I was so thankful Killian and Mama’s trip was just a couple days. I was all kinds of ready to a see him. Phone sex was nice and all, but I needed to see him, feel him, scent him.

I was whipping up my world-famous meatloaf, which was less world-famous than it was Killian’s favorite, when my phone buzzed with a text from Parker.

We have a daughter. Ariana.

It was accompanied by a picture featuring the most adorable baby on the planet. Her peach fuzz hair looked like every baby picture I had seen of Parker and I, her eyes shaped just like his mate’s. My hand instinctively fell to my belly. It was time to tell him about our new baby. I didn’t want to share before our most recent visit to the OB/GYN, something about getting a good report at the half way point had me feeling confident enough to share with people. I knew most people only waited three months, but with all the extra tests and such, I just couldn’t.

Visitors welcome?

I needed some baby snuggle times.

Sure, but Mom and Dad are on their way and will be here in a few hours.

I only had a little bit of time, then.

On my way.

There were so many things I wanted, no, needed to say to him, but there was no way I was opening a can of worms that ginormous via text. Not that I wanted to do it on their special day, but letting those people into the life of a child was simply unacceptable.

I walked into labor and delivery only a half hour later, thanks to light traffic, and chuckled at the double takes the nurses gave me as I walked by. I hadn’t dyed my hair since discovering I was pregnant, mostly because sitting that long was less than comfortable, and now my brother and I looked even more alike, minus my pregnant belly, which I made sure to accentuate with my wardrobe choices.

I cracked the door open. “Is now a good time?” I whispered.

“Of course!” Parker stood and wrapped me in a hug.

“Can I?” My eyes were glued to the baby in the bassinet as soon as he released me.

“Yeah, let me get her out.”

“I don’t want to wake her up!” I protested, but I wanted to hold her so very, very much.

“She’s a sleeping champ.” Parker picked her tiny body up and placed her in my arms. “All she does is eat and sleep, eat and sleep. The nurses assure me it’s normal.”

I couldn’t believe I’d be holding my own baby so very soon, or that he’d be as tiny as Ariana. She was so perfect, from her tiny little eyelashes to her tiny little ears and tiny little lips. It was so hard to believe I was growing one of these glorious little creatures in me right now.

“Hey, you made it,” Miles said sleepily from his bed.

“As if I’d miss meeting my first niece!” I said, my voice choked with tears. “I’m counting on you giving me, like, five more of these!” I counted myself lucky to be able to have one kid. Who knew if I’d be able to have others?

“Don’t you even think about it right now,” Miles warned both of us. “We’re adopting from here on out.”

Parker moved closer to give Miles a kiss. “I’m okay with five more. But I’ll take them however you want to give them to me.”

“Enough talk about more kids,” Miles chided, though a smile graced his lips. “Tell me how amazing my daughter is. We made a good one, didn’t we?”

Miles drifted off to sleep at some point. Not that I could blame him. Growing and then pushing out a human was no small task.

“She is perfect, absolutely perfect,” I cooed at her again, kissing the top of her head because there was no way to resist such cuteness. She was still sound asleep. What a good baby.

“She is. Speaking of babies—do you have something to share.” He patted my growing belly with a shit eating grin.

“Isn’t it amazing?”

“The best,” he agreed, pointing at the rocker for me to sit.

“We waited to tell anyone not living with us until the mid-pregnancy ultrasound.” I settled in my new seat, Parker pulling up a typical hospital visitor chair beside me. “I was nervous.”

“I’m so excited for you both.”

The baby squirmed and we both stopped our train of thought, just taking in the awesomeness that was new life until she settled back into her sleep.

“Are you going to tell mom and dad?”

I was glad he was the first to address the elephant in the room. Our parents were the main obstacle that sat between us. I knew Parker only tolerated them, but knowing they were in his life even after what he knew left a hole in my trust.

“Maybe? Probably? I don’t know.” Killian and I had spent hours discussing exactly that and no decision had been made. Chances are they would know, but that was where that ended. We were thankfully not in a state with grandparents’ rights. “They can never be near him.”

“Him?”

I nodded.

“It’s a boy?”

“That he is.”

“Are you sure you never want them to see him?” Parker finally asked after we sat there in awkward silence for a few brief moments.

“I can’t believe you would allow them to be near her.” On that I was firm. Both Killian and I were in agreement on that one. We both knew that there might be times, like Parker’s wedding, where we would need to either leave him with Mama or let them be in the same space, but as far as forming a bond, that was not going to happen.

“They would never harm a child.”

“Except they had no problem knowingly setting me up and encouraging a situation where I would be raped by one of their business connections to force a mating? Think again. They would do anything if it benefitted them.”

I was blunt truth bombing him. Seeing his face turn a tinge of green made guilt settle into my gut, but I couldn’t sugarcoat things. Not something this important.

“You’re right.” Parker sighed in defeat. I had a feeling it was an internal battle he was conceding and not the conversation between the two of us. “I know you are, but I can’t see cutting them out completely.”

“Does your mate know what they did to me?” I hated to share my story, letting people know that I was so unlovable to my parents. But Miles really did need to know. Decisions for his child now and in the future rested on this information.

“Not with any details.” His hand came up and squeezed my shoulder. I knew this had to be even harder for him than for me. I had dealt with my feelings a long time ago, and he was working with new and horrible information while he dealt with what an already not great relationship with them.

“Then let me give you the details to give him when the time is right. He needs to know.”

I told him the story. About the fake date. The B&B room my parents had paid for. The door that locked from the outside. About defending myself, surprising the alpha because I actually knew how to do so. The cuts I’d had from jumping out the window. And finally confronting Mom and Dad who thought I should have been grateful for the “opportunity” they gave me. Parker knew the rest from there.

Parker was shaken, and he gave me a hug and wiped tears from his eyes before responding. “You’re right. Now isn’t the time, but I will. I promise. And just so you know, I haven’t given them any information about you.”

“I appreciate that, although if you two of you decide for them to be in your daughter’s life, they will find out you’re hiding me from them and that will cause drama.”

“You and I both know they know.”

I had suspected as much, but hearing him affirm that our parents kept a close eye on us even when they had no relationship with us confirmed it. I had been fooling myself to even contemplate otherwise, but feeling free of them had required it for so long.

“As valid as your point is, they will still be pissed.” I laughed as my dear sweet niece began to wake with a yawn. The stinkin’ cutest yawn of all times, at that.

Ariana took that as her cue to cry for her supper, Mile’s eyes popped open wide, giving me grabby hands and effectively ending the conversation.

As I handed her back to Miles, I felt freer, having at least said my piece.

Miles brought her to his breast, silencing her instantly. That was going to be me in another twenty weeks, feeding my baby with my mate by my side. I picked up the little certificate with her footprints, looking back and forth between it and the happy family.

And that was when two things hit me: I needed to take out my nipple rings so as not to stab my baby and we needed to get married stat or our baby’s certificate was going to have dads with two last names.

I whipped out my phone, typing away a mile a minute.

Let’s elope.

Don’t have to ask me twice. I want you tied to me in all ways.

That was easier than I thought it would be. I chuckled, bidding my good-bye to the happy family. There was no way I wanted to be there long enough that I ran into the parental units and I had a meatloaf to cook.