Thad pushed out his lower lip and climbed onto my lap. “I’m gonna break you with all this extra weight.”
“You think so?” I lifted my ass off the mattress and pushed down my sweats until I could kick them off. “I feel like that’s some kind of challenge.”
Thad shrugged and a smile crept onto his lips. “Maybe it is.”
“These aren’t your favorite boxers or anything, right?” I pinched the elastic waistband with my thumbs and forefingers and held Thad’s gaze. As soon as he shook his head, I tugged and tore the fabric right off his body. “Then climb onto me, baby. We’re going for a ride.”
Thad didn’t hesitate as he lifted up and positioned the head of my cock at his opening. He was already dripping wet and ready for me as he slid down my shaft, taking me fully inside him as we both sighed in satisfied relief at being connected so intimately after the worst day of our lives.
20
Thad
Working twelve hour shifts while eight months pregnant was far from easy. By hour seven, I was leaning against walls whenever I could, by hour ten, I was contemplating drinking all the coffee in the building even though I knew that was the last thing baby needed, and by hour twelve, I was texting Ren to pick me up, fearful I’d fall asleep at the wheel.
Something had to give.
I found myself heading into Sally’s office instead of heading down to the parking garage to meet my man.
“Sally, got a minute?” Not that I was really asking.
She waved for me to come in as she finished typing something into her phone. “Sorry about that. What’s on your mind?” She bit her bottom lip, not even hiding her nervousness. She had to know this was coming. I was about to have a baby for goodness sake.
“The full shifts are too much for me.” I leaned back in the chair, rubbing my belly which earned me a little kick from my sweet one. “I was hoping to possibly go on some shorter shifts. I’m usually fine for four hours, and then it goes downhill.”
I hated that I was unable to be the best I could be at work, and it was not safe for me to come in anything but—not for the patients anyway. That made this my only option, even if it felt sucky.
“Oh yeah. Sure.” Relief filled her face. Odd.
“Why did you think I was here?” I felt compelled to know her reason. She’d been acting weird around me ever since the accident, and my spidey senses were telling me they were somehow related.
Technically, it hadn’t been an accident. Both Ren and I knew that. We also knew that Mapleville was a small town and sometimes it’s better for the town to have accidents be accidents when no good could come out of knowing the truth. Sure, we probably could’ve sued his estate, but what would be the point? We had enough to survive comfortably, and Dr. Hartman’s brother who was inheriting the money was a good man with a house full of children.
No. Some secrets were best kept secrets.
“I just thought maybe being here after watching Dr. Hartman—you know, might have been too much for you.” Sally meant well, but she was clueless when it came to the disdain people had for that man even before he went over the edge.
“No. I’ve moved past that,” I reassured with my best I’m caring but can handle it voice. “So you can let me know my new shifts? I’m off tomorrow.”
“I absolutely can. Can you possibly work four days instead of three if they’re four hour shifts?” She was tapping away at her tablet, and my guess was that if I didn’t say yes, they would need to move someone not overly suited for the NICU to fill the gap. They had a new person starting, a transfer from one of the big children’s hospitals and someone Joaquim had worked with in the past, in another couple weeks, but until then, scheduling would be an issue.
“As long as it isn’t a week from Thursday. I have plans.” Huge plans, birthday plans.
“That will work.” She nodded as her phone rang. There was no part of me that would ever want her job. Give me patients to care for over administrative garbage any day of the week.
I stood up as she answered the phone and gave a little wave before heading down to see my alpha, and just as I walked through the doorway, he turned into the lot. Perfect timing.
“Hello, love.” I climbed—or more accurately wedged myself into the car, kissing his cheek before struggling with the seatbelt. “I’ve got some good and bad news.”
“Start with the bad.” He put the car in park, not even pretending to care we were in the middle of a driving lane.
“The bad news is money is going to be tight for a little bit because I told Sally I’m only doing four hour shifts until the baby comes.”
I don’t even know how he did it, but he had me in his arms in seconds, peppering my face with kisses. He’d been wanting me to stay home ever since the nearly-getting-smashed-by-a-huge-vehicle incident. I’d been the one to insist I continue working until my replacement came.
“We have plenty,” he reassured before letting me go and putting the car in gear. The person honking their horn at us had more to do with it than anything that had transpired between us. “I have news, too.”
He pulled out of the driveway and down the road in the opposite direction of our house.
“Jeremy Jonathan Jones was arrested today on forty counts of things ranging from bank fraud to embezzlement to identity theft.”
Ren seemed far too chipper about the entire thing as he grabbed a parking spot in front of The Diner. Good alpha. I needed a burger or five and a pile of cookies.
“I’m supposed to be happy they arrested a random crook?” I unbuckled, ready to pounce on Karen the second we walked in. I didn’t need a menu, I just needed food. How had I not known I was so ravenous before he parked? He officially knew me better than I knew myself.
“Here.” He swiped his phone and tapped a few times before handing it to me.
My jaw dropped.
