17. Cedric

There had been so many changes in my life recently, and it was hard to keep up with them all. I almost created a spreadsheet or maybe a time to remind myself of where I'd started and how far I'd come.

If I'd been asked when Adrian and I broke up where I saw myself in six months or a year, I would have said alone and looking for another job, hoping to meet someone I could share my life with, but not only had I strayed from that lane, I'd leaped and taken a boat and a plane and who knew what else to find the path that was right for me.

We'd discussed marking one another, and while it wasn't against shifter law, Gage said it wasn't usual to mate when the omega was pregnant. But my response was, "But if the omega is human, do those rules apply?"

He'd thought about it and decided they didn't, so now I had a red mating scar on my shoulder, from his beast's claws, that would fade to silver, while Gage had a mark from my teeth over his heart.

"Hello, baby. If you can hear me, I'm your alpha dad. The bear guy. My beast is looking forward to meeting you, just as your omega dad and I are."

We were in bed, and it was early. Gage was about to leave for work, but he put his head on my belly and greeted our little one. It was sweet, and it'd become a habit before he left the house.

"I've made tea. Do you want it now or should I put it in the thermos?"

"Now, please." Some mornings I was nauseous and couldn't face an early morning cup of tea, and others, like today, I had lots of energy and couldn't wait to get started.

Harry, Reed, and I were busy planning for the Riverford festival that celebrated the town's origins. There'd be food stalls, games, rides, discussion panels, and vendors like Greg, Reed's mate, would have a selection of books from his store.

We had booked a booth, and people could buy merch. Harry had designed the tees, mugs, and caps with the company's logo. People could sign up for tours of the nature reserve, though places were limited as we kept the human footprint low so as not to ruin the habitat, and we had a designated trail.

Harry and I had been touring Riverford and beyond, giving talks at schools, hoping the next generation would look after the environment better than some of their predecessors.

It was a ton of work which was satisfying, but I'd come home exhausted at the end of each day. That was when I was most happy that we had modern conveniences. No bathing in the river for me. Gage used his old cabin as a workshop, and even he admitted how nice it was to come home after a long day and turn on a light, grab a cold drink, or take a shower.

We hadn't decided what to do about the house in town. Gage had to finish it because we would either live there part of the time or I would sell it. The latter was more likely as I was content living in the woods, knowing the town was close by.

"See you at lunch time, love." Gage kissed my cheek and left.

Every day we'd meet for lunch. Not always at the house because if he was painting or there was a strong smell of glue, I had to stay away because of the baby. We'd meet either in "our" cafe as we called it or in the park near the community center.

The morning flew by, and I was glad to escape the office for an hour. But when I walked into the coffee shop, Mr. Lucas, Mrs. Ambrose, and Harry were at a large table with Gage.

"Didn't I just leave you at the office?" I asked Harry. I was certain he'd been buried in paperwork when I left ten minutes ago.

"I drive fast."

"Too fast," Mr. Lucas muttered.

"How are the renovations progressing?" Mrs. Ambrose put down the menu.

"I'm ahead of schedule." Gage got the waiter's attention, and we ordered.

"If you're looking to sell, I could find you a buyer and you'll make a tidy profit." Mr. Lucas tucked a napkin under his chin.

"We're not sure." I glanced at Gage. While I had bought the place, it was ours. We were a couple, and he was making the house not just livable but bringing it into the twenty-first century.

"I know someone who could rent to buy," Harry added.

Mr. Lucas's lined brow furrowed. "Who?"

"Me, Uncle."

"What?" Everyone in the coffee shop swiveled their heads toward our table. Mr. Lucas's red face matched his screech.

"It's time I moved out. Got my own place."

"But… but…" the older man spluttered. "I don't like it."

"Dear, Harry needs his space." Mrs. Ambrose patted her mate's hand. "He'll only be a few minutes away."

"I don't like change." The older man sat back in his chair and folded his arms.

Considering Mr. Lucas and Harry had worked and started a multitude of businesses—most of which were done to match two people together—that was a little strange, as their lives were in constant flux.

