Chapter Thirty-One
The time for Danny’s heat came and went and with each day that passed, the Omega got quieter and less talkative. They hadn’t waited for his heat to have sex again, both of them wanting that intimacy more often than every three months, but Chris knew Danny had been eagerly awaiting its return.
“What if it was just a one-time thing?” Danny asked him one evening as they got ready for bed. “What if my heat doesn’t come back, what if it burnt out that first time?”
“It doesn’t work like that,” Chris was quick to reply but he had very little by way of reassurance to give. He didn’t really know how or why a heat would be delayed.
“But if it doesn’t come back, will you still want to be my mate?” Danny asked, as they lay in bed.
Chris pulled him close. “It doesn’t change anything. I want you, I’m not going to stop wanting you. And I have every confidence it will come back.”
But it was clear that Danny didn’t and Chris wasn’t willing to sit by and watch him fret, so he rang Heidi the next morning and she called over that evening. Chris hovered over them while she examined Danny and drew blood.
Then she sat down and just looked at them.
“Well?” she said.
They looked at one another, not knowing what was wrong.
“Is one of you going to tell me what happened?”
Chris looked at Danny, whose face was a mask of confusion, leaving Chris the one to answer Heidi’s question.
“Danny went into heat the day he changed for the first time,” he said.
“Right, while you were at the orientation house. So you two…”
“Yeah,” Chris said, looking down to avoid her gaze. “It hit him pretty hard after he shifted back. We were lying down together on a mat, sleeping. I know I should have handled it better, should have given him space and not…”
“You were in close proximity when Danny went into heat?”
“Yeah, we were literally curled up sleeping side by side. I woke up and he was asleep but his scent… it just… it was like I had no self-control.”
“And you’d been in close contact for days, right? While you helped Danny reached the threshold to change.”
“Right.”
“And the average shifter has their first heat much earlier than that, so Danny probably had an excess of heat hormones. That’s interesting.”
“What is?” Chris asked.
“You’ve been with an Omega in heat before?”
“Once or twice, yeah.”
“Did it feel like that?”
“No, nothing like it. The only thing on my mind was Danny, touching him, kissing him, fuc—” He shut his mouth.
“Well, you got a taste of what the other side goes through, that’s something most Alphas never get.”
“What do you mean?” Danny asked. “What happened?”
“It’s called a shared heat. I’ve only heard about it third-hand. Especially common in some of the trials of birth control in shifters. Okay, so Danny went into heat and you two shared a few days of mated bliss. Good, I was worried I was going to have to record my first immaculate conception.”
She stood, reaching for her coat.
“What?” Chris said, feeling like his brain had kicked into the wrong gear.
“Come on guys, what’s the number one reason an Omega misses a heat?” She paused looking from Chris to Danny with a raised eyebrow. “Congratulations. Danny, you come see me at my office tomorrow at ten a.m. for a few more checks, okay? We’ll consider you high risk given your history. And you, Dad-to-be, make sure you get him there on time.”
“Are… are you sure?” Danny asked, looking doubtfully down at his stomach.
With a long-suffering sigh, she put down her coat and opened her bag, sitting on the coffee table in front of Danny.
“Lift your shirt.”
Danny did, and she squeezed a small amount of gel onto his stomach before pulling out a small device from a Velcro pouch.
She turned it on, pressing a probe against Danny’s skin. At first, all they could hear were random, static noises, loud enough to make Chris wince. But then there was something else, a whoosh-whoosh sound, regular and rhythmic.
“There you go, a baby, just as I suspected.”
Chris couldn’t think, the sound stuck in his ears even as Heidi tidied away the machine and helped clean Danny off. But he was pulled from his shock by Danny, who covered his face with his hands and started to cry.
Heidi gave him a look of sympathy. “My office, first thing tomorrow morning, and we’ll talk things through.”
She patted Chris on the shoulder and left them to it. Chris sat down on the couch and reached for Danny, tugging the Omega to lie down, his head pillowed on Chris’ thighs. He slipped a hand under Danny’s shirt and just let it rest there against Danny’s cool skin.
“I know this is a surprise. That you hadn’t expected it. It’s a lot to take onboard.”
He stroked his free hand across Danny’s back.
“But it won’t happen overnight. There’s time for us to get ready. To get our heads around it. And we will, together.”
Still, Danny was silent and Chris knew he had to make sure Danny was aware there were options.
“If you feel it’s too much, that you can’t do it, you don’t have to go through with it. I’ll support any decision you make, I promise.”
Danny rolled onto his back, staring up at Chris through red, tearful eyes.
“I didn’t think it would happen. After everything, with Doctor Hollis and the treatment, I thought maybe I was damaged. But I’m not.”
He smiled up at Chris through his tears. “We’re having a baby.”
“Yeah,” Chris said, tugging Danny up so they were face-to-face. “Yeah, we are.”
Danny had a love-hate relationship with tourists. He loved when they needed help and he could guide them to a good book to take home. He hated when they treated him like a tourist attraction.
“Oh my goodness, oh my goodness.”
He knew before he even looked around that he was in for another round.
Turning, he found himself face-to-face with two college-age girls wearing matching Red Riding T-shirts. The band had been in the city for a concert the previous night, bringing fans out of the woodwork in their droves.
“You’re an Omega,” one of them said, her eyes on his protruding stomach. “That is so cute, you are so cute. Can I take a picture?” He preferred the adoring to the glowering or disgusted, though even adoration grated after a while.
