Page 84 of Packed in the Fire house

“To get our bond verified. At the moment, Gregory has no claim to Luka because he isn't on the birth certificate, right?” I nodded. “Well, if he gets lawyers involved, he could probably try and push for a DNA test and thus be on the birth certificate, giving him rights.”

“But we're bonded, doesn’t it negate that?” I asked, eyes widening. Was there still a way that Gregory could gain access to my son? Shit. Maybe I needed to grab my baby and run far, far away. If I moved to another country, there was no way in hell he was going to find me. It would be too much effort for him. He would rather knock up a new, unsuspecting omega.

Walker’s hands rubbed up and down my forearms as he tried to soothe me. “I can see your mind running a mile a minute. Yes, our bonding means he has no claim to Luka, but at the moment, our bond isn't verified.”

“Verified?” I asked, frowning.

Why would a bond need to be verified? They just…were.

“In situations like this, a pack can go into a lawyer's office and basically sign documents saying that they walked into this bond of their own volition. It's just a legal protection for our bond, so Gregory can't claim that we coerced you into this.”

“But you didn't coerce me into this. If anything, I coerced you into it!” I cried, running my hand through my hair.

All the alphas chuckled.

“Trust me, I wasn't coerced into this,” Walker said.

“But it wasn't really an active decision on your part, either. Would we be lying by signing those papers?”

Walker shook his head. “No, because I was already falling for you when the bonding happened, and I am more than happy to sign. It's an added layer of protection for our family.”

Our family.

“But if we sign those papers, does it officially mean you’re stuck with me?” I asked.

Rune laughed, and Blaze groaned, throwing his head back.

“Sunshine, wewantto be stuck with you.”

“He’s right,” Rune agreed. “We know it's taking some time for you to come around to the idea, but we're going to spend the rest of our lives proving to you how much we want to be with you.”

“Sign the papers,” Walker said, kissing my forehead.

I took a deep breath. “Okay…”

It shouldn't have surprised me that Blaze had a lawyer on speed dial. The next day, we were all standing in Walker's office as the nice, older gentleman talked us through the paperwork.

“So, just so I have everything straight. You're currently only bonded to Walker, but you intend to bond with the other members of the pack?” he asked, looking at me.

I nodded, but before I could speak, Blaze opened his mouth. “We are taking things at her pace.”

The lawyer nodded. “Okay, these papers will suffice, then. But I will say, if this comes to a child custody case, the more members of the pack you're bonded to, the stronger your case will be.”

I gaped at him. “Seriously?”

He nodded. “It's basically a lot of politics, but it's the way the legal system works. Honestly, though, I have no concerns about this. You should be able to retain complete custody of your child. The single bond you have with Walker is enough. Now if you sign here, I will notarize it, and it will all be official. Also, a proper address wouldn’t go amiss. The courts wouldn’t exactly approve of a child living in a firehouse.”

Walker nodded. “That’s already in motion,” he assured him.

I gave him a startled glance. What did he mean, a proper address was in motion?

With shaky hands, I signed the papers, as did every one of the guys.

Once I was done, the lawyer smiled at me. “Congratulations on joining Pack Landry. Now, one more thing before I head to my next appointment. Will you be taking the pack name?”

I paused. The pack name. I hadn't even considered that.

“You guys don't all use the pack name, do you?” I asked, looking at the guys.

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