Chapter fourteen

Zander

Our day at the beach unfortunately is postponed. Thankfully everyone is extremely understanding on account of me literally going into labor!

"Ouch, ouch, ouchie," I murmur sadly, my body going tense all over. I look over at Ronny, narrowing my eyes at him.

"I'm sorry, baby," Ronny says, wrapping his arms around me and running his hands up and down my back. It helps soothe some of the pain lancing through me. "I wish I could do more."

"It's fine," I force myself to say. "I've been through this once before. I can handle this."

"Thankfully," Jeff says, popping his head into our RV, a smile stretching across his face. Gods, I wanna scratch the smile right off his stupid face. How dare he look so happy while I'm in so much pain. "You won't have to do this alone."

I stop the growl that's half formed inside my chest. I take a deep breath, breathing in Ronny's lemon scent and letting it calm me down. It wouldn't be okay to hurt my family. I'm sure they'd forgive me but I would never forgive myself.

"What do you mean?"

"Would it be alright if I came inside?" The voice outside belongs to someone feminine and a small part of my brain registers it as someone I've met before. My inner omega doesn't raise his head in alarm, instead sending me senses of peace that she's here. I trust that inner voice.

"Come on," I call out, watching as a short woman steps in, her hair snow white but for a streak of seafoam green in the front. She smiles at me, her eyes soft yet somehow all knowing. I remember her from Axel's home, the same day Ronny found JJ and I.

"Hello," she says softly, stepping into the bedroom area where Ronny and I are standing. His arms tighten around me but his scent stays steady, trusting this woman in my space and that further relaxes me.

"Star, right?" Ronny asks.

"That's right. And you're Ronny and your mate here is, Zander." I nod. "I've helped a lot of omegas bring their babies into the world and I'd be honored to be leaned on if you needed help as well."

"Thank you," I murmur, feeling a bit out of my depth. "In my old litter, we didn't really have anyone to help us. We just kinda locked ourselves into a closet until it was over."

Ronny stiffens beside me and I wince. He kisses the top of my head, silently letting me know that it's okay and I won't ever have to experience that again.

My eyes move to Ronny's shoulder where my mating mark is left. He took the bandages off this morning and it's healing up really nicely. He's mine and I'm his. I've been through so much in the past but that's exactly what that is, my past. Ronny, JJ, this baby and this crew, they're my future.

"I would love your help," I say, smiling at Star. My smile quickly fades away as my stomach cramps up. Another contraction wracks through me and I grit my teeth. "Fuck."

Star looks over at Ronny. "Alright, your mate needs you. Let's get this kitty relaxed and ready to bring your kitten into the world."

Between the two of them, they get me in bed with warm blankets wrapped around me. Normally, I would be overheating but there's something very primal about making a nest around me. It speaks to my inner cat.

"I need more of your scent," I murmur from beneath my mountain of blankets. "Take off your shirt."

"I could grab one--"

"No. Absolutely not. I need the one you're wearing right now."

"Seriously?"

Star clears her throat, raising her brow at Ronny. Ronny lets out a sigh and starts stripping out of his shirt.

"Yes, thank you," I say, grabbing his shirt and burying my face against the fabric. Oh gods, this is so perfect.

Another contraction goes through me and this one flows over me. I can feel my body preparing for our baby's birth but this time I'm not fighting against the pain, I work with it.

"I think you should get under there with him," Star suggests. "It's just about time to start pushing and he'll want you close."

Ronny shimmies his way under the blankets with me. His warmth and scent cling to me, settling my inner omega. There's pain and heat and pressure, but at the same time I feel acceptance and love and cared for. This is such a stark difference to JJ's birth.

I lay on my right side with Ronny spooned behind me. He carefully lifts my left leg into the air while Star sits at the end of the bed. This is perfect. I'm comfortable and surrounded by Ronny.

"You're doing so well," Ronny whispers into my hair. "You've got this, Zander."

I nod along to his words, concentrating on my body. When I feel the need to push, I bear down with everything I have. I'm not sure how long we do this, breathing through the pain and pushing when my body tells me. It could be minutes. It's more likely it's hours.

"Come on," Star says, her voice spurring me on. "They're right here. Give me one more giant push."

I grit my teeth and give this push everything I have.

"There she is," Star murmurs as my entire body goes slack with relief. It took so much to get her out but now that she's here, my body finally relaxes. Ronny is gentle as he helps me sit up, staying near and helping me hold our daughter for the first time.

"She's beautiful," I murmur, looking down into bright green eyes that match my own. "She's absolutely perfect, Ronny."

Ronny kisses the side of my head and I can feel the love and adoration practically radiating off of him. It warms my very core. "You're amazing. I can't believe you did this, baby."

"I didn't do anything special."

Ronny makes a noise of disbelief. "If you truly believe that then I have to step up my game. I want you to always know how special you truly are just from being yourself."

My heart warms and tears prickle behind my eyes. "I love you," I tell him, leaning against his side. His arms are wrapped around me, helping me support our baby. I feel completely encased in love, unable to escape even if I wanted. Which I don't. Now that I'm here, truly loved and safe for the first time, I can't imagine going back to a life where Ronny isn't there.

"Do you have a name?" Star asks after cleaning everything up. Having her here was exactly what I needed. She guided me into trusting my instincts, making this whole process less stressful, less painful, and now, less messy.

"I was thinking of keeping with the J theme," I tell Ronny with a soft smile. "Do you like Jordan?"

Ronny smiles. "I think that's perfect. You are so very perfect, Jordan."

Star and Ronny help me lean back against a pile of pillows. They help me out of my shirt so Jordan and I can enjoy some skin to skin time. I feel at peace.

The only thing that makes this moment better is when Star lets JJ into the RV to meet his new baby sister. Just as we all suspected, he immediately falls in love with her, whispering how he's going to teach her to shift and take her on walks and always look out for her.

When I pictured my future, it was always filled with gritting my teeth and getting through life as best as I could. It was filled with protecting JJ. But now, I'm allowed to live not only for JJ but for me as well. For a long time I was hunting for something, I just didn't realize that thing was Ronny and ultimately, love.