Chapter Twelve

Lying on his stomach, Delta stared over the side of the bed at the enormous wolf sleeping on the floor. Was it Kalen, or did they have a pet wolf Delta was unaware of?

Easing off the bed, he tiptoed to one of two dressers and dug through the drawers until he found a shirt to put on. Kalen must've taken the other one off since Delta had woken up in nothing but his boxers.

He stood in front of the mirror and looked at his stomach, shocked when he saw nothing but flawless skin. There wasn't even the tiniest blemish to indicate he'd ever been shot. He couldn't even see any blood on his stomach.

After pulling the oversized shirt on, Delta quietly exited the room and closed the door behind him. Until he knew more about the wolf, he wasn't comfortable being in the same room with it.

Delta squawked when he was hugged tightly and lifted off his feet and dangled in the air. He waved his arms wildly while praying Elvine didn't drop him. How in the hell was the tiny fairy, shit, fae so damn strong?

"You protected my mate!"

She spun him around in a circle several times, and Delta was five seconds away from throwing up. "I'm so glad you're okay, Daddy Frost!"

"Elvine, put the human down,"

Jax snarled.

"Please…"

Delta swallowed a few times. "I'm about to be sick."

"I was thanking him for protecting Arion, McSnarly!"

Elvine finally touched down.

When she let go of him, Delta pressed his back into the wall and closed his eyes, praying everything stopped spinning. He drew in a few deep breaths then opened his eyes…and froze.

Oh hell. It was no longer just Elvine and Jax in the hallway. Now the twins were standing there, staring curiously at him. Delta started to think he should have stayed in the room with the wolf instead of having three massive men with intense gazes towering over him.

They'd already met, so he had no idea why they were eyeing him this way. Were they upset he'd brought trouble to their home? "Look, I had no clue—"

"I think we should just call him by his given name."

Jaytee ran his fingers over his beard. "Elvine already calls him Daddy Frost."

"But he's dad's mate,"

Damon argued earnestly as he tossed a hand toward Delta. "He should have a special title."

"A lot of people call their stepparents by their first name,"

Jaytee countered.

Stepparent. Delta felt dizzy, but that could've just been from Elvine twirling him around.

Jax just kept staring at him like he was a puzzle to figure out. Maybe the guy was silently stealing his soul.

Jaytee turned toward him. "We just wanted to talk to you, not rename you."

He glared at Damon.

"Or intimidate the hell out of me?"

Delta inwardly cursed at the squeak in his voice. It was bad enough he'd admitted to being afraid. He didn't need to sound like he was going through puberty again.

"We intimidate you?"

Jaytee furrowed his brows as all three took a step back. "Do you have any idea of your position in this family?"

"First, we're not a threat to you, Delta, ever."

Jax crossed his arms, his brows pinched together. "Second, you have no idea what our father would do to us if we even thought of raising our voice to you, let alone scare you."

"Kill us,"

Damon murmured. "In the most painful, brutal way imaginable."

Clearing his throat so he didn't squeak again, Delta chucked a thumb over his shoulder. "Is that wolf your dad, or is it a pet?"

All three of them chuckled. "This is the first time you've seen his wolf?"

Jaytee asked.

" Hello . We just met yesterday morning."

Though Delta had to admit they'd been through a lot since then. He still couldn't believe someone had broken into the house and shot him.

Don't think about that right now. Don't even ask how you're not dead. Not until you're ready to process this, if ever.

Another sinking realization struck him as he glanced at Damon's swollen belly.

If he was their…that meant…

Delta was going to be a grandfather at the ripe old age of twenty-five. He pressed his hand to his stomach as he felt his legs give out from under him. All three men shot forward to grab him before he hit the floor.

* * * *

"What do you think is wrong with him?"

Damon furrowed his brows.

Jaytee had no idea as he squatted next to Delta, but he wanted to figure it out before Kalen woke up and found his mate passed out on the hallway floor. "Hurry up and go get Casimir, Damon."

