by Tamara White
The word ‘goddess’ whispers through my mind, but I quickly tamp it down because I don’t want his mother to have another episode if I mention it.
I can tell by Colby’s expression that he wants to ask more about the magical barrier, just as I do, but at the last second shakes his head and instead asks, “So if they are protected, does that mean she can still train then? There’s no reason for her not to go to classes or avoid any strenuous activities, right?”
My heart skips a beat at the heat I hear in his voice as he asks about strenuous activities. He probably didn’t mean what I thought by it, though. My mind is just in the gutter from all the sexual tension between my mates and I. Yeah, I’m sure he didn’t mean sex. He was probably just referring to walking and my normal routine.
“Honestly, Colby? I think she will be able to carry on with any of the activities she participated in before she was pregnant. The only things I would be wary of are the things she ingests. Make sure she eats a lot of protein, takes vitamins and gets plenty of calcium. Other than that, I don’t think there is any cause for concern.”
Then she turns to me, her eyes dulling a little. “Now I’m sure you are probably worried about losing one of the babies after what I said earlier, but I don’t think that will happen in your case. They are both incredibly powerful already and are protecting each other in your womb. That being said, I would still suggest that you make regular visits, about once a month, so we can keep an eye on them and change your diet and routine as needed. But I think you may actually be pretty lucky and have a fairly easy pregnancy. I’m not entirely certain of that, though, so we should still tread carefully.”
I breathe out a sigh of relief, feeling myself relax fully for the first time since I walked through the front door.
Sarah goes back to running her wand over my stomach. Then she presses a few buttons and a whirring starts in the room. That's when I realize she’s printing out pictures for me. After the machine spits them out, she hands them over to me. Then she turns off the machine and starts cleaning up my stomach. The whole time, I just stare in awe at the pictures of the two beautiful little babies in my stomach. I didn’t expect to be able to see their features so clearly this early on, and it takes me by complete surprise.
“Um, in human terms how many weeks along would this scan make me? I really didn’t think we would be able to see them this clearly. But the fact that I can means I’m probably further than I thought and I may not have much longer to go. Is that right?”
She sighs and pauses what she’s doing to lift her eyes to mine. “You’re roughly twelve to fourteen weeks along in terms of a normal human pregnancy. I think that's why it was harder for me to figure it out. Yes, wolves typically have shorter pregnancies, with the length being determined by their power level, but you only conceived two weeks ago. I’m not sure if the reason you’re so far along is because you’re so powerful, are carrying only two pups, or because of something else entirely. It’s hard to know for sure, but if I were to guess the length of your pregnancy just based on what I’m seeing now, I would say you will give birth in just under six months.”
“That soon?” Colby asks, his horrified gaze meeting mine.
I tamp down my panic, knowing I have to be strong through this. I expected something like this, but holy crap. Six months is not a lot of time.
“Don’t worry, Colby. I trained you on what to do when the time comes. That being said, I’m hoping you will allow me to attend the birth. If not, I can call another Alpha to help. He or she will need to be there to ensure the pups don’t shift while you’re giving birth,” Sarah explains and I just nod.
I already knew that's a high possibility. After all, many wolf children don’t survive the birth for that reason alone. They end up shifting in the birth canal, which will often kill the mother or the pup. And even if that doesn’t happen, they can still die shortly after birth for simply no reason at all. I will definitely be seeking the help of an Alpha to help keep my babies from shifting while I give birth because I don't fancy myself being ripped apart because of my stubbornness.
But before I can answer, Colby glares at his mother, a low growl in his throat. “Our Alpha will help her, as will I. And if I find out you told another Alpha about this, I will challenge you, Mother.”
My gaze flicks between the two of them, not sure what I just missed, but judging from the rising tension in the room, Colby is not happy about whatever it was.
“I can’t keep this to myself, Colby. The other packs have a right to know. This pregnancy could mean a change for all of us. Especially with how strong the babies are.”
Colby growls loudly and before I know it, he has his mother slammed up against the wall, with his hand wrapped around her throat.
She looks unfazed by this, at least until a flicker of power fills the room. It begins to build steadily and while I should be afraid, I’m really not. I trust Colby with my life and this power is something I’ve felt from him a few times before, but I thought he either wasn’t aware of it or didn’t accept it. But clearly he’s well aware of his Alpha status.
“You will not speak a word to anyone about my mate unless she wills it so. Do you understand?”
The power lashes out striking his mother, who simply nods, unable to resist the strength of his Alpha command.
Meanwhile, I’m lying on the bed, with my stomach still exposed, having to fight the urge to jump Colby because of how turned on his power is making me. While I know I should do something to help calm this situation down, some instinct is telling me not to interfere. This is Colby’s role after all. He’s been my protector since day one, and I know that won’t change, especially now that he’s admitted the truth of what I am to him.
“You’re right. It’s not my place so I won’t say anything. Now if you’ll let me back down, I will go and get your mate’s vitamins.” The tense way she speaks makes me feel a little guilty.
