by Emma Knox
When I walked in, Steven’s eyes were still settled on the window. He watched as the trees and the garden billowed under a gentle breeze. It must’ve been comforting for him .
“Are you okay? Ethan told me you fainted .”
I wanted to scold him for trying to sneak out, but now wasn’t the time for that .
My inner wolf remained calm. After all, what Tom said made sense .
“I’m fine,” Steven said, keeping his gaze outside. “And tell Ethan I said thank you for getting me help .”
“Of course .”
I sat down next to him and rubbed his thigh. Steven sucked in a sharp breath and sighed .
“I understand this is a lot for you .”
“It is. And I still have my job conference to go to. I can’t keep missing out on things like this .”
“I know… I’ll make sure I give you enough room to do what you like, dear Steven,” I said, hanging my head .
Steven’s soft hand landed on the top of mine. I shot my gaze back up to his and noticed the tenderness in his eyes .
“The doctors…they said I’m pregnant …”
I stood, proud and happy to hear that he was officially carrying my child. The amount of pride and happiness that swelled inside me was insane. Things were lining up perfectly .
“You’re pregnant!” I grabbed his hand up into mine. “I knew this was going to happen. We’re fated after all. Anything you want or need. Name it .”
Steven smirked. “You bet I will.” He rubbed his stomach and looked down at it. “I wonder if it’ll be a kitten or a pup .”
“Doesn’t matter as long as they’re born healthy and happy .”
Steven raised an eyebrow. “You’re not nervous about this? You’re not concerned whether this will be an Alpha or not ?”
“Not at all. I only want you and our child’s happiness .”
“They want to speak with you soon, Drake,” Steven said, holding my hand. This was beginning to sink in with him now. The softness in his eyes, the warmth in his voice .
“I know, they sound like good parents,” I said, dabbing a kiss on his forehead and inhaling his scent .
“Did my Alpha father threaten you yet?” Steven asked with a small chuckle behind his words .
“Yeah, but it’s understandable. I respect that .”
“And you don’t want to back out ?”
“You keep asking me that, and I’m going to give you the same answer as I’ve given you before, no .”
I planted another kiss on his pink lips and ran my fingers through his hair. “The Gryther pack will love to have them around .”
Steven held my gaze for a few moments before swinging his feet over the bed .
“What’re you doing?” I asked. “You fainted, you shouldn’t be on your feet .”
Steven waved it off. “Don’t worry, I’m resilient, plus I need to call my boss. I already missed that one meeting they’ve had so far,” Steven said, pushing himself off the bed .
As soon as his feet had hit the ground, I swept him up into my arms. If this was something he had to do, then I was going to help him do it .
“Hey, I can walk, you know.” Steven pouted and folded his arms .
“I do. But as your mate, I’m supposed to make things easier for you as much as I possibly can, dear mate .”
Steven grinned and rolled his eyes. “I need to build endurance .”
“That you will, but not right now. Tell me where I need to take you .”
Chapter 9
Steven
I was supposed to be here for only five days which ended up being seven days .
Now not only was I going to end this week being a wealthy powerful Alpha’s mate, but I was also going to end it with his seed growing inside me .
I looked in the mirror as I slipped on my maroon blazer. The rest of my outfit was gray since that was what we had to wear for our company anyways. Smoothing a hand over my stomach, a small drift of nausea tickled at me. Eventually it subsided, but the reality of being pregnant…scared the holy shit out of me .
Yes, I wanted kids, but god, there were things I was still afraid of .
Would I be a good dad? Would they be born healthy ?
I didn’t want to ever see a day where my kids were sick and in pain. So many worries and hormones fluctuated around me that it was pitiful. Even though it had been a few days, I already started showing a small baby bump. Drake being Drake made sure that everything was in order, all the way down to the food .
His foot massages at night were amazing as well. All these worries circulated around me while everything was going right. What the hell was wrong with me ?
“If this is the beginning of being pregnant, then I’m shit out of luck…” I said aloud to myself .
