by Amy Bellows
When I finish, Todd takes my plate and stacks it on top of his, then places them both on the nightstand.
“Come here,” he says, outstretching his arms. I scoot over to snuggle into his arms, still clutching our egg bundle. He gives me a fierce hug. “It won’t be long now. You have to take care of yourself, Lewis. It looks like you haven’t showered. Did you eat today?”
“I don’t remember,” I admit.
“That’s officially against the rules now. You have to eat three meals and shower every day.”
“But I—”
One of the eggs wiggles. It’s almost a bounce. I giggle with delight, and pull it out of the bundle. My father said it’s important to let the eggs breathe once they start moving, so I set it on the bed gently.
The second egg jerks. I lift it out of the blankets as well, and set it next to its twin.
Todd and I grin at each other. After all the waiting and worrying, this moment feels surreal.
The eggs take their time. They twitch and shift from side to side for a full thirty minutes. Then the sound I’ve been waiting days for finally comes. The subtle, quiet peck of their little beaks. I giggle again, and Todd squeezes me tighter in his arms.
My father made it clear that we aren’t allowed to help them. He said it was the first lesson of parenthood—allowing children to find their own strength. Todd and I simply wait and watch, taking photos with our phones every minute or so, even though the eggs basically look the same.
It’s been nearly two hours when a little hole appears on the side of the first egg. The tip of a black beak pokes out. It’s the cutest thing I’ve ever seen. Todd’s snapping photos like a maniac, his face beaming.
“That’s it, little one. You can do it.”
We agreed we’d name the first child Jordan. And here they are. Finally breaking out of their shell. Penguin shifters are raised genderless until they hit puberty and then given their adult name. Our baby will be Jordan for the next thirteen years of their life.
Not to be outdone by their sibling, the second chick pecks through the side of their shell a moment later. This one is Jade. Todd’s snapping photos of Jade’s egg now, laughing with joy as the crack gets bigger and bigger. I turn my phone and take a picture of Todd. I always want to remember him in this moment—so thrilled to see our little ones come into the world. Before long the center of the eggs crack, and our little babies stretch out their wet, furry bodies--squeaking and tittering. Their black feathers are wet, and their necks are so long. They wriggle around, searching for warmth. The time has come when we can finally help them. Todd eases the shell off of the bottom half of Jordan’s body. Jordan closes their eyes, exhausted.
I shift into my penguin form faster than I ever have in my life, and waddle to my baby, hiding them under the folds of my underbelly to keep them warm. Todd helps Jade with the last bit of their shell and then he shifts. Jade squeaks until Todd picks them up with his enormous paw and brings them to his furry chest. He growls to Jade affectionately, a smile wide on his bear face.
Jade disappears. I panic, until I realize that they aren’t gone at all. They’ve simply turned white and are now growing in Todd’s arms. Within seconds, a confused polar bear cub is clinging to Todd. A deep rumble comes from Todd, which I’m assuming is a laugh.
Todd takes me in his other paw, exposing Jordan. As he brings them in for a hug, they start shifting too. I don’t know what this means. Can our children shift into both? Did they simply grow in my womb as penguins because I’m a penguin shifter?
In the end it doesn’t really matter. As we snuggle together in our animal forms, I close my eyes and cherish this moment. Our children are here. Penguin, bear, human. No matter what they are, we’re family. And all animals cuddle in the same way.
Our little cubs burrow into Todd’s fur. I do the same. He’s big enough to love us all at the same time.
He’s my alpha. My best friend.
My mountain.
And the view from his peak is glorious.
Coming in 2020
A Second Chance for Daniel
Ansel
Todd answers the door with a bundle of blankets in his arms. Buried inside it are two white eggs. I stare at them, speechless. They’re lovely—like a living work of art. I reach out and touch one. Todd jerks instinctively.
I withdraw my hand. “Sorry.”
“No, it’s okay. I just feel protective,” Todd says.
Of course he does. If those eggs were mine, I’d feel protective too. They’re brand new. Just laid yesterday.
Poor Lewis. Those eggs are thicker than a can of coke and just as long.
I step inside Todd’s apartment, and that’s when I see him: a man who looks exactly like Lewis. He has the same wiry build, big brown eyes, and sharp jaw. But this man has salt and pepper hair and smile lines. There’s stubble on his cheeks. And he’s wearing a watch. Not a fashionable watch or an Apple watch either. This one is plastic. It’s not a fashion statement, it’s practical.
That’s sexy. There’s nothing hotter than a guy who’s on time.
Of course, it doesn’t really matter. This must be Lewis’s father—the man who treated Todd like shit for years because he was a polar bear shifter. But that doesn’t mean I can’t look at him. Or lust after him. Or casually offer him a blowjob when this egg thing is over.
I’m very, very pretty. As long as I don’t ask more more than sex, men never turn me down. Alpha or omega.. Fresh out of high school or middle-aged. Top, bottom, or vers. It doesn’t matter. They all want a piece of my ass.
I sit down next to him on the couch, not bothering to hide my interest in him. But the interest is clearly one-sided. He only has eyes for the eggs. Which is sweet, honestly.
