on our honeymoon, but I guess now's as good of a time as any."
Kenneth claimed his mate's lips and let his kiss speak the words he found his tongue far too clumsy to get right. When he finally pulled away, he gazed down at the omega, taking his face in his hands and marveling at the contrast between his own rough palms and Jesse's soft skin. "My pup?" he asked, just to be sure.
Jesse laughed and it was a sound Kenneth knew he could hear his whole life without growing tired of it. "Yes, yours. You think I let just any alpha knot me?"
"No," Kenneth said, nuzzling Jesse's neck with a warm laugh, marking his mate with his scent to let the world know exactly who he belonged to. As if the mark forming on his neck left any doubt. "Just cynical old hermits who've given up on love."
"Well, I do have a type," Jesse teased, leaning up to kiss him softly. "You'd better cut out that old man talk, though, now that you're officially a Council wolf. You're still a year younger than Barnabas and he's a bit sensitive."
"I'll keep that in mind," Kenneth said, pulling Jesse back into his arms. As the omega wriggled beneath him, he decided that maybe it wouldn't be such a bad thing to celebrate with one more round. After all, their honeymoon destination wasn't going anywhere."
Chapter 21
JESSE
"Kenneth?" Jesse called, holding the railing as he made his way down the stairs of the two-story house he and Kenneth called home in Blue River. It had the alpha's scent now and a few of his belongings from the cabin to make it feel like home for both of them. Over the past few months, Jesse had been glad for the chance to reintegrate into pack life but he knew his time with his mate as intimate newlyweds was coming to an end. Dara was just across the street and Jesse knew that she would become more of a roommate than a neighbor as soon as the baby came.
If the regular intervals of pain in his side were any indication, that was going to be sooner rather than later.
"What's wrong?" The alpha was at the bottom of the stairs before Jesse's foot could hit wooden floor. Kenneth took his hand and led him over to a chair by the fire. "What were you doing up there? I told you, you need to be taking it easy."
"I just wanted to get my old baby blanket out of the attic," Jesse said, resting his hands on his swollen belly as he took a deep, controlled breath the way Kaya had instructed him. "My dad gave it to me when I was born and I, ah-- Oh, that's sharp."
Kenneth knelt in front of Jesse, covering his hands. "What is it?"
"I think this is it," Jesse admitted, wincing as another pain overtook the last. They were coming in waves.
"It?" Kenneth's eyes widened. "It it?"
Jesse couldn't help but laugh at the alpha's mounting panic. "You'd better call mom. She'll take care of the rest."
"Don't move," Kenneth said, as if Jesse had any choice. He cleared the living room in a few strides and opened the front door, bellowing, "Dara!" across the street before rushing around the cabin for their things.
"Everything I need is in that bag," Jesse said, bracing himself for Hurricane Dara as the door flew open.
"Baby?" his mother cried, her eyes as wide as Kenneth's as she all but toppled the nearly seven-foot alpha in her dash to be at her son's side. "I called the doctor, she's on her way. Are you alright?"
"I'm fine, it's just...ow," Jesse said, cringing through another contraction.
"Tell me about it." Dara gripped his hand and turned to Kenneth. "You were supposed to call me when he started having contractions!"
"This is the first I'm hearing about it," Kenneth grumbled.
"Well, hurry up and get him in bed. There's no time for the hospital now."
Kenneth hesitated, looking to his mate for guidance. There were few times in his life when an alpha found himself willingly ordered about by his omegas and betas, but birth was the one scenario in which they had historically proven themselves ineffectual. Jesse nodded. "I think she's right."
Kenneth easily lifted his pregnant mate into his arms and a few minutes later, Jesse was settled in bed surrounded by the doctor, his mother and every beta who'd been in earshot, if the crowded room was any indication.
"Out," Dara said, pushing Kenneth from the room.
Kenneth stood his ground, a feat of great courage, to be sure. Jesse met his gaze and couldn't help but smile. As much as he adored his mate, this was the one time and place they had both agreed togetherness was not the best option. "I'll be fine," he said, wincing as another wave of pain hit. Kenneth's shoulders sagged visibly in relief. He might not have wanted to be in there anymore than Jesse wanted him to be, but he needed to know he wasn't needed first.
Dara shut the door unceremoniously and the doctor gave Jesse's hair a conciliatory stroke. "Just breathe deep like you practiced, son. It won't be long now."
When the next contraction hit, Jesse could only hope she was right.
Chapter 22
KENNETH
Kenneth sat on the living room sofa, his head buried in his hands. Hearing his mate's cries of pain and knowing there was nothing he could do to help without distracting the betas who actually could do something was the worst kind of torture the alpha had ever endured, and he had quite a bit to compare it to.
Alex came in from the kitchen to offer him a cup of coffee. Kenneth took it gratefully and found himself even more appreciative of whatever the beta had put in the coffee to make it burn on the way down. If ever there was a time for alcohol, this was it.
"He'll be fine," Alex assured him, putting a steadying hand on the alpha's shoulder. "He isn't the first omega to have a baby, you know."