Drake walked into the room with his tan turtle neck on. You could see his cuts from the dragon’s indent through his shirt .
“You look perfect,” he said, running his eyes up and down my body. I did the same .
“You are too,” I purred. Drake was built like a God; powerful and mighty. His presence alone was a lot to take in .
I tugged at my jacket one more time before leaving. I had already missed two meetings, and this wasn’t going to become the third .
I turned around and started for the door when Drake stopped me and rubbed his hand down my scent glands .
“You know those are really sensitive during pregnancy, right? Can’t really afford to do another knot right now,” I said, taking his hand off my neck .
“Before you leave, there is something important I must give you,” Drake said, his scent dancing around me. The more I inhaled it, the dizzier I got. Now I was going to have to tear myself away from his addictive scent .
“What is that?” I asked, trying to keep my composure .
“This,” he said, leaning into my neck, his teeth punctured my gland and an odd feeling of pain, pleasure, and comfort sunk down into my flesh .
My body’s response was distraught and confused, one moment I wanted to whine from the pain, then another moment I wanted to moan from the pleasure and satisfaction of him biting me .
Knocking at the door disturbed us before we could get too carried away, and Drake eyed the door with irritation .
“Ethan…” he said to me in a low voice. He was good at detecting people with only a scent to go on. “This will only take a second, Steven, please, sit down and relax. When I’m done, I’ll take you to your conference .”
“Thanks.”
My breathing was still ragged from that bite. I ran a hand over my aching bite mark and went to the mirror to see what he did. Yep, he made a nice bruise. This was his way of claiming me, telling other Alphas to back off because I belonged to him .
The resistance in me bit back and said I belonged to no one but myself…yet it still felt safe knowing that someone considered me precious to them .
If I belonged to Drake, then he belonged to me. I wondered if he’d allow that sort of thinking. He was an Alpha, but not the mean dirty types I’ve encountered .
My phone buzzed in my pocket. Based on the ring tone, it was my boss. Answering it, I walked over by the window to watch the garden below wave in the breeze .
“Good Afternoon, Boss,” I said into the phone, waiting for Drake to return .
“Steven, I was wondering if you didn’t need a ride to the conference today,” he said in his relaxed voice .
“No, I’m good. Thank you, Boss. I’ll be there, I’m about to head out in a few minutes .”
“Good. Only making sure. See you there .”
I hung up and stared at my phone. Hmm, was it my imagination or… No, he’d never do that, he knew I had a mate .
I sat down in the chair by the window and looked at the garden. There were many fruits and vegetables down there, I could smell the fresh scent of blueberries and strawberries all the way from here .
I glanced at the door a couple of times, holding my breath. When was Drake coming b
ack? Time was ticking .
Ten minutes later and I got fed up. He was an Alpha of a huge pack and a damn town. He needed a break here and there .
“Looks like I’m gonna take up my boss’s offer after all .”
I dialed my boss back and told him where to pick me up. He said he’d be here in a couple of minutes and I made my way downstairs toward the parking lot on the Omega Lodge side .
“Hey, where are you headed all by yourself?” Tom asked with his arms folded .
Damn, everyone was so damn nosey when it came to me. Didn’t I get privacy as the Head Alpha’s mate too ?
“Nowhere, just popping into the Omega Lodge’s lounge to pick up coffee and a few snacks .”
Tom cocked his head to the side. “You know you could’ve had someone bring that to you .”
I rolled my eyes and bit back my snarkiness. “I’m not helpless.” I threw my head back and continued on my way. What was I to this pack, a delicate flower ?
Glancing around me, I slipped into the parking lot and saw my boss’s truck awaiting me .
*
T he conference room was large, filled with refreshments and drinks. People gathered their snacks and settled down in their seats. My boss made sure that no one was in my way and ushered me to my seat as well .
He landed a gentle hand on my back as I sat down, striking a nervous chord in my nerves. This…wasn’t right. Why was he acting like this ?