Colby nods and lets go of her. She drops to the ground and hurries out of the room, like her ass is on fire.
I stay on the bed, waiting patiently, knowing Colby needs a moment to pull himself together. Finally, he turns and strides back over to me, his eyes filled with both confusion and guilt. When he reaches me, he hesitates for a moment, dropping his head in shame. “I’m sorry, Katie. I didn’t mean to scare you. I just knew I had to make that threat, or my mother would have called every Alpha within the country.”
“Why would she do that? Because of the babies, or because of my power level?” I ask curiously, unsure why it would matter either way.
“She would have alerted them to both, I’m guessing. You’re strong enough to lead your own pack and I’m sure she’s already imagined the potential your children will have once they are born.
“I don’t like using my Alpha command unless I have to because it tends to scare most people and I definitely don’t want you frightened of me.”
I can’t help the laugh that slips out, but quickly cut it off when I see the look of hurt that flashes across his face. I sit up and grab his hand, pulling him closer to me. “I’m not scared of you, Colby. I knew the moment I met you that you would always protect me. Even when I was staring at you back then, filled with anger over Emily not accepting you, I knew you would hurt yourself before letting any harm come to me. And nothing that has happened since then has ever made me doubt that. And as for being scared of you, that couldn’t be further from the truth. Maybe if you stopped worrying about how afraid I might be, you would be able to scent what I’m really feeling.”
At this, he inhales deeply. His eyes turn from their normal blue to the amber of his wolf before fading back. “Holy shit… How can you be turned on by how I acted just then? Why aren’t you afraid of me?”
I chuckle and wrap my arms around him. “Are you kidding me? That was hot as fuck watching you go all Alpha male in order to protect me and the babies.”
He groans and presses his lips to mine. Rather than a passionate embrace like we shared
the last two times, this kiss is sweet and tender. When he pulls away, his eyes are burning bright. “There is nothing in this world that could stop me from protecting you or the babies. I would lay down my life for you.”
“Aw, well as sweet as that is, I’d prefer that no one die for me. Just be there with me, my babies and the rest of my mates. That’s all I need.”
He smiles and presses a kiss to my head. “I’ll always be there for you, Katie. Forever.”
We stay here in comfortable silence, with me sitting on the side of the bed and Colby pressed between my legs as he holds me. The soft and steady beat of his heart is soothing. Part of me feels guilty for being so happy that he ended things with Emily because he’d rather be with me, his true mate, but the other part of me is ecstatic. Having him as my mate feels so right even if the way it happened isn’t exactly ideal. I feel like I’m adding mates at an alarming rate, creating my very own harem of sorts. I smile wickedly at the thought.
The door opens and Sarah comes back in, this time with a wide smile on her face. “Sorry that took a little while. I was just running your blood samples and from what I can tell, you and the babies are perfectly healthy. The only thing I would suggest is that you start taking this special blend of prenatal vitamins that are made specially for wolves who have a shorter pregnancy. Your iron levels seem right on the line of healthy for now, but they could drop and change over the next few weeks. So, I want you to eat plenty of iron rich foods such as spinach, broccoli and lentils. If those aren’t to your liking, it would be worth looking into other foods that could give you a natural boost. When you visit in four weeks time, we’ll reassess your iron levels and determine how much farther your pregnancy has progressed. Hopefully that will give us a more concrete indication of how far along you are.” I nod along with her words, but to be honest, I’m feeling a little overwhelmed at this point. Thankfully she seems to realize this, because she adds, “I’m going to give you my number so if you have any questions or concerns, you can contact me.”
Colby also seems to sense that I’m feeling overwhelmed because he takes the pills from his mother, along with the slip of paper she wrote her number on. Not that he needs that, though, what with her being his mother and all. “Thank you, Mother,” he says, although there’s no warmth in his voice. “I think it’s time I take Katie back before Brad starts to miss his car.”
With that, Colby helps me down from the bed and holds my hand as we make our way out the door. But before we make it far, his mother calls out to him. “Colby, wait. Please, I am begging you to stop in and see your brothers before you leave. They miss you. Just an hour. Surely you can spare them that?”
Colby hesitates for a moment, but she pushes on. “If you don’t spend the time with them now, you’ll lose the chance before long. You know how quickly childhood goes. Do you really want to wait until they’re twenty and no longer remember who you are? Please, if not for me, then for them.”
I look up at Colby, seeing the internal struggle going on behind his eyes. “Colby, I wouldn’t mind meeting your brothers. If you don’t mind, that is.”
He studies my gaze, looking for any hesitation, but I give him none. I really do want to meet his family, but mostly, I want him to be able to spend time with them.
“You’re sure? I know you want to get back and tell the others. I can always visit another time.”
I sigh, feeling exasperated by his resistance. “Colby, this is a perfect time. Soon, our classes are going to get more hectic. Plus, if these two are going to come in six months, then do you really think we’ll have a lot of time on our hands? No, so it’s best we see them now in case we don’t get the chance again before the babies come.”