Damon waddled away at a slow pace. Jaytee was confident in his mate's magical abilities, but what if they'd missed something? What if an organ was failing or he had a slow leak in his gut?

Jaytee wasn't going to pretend he knew jack-shit about medicine, but he'd watched plenty of ER shows to know things could go sideways pretty fast.

"I blame Damon."

Jax scowled as the two of them squatted next to the human. "He just had to go and mention a brutal and painful killing. Delta is already traumatized by his shooting. He doesn't need to be reminded of it."

True, but Jaytee didn't think that was it. "I'm leaning more toward his injury."

Although he wanted to check and make sure, he wasn't insane enough to lift Delta's shirt, especially when the human didn't have any pants on.

When Kalen's bedroom door opened, Jaytee jumped to his feet and backed away like he was guilty of some wrongdoing. "Delta just passed out. I sent Damon to get Casimir."

His father, dressed in a pair of flannel pajama pants and a T-shirt, glanced at the floor before he dropped to one knee and lifted Delta into his arms. "Why was he out here?"

"We don't know,"

Jax replied.

Jaytee thought about how they'd rushed into the kitchen early this morning after hearing a gunshot and found Delta bleeding out on the floor. He'd never seen his father so shaken, not since their mother had died.

Kalen was the epitome of strength and calm, of leadership, but at that moment, he looked as if he would shatter.

Jaytee's heart had constricted, because it had been obvious that Delta wasn't going to make it.

Having already experienced losing his mate, Jaytee knew the pain his father would have gone through and how Kalen would have wished for death himself.

All three fae had saved Kalen from losing his mate and, in turn, saved Jaytee and his siblings from losing their father, which Jaytee would always be eternally grateful for.

* * * *

Kalen rubbed his hand down Delta's side as he stood in the hallway, worried that his mate had passed out. What if there was still something wrong with him? Maybe he should call Dr. Baldwin. The lion shifter had been making house calls ever since Damon and Elvine became pregnant.

The visits were more frequent now that the two were close to giving birth. The ends of their conception circles were nearly touching, which meant they could have their pups at any time.

And Kalen couldn't wait. But right now, he had to figure out what was wrong with his mate.

"I have to… I swear I know more about my bathroom than I need to. I'll be right back. Don't do anything exciting without me."

Elvine walked away as fast as her belly would let her.

Delta groaned as his eyelids fluttered open, gracing Kalen with his green-gray beauties. "How are you feeling, muffin?"

"I'm only twenty-five,"

Delta whispered.

"I know how old you are, sweetheart."

Kalen wasn't sure why his mate was bringing up his age. Had it hit him that he was mated to someone over three hundred and now he was having regrets?

Even if Kalen wanted to, which he didn't, there was no undoing their bond. Their souls were connected for all eternity.

Delta tried to glance over Kalen's arm. "Damon and Elvine are pregnant."

"Yes, they are."

He still didn't see his mate's point, and he was even more confused since there was no correlation between his age and their pregnancies.

His mate glanced up at him, his eyes wide. "I'm going to be a grandfather."

Was that… Shit. Kalen was relieved. It had been a worry of his that Delta would freak out when he discovered he was going to be a grandfather, but after what they'd just been through, it seemed like a minor issue to him now.

"I thought it was something serious."

Damon rolled his eyes as he waddled toward them. "All that panic over being a grandparent."

" I'm only twenty-five !"

Delta stressed, wiggling in Kalen's arms.

Kalen set his mate on his feet then swept his gaze over the guy, appreciating how his mate looked wearing his clothes. It felt like Delta had claimed Kalen just because he was wearing one of his T-shirts.

Delta spun and jabbed a finger at Jax and the twins. "Grandpas are supposed to be wrinkled and have gray hair coming out of their ears. Do I look wrinkled and gray to you?"

"Which one of us are you asking?"

Jaytee frowned.

Kalen didn't look like an old man. He still looked damn good for someone his age.

"My dad isn't wrinkled and gray."

Jax spoke Kalen's thoughts.

" Ugh ! That's not the point!"

