Chapter Thirty-Eight
Lachlan
After I made Chloe mine, she insisted she needed a bath. Then she dragged me into the tub with her. I’d never been one for soaking in a bath, preferring a shower instead, but she converted me.
Afterwards, I carried her back to the bed and we slept together naked until mid-afternoon.
I awoke to something brushing my face. I swatted at it without opening my eyes and heard Chloe giggle. I cracked one eyelid and saw that she was using the end of her ponytail to tickle my nose.
“Oh, you’re awake. That’s great,” she said cheerfully. “I’m hungry.”
She yelped when I pinched her ass and retaliated but I ended the fun before it could get carried away.
“You’re still healing,” I stated. “No wrestling for at least another week.”
“Then you should make me something to eat,” she retorted. “Since I am still trying to regain my strength.”
“I think you’re just milking it now,” I replied, but I still got to my feet. Chloe did need to eat more often to fuel her body’s efforts at putting her to rights. “What do you want?”
“Pancakes?” she asked innocently, her eyes moving toward the kitchen table.
I groaned, turning my back to her. “No, no pancakes. You’ll get ideas. I’ll make pasta.”
She sighed, but when I turned toward her she was smiling.
As I went about putting together the meal, she watched me, reclining on the pillows on the bed. “I could get used to this,” she said.
I shot her a look. “You act like I haven’t cooked for you before. As I recall, we took turns making meals while we were here.”
“Yeah, but now that we’re mated I figured you’d turn into a slob that forgets how a stove works.”
I tossed a bit of Parmesan cheese at her, but she snagged it out of the air and put it in her mouth.
“We never talked about where you want to live,” I mentioned casually. “Now that Darrell is no longer in charge, would you want to move back here?”
She chewed, staring at me with a thoughtful expression on her face. “No, I don’t think so. I love it here and the wolves I grew up with, but it’s not home anymore.”
“What about North Carolina? You would be closer to your grandmother.”
Her eyes met mine. “Wherever you are, that’s where my home is. Home is in the heart and soul, not a place on a map.” She paused. “Actually, I think I’d like to stay in Dallas at the pack compound. Our pups would enjoy playing with Ricki and Calder’s little ones.”
When I dropped the spoon I was using to stir the pasta sauce, she laughed.
“Pups?” My voice was high and tight.
“I’m going into heat in a few days. Unless you pick up some condoms in town, there will likely be a pup around Christmastime.”
Shifter pregnancies were shorter than human ones. If we created a pup soon, I might have a son or daughter by Christmas. My chest compressed as I imagined Chloe with a pregnant belly, then holding a tiny bundle to her heart. “What do you want?” I asked.
She got up from the bed and crossed to me, placing a hand on my chest. The knot inside it loosened immediately. “I would love to have a child with you, Ian, but I’m more than willing to wait.”
I stared down at her, imagining her eyes staring up at me out of a child’s face. “I want children with you. Tomorrow or ten years from now.”
“That’s a beautiful thing to say, Ian, but it doesn’t tell me what you want to do when I go into heat.” She cocked an eyebrow at me, waiting.
“No condoms,” I murmured.
A smile spread across her face, so full of joy and hope that it took my breath away. “You’ll be a fantastic dad,” she replied.
“I just hope we don’t have triplets like Ricki and Calder.”
Her smile faded and her eyes widened. “Oh my God, do multiples run in your family?”
Laughing, I shook my head. “No. All my ancestors had one pup at a time.”
“Maybe we should wait a bit before having pups. Ten, maybe fifteen years,” she hedged.
I couldn’t stop the roar of laughter that escaped me and I looped my arm around her waist. “No way. Now that you brought it up, that’s exactly what I want.”
Then I kissed her. The pasta was overcooked by the time I was done, but it was worth it.
After dinner, we each carried a beer out onto the porch and enjoyed the warm evening. The fragile connection that bound us after the mating bite was growing stronger with every hour. I could feel her inside me, a constant warmth.
I hesitated to bring up a topic that might upset her, but I was concerned.
“What are you thinking?” she asked me, tilting her head to rest on the back of the chair. “I can feel your worry.”
I took a deep breath. I’d forgotten this part of the mating bond—the sharing of moods and thoughts. It was nearly impossible to hide things from a mate, not that I wanted to.
“Why didn’t you take part in Darrell’s punishment?” I asked. She’d been so determined to make him pay for what he’d done to her parents that her decision to bow out surprised me.
Chloe twisted her head and met my eyes. “A lot of reasons. I’ve had to kill before, and I’m certain that as pack enforcer I’ll be required to do so again. This time, though…” she paused, gathering her thoughts. “Darrell Whelby hurt so many people. Yes, he took my parents from me and Gram’s son from her, but the females that he hurt over and over deserve the chance to make him pay.” The corner of her mouth curled up in a smile that held no amusement. “And, honestly, I think any punishment they could dream up would be far more creative than mine.”
“You said there were a lot of reasons,” I said softly. “What are the others?”
“I’ve been too close to death the past week. Brayden’s death. Your death. My death. I don’t want to swim in a sea of blood for the rest of my life. Killing shouldn’t be the only thing I’m good at,” she murmured.
“It’s not the only thing you’re good at,” I replied, sitting up straighter in the chair.
She smiled, small and sad. “I know, Lach, but I don’t want to walk too close to that line. It’s too easy to cross over and never return. I’ve seen the wolves that exist hand-in-hand with death. They forget that life holds meaning and beauty.” She hesitated. “They forget to live.”
I understood then what she meant. “Then I’m glad you stood aside.”
“Speaking of living, fancy a run in the woods under the full moon?” she asked.
I glanced up, shocked to see the full moon hanging in the sky. I hadn’t noticed the waxing moon for months if not years. “Yeah, I think I would,” I replied slowly.
With a wicked grin spreading across her face, she stood and began to shuck her clothes. “If you catch me, maybe I’ll give you a prize.”
Before I could do more than put my beer aside and stand, she was already naked and leaping off the porch. She shifted mid-stride, letting loose a challenging howl as she dashed across the open field and disappeared into the trees.
I stripped and followed her in the blink of an eye, eager to chase my mate.
When I did finally catch Chloe, I made sure she understood that the only prize I wanted was her.