"Don't worry, Uncle, I'll come for dinner every night."

"You'd better." Mr. Lucas turned his attention to me and Gage while we waited for the food. "You might need an extra bedroom in your place."

Gage and I shared a glance. "For Harry?" Gage asked.

"Is there something you want to share, Harry?"

"No." He glared at Mr. Lucas. "I think Uncle is talking about your cabin, not the house in town."

Would we get home this evening and find our home had an additional bedroom? Living in this quasi human-shifter-fae world was a balancing act, and I was never sure what was possible, what was a dream and what was completely normal.

"Are you saying Cedric is having twins?" Gage took my hand.

"Twins?" I squeaked.

Most humans would have had a scan or a visit to the doctor or midwife by now, but I was mated to a shifter, and despite all the shifters in my life saying I had a baby not a bear in any tummy, I wasn't about to prove them wrong by going to a human-run clinic.

"No, I didn't say that." Mr. Lucas's testy voice suggested he needed a nap or a change of scenery. Perhaps Harry wanting to move out had put him in a bad mood. "But you'll need a spare room for an office or if you have another child."

Our cabin was on land Mr. Lucas owned. We hadn't broached the idea of us buying the land and the cabin. It was at the bottom of a very long to-do list. Or maybe we could swap with Harry. We got the deed to the cabin—if there was such a thing in Mr. Lucas's world—and I put the house in town in his name. Maybe, but Gage and I would have to discuss it first.

"We know a shifter midwife if you'd like their contact details." I was thankful to Mrs. Ambrose for changing the subject. We thanked her, and the rest of the meal was taken up with talk of the festival.

When Gage and I walked out, he asked if making an appointment with the midwife was something I wanted to do. I agreed and called and got an appointment after work. I was beset by doubts. In theory, finding out information about the baby in your belly was exciting, but I was concerned they'd find something wrong.

How often did humans mate with shifters? From the couples Harry talked about, there were a lot in Riverford thanks to him and Mr. Lucas, but that didn't assure me it was the norm. And regarding my baby, I didn't want to be the omega who was different, who stood out. I wanted my baby to be like every other little one.

The midwife's home was in Riverford. I'd expected it to be outside in the hills where many of the shifters lived. Zac welcomed us into his office which was in a separate building at the back of his house. The waiting area reminded me of any other clinic I'd visited, and my heart rate slowed, thinking maybe I could get through this.

"Your palm's sweaty." Gage nudged me.

And like that, my heart rate spiked again. "Is that bad for pregnant omegas?"

He slung an arm around my shoulder and hugged me close while Zac stood back and waited.

"No. It tells me you're nervous. We can come back another day if you're not ready."

Leaving and returning on a different day would just increase my worries. "No. Let's do this."

Zac led us into the examination room. The ultrasound machine and the examination table were the only two pieces of equipment in the stark white room. I lay down and pulled up my shirt. I was hardly showing, and I just had a tiny pot belly. It was cute, and Gage loved kissing it.

My heart was thumping so loud it might drown out the baby's heartbeat. Gage held my very sweaty hand. Poor guy. Zac smeared the gel over my belly and ran the probe over it. There was silence, except my heart pounding in my ears and a grainy image on the monitor.

I held my breath, thinking maybe I didn't have a baby. It was one of those pretend pregnancies where the omega thought they had a baby in their belly but only had the symptoms of pregnancy.

But a loud thumping filled the room, and Zac wriggled the probe and measured. I couldn't see much of anything until he moved and the thumping stopped and started up again.

"Oh!"

"Ohhhh," Gage and I said in unison. That was the last thing expectant parents wanted to hear.

But Zac grinned and pointed to two shapes on the monitor. "You're having twins."

"What?" we both yelled before looking at one another.

"How did Mr. Lucas know?" I gripped Gage's hand, no longer worried about the sweat.

"Probably scent. Some shifters, especially dragons, have powers other shifters don't."

We would need an additional room or rooms.