Mr. Chord was usually withdrawn and didn’t give physical contact with people at all .
Now everything about him seemed different. And it was off putting .
“Good afternoon everyone,” my boss greeted, scanning over everyone sitting at the table. His eyes rested on mine for about three seconds longer than it should’ve. It was like I could feel his attention zoom in to the mark on my neck. I threw my hand up and rubbed it, looking down at the table and papers in front of me .
My stomach tied into knots and jumped around. Being pregnant was going to be one hell of a journey .
“Our meetings thus far have been enjoyable and I appreciate everyone’s hard work.” Mr. Chord took a sip of water and cleared his throat. “Our conference will be ending early by two days, making this our last day. Also, there’s a special announcement I’d like to make.” He turned to me and nodded his head. “The new Senior Supervisor of our Coding department is Steven Purr .”
Everyone broke into small cheers and began clapping. An Omega in such a high position ?
“Wow, I’m honored,” I said, still in shock. Was that why Mr. Chord was being overly nice to me? Still, it wasn’t adding up .
A stronger kick to the stomach had me throwing my hands over my mouth and darting off into the restroom. In the stall farthest away from the door, I unloaded last night’s dinner. Okay, the baby clearly didn’t like that .
“Ugh, how did my dad do this?” I said, flushing the toilet. I straggled over to the mirror and fixed my hair and outfit. There was a small amount of pressure in my abdominal area, the baby was beginning to grow. “Give your daddy a small break and make sure you don’t make me vomit too much, okay ?”
The baby must’ve been listening, because I began to crave the craziest combo of food; pizza with extra cheese, pickles, and cupcakes on top. Lord have mercy that sounded disgusting and good .
Staggering back to our conference room, Mr. Chord intercepted me in the hallway .
“Are you okay?” he asked, scanning me down .
“Yeah,” I swallowed, “I’m good. Just pregnant and all .”
“I know …”
I leaned on the wall and narrowed my eyes. “You do ?”
Mr. Chord was a tall man with salt and pepper hair that was always slicked back, he looked good in his suit, but Drake would’ve killed it ten times harder .
“Yes, I can smell your scent. It’s different. Plus, that mark …”
“Oh, yeah. Drake’s my mate now. He’s a good guy .”
Mr. Chord shot me a look, he didn’t like hearing that .
“And I can be a thousand times better and take care of your child. Let me take you away .”
My jaw dropped. “Wait, what ?”
“You should be mine,” Mr. Chord asserted, taking a step forward. My ass took a step back. This made me remember when Drake told me he was my mate .
It… clicked. And this? It scared me. This wasn’t right. He wasn’t my mate .
“I can’t, Mr. Chord… I really love Drake—” Shit, did I just say that? My face heated up from the sudden declaration of love, “A-and I won’t do that to him. I’m his and he’s mine. I’m not even sorry .”
But… I did have feelings for Drake. Strong ones too even though I thought he was too much of a goofy overprotective man-wolf .
I dragged open the door and force a smile onto my face while I make my way back to my seat. What was he thinking? He saw the mark and still tried to whisk me away? It wasn’t like I had to tell Drake what happened, but if I didn’t it’d gnaw at me forever .
It was either take the position or leave my job entirely. Where the hell was life going these days? Maybe I should’ve stayed at home and waited my heat out like usual .
Now I sat here looking at the beginning of two new futures, being pregnant and having a family and mate, or going to a new state to fulfill a long time dream …
Mr. Chord came back inside too, resuming where he left off. A few of my co-workers asked me if I was okay and I just nodded and gave them a vague ‘yes ’.
“So, our new Senior Supervisor, Steven Purr. Your new position will require relocation .”
“I decline .”
People gasped .
The doors exploded open and Drake with his entire damn pack of wolves came barging into our conference room .
“Where’s my mate!” he roared. He was in his human form, but the others were in their wolf form. Mr. Chord growled, and Drake returned the action .
