The grotto had become our special place. She never said it outright, but I think Molly had told the rest of the crew the hours just after sunset were our time down in the springs. Bless her.

I rested my head against Mac’s shoulder as we dipped our feet in the water. He traced a lazy circle around my nipple. As always, my body responded to his. Warmth flooded me.

Everything had happened just as Mac said it would. It was as if I’d never known what my body and soul starved for. It was Mac. He’d marked me again and again. Each time, the bond between us grew deeper. Though we were never apart long enough to test it, his thoughts came to me and mine to him. I knew someday, we wouldn’t need words to communicate. We were soul bound.

Today though, the expression on his face told me as much as his thoughts did. I pressed a finger to his forehead as if I could smooth his worries away with just one touch. Sometimes, I could. It had been three months since anyone had heard from Gunnar. It meant the odds he’d been captured and assimilated into the Pack were slim. No one had come for us. But, it also meant the odds that he’d been gravely wounded or worse were growing.

“He’ll come back,” I said.

“I know,” Mac said.

“I love you,” I said, smiling up at him.

“I know,” he said again.

I made a playful swipe at his head, but he caught my wrist and brought my fingers to his mouth.

Payne’s wounds had healed, but he spent less time at the caves than before the Battle of Birch Haven, as we had come to call it. Lena’s wounds had taken longer. She had isolated herself from the rest of the cave community, preferring only to see Mac or me, sometimes Molly. That troubled Mac too, but at least for now, she was safe. As long as that stayed true, we would find a way to reach her. There had been very little change in Jagger. Molly hoped the news of Birch Haven would cheer him up.

But, days like today, it became easier to set down the burden of worry we felt for those we loved. Days like today could almost be perfect. The air between my love and me held magic. More than he realized.

“I love you too,” Mac said, drawing me into a kiss. We’d been down here for an hour. Soon, I would need him again. My body craved his like food except even more often. He’d explained it as the Rise. Human mates need their wolf shifter mates with an intensity in the first few months. Well, I had risen, I had peaked, and now there was a new magic secret I had yet to reveal. The truth burned bright within me. Though it scared me a little, it felt right, just like everything else about Mac and me.

“There’s something I have to tell you,” I said. Though Mac had become adept at reading my thoughts, this one was so earth-shattering, he hadn’t been looking for it.

Mac leaned against the wall, his eyelids hooded and drowsy. I needed him properly attentive. I swung my leg over his hip and straddled myself on his lap. His cock found its way home and Mac’s eyes snapped open. In another moment, I would begin the undulation both our bodies craved. For now, it seemed right to join like this and be still. At least I had his attention.

“You’ve told me your life began when you met me,” I said.

“Mmm,” he whispered, placing his hands on my hips, he tried to spur me on. I kept him rooted deep but still.

“So did mine,” I said. “I had no family. No people. No hope. Now, you’ve given me everything.”

“I’ve given you so little,” he let out a bitter laugh. “I’ve given you a dark place to live.”

“I don’t care where we live. I never will.” I put soft kisses along his jawline. Mac let his fingers roam up my ribcage where I was ticklish, then beneath my breasts. They swung free. He cupped them with his hands. They were firm and round, but hung heavy, the nipples going from soft pink to the color of wine.

Mac’s eyes snapped open as the change registered. I was already smiling. “There’s one more thing you’ve given me, my love,” I said. “And something I can give you.”

“Eve,” he said, his voice choked with emotion. He placed a hand over my stomach. Soon, he would feel the round swell and a tiny flutter of life.

“We can’t! Not here.” His eyes filled with tears and he held me close. “How? It’s not supposed to happen this soon.”

“Shh,” I said. “Well, maybe we’ve been making up for lost time. I didn’t plan it. But that’s how fate works, isn’t it? They were meant for us.”

“They?” Mac’s smile hit me with the light of a thousand suns, warming my heart.

“I think so,” I said. “Don’t ask me how I know. I just do. They will be twin sons, my love. Shifters, just like their father. I saw them in a dream. Then, I felt them.”

“God, I love you. I’ll make it all right for them,” he whispered, his eyes alight with wonder. He held me away from him a little, letting his palm rest against my womb. Closing his eyes, I knew he felt what I felt. He felt his children growing inside me. Loved. Protected. Fated.

When Mac opened his eyes again, they flared silver as his wolf woke. Impossible as it was this early, I felt an answering flutter deep inside my womb. I was right. This was right.

We didn’t know what the future held. No one can. But, we would face it together. My life. My loves. Our hope.