“Holy shit, this is him.” The news article had a picture of John Juan, my first date, the one who had led to me finding Ren. It was an awful way for fate to make it happen, but in the end, I was the one winning with both an amazing alpha and a growing family. “Says here he’s looking at spending the rest of his days in prison.”
“That it does. And if you decide you want to add to his list of charges, I’ll support you a thousand percent.”
“And if I don’t?” Because the thought of dealing with all that with a baby on the way or with a newborn sounded all kinds of evil to me, especially since he was never breathing air outside of a prison again based on the article.
“Then I will support you a thousand percent.”
“You’re the best alpha ever.” I squeezed his knee.
“You don’t know the half of it.” He took the phone back and tapped on it again before handing it back to me.
On the screen was an order for all my favorite things for dine in at The Diner.
“My assessment stands.” I unlocked the door to find Ren already there, offering me a hand. “How did I get so lucky?” I asked as he wrapped his arms around me—or attempted to anyways, my preggo belly always in the way.
“That is where you’re wrong, omega mine. It is I who is the lucky one.”
21
Ren
I pulled the ring out of my pocket for the hundredth time, just making sure it was still there. Hanging from a chain. Thad was officially at the swollen extremities stage of his pregnancy, and his fingers and toes often resembled adorable little sausages. So, although I didn’t want to wait until after the baby arrived to propose, I knew trying to fit a ring on his finger tonight would be a bad idea. The matching gold chain that I hoped he wouldn’t mind wearing around his neck was the best solution I could come up with.
Assuming he said yes.
I ordered a limo to drive us around for the night because I wanted to make this birthday special and I didn’t want to worry about parking or not being able to makeout on the road. The car arrived at exactly five, just as Thad stepped out of the bathroom looking like a runway m
odel. His ginger locks were piled in a perfect mess on top of his head while the sides and back were shaved short. He was easily overheated these days and would have gone completely bald if I hadn’t mentioned liking something to hold on to while he was sucking my dick.
Since I wasn’t the one driving, and I wanted tonight to be fancier than Mapleville could offer, we went a few towns over to a new steakhouse that had been getting rave reviews. I wasn’t sure I could get the reservation for tonight, but when I mentioned it was both of our birthdays and that I planned to propose at dinner, they quickly found a table for us. I just hoped the eagerness that was displayed over the phone didn’t seep into their service and give away my surprise. At least not until I was ready for the big reveal.
Once inside the restaurant, we were taken to a beautifully arranged table in the center of the restaurant. Okay, not subtle at all...but Thad didn’t seem suspicious as he took the seat I offered and admired the menu.
“This place is amazing, Ren.” He glanced around the room as if he were looking for the president or a celebrity of some kind. I made a mental note to take him to nicer restaurants more often. “How did you get a reservation? I heard they’re booked six months out.”
I waggled my eyebrows from above my menu. “I have my ways…”
He looked at the menu again. “Well, if this is one of your ways of getting in my pants later, it’s working. I’m officially in love.”
My breath hitched as I stared into Thad’s emerald-green eyes. We’d already declared our love for each other before I moved in, but it still made my heart skip a beat and my belly flutter every time I heard it with such sincerity. “I’m glad to hear that.”
He smiled broadly as he ooh’d and aww’d over the menu. My anxiety was growing by the minute and I needed to pop the question before I could focus on anything else. Just as Thad looked up at me to tell me his final selection from the menu, I slid off my chair and dropped to a bent knee in front of him.
His eyes grew to the size of beach balls as he watched me pull the gold band from my pocket.
“Alistair Thaddeus Eardt, you have been the most important person in my life since the first moment I saw you.” I reached for his hand and held it to my chest while he covered his gaping mouth with the other. “I plan to spend the rest of my days loving you and taking care of you and our family, and I’d like to start that as your husband as soon as possible. Will you marry me?”
Tears streamed from both eyes as Thad nodded vigorously and dropped down into my arms. “Yes, alpha. Always yes.”
I buried my face in the crook of Thad’s neck and held him while I inconspicuously wiped a rogue tear from my cheek. “I love you, Thad.”
“I love—” Thad bucked out of my arms and almost hit the floor before I caught him.
“Are you okay?” I asked. He looked pale and not at all as happy as I expected him to be at this moment.
Thad shook his head and slowly looked down between his legs. “My water just broke.”
“Oh shit.” I pulled out my wallet and threw several twenties on the table. I wasn’t even sure if we’d ordered anything yet, but we’d definitely made a mess, so someone deserved a big tip. We just didn’t have time to wait around to figure out who. “Let’s get you to the hospital.”
I swooped Thad into my arms and walked out of the restaurant. Our driver was smoking a cigarette across the parking lot and saw us approaching. He immediately opened the door so I could slide Thad into the back of the car and then got the engine started so we could take off. Of course, we were a good fifteen minutes from the hospital, but the doctor had assured us on all our recent visits that first babies are usually slow to deliver, so I expected we’d have several hours if not a full day of waiting ahead of us.
I was wrong.
We’d barely gotten on the road when Thad started pulling off his pants. “It’s coming. I can feel it.”
