The Scent of Christmas

by Leyla Hunt

Once upstairs, we cuddled in bed and talked about our day for a minute before Nico dozed off. God, he was so beautiful. I counted my lucky stars that I’d found him.

  Nico

  My mom had done a grand job of making herself at home. So much so, that by the time we woke up on Christmas morning, she’d already roasted chestnuts and prepared a charcuterie board. She was so damn amazing, I considered keeping her with us forever. Of course, Dad might have a word or two to say about that.

  “Wow, look at the tree! So many presents!” Lupo sat on his little chair by the coffee table, obviously dying to open his presents.

  I made coffee for everyone and joined the family in the living room.

  “Merry Christmas, everyone,” I said as I sank into the couch next to Will. I turned to Lupo. “There’s no reason you can’t go ahead, you know...” I hinted to him with raised brows.

  “Really? All right!” He grabbed his crutches and headed for the tree.

  “Here. Have a seat and I’ll hand them over to you.”

  He settled in on the armchair beside the tree and I handed him present after present, watching as he unwrapped each one in turn. Will and I exchanged glances. Hopefully this would be the first of many similar Christmases as a family.

  I loved watching Lupo’s eyes light up with each new present he opened.

  “Wow! Look at this!” He held up a remote-control car.

  “Santa must have thought you’ve been a very good boy,” Will said.

  Will’s present to me was a gold chain with two heart-shaped pendants. He told me with a smile that we’d engrave our children’s names on them. “Hopefully starting with Lupo,” he whispered to me when no one was listening.

  Everyone opened their presents until there was only one left. It was my present for Will, and I’d deliberately left it for last.

  “Here, sweetheart,” I murmured as I handed him a package wrapped in shiny gold paper with a heart sticker with his name on it.

  “Thank you.” His eyes twinkled as he unwrapped it gingerly.

  I watched for his reaction.

  “Wow! A cologne.” He looked closely at the bottle and spotted the brand name. His eyes widened. “This is one of your own creations?”

  He stood up and gave me a hug.

  “Yes, it’s called The Scent of Love.” I gave him a peck on the lips, causing Lupo to burst out in applause.

  He sprayed a bit in the air and sniffed it. “It’s amazing, honey, thank you so much!”

  Everyone took a sniff and nodded their assent.

  “Looks like you haven’t been wasting your time, after all,” commented my mom with a surprised expression. “Not bad at all, Son, not bad.”

  I puffed up with pride.

  Suddenly, the doorbell rang.

  “Are you expecting anyone?” Mom asked.

  “No,” I said, frowning, heading to the door. I wrapped my sweater tightly around myself and opened the door.

  Weird. There was no one there. I took a few steps down our walkway, but the street was deserted. I could hear the sound of an engine down the street, but there was no point in chasing it down. Odd. As I turned to go back inside, I spotted an envelope taped to my front door.

  I ripped it off and opened it as I walked inside.

  “What was it, honey?” asked Will, who had waited for me in the foyer.

  “A Christmas card, it appears.” I read the neat handwriting on the inside, but couldn’t believe my eyes. My heart raced. “Here, come take a look at this.”

  Will sidled up next to me and took the card. When he was done reading, I looked into his eyes.

  “Does it say what I think it does?”

  He nodded, and tears welled up in my eyes. But they were happy tears.

  “Lupo’s going to be our son!” Will whispered. “Merry Christmas!”

  Whoever had left the note wasn’t supposed to share the news with us yet, but I guess they couldn’t help themselves. They wanted to deliver the best Christmas present ever, I suppose, and they had succeeded! It must have been an insider at the courthouse or judge’s office.

  I jumped into Will’s arms and gave him a deep kiss.

  “Should we tell him now?” I asked quietly.

  Will nodded. “Why not?”

  We went back to the living room hand-in-hand and told the family the great news. There was much rejoicing, and I couldn’t help notice Lupo’s glossy little eyes. He was fighting back tears of happiness too.

  “Go ahead, let it out,” I told him as I took him in my arms, pressing his little head into my chest. “You’re our son now. Can you believe it? I can’t wait for the rest of our lives together!”

  “Does that mean I’m going to be a big brother now?”

  “Yes! And you’re going to be the best big brother, ever, you’ll see!”

  Just then, Will’s mom arrived as well. We’d invited her for Christmas brunch, though she still insisted on having us over for dinner. We told her the good news as well, which was followed by hugs all around.

  When I had a quiet moment alone in the kitchen, I took a deep breath. How was it possible that my life had turned out so wonderfully? I rubbed my belly. Not only was I blessed with a wonderful mate, but I now also had a sweet little son, as well as another child on the way. Who would have thought I’d be partaking in this much happiness? None of this was even on my radar when I left France. But this was my reality, and I vowed to never take anything for granted.

  Will appeared with some coffee mugs he planned to refill. I made him leave the mugs on the counter and wound my hands around his neck, giving him a sweet kiss.

  “Merry Christmas, wolf. You don’t know how happy you’ve made me.”

  “The feeling is mutual. I’m the lucky one, you know. And thanks to you, I will never stink again.”

  We laughed and I kissed him again.

