21. Jude

Chapter 21

Jude

Winter turned to spring, and spring to summer. It was, in fact, the hottest summer we'd had in a decade, which wasn't doing Morgan any favors. As the months wore on, he just kept getting bigger and bigger, and the heat was really getting to him. He looked about ready to burst at this point, his belly button poking out under the extreme pressure, but we had no way of knowing for sure when he was due. His pregnancy had gone on far longer than any shifter, but Vesta insisted this was a normal length for a human.

"I don't know how you humans do it," I said, shaking my head. "Nine months? That's three quarters of a whole year!"

Morgan laughed, tilting his head back on the soft edge of the inflatable kiddie pool he was currently sitting in, his round abdomen sticking out of the water. "I promise, it's nothing new. We've been doing it for hundreds of thousands of years. I'll get through it."

I huffed, grabbing the sunscreen and squirting it into my palm. "I wish you would at least agree to go see a human baby doctor," I grumbled, rubbing the lotion on his exposed belly. "Too many things could go wrong. Breach birth, placental abruption, lack of oxygen, excessive bleeding, infection—" I started counting off on my fingers.

"Someone's been reading too many baby books before bed," he teased, cutting me off. "I already told you, I'm not going to go to a human doctor who might see something weird on an ultrasound, like pointy ears or a tail. Forget it, I won't be the reason for any overly nosy doctors to start asking questions. Besides, it'll be fine. Vesta told me so."

"Vesta? Seriously?" My eyes flicked over to where the shaman was sitting in the center of the clearing with Pax. "You want to put your total trust in her like that?"

Morgan shrugged, totally unbothered. "Sure, why not? She's never steered anyone wrong yet."

" Yet being the key word," I mumbled, pouting.

Vesta was all too aware of her mind beginning to let go, and though she'd made her peace with it, she wasn't ready to die just yet. She said she still had time left, but I'd noticed that she'd picked up the pace of her lessons with Pax, as if there was a sense of urgency.

Pax wasn't even two yet, but he had incredible patience to work with Vesta. At this moment, he was sitting cross-legged in front of the old woman, his eyes closed, while she instructed him on how to breathe.

"In… now out… Relax your shoulders, and make sure you draw breath deep into your belly. That's it… Feel your third eye open, and welcome whatever you see."

I turned away from the scene. I had mixed feelings about the whole thing. Pax was too young to be thrown into the deep end with scrying and shamanism, though it seemed like it would happen whether he was ready or not. Vesta was doing what she could to prepare him, and in the end, Pax wasn't my son. Tristan and Dylan were doing the best they could.

Bringing my attention back to my mate, I grabbed the floppy wide-brimmed hat he'd thrown aside and plopped it right back on his head, covering half his face.

Morgan whined, pulling it off and giving me a wounded expression. "Juuuude, come on! It's too hot for a hat. I'm already in the shade. What more do you want?"

"I want my sexy, sweet, beautifully fragile mate to be safe. You could get a sunburn or melanoma. If you won't go see the baby doctor, then you should at least wear the hat." I gave him those puppy-dog eyes I found worked on him so well. "Please? For me?" I was still a big strong alpha, but I couldn't deny how effective it was to show a little weakness now and then.

Morgan huffed but put the hat back on, trying his best to glare around the smile teasing at his lips. "Fine." He tried to cross his arms over his chest, but there wasn't enough room anymore. His chest seemed to be shrinking in proportion to his stomach growing. "You worry too much."

I pretended to give it some thought. "Nope, I worry a perfect amount. Maybe it's that you don't worry enough." I peeked at him as he attempted to roll onto his side, sloshing water over the edge of the pool. "Although, I think you like me worrying about you."

He smiled fondly up at me. "I really do." His smile became strained, though, as he tried to roll the other way. "I can't get comfortable."

"Is the water too warm? I can add some cold." I was already getting up to grab the hose. This wasn't the first time I'd swapped out some of the water. Anything we took out of the kiddie pool went to water the garden next. In a summer this hot, we wouldn't waste a drop .

A door to one of the new cabins opened, and Dad peeked out. "Hey, how are my sons doing?" he asked, sneaking wary glances at the forest. "Mind if I join you?"

"Of course, please do." Morgan gestured to the water. "I know I'm the size of a hippo, but there's room in the pool if you'd like to cool off."

"Oh, no, thank you. I was just feeling a little stir-crazy inside. Thought I'd come see what I was missing." He worked extra hard at smiling these days, to show how happy he was to be free, but the truth was, he was having a really difficult time adjusting. He'd been locked in that lab for more than half his life, and it seemed like all this open space made him nervous. "What are you guys up to today?" he asked, leaning against the cabin wall, a safe defensive position.

Morgan laughed awkwardly. "Oh, you know, I thought I would lie here for the next three hours or so, eating tiny snacks because my stomach is the size of an acorn. Then maybe I'll change things up and lie in the hammock until bedtime, when I'll have Jude carry me back to bed." He kicked his feet a little, sending ripples up to the underside of his stomach. "And then I'll get up tomorrow and do it all again. Fun, right? "

I leaned over the rim of the pool to set a kiss on his cheek. "You know, if you're bored, we could always take a drive into the city and—"

"No doctors," he grunted, a little grumpier than I'd seen him so far.

I frowned as he struggled to sit up, and I quickly reached in to help him. "Mo, are you okay?"

"No! Of course I'm not okay!" he snapped. "I'm huge, my ankles are swollen, I haven't been able to see my own dick for the past three months, and everything hurts!"