Delta was still jabbing a finger toward them, an adorable squint on his face. "I'm still dealing with the fact I'm a stepfather to three grown wolf shifters. Now I feel like I need to get a pipe and a rocking chair."

"My dad can build you a rocking chair if you want one."

Jaytee winked. "He's damn good with his hands."

His smile faded before he grimaced. "That came out so wrong."

Kalen chuckled when Delta's face exploded with heat. It was clear his mate was thinking about the intimate night they'd shared. Kalen sure as hell was. He could still taste Delta's skin, still feel every touch, hear every whimper and pleading word for him to fuck his mate faster and harder.

Shit. He was semihard just thinking about how breathtaking Delta looked sitting on his cock.

"Never you mind what he can do with his… God!"

Delta spun and buried his face in Kalen's chest.

Kalen curled his arms around his mate, hugging him close, thankful nothing serious was wrong with him.

Jax grinned until he caught Kalen's scowl. The smile vanished. "Come on, Dad,"

he said with a small huff. "You have to admit this is kind of funny."

"Dude,"

Jaytee groaned. "Please stop talking about our parents' sex life. It's not something I ever want to think about."

"It would be totally hilarious if Delta got pregnant too,"

Damon teased. "Ooh, give us a sister!"

Delta stiffened in his arms.

"That's enough,"

Kalen snarled then whispered, "I promise you can't get pregnant, muffin, though we can have one hell of a time trying."

Damon held his hands over his ears. "Lalalala. I didn't hear that."

"Unfortunately, we did."

Jax scowled.

"This coming from a guy who's knocked up,"

Kalen reminded his son. He'd known they could hear him, and he was having some fun messing with his boys. It felt damn good too. They'd found their mates first, and Kalen had been subjected to all kinds of noises late at night that he wished he hadn't been. More than one person was not a quiet lover.

Now it was his turn to send them to therapy.

"This is different."

Damon gestured to his stomach.

"How?"

Kalen arched a brow. "Although I'm ecstatic about becoming a grandfather, it only shows that you and your mate…"

He pursed his lips. Kalen wasn't crass, especially since Casimir stood there. To his surprise, the warrior puffed out his chest with pride.

"We're the younger generation,"

Jax interjected, swinging his finger between himself and his siblings. "We're supposed to have pups. You're our dad. It's just…weird."

"I'll have you know I'm still a virile man,"

Kalen stated firmly just as Elvine joined them in the hallway. She stuck her fingers in her ears, turned, and walked back into her bedroom.

Kalen wished she hadn't heard that. She was about to give birth to Jax's and Arion's child, but she was still virtuous in his eyes.

"How did we even get on this topic?"

Jaytee shook his head. "Delta, I'm sorry you're going to be a grandfather when you're in the prime of your life, but you do realize you have a good 700 years ahead of you, so maybe this isn't so bad?"

Goddamn it. As much as Kalen loved his sons, there were times, like now, he wanted to wring their necks.

Delta's head shot up, staring wide-eyed at Kalen as his lips parted. "Did he just say 700 years?"

"Thanks, son,"

Kalen growled.

"Jeez!"

Jaytee palmed his face before he dropped his hand. "You didn't have the talk with him?"

"Guys…"

Damon said.

"What talk?"

Delta pulled from Kalen's arms. Had his mate paled? He looked like he'd paled. "Why didn't you tell me about this?"

"We've had a lot of things going on."

Kalen glared at Jaytee. That was the second time his son had revealed something to Delta before Kalen had a chance to talk to him. It was surprising Delta hadn't run from their home screaming with everything he'd learned so far.

If he didn't talk to Delta soon, there wouldn't be a point at the rate Jaytee kept disclosing things.

"Guys…"

Damon repeated.

"Dad, you cannot kick my ass over this,"

Jaytee argued. "It isn't my fault you haven't talked to your mate about…stuff."

" Stuff? What stuff?"

Delta demanded, crossing his arms while glaring at him. Kalen wondered how comfortable the couch was, because it looked like he might be sleeping on it tonight. "What haven't you told me, Kalen?"

"Guys!"

