by Aria Grace
“Now, I am not allowed to draw any conclusions about anything, but I am allowed to tell you things like how many weeks different body parts measure. Would you like that?” We both agreed we would, the doctor’s appointment directly following in case we had questions.
The swooshing sound of the heartbeat appeared before the picture on the screen did. Starting with the head, she measured everything, and each and every one of them measured the same number of weeks, and with each number she threw at us, I relaxed more and more. Our baby was fine...absolutely fine.
“The doctor said there might be too much fluid,” Marve’s voice quivered. Shit. I missed that part. I should’ve taken off work and gone with him. I vowed right then and there not to miss another appointment ever.
“That’s because the doctor isn’t seeing what I am,” was all she said, and I instinctively knew better than to ask for clarity. I had a feeling she wasn’t supposed to tell us that much.
“Now, while you’re here, I see you declined knowing the sex last time. If you wanted to change your mind, I can hook you up really quickly or I can print these out for doc and be on my way.”
I looked to Marve. He had been the one to make the initial decision when I wasn’t in the picture, and we never discussed his reasons. I was giving him the lead on this.
“Do you want to?” he asked.
“It’s all you.” Please let him say yes.
“We want to.”
I nodded my agreement.
“Looks like we have a little boy here.” She then went on to describe all the bits she was highlighting, but I didn’t hear any of them. All I heard was we were having a boy. Marve and I were going to be parents of a perfect little baby boy.
47
Marve
“Hungry?” I asked as Percy helped me into the car after the ultrasound.
He grinned. “I could eat, but I’m guessing you’re…” he rubbed his chin. “What’s the word I’m looking for… ummm… wait, I’ve got it… starving.”
After giving him my best bitch face, I agreed. “I could make something at home,” I said half-heartedly.
We’d driven to the clinic in Percy’s car, but I wanted time to explore the emotions that had overwhelmed me during the scan. True, I’d been stifling them for months, insisting to myself that we’d be friends forever which was best for the baby. “Best for the baby,” I repeated over and over in my head.
But having Percy drop me off at home and leave wasn’t what I wanted either. We’d shared something during the ultrasound. And not just the oohing and ahhing over the miracle that was our child.
Sex had complicated things. Fuck! First-time sex got me pregnant while the second time was… what? More comforting, soft, thoughtful, and loving. Oops, there’s that damned L word again. I should ban it from my vocab.
But if we got together and broke up, not only would Percy disappear from my life, but our child might lose him too. Sleeping with him again hadn’t been part of the program, but what had? My plans had been upended and torn to shreds, so what did I know. Not much.
The sex had been amazing. I sighed and licked around my lips as a vision of Percy’s face as he entered my channel hovered in front of me. My cheeks were hot and my pulse raced. That’s not good for the baby. Think of something else.
“You okay, Marve?”
“Mmmm,” I mumbled as I inspected a paper bag blowing across the parking lot, not daring to look at him.
“Let’s get you fed. What do you fancy?”
It was on the tip of my tongue to say, “You,” but I stopped myself. Maybe it was baby hormones and not me getting hot and bothered at the thought of him naked. “Mexican. I’ll order the food now.” Stabbing at the app had me avoiding Percy’s curious expression. “Let’s go home.”
He raised a brow. Was it the word ‘home’? “My place,” I clarified.
“Okay.”
This wasn’t such a great idea. Everything was so jumbly including my tummy. Overactive hormones and hunger were not a great combination. There was a nervous hitch to my voice as I asked, “Can we listen to music?”
“Sure.”
But his fingers grazed mine as we both reached out to turn on the radio. My body ran hot and cold and where he touched me became numb. I withdrew my hand and tucked it under my arm.
Percy had his eyes on the road while I squirmed in my seat and the baby jiggled to the music. Not now, sweetheart. I rubbed my huge belly wishing the little one would quieten.
Percy cleared his throat as we stopped at a red light. “Marve, about the sex.”
I gripped the seat belt, willing him to stop. “You don’t have to say anything.”
“No, I do.” I focused on his fingers gripping the wheel. “I’ve been scared to push too hard, thinking you had enough going on without… you know…”
“Huh?” The light turned green, and the car behind us beeped. “Drive, Percy. We can discuss this over lunch.”
We’d barely made it inside the door before the delivery guy arrived. And the next fifteen minutes were spent stuffing my face while Percy picked at his food. I kinda felt bad but needed to eat as I was lightheaded and wobbly.
But as I took a sip of water, I eyed Percy over the glass. We couldn’t put this off any longer. “You wanted to say something.”
“Mmmm.” He got up, twisting a napkin in his fingers, and paced over the floor. My living room was tiny so his back-and-forth was making me dizzy. “I’m not sure how to say this.”
Oh shit. Did I have it all wrong? Was he about to suggest we should back off and just be friends? It was the most sensible solution for the baby’s sake, but that wasn’t what I wanted.
Damn, just like that I’d made a decision and now I might have to reverse it seconds later after listening to Percy. My life was a roller coaster going backwards. “Spit it out or it’ll fester inside you and…”
He pulled a face. “Ewww, that sounds nasty.”
I shrugged. “Sorry.”
