I kiss his fingertips before drawing them to my abdomen. “My stomach hurts more than anything else.”
Noah’s eyes track my touch. But when they hone in on our connected hips, his gasp startles me.
“What? What’s wrong?”
As he slips out from inside me, it’s surprisingly slick. “Oh, sweet Omega... I’m so sorry...”
I blink a few times, unsure if my eyes are still blurry or if Noah’s legs are stained pink. “Oh, my God, are you okay? What happened to your–?”
Reality hits me, and my hand flies up over my mouth. Noah winces, sad eyes meeting mine as I flush red-hot with embarrassment.
Oh, my God. He mated me so hard that my period started a few days early.
I groan, covering my red face. “S-sorry, I-I made a huge mess...”
Noah whines, curling around me. “Please don’t apologize. I’m so sorry I couldn’t give you the baby you wanted.”
I blink through embarrassment, peeking from beneath my arms to find his worried stare. He must’ve been thinking about the day our condom broke more than I realized.
Despite how much I want a baby, I giggle. “My sweet, shy Alpha.”
He melts beneath my caress on his cheek, nuzzling my palm. My heart soars with him, experiencing how much every touch of mine makes his heart bloom with delight.
“I can’t believe this, but I’m okay,” I say.
“R-really?” He strokes my cramping belly, his sad puppy eyes gnawing at my heartstrings.
“Yes, gorgeous. Now that we’re bonded, I feel so secure with you that I’m at peace with where we are. We can have a baby when we’re ready.” My eyes widen. “I-I mean, if we’re ready, someday.”
He doesn’t say more, but I’m stunned by Noah’s quiet, somber reverence - taking my crushed dreams seriously. It awakens a piece of me I’ve never met before: the unconditionally loved Omega.
I let her exist, growing larger with every inhale of Noah’s doting scent.
Noah carries me home, drawing a bath. But as he joins me in the water, licking the sweat off my body until I’m craving him again, a deep sense of permanence settles into my soul. He’s here. He’s staying.
Noah fucks me slowly in the sloshing water, kissing every inch of my lips as I let my wolf run free. Loving every second with her mate.
31
In a flash of fur, Amy shoves me into the grass with her massive paw, taunting me. I struggle to my feet, out of breath from trying to keep up with a wolf. Well, another wolf. I’m a wolf too, dammit.
At least I should be.
As my nails buzz and stretch into claws with my irritation, I growl, desperate to fight Amy back. She’s not even breaking into a pant, and here I am, drenched in sweat.
My eyesight phases into a new set of colors. Sprouting fangs steal an uncomfortable amount of space in my mouth. But the moment a swirling pressure consumes my chest - my wolf attempting to enlarge my ribcage - my breath catches.
Panic shoves her deep inside me, just as Amy rounds another tree, bounding over. Amy bats me, knocking me back into the grass.
My frustration rises, but not toward Amy - toward myself. I grab fistfuls of grass to yank myself upright, urging my shaking muscles to work. But Amy knocks me down yet again.
“Ugh!” I scream, alerting Amy’s fluffy ears with a jolt.
This seriously sucks. I can’t seem to let my wolf go unless it’s in bed with Noah.
But not even Noah has been able to help me shift. Every time I get close, intrusive thoughts hit me like a truck, bending my will.
What if you fail at shifting, and your hybrid body can’t handle it? The thoughts creep through my head. You could die, leaving the pack without a Luna. All because of your inability to shift properly, Noah will be alone, forever. That is, if your death doesn’t kill him first.