Colby grins and bends down to kiss me quickly. “You’re amazing, you know that right?”
Before I can respond, he turns back to his mother. “Okay, tell them I’ll be there soon. And that I’m bringing home my true mate.”
I tried to put on a brave face at the thought of meeting Colby’s mother's pack, but now that we’re almost there, the nerves have come back in full force. What if they don’t like me? Will Colby be upset if they don’t? Ugh, it really shouldn’t be this hard. I need something to distract myself.
"So tell me, how is it you’re part of a different pack when your mother is the Alpha of this one? I heard you were Alpha of the pack back home for a while but then gave it up when your new Alpha came along. Why would you choose to do that?”
Colby glances over with a frown. “Well, it’s kind of complicated. About sixty years ago, our pack was attacked. I’m not sure how much you know about our world, but the people who attacked us were witches. There were only three of them, but they made quick work of our pack. They knocked out many of us and paralyzed others while they performed whatever torture they could on the rest. My father was Alpha back then and he was murdered right before my eyes. One of the last things he said to me was that he was sorry for not protecting us better.”
He draws in a deep breath filled with pain. “I took over the pack for a while after that, because that was my right as the son of the previous Alpha, even though my mother was stronger and more stable than I was. Before I knew it, almost forty years had passed. My mom had left by that time in search of a possible new mate, and when she returned, it was with her true mate.
“After seeing her so happy with her new mate, I knew I just couldn't stay there. Don’t get me wrong, I was happy for her, but I was still dealing with my father's loss. We never found the witches responsible so I decided it would be best to give up my pack, my father’s pack, and hand the reins over to Mom and her new mate. After that, I went hunting.”
The menace in the word ‘hunting’ has me shivering and I don’t know whether it’s out of fear, respect, or possibly a combination of both.
“I spent the next ten years hunting until I found all three of the witches responsible for the death of my father and other pack members. I killed each of them, even though I know the Directorate had forbade it. If they had ever learned of what I had done, they would have killed me for going against their orders. But I had to avenge my father, especially when the Directorate claimed they couldn’t find the witches responsible. But their faces were burned into my memory and I knew I had to bring them to justice.
“I never felt worthy of being part of a pack. I would still come back from time to time to visit my mother and the rest of the pack, but for the most part I was a lone wolf back then.
“I visited many different people over the next several years, and found a lot of other wolves who were alone, until eventually we formed our own little pack. I became their Alpha because I was the oldest and had more life experience, not because of any Alpha power I possessed.
“But then my brothers were born and I was torn between wanting to stick with them, to watch them grow and be their brother in more than just name, and the duty that was required of me as Alpha of our newly formed pack. That’s right around when our current Alpha showed up. He introduced himself to me, and I knew right away, despite the fact he was only a boy in wolf years, that he would make a far better Alpha than I ever could. So I gave the pack to him, telling him that he could come to me for advice, but that I wouldn’t be bound to just one pack. I wanted to be part of my brothers’ lives, but I didn’t want to lose the friendships I had made either. Which brings us to now.
“My brothers recently turned six. I try to visit them as often as I can, but it’s hard. I’m going to college because the humans have made so many advancements, both in technology and medicine. You never know when one of those advancements could change our way of life for the better. Like with cell phones. That was such a foreign concept to our kind at first, but then we adapted to the use of them. Now most of us take great enjoyment from the fact we can communicate with family and other packs, even across great distances.”
I blink slowly, before a smirk spreads across my lips. “You know it’s hot to hear you so animated about a subject, but then I remem
ber just how old you are and I wonder whether or not I should be creeped out. Like, can you just imagine if I told a human, ‘Yeah, my boyfriend is seventy-six.’ The looks we’d get.”
Colby chuckles as we drive over a small patch of gravel, pulling up to a small gated estate. You can’t see through the thick wooden fence, and I wonder just what kind of pack we’re walking into for them to be gated in like this. But when Colby waves to the guard sitting at a small outpost just before the gate, the man opens it without question. We drive inside and my jaw drops in shock.
The street is lined with very charming looking houses, all painted in a deep red, almost maroon color. The lawns are green and well-tended, and everywhere you look, there are adults, children and teenagers going about their day, looking like they don’t have a care in the world. The joy on their faces has me smiling in response. You can just feel the happiness radiating from them like an unseen force.
Parents sit out on their porches, watching the other adults and children laughing as they play. There are also wolves playing in between the buildings, chasing and nipping each other’s tails in what looks like a massive game of tag.
“Aren’t they worried about being found out by the humans?”
“Nah, this estate is exclusive to the pack. The guy at the gate will warn us through our pack bonds if a human is coming in. Although typically, if we invite a human onto pack lands, there is a protocol to be followed. This place gives us the freedom to be who we really are, but we’re still close enough to town that we aren’t completely isolated.”
Hmm... makes sense, although I have to wonder how the humans react to the sound of wolves coming from within the estate.