Damon shouted.

The hallway fell silent as everyone turned to look at him. Damon was scowling as he held his stomach with both hands. " I think you need to call Dr. Baldwin. The pain in my belly is getting worse."

"What pain, n ékah ?"

Casimir's eyes bulged, pure panic in his voice.

"The pain"—Damon panted as he gripped Casimir's arm—"that started about thirty minutes ago. Whoa!"

His brows shot up. "Holy fuck, this hurts! Nuh-uh. No way. I'm not doing this. I'll just be pregnant for—"

He gritted his teeth, both hands now clutching Casimir's arm in a white-knuckled grip.

"Take him to your bedroom and lay him down while I make the call."

Kalen barked the order at Casimir before he bolted into his room to call the doctor, Delta racing behind him.

"Please tell me our argument didn't throw Damon into labor,"

his mate pleaded.

Kalen grabbed his cell phone and dialed, at the same time pulling Delta into his side. "Muffin, that was not an argument. That was a normal family discussion. Hey, Dr. Baldwin. Need you at my place. Damon just went into labor."

"On my way,"

Dr. Baldwin said then hung up.

"How exactly is Damon going to have the baby?"

Delta scratched his head. "I mean, where is it going to come out of?"

Dr. Baldwin had explained how the dark line on Damon's stomach—the one that stretched from his navel to his pelvic bone—would open, kinda of like a C-section, and that was how the baby would be born.

However his grandchild had to come into the world, Kalen didn't care. Just as long as the pup and Damon were okay.

Delta's brows shot up when they heard Damon cursing up a storm. "That doesn't sound good."

Considering their rooms weren't that close, and the human could hear his son, that said something.

"It's very painful to bring a child into the world, muffin."

His mate glanced cautiously at him. "Are you one hundred percent sure I can't get pregnant? Because from the way Damon is cursing at Casimir, if there's even a remote possibility, you can forget about me dropping my underwear for you ever again."

He growled and yanked Delta close then cupped his nicely rounded ass. "You'd really keep this from me?"

Delta groaned, pushing his ass against Kalen's hands. Fuck. If his mate kept making those sounds and grinding against his palms, they were going to end up in bed.

"Answer my question first, big guy."

His mate pushed backward like he was desperate to get fucked.

As badly as Kalen wanted to bend his mate over and pound into his tight ass, they needed to head to Damon and Casimir's room to watch the birth of their grandchild.

But it wasn't easy letting Delta go. Not when he looked so needy. Kalen nipped him just below the ear, growling softly. He couldn't help it. They were newly mated, and Kalen wanted to fuck him on every flat or curved surface in his bedroom and on his balcony.

But he needed to talk with Delta about "stuff"

first. As well as what had transpired in the kitchen that led up to his mate getting shot.

Alan was still locked in one of the guest bedrooms, the windows nailed shut. If Damon hadn't gone into labor, Kalen would be dealing with all of that right now.

"I promise you can't get pregnant, muffin. The only reason Damon is about to give birth is because of a… very complicated story. I'll tell you about it after we watch our grandchild come into this world."

He leaned down to kiss his mate, but the guy shoved away from him.

"You don't seriously expect me to go in there, do you?"

Delta actually paled…again.

"It's a family gathering, sweetheart. We're all going to be in there."

They'd discussed it one night at the dinner table, leaving the decision up to Damon and Casimir. Kalen had told them there would be no hard feelings if they wanted privacy during childbirth, but the two said they wanted family around them.

"I just…"

Delta glanced away.

Kalen tucked his fingers under Delta's chin, coaxing his mate to look at him. "What is it, hon?"

This still didn't feel real to Kalen. His mate was really standing in front of him. The most beautiful man he'd ever seen.

The only time in Kalen's life when he hadn't been on the lookout for his mate was when he was married.

Chelsea would forever hold a special place in Kalen's heart. He had loved her deeply, and she had given him three amazing sons, but she hadn't been his mate. Even while married to her, it always felt as if something was missing inside of Kalen, but not once had he made her feel like she wasn't everything to him.

