Page 24 of True for You

“Why? What’s all that for?” I ask, my breath coming out in harsh pants as the pain rises higher. But I cling to Parker’s words, cling to the sound of his deep, smooth voice.

“Isn’t it obvious? I’m getting my place ready for you to move in.”

My eyes snap up to meet his, the room seeming to fade away until it’s just the two of us. The pain slowly becomes dull, an afterthought as I become too focused on Parker. “Wait? Really?”

“Yeah,” he says gently, a smile across his face that makes my knees a little weak. “I want you with me always. Is that something you want, too?”

“Yes,” I breathe out without a second thought. “Holy shit. Absolutely. I wanna wake up in the morning next to you and fall asleep with you holding me.”

“Me too. How’re you feeling?”

I take stock of my body, smiling up at Parker. “Contraction has passed. And now I’m feeling more energized than I was before. I’m ready to get his baby out of me so I can go home. Toour home.”

Parker takes my face in his hands, kissing my lips gently. “God, I just love you so much.”

Some people might describe us as clingy but in my eyes, this is literal perfection. Parker helps me back to my room and within an hour, I’m laying back and letting out a sigh of relief as the pain slowly fades.

“Why don’t we get needles in our spines more often?” I ask with a grin across my face, the relief of not being in pain making me borderline giddy.

“Probably because it’s not safe to do on the regular unless done by a professional. That would probably be my guess.”

I stare at Parker for a moment before making a fart noise with my lips and giggling. In response, Parker runs a cool washcloth across my face. Such a good alpha. I’m glad the universe stuck us together. I feel so incredibly lucky. He loves me even when I’m silly, even when I demand cuddles, even when touch becomes too much and I need some space. Loving him comes as easily as breathing.

He’s by my side the entire day, talking me through my contractions and holding my hand through the pain. Every time I think about giving up, Parker is there to cheer me on and keep me going.

About an hour after getting my epidural, a cry rings through the room as Harrison and Derek’s baby is being born. The fight goes out of me all at once now that I don’t need it and I lay back, a sigh leaving my lips at beingdone. The doctor lets me see their little girl, my inner omega needing to see that she’s okay. God, I did it. I actually fucking did it. She’sbeautiful, letting out a scream to let us all know she’s okay. Tears prickle at my eyes at the sight of her.

A nurse brings Derek and Harrison into the room and Derek takes his daughter. The look of awe on their faces makes the tears building up behind my lids fall down my cheeks. I know without a shadow of a doubt that they are gonna love this little girlsomuch. She’ll never spend a minute wondering if she’s loved or not. And for some reason, they allowedmeto be a part of this.

A sob breaks through my throat without my permission. Harrison looks over, his eyes just as wet as mine. They come over to my bed, holding their little girl so I can see her. I reach out and trace my finger over her cheek. She’s so perfect. I’m not sure I’ve ever felt this fucking happy for someone else before but these two? I’m not sure I could top this feeling of joy at being able to help them have this little family.

“Thank you,” Harrison manages to get out through his tears, just as overcome with emotion as I am. “Thank you so much, Christopher.”

I hold out my hand and Harrison takes it, squeezing it tight. “You’re so welcome. I’m not sure there’s anyone else I’d rather do this for. I love you guys.”

“We love you too,” Derek says, carefully putting his daughter against his chest so he can bend down and kiss my forehead.

“Do you have a name for her?”

“We wanted to honor what you’ve done for us,” Harrison explains softly. “So her first name is Kristina, a nod to Christopher.”

And somehow he’s managed to make me cry even harder. Parker is there to hold me and wipe my tears, murmuring how proud he is of me, how much he loves and adores me. His soft touches against my face help soothe me, calming me down and bringing me back into the moment.

“I’m so fucking proud of you,” he whispers in my ear as the four of us stare down at Kristina.

“I’m proud of me too. While I was in pain I kept wondering how people manage to have more than one pup because that was fucking awful but now, staring down at Kristina, Igetit. I’m ready to do this all again already,” I say with a chuckle before looking up at Parker. I know I must have hearts in my eyes but I don’t care. I don’t have to hide myself from my alpha.

“Let’s give it a little time,” Parker says with a wide smile. “I wanna enjoy being mated for a bit before we start having our own pups.”

“That’s a good plan,” I say through a wide yawn, snuggling against the pillows behind me.

“Go to sleep, baby. I’ll make sure everything is alright while you get some rest. You earned it.”

“Okay,” I whisper, my eyes becoming harder and harder to keep open. My last thought before falling asleep is again, just how lucky I am to have this family beside me and a mate who loves and adores me so much.

Epilogue

Parker

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