“Perhaps I shouldn’t.”
“Please, Percy. It’s best we clear the air now rather than after the birth.”
“Okay, here goes.” He took a deep breath.
This is bad. My fingers tightened around the glass and I placed it on the coffee table, worried it’d shatter.
“We’ve done this the wrong way. Instead of meeting, dating, sleeping together, falling in love and having a baby, we did it in reverse.”
“It wasn’t my fault the damn condom broke.” I crossed my arms and glared at him.
“That’s not what I’m saying, Marve.” He tugged at his hair. “This is hard. I don’t just have feelings for you.”
My heart sank so low it hovered around my ankles.
“That’s such a vague expression. It means little,” he continued.
“Well, it meant something to me when I said it,” I snapped. My eyes swam with tears as I muttered, “Sorry.”
Percy kneeled beside me and brushed hair off my forehead. “Me too.”
I peered out the window, not wanting him to see me cry.
“I love our baby, Marve, and I adore you.”
A sob escaped my lips, but I still couldn’t look at him. “You do?”
“Yeah, what did you think?” With his hands on my shoulders, he turned me around so our faces were inches apart. Our breath mingled and the fragrances of lime, cinnamon, and chili washed over me.
“Don’t know.” Using my arm, I wiped wetness from my face.
“I want us to be a family.”
I had to be clear about his intention. “Because the baby needs two parents?”
“Not just that. I want you and I to be partners, parents, lovers, and husbands.”
“Husbands?” I squeaked.
He pointed at the floor. “I’m on my knees, aren’t I? That’s the right place for a proposal.”
“Looks like it.” Poor guy. I was going to make him work for it.
“What do you say?”
“To what?”
He tapped the end of my nose. “To getting married.”
“To me?”
He screwed up his face and his shoulders heaved as he laughed. “Life with you will never be boring.”
“I haven’t said anything because there’s been no question.”
“Fine. Marve, love of my life and father of our unborn child, will you do me the honor of becoming my husband?”
I gave him a peck on the lips. “I will—after the baby’s born.” Taking his hand and putting it on my cheek, I whispered, “You should go.”
“Are you kidding me?”
“You have to pack your stuff and bring it here before dinner. That’s assuming you want to move in together.”
Epilogue
Percy
“Happy Father’s Day!” I held a tray of breakfast I’d made out in front of me.
“You made me breakfast in bed?” he asked, rubbing his eyes. He looked awful. I wasn’t dumb enough to vocalize those words, but it was true. If I hadn’t known better, I’d have said he hadn’t slept in a week. Of course he was tossing and turning a lot lately, so maybe he hadn’t.
“It’s your first Father’s Day.” I shrugged. “Do you want it in here or at the table?” The gesture was sweet, but in the time I’d known Marve, he had yet to eat anything in bed.
“The kitchen, please. You’re the best.”
“That’s my line.” I smiled at him and brought the tray back to the table and poured a cup of coffee for myself.
He came in a few minutes later, a card in hand. “This is what I got for you.” He handed it to me and I tore the envelope opening it. My first Father’s Day card: Our child is so lucky to have you…
I didn’t even get to the rest, my eyes already teary. “Thank you.” I hugged him and he flinched slightly. “Did I hurt you?” He’d been complaining his back was not the greatest, but I hadn’t realized it was that bad.
“No. Yes. Maybe.” He took a piece of toast from the tray and took a bite as I stared at him, wanting him to explain but also understanding that asking a pregnant omega to stop eating mid-bite was a dumb-ass idea.
“So here’s the thing—delicious toast, by the way—you know how my back’s been bugging me?” I nodded. “Well—my water just broke, so I’m thinking it’s back labor, so Happy Father’s Day?”
The rest of everything was a blur, from getting him to the hospital and checked in, to the doctor deciding that he was further in labor than even Marve suspected, to Marve digging his fingers into my arm as the pain became overwhelming. And really none of that mattered nearly as much as that glorious sound when we first heard our baby cry and the doctors told us we had a baby boy—a perfect baby boy.
“What’s his name?” the nurse asked as he settled our baby on Marve’s chest.
“Oliver Winston.” Marve smiled down at our baby boy.
“Family name?” the nurse queried.
“Something like that.” I chuckled. I mean, both Oliver and Winston were why we went to the club that night, even if Winston had flubbed the ‘letting us date right away’ thing pretty badly.
“He’s so perfect.” I reached down and brushed some hair from Marve’s forehead. “So very perfect.”
“He’s you, alpha mine. He’s you.”
About Harper B. Cole & Colbie Dunbar
About Harper B. Cole
Harper B. Cole is the pseudonym of three award winning, bestselling authors (including two USA Today Bestsellers) who love telling stories in the Omegaverse almost as much as they adore reading them.
Harper’s Amazon page
About Colbie Dunbar
My characters are sexy, hot, adorable—and frequently filthy—alphas and omegas. Feudal lords with dark secrets, lonely omegas running away from their past, and alphas who refuse to commit.
Lurking in the background are kings, mafia dons, undercover agents, and highway men with a naughty gleam in their eye.
As for me? I dictate my steamy stories with a glass of champagne in one hand. Because why not?
