Page 122 of Abel's Omega

An hour later, I was as full as I could get, had been to the bathroom, and had been escorted to a chair near the clearing where the dancing was starting. Abel sat down on the grass beside me and I laid a hand on his shoulder just because I enjoyed touching him. He smiled up at me and bent his head to kiss my knuckles.

Holland came across the grass toward us, Fan running ahead of him, Beatrice in his arms. “They wanted to see you again before the pups activities started.”

I hugged Fan and let Beatrice scramble down onto what remained of my lap. Fan sat on my feet, one arm wrapped around my left leg. “Thank you for looking after them tonight.”

Holland smiled sweetly and sat on the grass on my other side. “They’re adorable.”

I reached for his hand and said a silent prayer that he’d have his own some day, regardless of what had happened in his first mating. The tentative not-yet-a-relationship between him and Quin was reassuring, though neither of them did much more than stare at each other and moon. I’d have to stick my finger in that pot someday, once I’d popped this pup out of the oven.

Beatrice grumped and whined, trying to force herself into the chair. “Dabi, move!”

“I can’t, sweetie. That’s all me. And your little brother or sister.” She stuck her foot into the side of stomach, and the muscles of my womb tightened, squeezing down on the baby. I stopped breathing, listening intently to the message my body was sending. This wasn’t a contraction like the ones I’d been having the past couple of weeks.

This one had purpose.

I reached for Holland again. He glanced up at me in mild curiosity, then his expression tightened. “Is it…?”

I nodded. “There’s no rush. But if you wanted to be there, you’ll need to find Becca or Patrice.” I had thought it would be a good idea to have Bram help too, but I didn’t see him. “Could you find Bram, too? I promised him he could be there.”

Holland nodded and got to his feet. “I’ll be back soon.”

I waved a hand to indicate there was no rush and settled Beatrice more securely in the crook of my arm.

When I looked up, Abel was watching me with excited intensity. “Should we go?”

I laughed and shook my head. “We have time. I’d like to watch some of the dancing. And Holland’s gone to find Becca and Bram.”

He nodded and reached up to take the hand that rested on his shoulder.

Fan tilted his head back. “Dabi, is the baby coming?”

“I think so, sweetie. You’re going to go stay with someone tonight, okay? Maybe Becca or Patrice. You and your brother and sisters.”

“But I want to see the baby.”

“You will. First thing in the morning.” I let him crawl up on my lap too, and heard Abel laugh softly beside me.

“You need a bigger lap.”

“I need to get this pup out,” I told him tartly, but gave him a quick pat on the shoulder before I had to steady Fan on my lap again.

They were on the third dance when Holland came back, Becca and Patrice and Jason right behind him. “I couldn’t find Bram.”

That worried me. Bram had become even wilder over the summer, encouraging all the alphas, but Justin the most. It seemed to me that he was throwing it all in Duke’s face, and I wondered what had happened between them. I’d been certain, as had Jason, that Bram felt something romantic toward the huge shifter, but his behavior this summer was atrocious, and his parents couldn’t seem to do anything with him. We’d tried, Abel and I, and Holland as well, to talk some sense into the young omega, or scare some into him, but it never seemed to last.

Cale jogged up. “Did I hear you were looking for Bram?”

“Yes. Where is he?”

Cale gestured us all close and in a low voice said, “He went into heat yesterday. Really pissed about it too. I heard he was throwing things.”

Oh. It was a shame, but at least he wasn’t rollicking through the pack’s alphas while I was unable to perform any sort of supervision. “Well, he can be there for the next one.” I’d bring the baby over to visit him as soon as I was allowed out and around; maybe that would help make up for it.

Another contraction hit, and I breathed through it. For sure there would be a baby in my arms by morning. “It might not be a bad idea to go now.”

Abel plucked Fan off my lap, setting him on the ground in front of me. Beatrice didn’t want to go to Becca, but eventually we found a bribe that worked, and she let Becca pick her up, visions of ice cream sundaes dancing in her head I was sure.

“Where are Noah and Teca?” I asked.