“Thank you, but I’m really not comfortable with pictures,” he said politely, turning back to his work.
“Just one, pretty-please. It’s for my personal album, not my social media.”
He’d heard that one before and hadn’t believed it that time either.
“No pictures. See, it says so above the door.”
He pointed and it was there, in black and white. ‘Respect our staff’s privacy, no photographs. Security will take action.’
Security did take action, which Danny had seen a hundred times before. Usually just taking the phone, deleting any photo, and escorting the offenders from the premises. They’d taken extra precautions by installing technology that blocked phone connections to the internet, so photos couldn’t be sent off the premises. As time went on, an etiquette had been established and most abided by the rules without complaint.
“It’s just one picture, to show my family. They won’t believe me when I tell them I met a pregnant Omega. You’re so fascinating.” She stepped forward, hand outstretched, reaching for his belly. A hand blocked hers before Danny moved out of the way. “Miss, I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”
Shelley, their security for the day, was giving the tourist her best do-what-I-say-or-else-face.
“I was just—” the girl started to say.
“About to assault a member of our staff, which will be clear on our camera footage,” Shelley added, pointing to the nearest camera.
“Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean…”
“Come on, Kennedy, let’s just go. We’re really sorry,” the second girl said, red-faced as she pulled her friend toward the exit. Shelley followed them until she was sure they had left.
“Everything okay?” Wes asked, though Danny knew he’d seen the whole thing and had been close enough to intervene if Shelley hadn’t.
“Yeah. Thanks, Wes. Why is it people think you’re public property when you’re pregnant?” he groused.
“Some people are born and raised entitled,” Wes replied. “They’re slow to learn otherwise. Why don’t you head on up? I’ll close up.”
“Are you sure?” he asked. His back ached from standing and all he wanted was to sit down.
“I’m sure. It’s started to quiet down again. Nothing Shelley and I can’t handle.”
He saw Seth as he passed by the cafe, the other Omega waving at him as he delivered an order to a table. More Red Riding fans from the clothes they were wearing. Seth was dating an Alpha now, an accountant who taught martial arts in his spare time. Danny thought it was a great combination, and he seemed to adore Seth. Seth, for his part, managed the relationship like a pro, setting boundaries and sticking up for himself which only seemed to make the Alpha love him more. Through him, Danny could see what the Haven did for Omega.
Danny used his keycard to get through into the back corridor, then made his way to Jake and Will’s apartment. He knocked on the door, waiting to hear the distant call before he let himself in.
Rhea toddled out from the living room as he entered and he swooped her into his arms.
“Hello, Rhea. And how are you today?”
“Danny!” Rhea beamed at him before turning her head towards the kitchen. “Dada!”
“Come on, let’s go find your Dada.”
Danny carried her inside, finding Jake in the rocking chair by the window, with little Evan in his arms.
“Hey, Danny. I see you found my little monkey.”
“What have you been up to today?” Danny asked Rhea. She giggled.
“Trying to climb onto the coffee table. Luckily, I caught her before she got there but it was close.” Jake smiled tiredly at him. “And this little guy is turning out to be quite the fussy eater. He keeps falling asleep midmeal. At this rate, he’ll be permanently latched.”
As he spoke, he rubbed a hand across Evan’s back.
“Wakey, wakey,” Rhea called. Evan didn’t stir.
“I think he’s out for the count,” Jake said with a sigh. “Will you take him for a minute while I get dinner started?”
“I can cook, if you want?”
“What I really need is a bathroom break and a chance to stretch my legs.”
“Then hand him over. Rhea, do you want a story?”
“Story!” Rhea cried, as he set her down on the floor. Jake shot him a grateful look, placing Evan carefully in his arms. Danny moved to the rocking chair and Jake helped Rhea sit up beside him.
“Story,” she said, kicking her legs happily.
“That’s right,” Danny said softly, rocking Evan gently as he started to fuss. “Once upon a time, there was a special little girl and her name was Rhea.”
Rhea looked up at him with a sharp intake of breath. “Like me.”
“Just like you.” He could hear Jake pottering about.
Rhea twisted, patting a hand across Danny’s stomach. “The baby,” she said.
“That’s right. The baby’s in there.”
“Is she hiding?”
He giggled and that set her off too. “She’s growing. Or he. Has to be big and strong like Evan before she comes into the world.” The baby chose that moment to kick. “Would you like to feel her kicking?”
Rhea nodded, surging forward, and Danny had to do some quick maneuvering to keep her steady while not upsetting the now sleeping Evan. “Put your hand here, gently now.”
Rhea’s face turned down into a frown but one of consternation as the baby was still once more. “She’s gone quiet. Maybe if we talk to her, she’ll kick again.”
“Hi, baby.” Rhea patted his stomach. “Wake up.”
“There,” he said, as the baby kicked again. “Feel that?”
“Uh-huh. She’s strong,” Rhea said with an awed whisper before laying her head on Danny’s stomach.
When Jake popped over to check on them a few minutes later, both Evan and Rhea were asleep.
“You’re a natural,” Jake said.
“I don’t know how you do it.”
“It’s been tough. I miss my sleep sometimes. But I wouldn’t change it for the world. And Will is so happy. And so good with them. Some Omega talk about it like they’re parenting alone. You know, the Alphas have a hands-off approach where kids and housework are concerned. But not Will.”
Danny wondered what Chris would be like. He didn’t see him taking a hands-off role as a parent. He seemed the kind of person to want to get stuck in.