But now, for the first time in his life, he finally felt complete.

"I know we're mates, but we just met,"

Delta explained. "This is an intimate, joyous moment for your family. I don't belong in there. I'm practically a stranger, and I refuse to—"

Kalen kissed the doubt right out of his mate. The man was insane if he thought he didn't belong here. Delta stood at the head of this family, right at Kalen's side.

"You're a Frost, Delta,"

he said after he pulled his lips away. "Whether you've been here a second or a decade, you're a part of this family."

"Are you guys coming?"

Jaytee asked when he stepped into the doorway. He cocked his head to the side and studied Delta in Kalen's arms. Then he smiled. "Despite that stupid conversation in the hallway, you two look good together. I'm really happy for you, Dad. For both of you."

"Thanks."

Kalen smiled, giving a single nod. It meant everything to him that his sons liked and got along with his mate. "I can't join you though."

"Are you serious? Why not?"

Jaytee appeared bewildered. "Damon and Casimir want us there."

Raidh joined them, standing close to his mate as he looked between Kalen and Delta, and then he gave Kalen a soft smile.

"I'm not going if my mate refuses to be in there with us,"

Kalen replied. "He thinks he isn't a part of this family since we just met yesterday."

"You did not just put me on blast."

Delta looked incredulously at him.

"But you are family,"

Raidh interjected. "You're Kalen's mate."

Delta handed Jaytee and Raidh the same argument he'd just given Kalen. That was why Kalen had said something in front of them. He could try to convince Delta until he was blue in the face, but his mate still wouldn't believe him.

Sometimes hearing it from someone else made all the difference.

"I get it,"

Raidh said. "When I met Jaytee, I was running from my father."

He held up his hand. "A very long story I'll tell you about another time. Anyway, his family rallied around me even though they didn't even know me." He walked into the room, Delta meeting him halfway. Kalen could see by his mate's expression he really did want to belong, but there was so much chaos going on that Delta felt as if he was in the way.

If Kalen had been able to spend more time with him, to ease him into this new life, his mate might not have felt like an outsider right now. But it would also go a long way if the entire family made Delta feel welcomed, like he was one of them.

Raidh touched Delta's arm. "They're fierce, loyal, and the kindest men I know. If they make you a part of their family, believe me, you're stuck with them."

He chuckled. "Please, join us for this special occasion."

Raidh lowered his voice. "I'm terrified to see how he's going to give birth. Us non-birthing males gotta stick together. That way, if either of us passes out, the other can make fainting look badass."

"You just cursed,"

Kalen pointed out with a frown. "Since when do you say cuss words?"

Raidh blushed as his brows hiked to his hairline. "Your son has corrupted me!"

Kalen glared at Jaytee. He liked the fact Raidh and Elvine didn't use profanity. Honestly, their own version of "curse"

words was hilarious and wholesome.

Something a pack of wolves sorely needed.

Although Kalen had raised his boys the best he could, without a woman's soft touch, all of them were rough around the edges, including him.

Until mates started showing up and softening them in ways the Frost men had needed.

"I can't believe you just threw me under the bus, Moonbeam."

Jaytee growled as he hooked an arm around Raidh and embraced him.

"It's true,"

Raidh defended. "And I'm not having your dad ticked off at me."

"But he can be pissed at me?"

Jaytee looked in disbelief at his mate.

"Yep."

Raidh grinned. "You have strong muscles. You can handle it."

The doorbell chimed throughout the house. "Dr. Baldwin is here."

Kalen glanced at Delta, waiting for his decision.

"Fine, but if I faint, Raidh better make me look badass as hell."

Delta huffed before he walked out of the bedroom. Kalen smiled so widely his damn cheeks hurt.

Jaytee chucked him on the arm. "Being mated looks good on you, Dad."

Kalen growled. "Stop corrupting my sweet son-in-law."

"Yes, sir."

Jaytee grabbed Raidh's hand and hurried from the room.

With a chuckle, Kalen shook his head. Mating did look good on him. It sure as hell felt good, too.