The young beta wasn't a fighter, but he would make a good advisor when he matured a little and Kenneth had every intention of ensuring that the elders wouldn't hold his past sins against him. They were, in his eyes, even more to blame for the chaos that had unfolded in the Blue River Pack in the absence of an Alpha than the young ones.
Once Kenneth and Jesse had fully settled into the rhythm of parenthood, there were going to be some changes in the pack structure, but Kenneth knew he had to follow his own advice and take it one step at a time. For now, it was enough that his pack mates were learning they could trust him with their troubles. Today, they were proving that the privilege went both ways.
The door opened and Kenneth nearly dropped the mug in his hand as he stood. Rain, the pack doctor whom Kaya assured him was more than equipped to handle the birth in the likely event that the baby didn't feel like working around her schedule, appeared at the door with a reassuring smile on her face. "You can come in now, Kenneth. There's someone who'd like to meet you."
Kenneth waited for no further invitation. The room was cleared of everyone except for Dara and Rain's assistant by the time he made it. Jesse looked exhausted, but the smile on his face left no room to doubt that his heart was every bit as close to bursting as Kenneth's was. Dara already had the newborn girl swaddled in a yellow
blanket in her arms and when Kenneth saw the perfect creature's sleeping face, he couldn't hold his mother-in-law's reluctance to relinquish his daughter to his arms against her.
"She's..." Kenneth's voice caught in his throat as he held the sleeping infant. He caught a flash of eyes as warm and brown as Jesse's as she shifted in her sleep and curled against him as if she knew the man who held her now existed for the purpose of keeping her safe. Her and the beautiful omega who had given her to him. "There's not really a word."
"Perfect doesn't quite cut it, does it?" Jesse asked, tired but triumphant as he collapsed against the pillows.
"No, it doesn't," Kenneth agreed, gently rocking the girl in his arms. He looked up at his mate, grinning. "What do you think? Alpha or omega?"
Jesse laughed. "I think it's a bit too early to think anything. Whatever she is, she's a little ray of sunshine."
"Yeah," he murmured thoughtfully. "Sunshine. I like that."
"As a name?" Jesse asked dubiously.
"It's up to you, but I think it fits. I haven't felt this way in a long time," he murmured. "The way I felt when I first left Mountain Ridge and the sun came up over the hills. I thought that morning was the freest I'd ever feel, but it's nothing compared to this."
Jesse's eyes were full of unshed tears as he listened. "Sunshine it is," he said softly.
"Are you sure?"
The omega smiled and Kenneth knew. It had all been worth it. Every year of isolation, every ounce of pain, every mistake that had led him to this place, to his mate and their little family, nestled within the winding Blue River that gave the valley life and had given a weary, lonely alpha lease on a better one than he had imagined possible.
"I'm sure," Jesse said with confidence. "She might not be able to find tourist tchotchkes with her name on them, but there's already a song about her."
Kenneth laughed, leaning down to nuzzle his mate. "Thank you for this. For her, for everything."
"You're very welcome," Jesse said, yawning as he nestled into the clean linens for a well-deserved rest. "Now if you don't mind, I think I'm going to nap. Something tells me Sunshine isn't always going to be this quiet."
"Sleep as long as you need," Kenneth said, leaning down to kiss Jesse's forehead before he turned back to the sleeping infant in his arms. He knew he was obligated to make an introduction to the rest of the pack soon, but he doubted he'd be able to pry the girl from Dara's hands once he left the room and he intended to enjoy this moment for as long as it lasted. The moment that marked the beginning of a happily ever after for a wolf who had thought he had met his end so many years ago. The Spirits did love their plot twists.
The end.
Continued in The Mountain Shifters Book 4: His Runaway Omega. (January 2017)
Bonus Chapter
~ALEX and RAND~
Of all the ways Alex had imagined his reunion with Rand going, a picnic lunch in the grove wasn't among them. Rand had gone all out, even though Alex doubted the other beta had actually prepared the carefully packed lunch in the basket himself. The checkered blanket was a nice touch. For the life of him, Alex couldn't imagine why Rand was going through all that trouble just to talk to him, but he wasn't about to complain.
Alex had always been eager to take any time Rand would give to him. It was the same drive that had pushed the timid beta to overcome his fears and follow his childhood friend on countless adventures in along the Blue River that wound through their homeland, but that devotion had always been a double-edged sword. It had gifted Alex with the most precious memories in his life, but it had also motivated him to betray his own pack and the omega who had become his very best friend. For that reason, their reunion was tinged with as much pain as joy.
"Comfortable?" Rand asked, settling in next to Alex on the blanket after he had finished arranging it. Alex had always admired the way the other beta had to make sure everything was perfect, even if he was relieved that Rand's most recent scheme hadn't been so flawlessly executed.
"Yeah, but you didn't have to go through all this trouble," Alex said, pulling his hands into his sweater's sleeves. There was just enough of a breeze to chill him, and he would never understand why Kenneth and Jesse had chosen to spend their honeymoon in the alpha's old cabin, where it was even colder.