My dad and I exchanged a worried look. This wasn't like my sweet, sunshiney mate at all. I inhaled his scent deeply, and my wolf gave a short yip. The pup is coming!

I'd suspected as much, but to have my wolf's confirmation set my nerves on fire. "Okay, Morgan, time to get out of the water." I climbed right into the water with him, unconcerned that my shorts got drenched, and hooked my arms under his knees and behind his back, lifting him.

He squirmed in my grip. "What? No! I'm sorry I'm grouchy. Please don't take away my pool," he whined as water sluiced down his body and mine.

"I'm not punishing you, omega mine," I assured him, kissing his forehead. "I just think we should get you in bed, and I'll ask if Vesta can check on you real quick."

He gave up his struggle and settled into my arms, his wet skin cool against my chest. "Fine. But then I can get back in the pool?" he asked hopefully.

"Sure, if that's what you want, I'll carry you right back. I promise." I had a sneaking suspicion that once the contractions started, he would decide against it.

We were almost back to our newly built cabin down at the back of the camp when I heard Pax shout, "Baby!" He pushed up from the grass, leaving Vesta behind, and came running over on his little legs, a giant smile on his face. "Baby time! Yay!"

Morgan's face shifted from grumpy, to smiling, then through to building anxiety. "Did he just say… baby?" His gulp was loud.

"He sure did," I confirmed.

My dad hurried ahead of us to open the door for me, but even before I could step foot inside, Morgan was shaking his head. "Nuh-uh, too hot. You don't really expect me to spend hours of labor in that sauna, do you?"

"D-did you say, h-hours?" I nearly missed a step.

"Sure. Maybe even days if labor doesn't progress quickly."

Days?! To be honest, I'd spent most of my time reading the baby books focusing on the chapters of what could go wrong, instead of what I could expect. I turned around to look for Vesta, but she was still sitting in the grass, a soft smile on her face. Next, I looked down at Pax who was crouched down beside us picking wildflowers. "Hey, Pax. Do you know when the baby is coming?"

He looked up at me with his wide, blue eyes, his brow furrowed as he thought about what I'd asked. "Um, today?" His shrug didn't help me believe him.

What did help? Morgan gasping and tensing in my arms, before a warm liquid began to drip down my torso. "Please tell me you didn't just pee on me," I groaned.

"No, but I think my water just broke." Morgan gave me an apologetic smile, and I couldn't have loved him more than in this moment.

This seemed to be the catalyst to jumpstart his labor in earnest. As his contractions built in strength and grew closer together, it seemed that Pax's prediction might just be true. Morgan walked laps around the camp to help the baby along, and before dark, he was ready to push.

Pax had barely left Morgan's side, babbling excitedly, only half of which I could understand. He seemed to think he was going to help, but as quickly as he was advancing in his studies, I wasn't quite ready to let the toddler deliver our baby.

"Come on, Pax. Time for bedtime," Dylan said, coming to our cabin to retrieve his son .

Pax's face scrunched up in an angry scowl. "No!" he shouted. "I helping!"

Dylan tried for a little tough love, carrying Pax out, but the child began to thrash. Tristan was called in as backup, but finally, an exhausted Morgan panted out, "Maybe we can find him a job?"

Dylan reluctantly gave in, mostly because we couldn't tell if it was toddler stubbornness or fate guiding his actions, but I heard him whisper to Tristan, "When did he get so excited about becoming a midwife?" It was the first birth in our pack since Pax himself was born, but if this was a sign of things to come, he would be trained up and taking over in no time.

Vesta gave Pax a little bowl with some pungent oil in it so that he could rub it all over Morgan's belly, "To ease the pain," she claimed. Needless to say, it got a little messy, with a toddler essentially finger-painting all over Morgan's belly and chest, and eventually his face too. The pup was very focused on the task, and it kept Morgan distracted too.

We'd started off with a bit of an audience, but one by one, the others left us. I held my mate's hand throughout, offering him encouragement, and Pax held his other hand with the ferocity of a young wolf. Considering it was past his bedtime, I was surprised he seemed determined to stay .

Morgan bore down whenever Vesta told him to push, and all of the fear and worry I'd had about complications disappeared. My omega was bold and brave and absolutely incredible. I was in awe of him.

Just before midnight, our beautiful daughter was born. She had a full head of dark hair and a strong set of lungs. As she gave her first cry, I heard an echoing cheer of celebration from outside, welcoming our newest pack member and congratulating Morgan on a job well done.

Pax kissed Morgan's forehead then crawled off the bed, going to see the baby, but he looked ready for bed now that the excitement was over. Vesta held our daughter up for me to snip the cord with one extended claw, and then she cleaned her up and set her gently on Morgan's chest for her first feed.

"She's so beautiful," Morgan said, happy tears straining his cheeks.

"She is," I agreed, draping a soft blanket over them both before cuddling in as close as I could get. I wanted to imprint her warm scent in my memory, almost a nutty fragrance, like roasted chestnuts. "What should we call her?" We hadn't even picked out names because Morgan had said he wanted to see the baby first .

"I was thinking… Jesse," he suggested, peeking up at me through his lashes as he bit his lower lip, waiting for my reaction.

My eyebrows jumped. "After my father?"

"Yeah. I was just thinking about how brave and resilient he was to persevere, and I figure he'll make a pretty great role model for our child. Do you think he would mind?"

I smiled gently, settling my head on Morgan's shoulder so I could watch our baby. "Not at all, I think it's perfect." I traced my fingertip over her delicate hand. "Welcome to the world, Jesse."

"And welcome to the Grim Wilds pack," Morgan added, tilting his chin up to me for a kiss.