Yep. I definitely want to suck his cock. Which means I need to get his attention.
“So, uh, you own a grocery store right?”
He turns his brilliant smile on me. “Yes. Aren’t the eggs lovely? They look hearty to me. Don’t you think so? They’re going to be strong chicks, I can already tell.”
The eggs truly are beautiful. But not as beautiful as him. I drag my eyes over him, hoping he’ll get the hint. He doesn’t.
Todd clears his throat and glares at me.
Did he tell Lewis’s father about me? Is that why he’s ignoring me?
I’m the son of the two most famous fashion designers in Anchorage, who have spent the last twenty years competing against each other in the most vitriolic ways. Everyone in our community has picked a side. Either they agree with my alpha mother who travels back and forth between Anchorage and New York City to sell her mass produced clothes that are currently available in almost every shopping mall in the US. Or my omega mother, who does all of her design work and production in Anchorage, using only locally made fabrics. In an artisan-centric culture, they both represent a direction our community could move in, and the divide between local vs. global has become more divisive every year.
I design clothes for my alpha mother, and run my omega mother’s shop. I’m Switzerland in a city that doesn’t believe in a middle ground. I throw parties where everyone is invited, no matter how they produce or sell their art. And I wear a controversial mix of local and generic clothes.
Men will fuck me, but they don’t ask me to spend the night. They’ll come to my parties, but they won’t ask me out on a date. They all need their political connections a lot more than they need me.
The doorbell rings, and Lewis’s father jumps up to answer it. He didn’t even tell me his name. Maybe Todd did tell him about me.
I’ve almost convinced myself that Lewis’s father is ignoring me on purpose when he sits down next to me and holds out his hand. “I apologize. I’m a little distracted today. My name is Daniel.”
I shake his hand and smile. “I’m Ansel. It’s very good to meet you.” I drag my eyes over him again, hoping he’ll get the hint this time. He blushes, and gives me a quick once-over.
“I’m, uh, forty-seven,” he
says.
He’s so adorable. I forget that penguin shifters always seek out mates close to the same age.
“And I’m into older guys,” I whisper quietly enough that Todd probably can’t hear. He’s too busy chatting with some new guests that walked in the door.
“But you’re so…um, attractive.”
I laugh. He’s too precious. This is going to be fun. I lean in close. “And I’m very good with my mouth. If you’re interested.”
His eyes widen. So this is why Todd got all worked up about Lewis. A pesky little ache fills my chest when I think about the way Lewis looks at Todd. There’s such devotion in his eyes.
I’ve often wondered what it would feel like to have a man look at me like that.
“Um, what are you doing tonight?” Daniel asks. “I could cook us some dinner. I like to cook.”
He’s going to make me dinner? I open my mouth to mention that he doesn’t need to bother, but then I shut it. The idea of an older man with a practical watch cooking me dinner is too good to pass up.
“Okay. Seven?”
Daniel nods, then rises to his feet to greet a few more guests.
Maybe I should tell Daniel the situation with my moms. Since he’s going to involved with polar bear shifter culture, he should probably be warned that it isn’t a good idea to date me. I don’t want to ruin things for Todd and Lewis. It’s already hard enough for them as it is, coming from two completely different cultures who hate each other.
But it’s just dinner, right? I just want this one thing. Just one night.
Besides, if we both keep it a secret, no one has to know.
Also by Amy Bellows
Omega from the Ocean
The Accidental Everything
The Bookmobile Baby
The Bond-Cut Omega
The Heat Professor
When Two Omegas Dance
About the Author
Thanks for reading my little book. I’m a librarian and author of MPreg romance. When I’m not writing or librarianing, I’m chasing my daughter around the house or cuddling with my wife. A Pebble for Lewis is my seventh book.
If you’d like to hang out with me on Facebook where I share sexy teasers of my works in progress and generally geek out about nerds and mermen, you can join my Facebook group: Amy’s MPreg Nerds. It’s private, so none of your Facebook friends will know you’re a member or what you post.
I have a website. You can sign up for my new release newsletter there. I have a tendency to send free smut to my subscribers.
I also have a Patreon account. My patrons get free ARC’s of all my books before they release, exclusive short stories, and access to sneak peeks and deleted scenes.
If you’re on Instagram, you can follow me there as well.
If you have any questions or comments you can email me at [email protected].
Acknowledgments
I had a lot of help with A Pebble for Lewis. Fantasia Frog designed such a lovely cover, and my editors, M.A. Hinkle and Abbie Nicole did excellent work as well. I’m grateful for both of them.
I worked with six beta readers on this book. Thank you Deb S., Nicole B., Tracey G., Amy D., Rachel T., and Kim P.. I deeply appreciate all of your time and effort.
A big thanks to Nikki T. who taught me about life in Alaska and double-checked the manuscript for any inaccuracies. You gave me so many ideas about how to make Lewis and Todd’s world come to life.
And thank you to Marissa C. who double-checked the video game elements of this book. You were wonderful to work with.
Kisses to my wife who kept on insisting the book was not too cutesy or too kinky, and to not hold back.