“Hey, everyone stop!” I yelled. “What the ever loving fuck is happening ?”
Drake marched over to me and picked me up in his arms .
“No, put me down!” I demanded, struggling .
“Stop,” Drake said, “this isn’t good for the baby, you need to de-stress .”
“How the hell do I do that when you come busting into the meeting with your whole flock of fucking wolves ?”
Drake frowned. “I was worried. Tom said you were getting something to eat. Not leaving. I thought something had happened .”
He began to march me right out of the meeting. Talk about epic embarrassment .
The best thing he could do was take me out of this meeting .
Great. Ugh .
When we got outside, he sat me down and I turned away from him .
“You’re an idiot sometimes, you know,” I said, staring at the sky. Even though that was embarrassing, it saved me from a very uncomfortable situation …
“And you’re too brash. I still love you all the same .”
“You really mean that? Love is a heavy word .”
“Not heavy enough,” he said, grabbing me by the waist and pulling me against his chest. Fuck, I loved when he did that .
Maybe I was finally warming up to this mate stuff again after all .
Drake bent down to shower me in kisses, and I’d be a liar if I didn’t say that turned me on .
*
A fter a few more days of raunchy sex, I was more relaxed, relaxed the way a cat should’ve been. I even managed to purr under Drake’s body when we slept .
“Hey, wake up, wolf,” I teased, nudging him awake .
“Steven? Are you okay?” he shot up awake, embracing my shoulders .
“I’m fine, stop worrying so much,” I said, rubbing his stubbled chin. I made him keep it like that too, it was sexy. “I’m gonna go out and chew on the garden. I’m hungry for something normal for a change. We’ll see how long that lasts .”
I pulled myself out of the bed and Drake remained planted where he was .
<
br /> “You’re not gonna tail me?” I asked, surprised .
Drake leaned back into the bed and smiled. “No. I trust that you’ll be fine. Plus, none of my pack members will allow harm to come near you .”
Huh, was he really doing this? Listening to what I wanted ?
I got dressed and slipped out the door. I took a final gaze at him, nope, he meant it, he wasn’t going to follow me .
Drake returned to his slumber, and I went into the garden. The breeze out here was phenomenal, all my brothers and sisters were going to be jealous when they see this .
I settled over by a strawberry patch when my inner cat alerted me to someone approaching me .
Their scent…it wasn’t familiar .
“Hello?” It was an Omega with close shaven hair like a peach fuzz .
“You’re going to cause a war. He wasn’t supposed to choose you,” he said in an icy voice that was just beyond a whisper. The hairs on my neck stood in alarm. Chewing on a strawberry, I stood on my feet and glared at him .
“What do you mean by that ?”
“He was due to mate with another Omega. Now that family will destroy Wrendall Town .”
Chapter 10
Drake
A ll the cooks were busy at work, getting the dinner feast ready. Steven had no idea what was going to happen tonight. Everything was planned to a tee. I had his favorite foods picked out, and all the crazy foods he loved to indulge in should his pregnancy cravings kick in .
The kitchen had many scents roaming through it, from the goat to the ox-tails and steamed vegetables. Everything in this kitchen came from our own resources .
I helped the chefs carry around pots and pans and even partook in the cooking myself until Ethan showed up .
“Alpha Gryther, you know you shouldn’t be in here right now!” he scolded, shooing me toward the doors .
“Hey, this is my mate. And I’m the Alpha here, so what’re you doing shooing me off anywhere?” I chuckled .
“Well, first of all you need to go with Tom to pick out your clothes for tonight, and meet Steven’s family. Plus,” Ethan wrung his hands together and sighed, “I wanted to ask you something .”
We headed right outside of the kitchen. Ethan was right, my big body was going to get in the way of the agile Betas dancing around the kitchen with their superior cooking skills. I was a God in the kitchen, but I was also a slow mover in kitchens too, while the Betas zipped around with their laser sharp precision to detail .