"Sure I did." Rand's expression turned grave and Alex's heart fluttered. Alex had hoped that Rand wanted to see him because some part of him had felt the sting of separation just as keenly, but suddenly he wasn't sure. What if Rand had brought him out here just to tell him he had found a nice beta in the Silver Lake Pack? There was certainly no shortage of them. "There's a lot I have to tell you and I wanted to do this the right way."
Alex swallowed hard. "Okay, Rand. I'm listening."
Rand tilted his head and confusion flickered on his face for a moment before he shook it off. "You know I've been training under Max, the Silver Lake beta, for a while now..."
Here it comes... Alex nodded and took a bite of his sandwich. It went down dry, but it gave him something to do.
"He's been teaching me a lot," Rand continued. The way he spoke was strangely formal, like he'd rehearsed it for a while. Had they really been apart long enough to lose the intimacy that had once come so easily to them both? "What it means to be a beta. A man, really."
"That's nice," Alex said, his voice sticking in his throat.
The other beta frowned. "Alex, I know I screwed up, but I wish you'd at least look at me."
When Rand took his hand, Alex felt the wall he'd been so carefully constructing come apart brick by brick. He looked up but he couldn't bring himself to meet his friend's gaze. "I don't know what you want me to say," he admitted softly. "I'm happy for you. I figured you'd find someone while you were out there."
"Find someone?" Rand's frown deepened but his hold on Alex's hand grew tighter. "Alex, no. That's not..." He sighed, running his other hand through his hair. He'd always done that when he was frustrated and it was just as hard as ever for Alex to resist the urge to reach out and put the tousled strands back into place. In his time at Silver Lake, Rand had tanned in such a way that made the freckles on the bridge of his nose even more appealing. Life was cruel like that.
"I swear," Rand muttered, "sometimes I think you're the smartest one out of all of us, and others..."
Alex looked away, pulling his hand back. "Just come out and tell me whatever it is you want to tell me, Rand. I can take it."
The other beta let out a growl of frustration and Alex found himself pinned against the blanket, staring into Rand's determined gaze. "There is no one else, Alex. Never has been, never will be, not at Silver Lake or anywhere. I'm not good with words," he muttered, lowering his gaze to Alex's lips. Alex's mouth fell open with a startled gasp just before Rand kissed him and his tongue immediately claimed the void.
Alex had dreamt of that kiss too many times to count, but he had never imagined it would actually happen. It was over almost before he could fully accept that it had. He stared up at Rand in awe. His friend wasn't the only one having trouble with words.
"I love you," Rand said, his voice husky and full of the same warmth Alex had all but forgotten. The voice that had always called to him in his dreams and sometimes woken him from them to enlist him in some late-night scheme or forbidden adventure. It seemed time hadn't lessened the effect it had on Alex's heart at all. Rand might have easily melted him by saying, "Hey, how's the weather?" but hearing those words in that voice was enough to make him come undone entirely.
"You...what?"
Rand rolled his eyes dramatically and settled at Alex's side, pulling the other beta into his arms. "I love you," he repeated, cupping Alex's cheek in his palm. It had grown rough with whatever chores the Silver Lake wolves had given him and Alex found himself admiring the extra bulk it had added to the other beta's frame as well. "There are still some things I need to learn before I come home, but I've had a lot of time to think about a lot of things. A lot of time to realize what an ass I've been."
Alex bit his lip to keep from arguing, first and foremost because Rand wouldn't believe him and second because it would be a lie.
"You know I have," Rand scoffed. "Not just to my brother and Ken, but to you. These past couple of months without you..." Alex's heart surged at the pain that entered his friend's voice as he spoke. "Let's just say it's given me perspective."
"Does this mean you're coming home?" Alex asked hopefully.
"Soon." Doubt softened the determination in Rand's gaze. "I'm not ready yet, but it's not because I don't want to. I want to be back home with you and the others more than anything, but I know if I come back now, I won't be ready."
"Ready for what?"
"To be the beta the pack needs me to be," Rand said, sweeping his hand along Alex's jaw. "Hopefully, if you'll wait for me, to be the man you need me to be. I know I have no right to ask that of you, and if you can't wait --"
"Of course I will." Alex cringed at the sound of his own desperation, but there was no playing it cool around Rand. There never had been. "I love you, too. I think maybe you already know that."
"I do," Rand admitted, his body pressing closer to Alex's as his hand ran down the other beta's side. "I just wasn't strong enough to know what to do with it back then, but I think some part of me has always known. I'm sorry it took me this long to get my shit together, Alex, but if you'll give me this chance, I promise I'll spend the rest of our lives making it worth the wait."
Alex let his kiss be his answer and smiled against Rand's lips before he finally pulled away. "I guess a little more waiting won't kill me."
"We don't have to wait for everything," Rand said, his voice turning husky again as he gently nipped at Alex's neck. The other beta moaned softly, weaving his fingers into Rand's hair. When Rand slipped his hand into Alex's waistband, the smaller beta gently pushed him away.
"Mh, not yet."
Rand looked down at him in questioning desperation. "Why not?"