I helped him undress but didn’t believe him until I saw with my own eyes that he was already crowning. “Drive faster!” I screamed to the driver as I helped Thad into a comfortable position.
We’d watched tons of videos about all the different birthing positions possible, so I’d hoped one would feel right to Thad when the time came. “How do you want to do this?”
He shook his head as he moved from his back to all fours. “I don’t know. What if we do it wrong?”
“That baby is coming whether we’re ready or not, so just brace yourself and push…”
“I don’t want to.” He had his forehead resting on the seat as he took fast and shallow breaths. “I want to wait for a doctor.”
I wanted that too, but I wasn’t sure it would happen. “Okay, just breathe through the contractions for now.” I took exaggerated breaths to help pace him. Within a few moments, Thad was focused on me and mimicking my breathing.
“Yeah, that’s better.” His face was red and distorted in pain so I didn’t believe him, but I figured if he was strong enough to lie about his pain, he was strong enough to handle it. “I can hold on.”
“Five more minutes,” the driver called from the front seat. “We’re almost there.”
“Hear that, Thad?” I rubbed his back and kept my breathing steady as he braced for another contraction. “We’re almost there.”
He nodded but didn’t open his eyes. “So is the baby…”
“What?” I moved back to Thad’s legs just in time to see my baby’s head emerge, quickly followed by the rest of my sweet baby boy.
“Sweep the mouth with your finger,” Thad whispered as he collapsed onto the limousine floor. “I need to hear it.”
“Him, little omega. We have a baby boy.” I did as I was told and was rewarded with a ear piercing squeal from my son.
“A boy?” Thad opened his eyes and smiled. “We have a son?”
I pulled my shirt over my head and wrapped the baby in it to ward off the chill just as the car pulled to a stop. “We’re here.”
“I want to hold him,” Thad said even as the door was opened and a nurse reached in to pull him onto a gurney.
“We’re right beside you, baby.” I climbed out of the car and let one of the doctors wrap the baby in a blanket before placing him on Thad’s chest as they were both wheeled into the hospital. “Always.”
22
Thad
(one year later)
“Are you seriously wearing your getting laid jeans?” I stood there shaking my head as my soon to be husband stepped into our living room.
“Of course. It’s my birthday. I’m hoping to get lucky.” He sauntered over, kissing my cheek before wrapping his arms around me.
“I have a secret for you.” I leaned in close, allowing my lips to graze his ear lobe. “It’s my birthday too, so getting lucky is definitely in the cards.”
My fingers hooked in the loops of his jeans, bringing him flush with me just as Henry began crying.
“Looks like little man knows it is time for his special celebration.” Ren chuckled as he went to get our sweet baby boy. Although, technically, he might have crossed over into the toddler category, already taking four or five steps at a time and very much toddling.
I gathered the diaper bag. It still blew my mind how many stupid things such a small human being needed with them at all times between the diapers, the changes of clothing, and the just in case items. By the time Ren made it back with Henry, I was ready to go.
Birthdays had always been meh for me before I met Ren. And really, the birthday when I met Ren was no picnic. But without that awful evening, I never would have found Ren or become part of this amazing family that was now mine. Ever since last year, birthdays had become magical.
I knew no birthday was going to live up the wonder that an engagement followed by the birth of the most perfect and intelligent and handsome baby ever was. But they didn’t have to. That birthday was the beginning of our life as a family of three—and also one hell of a birth story. But that single day wasn’t what made it, it had been the c
ulmination of so many events that formed the union that was us.
And there was no way I was being all sentimental and teary-eyed because of hormones. None.
“Mini-you is here with bells on.” Ren came in, Henry holding out his little arms to me.
Ren had it wrong though. Our son had my red hair, and in that way, everyone always said he was my spitting image, but if you looked past that, he had the same shaped face as Ren, especially his chin. Henry was the perfect blend of the two of us.
“Whoa, love. Have you been crying?” Ren let me grab Henry before he wiped away an errant tear I didn’t know was there.
“Just a little. All happy, I promise.”
“It’s not the baby.” Ren dropped to his knees and began to talk to my barely rounded belly. “You are not kicking your daddy’s kidneys, are you?” he asked her.
I swore the man took any chance he could to chat with my belly.
Unlike with Henry, we let the tech tell us what sex our baby was going to be, and ever since Ren heard the word girl, the spoiling began. It was true what they said about little girls having their daddies wrapped around their fingers. I’d known this, seeing it with my friends and their children, but I never expected it to happen before they even met.
It was a-freaking-dorable.
“Ren, you so very much knew it wasn’t her.” I pat him on the head and he shrugged in reply as he stood up.
“Sue me.” He reached out, tickling Henry. “Ready for your birthday slash your daddies’ wedding?”
Henry let out a burp suited for the record books.
“Do you think that’s a yes?” Ren asked, picking up the diaper bag and settling it on his shoulder. There was something so freaking sexy about an alpha being all domestic.
“I think he’s ready. How about you, Ren? Are you ready to promise forever in front of all our friends before we stuff ourselves with cake?”
Birthday with his Omega Page 9