Colbie’s Amazon page
Also by Colbie Dunbar and Harper B. Cole
Missing His Omega
Accepting His Omega
Father’s Day Prince
By Aria Grace
48
Flynn
"You can't be serious..." My voice trails off in disbelief as I lean against the kitchen counter. I'm positively slack jawed right now. It's not really the most attractive expression, but I honestly can't help myself.
"It really shouldn't be that much of a surprise," Reynard says with a slight frown as he looks up at me. He's sitting beside our daughter, Pearl, and trying to get her to finish her oatmeal. She's just shy of ten months old and already developing very strong opinions about food. She's buttoned her lips and is refusing to eat anymore.
Reynard sighs and leans back from the highchair. He looks so dignified, even with his shirt sleeves rolled up past his elbows and a bowl of baby food in one hand. It's those royal genes.
"Loremstein is a completely different country, after all." He hands Pearl a small section of banana.
She gleefully grabs it and squishes it between her fingers.
"We have different holidays there." I’ve heard all this so many times already.
"But Father's Day..."
"Frankly, I'm not sure I understand the purpose of an entire holiday dedicated to one's parents." Reynard rises from his chair and grabs a towel from the counter to clean off his hands. "In Loremstein, every holiday is centered around family as a whole." He furrows his brow and looks away. "So, in the end, I'm afraid I just don't see the point."
"It's about celebrating relationships." I purse my lips and pour myself a fresh cup of coffee. It's seven a.m., bright and early, the day before Father's Day. We should've had this conversation weeks ago, but with everything that's been going on lately, it just sort of slipped my mind.
"That's what birthdays are for." Reynard offers me a soft grin as he grabs his tie from the back of a nearby chair and begins to fasten it around his throat. "Listen, my love, clearly I don't understand. Father's Day is an American holiday that just doesn't quite make sense to me. However, that doesn't mean I'm going to stop you from celebrating it. I will defer to your judgment on the matter."
"You're just trying to humor me," I say sourly. "I promise, after tomorrow you'll understand why it's so important. It's not just some weird American thing. There's a reason for it."
"Actually, tons of countries celebrate their own version of Father's Day," Kit pipes up for the first time as he carries his empty cereal bowl into the kitchen. He's grown up so much over the last few years. I can hardly believe he'll be entering high school in the fall. "It's actually kind of odd that Loremstein doesn't celebrate it."
"That may be," Reynard admits with a laugh. "There are a lot of things about my country that don't exactly make sense. So, I suppose I'll let you two show me what it is I'm missing out on."
Kit grins from ear to ear. He and Reynard are thick as thieves. They share a lot of hobbies and spend most evenings playing video games together. Honestly, I'm a little jealous of the bond they've built. But after years of being Kit's only parent, I'm glad he's got another adult to look up to. Especially an alpha like Reynard.
My gaze drifts to the clock, and I'm shocked back to the present. "You two need to get moving," I blurt as I stand bolt upright. "Kit's swim practice starts in twenty minutes."
They both jump into motion, Reynard snatching up his jacket and Kit darting into the living room in search of his backpack.
"I'm sorry if I offended you." Reynard leans in for a goodbye kiss while jamming his arms into his jacket sleeves. "I'm absolutely looking forward to seeing what this holiday is all about."
"You didn't offend me, Rey." I chuckle as I kiss him. "I was just surprised that you'd never heard of it before. I know it's not as big of a holiday as Christmas."
"I'd heard of it. I just didn't think it was a big deal." He shrugs
. "But it's clearly important to you, so that means it's important to me." He caresses my cheek and sends shivers down my spine. "I want to know what it's all about."
"Rey!" Kit yells from the direction of the front door.
"Coming!” Reynard gently taps the end of my nose. "I'll see you tonight, my love."
A moment later, the front door swings shut and I'm alone.
Well, almost.
I look sidelong at Pearl who has been busily painting herself with mashed banana. She’s babbling to herself so I decide to let her keep playing for a bit longer. She's happy and safely contained in her highchair.
Tomorrow is Father's Day, which doesn't leave me much time to plan anything. Although, Father's Day isn't exactly the sort of holiday you really make big plans for. But it's got to be special. Memorable. I want to go all out to show Reynard exactly what the holiday is all about.
Obviously, it's about family. It's about fathers and their children. It's...it's a special day for Kit and me especially. For so long, it was just the two of us, and my sister, Sadie. Now we've got Reynard and Pearl, too. Our family has changed so much in such a short time. So, we need to do something to commemorate those changes.
I start pulling up arts and crafts blogs on my phone, looking for something fun that we can do together as a family.
"Have we just decided to let Pearl embrace life as a banana?" Sadie's voice interrupts my train of thought. I look up as my sister shuffles into the kitchen. Her hair is askew, and there are dark circles under her eyes. She definitely pulled another all-nighter working on her current project. She's doing some sort of online web design course right now. I'm really proud of the way she's been applying herself lately, but she still sucks at time management.
"She's having fun." I grin as I look back at my daughter. Chunks of banana have been smeared across her cheeks and in her hair. "She’s getting a bath this morning anyway."