Page 45 of His Prodigal Alpha

Dexter nodded and then his attention drifted to me. I watched his eyes widen when his gaze landed on my sizable bump. “Another one?” He looked between me and Ollie with incredulity. “Another alpha?”

There was no use denying it, so I inclined my head. “Yeah. One more and I’ll call it an epidemic.”

The dragon laughed at that, and some of the weird tension in the room melted away. “I’ll kick Sage’s ass for keeping that tidbit to himself. He’ll tell you Eric is the attention whore, but Sage is just as bad. He likes a bit of drama.”

“We’ve had enough drama to last us a lifetime,” Ollie told him. “Evil religious cults, kidnappings, surprise pregnancies…I’d just like to settle into a normal existence now, please.”

Holding up my hand for a high-five, I said, “Amen to that.”

Ollie slapped his palm against mine and then tapped at his phone screen again before bringing the device to his ear. “Hey,” he spoke, presumably when the person on the other end of the line picked up, “are you working right now?” He looked over at Dexter and smiled. “There’s a surprise at the clinic for you.”

* **

Watching Sage and Dexter reunite was fascinating. The redheaded dragon stood in stunned silence in the doorway for a moment before he stomped forward and slapped the brunette hard across his cleanshaven cheek, then wrenched him in for what appeared to be a bone-crushing hug.

“You asshole,” Sage hissed, but he was squeezing Dexter tightly, “you took your time getting here! And not even a phone call, or an email, or even a text!”

Dexter just laughed. “Consider it payback for not telling me there was another alpha in this hick town.”

“Hey,” Ollie cut in, “we’re standing right here.”

Dexter didn’t seem at all apologetic. “You’re not hicks. You’re the alphas’ mates.”

Ollie, I had learned, was particularly protective of Shifters Sanctuary. He folded his arms and raised an eyebrow. “Nobody living here is a hick, Dexter. We’re all outcast shifters. We’re a pack of good people who care about each other.”

“Uh-huh,” Dexter waved a dismissive hand, and I was back to thinking he was a bit of an asshole, “And you’ve all chosen to settle down in the middle of God-Knows-Where, Iowa. Why not a city, or an idyllic town in Europe or something?”

“He’s just stirring you up,” Sage cut in before Ollie or I gave in to the temptation to hurl a stapler or something at his dragon buddy. “Pushing boundaries is kind of his thing.”

I didn’t see it as pushing boundaries so much as being a jerk, but I held my tongue. Ollie made a non-committal sound that suggested he and I were on similar wavelengths.

“Anyway,” Sage was perceptive enough to catch on to the vibe in the room, “I’ll get Dex out of your hair. We’ve got a lotof catching up to do.”

Dexter smirked at me and Ollie as he was dragged back out the door, calling over his shoulder, “Nice meeting you! We’ll talk about what it’s like to be knotted later!”

When we were certain he was well and truly out of earshot —even for shifter hearing standards— Ollie and I looked at each other and laughed.

“That dude issobringing more drama,” I told my friend, who groaned.

“Which dude?” I looked up to find Rex leaning against the doorframe, his head cocked in curiosity.

Just seeing him made me smile. I probably looked deranged.

“New dragon,” Ollie answered, shaking his head. “He’s a friend of Sage’s, apparently, and a real smartass.”

“Oh, so Dex has finally shown up?” Eric interjected as he led his last patient out of his office. The elderly hedgehog shifter nodded and waved at us all as he ambled past and out the door, but I was more focused on Eric. “He’s not a bad guy. He’s…well,” he sighed and shrugged. “One of those people who’ll soften once you get to know them.”

“Right, well, Beck’s going to love that,” Ollie rolled his eyes and tapped at his phone. “I’ll call and give him the head’s up.” Before he pressed the call button, though, he looked at me pointedly. “Aren’t you going in for your ultrasound?”

I’d completely forgotten about that! No wonder Rex had turned up; he’d been excited about getting to see our kid on the screen.

Ollie snorted before I could answer. “You forgot, didn’t you? Why did you think I came down here? I’m taking over reception while Eric gets his jollies treating you like a lab rat.”

“And here I was thinking you just wanted to chat,” I feignedhurt as Rex crossed the room, before I dropped the act and replaced my pout with another goofy smile when he kissed the top of my head, murmuring a sweet, “Hey, darlin’.”

Channeling the big cat in my soul, I rubbed the top of my head against his jaw.

Ollie just rolled his eyes and pointed towards the hallway. “Get your ass in the consultation room. Your cowboy looks like he’s about to combust.”

---