  Sometimes, your destiny may be waiting for off in the distance, but if it’s meant to be, you’ll always find it. I had found mine, and I was never letting go.

  Epilogue

  Nico

  Two months later

  “Come on, Will, let’s go! These babies aren’t going to wait any longer!” I called out behind me as I raced down my driveway toward Will’s car. He was lagging behind, grabbing my hospital bag and slipping into his coat.

  Ugh. Alphas.

  I loved him, but these hormones made me irritable as fuck, and I was done trying to hide it, especially with these contractions that had me doubling over.

  I reached for his car’s door handle, and I must have slipped on some ice when I was off-balance, because the last thing I remembered was a falling sensation. And then everything went black.

  “Honey! Look, doctor, his eyes are fluttering!”

  Ugh, my head hurt. And then a contraction hit me.

  “We’re almost there. Okay, here’s the first one. Nurse, get ready. Nico, push.”

  I suddenly remembered I’d been on my way to the hospital when I’d fallen. I opened my eyes, and there were three pairs of eyes looking back at me. Will was there, thank god, as well as my OB and someone I assumed was the nurse.

  I pushed with all my might, the way the OB had taught me last time I’d seen him.

  A wail pierced the quiet of the room. Everything was a blur.

  “One more time, Nico. The other baby’s right there!”

  I pushed again and felt a sudden relief from the pain. I squeezed Will’s hand, and he squeezed back. I lifted my head to see the babies just as the nurse was bringing one toward me.

  “Do you feel okay to hold him?” she asked, her face radiant with a smile.

  I nodded, and she placed him in my arms. He was gorgeous! A full head of black hair with plump cheeks. His eyes were closed and he stopped wailing as soon as he was in my arms.

  “Here’s the other one,” I heard.

  Will held out his arms for the other baby. He gasped when he was placed in his arms.

  “Wow,” he said tenderly, staring at the baby
and glancing over at the one in my arms.

  “Do these little fellas have names yet?” asked the OB. “No worries if you haven’t decided yet.”

  Will and I glanced at each other.

  “Gabriel and Louis,” we said in unison.

  “Great,” said the OB. “Wonderful names.”

  “Thanks,” I said, gazing down at the baby in my arms. “Hi Gabriel. Nice to meet you. Here’s your brother, Louis.” Will placed Louis in the crook of my free arm.

  “This is the best day of my life,” said Will, leaning down to kiss me.

  “Me, too. Is the rest of the family here?” I asked.

  He nodded. “They’re all outside. Want me to bring them in?”

  I thought about it for a minute.

  “Get Lupo first. We should spend a few minutes as a family, alone,” I murmured.

  Will left my side and returned with Lupo. I asked the nurse to adjust the hospital bed and sat up.

  “Hi, Lupo,” I said softly. He stood at the door hesitantly. HIs crutches were long gone and he’d made a full recovery. “Come on in. Here are your brothers. Want to see them?”

  “Yes.” He was so quiet I almost couldn’t hear him.

  Will led him to my bedside and pulled up a chair. Lupo sat down and stared at the babies.

  “These are my baby brothers, huh?” He finally smiled.

  “Yes, you’re their big brother.”

  “They’re cute,” he observed. “Don’t worry, I’ll be good to them. I’ll protect them and teach them how to do everything they’re supposed to.”

  My chest tightened and my heart overflowed with joy.

  “Do you want to hold them?” I asked.

  He nodded enthusiastically, finally coming out of his shell.

  “Here you go.” I passed Louis and Gabriel, who were fast asleep, to Will. He carefully put them in Lupo’s arms and squatted down beside his chair, ready to jump in if they tried to squirm out of Lupo’s arms.

  “You look great with them,” I said to Lupo. He really did. My heart rejoiced at the sight of Lupo holding these two little babies. He was their big brother, after all.

  He looked a bit nervous.

  “Um, you can have them back, now,” he said with a straight face.

  I managed to not crack up, but Will grinned as he handed the babies back to me.

  “Sure, honey. Thanks for holding them for us.” I craned my neck to sniff their scent and sighed. Perfect. I had a perfect little family.

  “I think the rest of them can come now, too.” I told Will.

  He kissed me. “The rest of our lives begins now. Congratulations.”

  “I love you, Will.”

  As the rest of the family filed in, I took a deep breath. Love was in the air. Love of child, love of parent, love of sibling, love of my mate. The scent of love was the best scent of all.

  Also by Leyla Hunt

  The Thornhill Alphas Series

  Guarding His Omega

  Crowning His Omega

  Rescuing His Omega

  Trick Or Treat Incubus (In Special Delivery: Halloween collection)

  Vale Valley Series

  His Christmas Lullaby (A Winter Romance)

  Love Takes Flight (A Valentine Romance)

  His Summer Honey (A Summer Romance)

  Gingerbread Greetings (Book 3 in Bake Sale Bachelors series)

  The Omega’s Christmas Kiss (A Unionville Christmas story) (in Special Delivery: Christmas Collection)

  About Leyla

  Leyla calls the Great White North her home, and lives there with her adorable cat and her small family. When she's not reading or writing MPREG, she loves cooking Mediterranean food, downing coffee with her friends, and tobogganing with her kids.

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