“Now I might be spent!” I groaned as I slid out of Percy’s tight little ass for the third time and slumped down on the bed beside him. After taking a shower and getting clean, we’d gone back to the bedroom and gotten dirty again. I just couldn’t help myself. The sweet little alpha was just too irresistible, like he’d been made just for me, a perfect recipe of all the things that drove me wild.

“I sure am,” he giggled, rolling over and instantly wrapping a leg and arm over me. He’d come too and I’d left another hot load inside him.

“There’s no way you’re not going to get pregnant, you know,” I told him as a matter of fact.

“Good,” he replied. I looked down at him.

“Yeah?”

“What, did you think I’d suddenly change my mind or something?”

“No,” I said with a smile. “I just—it’s nice to hear you say it.”

“That I want you to get me pregnant?” he asked coyly. “That I want you to watch my body change as your cub grows in my belly?”

His words were like a flame in my heart, and I nodded as I looked warmly down at him. “Yes.”

“Well, that’s what I want too.”

He leaned in and kissed my chest, and I reached over to the window and cracked it to let in some of the night air. It was only April, so the hot summer heat hadn’t yet become unbearable, and I liked a little breeze when I slept.

“So, tell me about yourself,” I told him, wrapping my arm tighter around him. “What’s a guy like you doing working in a place like Bottoms Up?”

Percy sighed heavily. Clearly I’d touched a sore spot in his life. “It was my parents’ place, but they passed away last month and I inherited it.”

“What?” I replied in shock, twisting in bed to face my mate. “Your parents died?”

He nodded back at me. I could see the pain fresh in his eyes. “Driven off the road by someone. They never found out who did it. After dad was gone, the Jackals started showing up demanding money.”

“That sounds like them.”

“You know them?” he asked.

“I used to be one,” I replied simply, waiting to see what his reaction would be. Thankfully, he didn’t flip his shit. Instead, he just looked up, waiting for me to elaborate. “Back when Bruno was the leader and the gang was a family. Killoran joined, killed Bruno and took over. So, I faked my own death and headed south. Never thought I’d run into them again. And then I smelled you.”

“Wow,” he said softly. “What a bunch of crazy coincidences, huh?”

“No coincidences,” I replied. “Fate.”

He nodded and I tucked him into my armpit and kissed his head. Closing my eyes, I drank his scent through my nostrils, focused on the heat from his body and the softness of his skin, making sure every possible sensation from him was cemented into my mind.

“My parents are gone too,” I said finally. He pressed a hand against my stomach and raised himself up on one elbow to look at me.

“Really?”

I nodded. “Well, I never really knew them. Foster care until I was twelve, bounced around the system until I finally broke away and went out on my own.”

“That’s sad,” Percy replied, caressing me gently.

“We both have sad stories,” I told him, taking his hand in mine. “But it made us who we are, and it brought us together. We’re stronger because of it.”

Percy looked down for a second, mulling over my words. Then, he looked back at me with a renewed energy and nodded. “Yeah. Yeah, I guess that’s one way to look at it.”

“You can’t want to work in that bar your whole life though, can you?” I asked him, stroking his hair. “What else do you like to do?”

Percy looked away, a shy smile on his lips like I’d just touched on something embarrassing. “I—I like to write a little.”

“Yeah?” I asked him. “What kind of stuff do you like to write?”

“Cozy mysteries,” he replied. “Do you know what those are?”

“Haven’t got a clue,” I laughed.

“It’s like—small-town mysteries with amateur sleuths,” he replied. “Like Agatha Christie or Victoria Abbot?”

“I’ve never read any,” I smiled. “But I’d read any of yours.”

His eyes lit up when he heard that and he continued quickly. “I’m writing one about a girl who inherits her parents’ bookstore in a small coastal town in Massachusetts when the body of the local principal washes up on the shore.”

“That sounds great,” I told him, kissing him happily. “How long until you finish it?”

“Well,” he replied sheepishly. “I haven’t actually started writing yet. Only the outline.”

“Hey, you’ll have plenty of time to write when you’re pregnant,” I told him.

“What about money!? What are we going to do for money?”

“Don’t you worry about that,” I told him. “Even if it means going to war with the Jackals, I’ll figure something out.”

A concerned look came over Percy’s face and he pressed himself against me, furiously shaking his head. “No, no, no!” he cried out. “I don’t want you going to war with anyone!”

“Those guys don’t scare me,” I assured him as I held him close. “Don’t you know you’ve found yourself the biggest, baddest alpha in all of The Lone Star State?”

“I don’t doubt that,” he whispered. “But I don’t want you getting hurt, that’s all…what do you do now?”

“I work protection for Cooper’s trucking,” I replied. “It’s all right, but the truth is, I’ve always wanted to work on a farm. Ya know, get away from it all?”

“That sounds glorious,” Percy said with a sigh, letting himself spill on top of me like a ragdoll. “What would you grow?”

“Everything,” I laughed. “I’d like to learn how to woodwork. Build furniture, maybe even a house!”

“You know…come to think of it,” Percy muttered, raising himself up, a thoughtful look on his face. “I actually know this guy who owns a farm outside of Austin.”

“Yeah?”

“Well, I don’t know him, but he’s come into the bar a few times,” he said, thinking hard. “I think his name is Nate. If I see him again, I could ask him if he’s got any work.”

“Nate, huh?” I nodded. “That would be great, but I don’t want you going back to that bar on your own, understand me? If those pricks show up again, I want to be there with you.”

Percy nodded and gave me a playful salute. “Yes, sir!”

I laughed, yawned and stretched then turned out the light. Percy wriggled under the blanket next to me and it wasn’t long before we were both drifting off, and for the first time in my life, I didn’t have to sleep alone.