Epilogue
“Annie, come back here!” Will chased his daughter down the hall. Or, rather, he chased the ball of furry energy she’d shifted into moments ago.
The growing bulk of his belly made it hard for him to keep up. This second pregnancy was going well, better than his first one had. Not surprising, really. He was not only older, but healthier. Finn made sure that he had plenty to eat, and the other pack members were so helpful with Annie that he got lots of sleep. He felt great, except that he was getting clumsier.
He skidded around the corner into the great room just in time to see his mate pluck Annie up by her scruff and give her a stern look. Will sighed and slowed down. Finn had come to his rescue, again—always. Having someone to rely on so completely was something he might never get used to, and would certainly never take for granted.
The beta stared their daughter in the eyes. “Change.”
Annie instantly became a human child again, and with a shriek of laughter, grabbed Finn around his neck when he put her on his hip. “Dada.”
Will couldn’t keep the smile from his face. Annie had started using the two-syllable word, clearly meaning it for father or sire, depending. She’d also added other words to her vocabulary, unfortunately including “no” which had come into frequent use. Still, he was relieved that she was speaking more.
The shifting hadn’t abated. Andrea was certain now that it wouldn’t. Annie was going to shift all through childhood, making her ability not just rare, but unheard of. Will found it both a source of pride and consternation. So far, other than Lorcan, only Finn had the ability to get her to shift back to human. As he had from the start, he controlled the pup in a way that gave Will great relief.
He hurried over to them, though. Annie was now naked. “Let me have her.” He held out his hands.
Finn smiled and shook his head. “That’s okay. I’ve got her.”
Will worried his lower lip. “But, she’s naked and she’s not housebroken. She might pee on you.”
Finn only laughed at the concern and pulled Will into a hug on his other side. “Oh, baby, I don’t care about that.” He gave Will a quick kiss on the top of his head before doing the same for Annie.
Will grinned against Finn’s hard, broad chest. He didn’t care if his mate sometimes treated him almost like a pup. He’d had little coddling when he had been one, so getting it now only made him happy. The pup inside him gave a small kick, or maybe it was an elbow. Hard to say. Either way, it made him gasp.
“Are you okay?” Finn was instantly concerned.
“I’m fine. Just your son giving me a little poke.” He hoped that he was carrying a boy. He really wanted to do that for Finn even though Finn said he didn’t care which sex their new pup was.
“Let me feel.” The beta pulled Will in closer to reach with his free hand and place it over Will’s rounded belly. “Oh. That’s one who’s going to give you a run for your money, Annie.”
“No!” she said, even though she couldn’t possibly understand what her sire had just said.
Will and Finn both laughed. “Come on, you, let’s get you into a diaper and a loose dress,” Will said, making another attempt to take her.
Finn thwarted his efforts once more and instead, started walking to their room with Will still plastered to his side. “Let’s do that together. Maybe we can convince Annie to go down early for her nap.”
Will felt the heat rise on his cheeks. Taking a nap had become his mate’s way of getting Will back onto their sleeping pallet. Delightfully wicked things happened then. Soon Annie would be too old to stay in the room with them, but Finn was already building them their own small house. Will could hardly believe how his life had turned out. He was mated to a male he loved who gave him everything he’d ever wanted. So what if Finn didn’t love him? Will understood that their mating had been forced to some degree and that Finn still loved and mourned his previous mate. Will wouldn’t ask more of Finn than he could give.
Finn came to an abrupt stop right in front of their bedroom door. “Hey, you know what?” Will raised his eyebrows. “There’s something I’ve been meaning to do. I keep waiting for the perfect time, but I just realized any time is the perfect time for this. It’s long overdue for me to tell you something.”
“What?” Will held his breath, suddenly afraid his happy thoughts had somehow brought on a problem. Except, no, that was silly thinking, and this was Finn. He trusted Finn, now and forever.”
The beta crushed him to his chest and peered down into Will’s wide eyes. “I love you.”
“I…” Will didn’t know what to say. Had Finn read his thoughts? Could you really simply wish for a thing to make it happen?
Finn lowered his head and kissed him softly and slowly before pressing their foreheads together. “You don’t have to say anything. I know you feel the same way, not only because you said it before when I needed to hear it most, but I can see it in your eyes. Can you see it in mine?”
“Yes. Oh, yes.” Because he could. And now that he knew what love looked like, he would never forget it or doubt it, ever again.