Page 25 of Such a Tempting Omega

We were fathers now.

And we had some work to do.

“Renee?” Liam started as he got us on the road.

“Sasha?”

“Maggie?”

“Athena?

We had alotof work to do.

Chapter Twenty-One

Liam

With Hirsch getting closer to his due date, the healer warned us that he’d need to avoid shifting soon. Until now, we’d been going out about once a week, but after Romeo’s instructions, we decided to do a shifter date night and go out with a bang.

I had some ideas, but my omega wanted to take charge, and in the interest of bolstering his rising confidence, and because I’d do anything to see his eyes sparkle the way they did when he told me, “I got this, alpha,” I agreed to step back and leave the plans for our last shift before the baby’s arrival in his capable hands.

“And it has to be a surprise,” he insisted. “So don’t try to trick me into telling you where we’re going.”

I didn’t point out that I never tried to trick him because he was practically bouncing off the ceiling with excitement, and as he’d gotten rounder, he’d done very little bouncing. “No tricking, wolf’s honor.”

That was two days ago, and as the appointed time to leave for our shifting date grew close, my omega made a few trips out to stash things in the trunk of the car while I pretended not to notice. I hadn’t asked what the dress code was, since we’d be wearing fur for most of the evening.

When he shifted, he carried his pregnancy bump in a different way that barely showed, and he seemed to move more freely and comfortably. He’d miss these evenings, mini vacations from the waddling caused by his altered shape, but I hoped knowing the baby was coming soon would help.

“Ready!” Hirsch made his way down the stairs. “If you are.”

“Absolutely. I assume we’re driving somewhere?” Which meant me because he’d lost his ability to fit comfortably behind the steering wheel the week before.

“Yes, but I’m only giving you one instruction at a time, for secrecy purposes.”

“As long as I have time to safely make the turn or exist the highway or whatever, I’m intrigued.” I helped him out to the car and into the passenger seat. The belt still fit over him, but I had bought an extender—without telling him for fear of hurting his feelings—in case it became necessary in the near future.

He guided me onto the highway leading toward the mountains, but he did not have me take the road upward. Instead, we exited on a small two lane that wound between them. We were just about the only vehicles on it, only passing two others coming toward us as we followed a stream and crossed a bridge before Hirsch had me park at a trailhead.

This time of year, it was cold in the higher altitudes, but down here, our fur would be more than adequate. I might not be in charge of the planning of this date, but I did have my omega’s welfare in mind. We exited the car, and Hirsch went around back where he withdrew two sets of wolf-sized saddlebags.

“They’re set up so we can wriggle into them after we shift, and out before we shift back,” he asserted proudly. “It’s fur time!” He pulled his shirt over his head and flexed his shoulders. “This is going to feel great.”

“Can I ask questions now that we’re here?” I inquired, always concerned about safety.

“This is a place I’ve only been once,” Hirsch told me. “Right after I moved to the area, I heard that it was special, and I ventured out by myself. I’ve never been here with anyone else, and never wanted to bring anyone until now. Will you trust me to take us the rest of the way?”

“As long as there’s nothing dangerous that I need to be aware of in advance.”

“Not really. Nothing our wolves won’t be comfortable with.” He stepped out of his expando-waist paternity pants, kicking off his shoes at the same time. When he was completely undressed, he tucked his clothing in the trunk and donned his fur, a sight I always loved. He was magnificent in both forms, more so now that he carried our young. Then, he demonstrated how he indeed could get into the harness before sitting on his haunches while I joined him in fur and managed to don the saddlebags as well.

With less grace than he had.

We trotted along the trail that continued to follow the stream, but after twenty minutes or so, he took a side path following a much narrower trickle of water up and around a series of boulders. I was getting more and more curious about our ultimate destination and how much longer we’d be traveling. Hirsch was moving easily, and I wouldn’t deny him this freedom for anything, but if we went too much longer, we’d be out here all night just traveling.

And then, I followed him past a flat-topped rock that towered over us and came into a place of magic.

Steam rose from pools that glowed in the moonlight. Or maybe from within themselves because the colors were extraordinary. We weren’t in a cave, but the boulders all around, just leaving enough of an opening at the top for the moon to show herself, gave an underground feeling. My wolf tipped back his head and howled at the sorcery of the Goddess to create such beauty.

---