Page 5 of Wild Born

“I don’t know, but it’s something we have to check for,” I said, smoothing down the baby’s thick dark hair. “He smells wild, but we have to know for sure.”

My mate frowned at me, his brow furrowing.

“Come on. Come back over here,” I said, reaching out a hand to him. “Come hold the baby. What are we going to call him?”

“Are you trying to distract me?” he asked, crossing the room to join me and the little one.

“Maybe. Is it working?”

“Yes,” Lee laughed, taking the baby from me. “He’s so tiny. He does smell like the wild, huh? Even after his bath.”

“He does,” I nodded, and my wolf stood up to sniff the air again.

“If the pup hunters come, I’m devouring them whole,” he chimed off into my thoughts.

“Would-be pup hunters,” I reminded the furry guy. “His parents had a few friends that helped out.”

“Ding-dong Darian is almost here,” he said, ignoring the would-be part.

“This is why I don’t like it when you skip lunch,” Lee said. “He gets all bite-y and ready to eat everyone.”

“I’m going to eat you later tonight,” I said, standing up right before Darian rang the doorbell to gain access to the employee-only part of the clinic.

“I’m going to hold you to that. Good luck finding the time with a new baby in the house,” he laughed.

“I’ll make the time, mate. Not like we haven’t had to squeeze it in before,” I said before opening the door.

“What is it?” Darian asked without saying hello.

“What’s your issue?” I asked, stepping back to allow him into the room.

“You call me away from my mate and pups on my day off without explanation and I’m the one with an issue?” Darian asked as I shut and locked the door behind him. “Whose baby is that?”

“A she-wolf’s,” Lee answered before I had a chance. “We’re pretty sure he’s wild-born.”

“Is that even possible?” Darian asked, taking a step closer.

“It happens a few times a century,” I told him. “We’re still waiting on the lab work but sniff him and you’ll see.”

“I’ve never smelled a wild-born wolf before,” Darian said.

“You’ll know. Your wolf will know, anyway,” Lee said.

Darian inched closer to Lee and the pup as if he was afraid Lee might bite him. I didn’t blame our Alpha for being so tentative. His true-mate, Wrynn, was known as a biter when it came to pregnancy and his children.

“We’re keeping him,” Lee said, squaring his shoulders.

“Saturn and Pluto don’t need a younger brother just yet,” Darian laughed. “He’s all yours.”

“I know. We found him. I had to take him away from his mother,” Lee said.

“Can I sniff him or not, Lee? You’re giving me mixed signals,” Darian laughed.

“You can, but he’s mine. I told her I’d take care of him,” Lee said.

Darian bent low and sniffed the sleeping baby’s belly. When he rose, his eyes had shifted to that of his wolf. The baby was wild-born and our wolves knew it on some deep, primal level. He met my gaze and nodded.

“Do we have a protocol for the paper work associated with wild-born pups?” he asked me.

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