Page 79 of Claiming Xan

“River.” My chest ached. I cupped his stubbled cheek in my palm, my thumb caressing his cheekbone. “You can’t get rid of me that easily—and it’s not for lack of trying.” First Nevin’s crazy ex, and now River’s crazier brother. What next? A giant meteor?

“I just love you so much, it hurts,” River murmured. “I never thought it was possible to love someone this much, but when I came face to face with the realization that I could lose you? I wasn’t sure I could keep going.”

“Don’t talk like that,” I told him. “I’m okay. Mom says the baby’s okay. Everything’s going to be fine, just like you said, right?” I squeezed his fingers in mine.

He smiled tiredly. “Right.”

As if on cue, the door swung open and a nurse came in, wheeling a small cart. My heart skipped a beat when I saw the tiny baby nestled in the blankets of the warmer.

My son.

The nurse smiled brightly. “Ready to meet your baby, daddies? We’ll have to keep it brief, but I know an Omega’s bond with his child is a strong one, and since you’re a special case…”

She gently placed the small infant on my bare chest, so that we were skin to skin, before covering him up with the blankets. The baby made a soft noise and nestled in, and the air seeped from my lungs, leaving me breathless.

He wasperfect.Every single fingernail. Every single thread of silvery-blond hair on his head. My heart could barely take it as I gently cradled the newborn in my arms. Tears filled my eyes.

“Our baby,” I whispered. “He’s beautiful.”

River leaned in to admire the infant, stroking a single fingertip down his flawless cheek. “So tiny. So fragile. We’ll keep him safe, though. He’ll need a name…”

I stared at the living, breathing porcelain doll nestled against my skin, feeling his warmth soak into me, and I smiled. “I was thinking… What about Canyon?”

River rolled his eyes. “You just gotta have an earthy name, don’t you?”

I stuck my tongue out at him. “What? I think it’s cute. What do you think, Mom?”

“Oh, no. I’m staying out of this one,” she said around a soft laugh. “Whatever you name him, I will love him all the same.”

River looked thoughtful for a moment, then leaned in to kiss my temple. “Canyon River Howell. It has a ring to it, doesn’t it?”

I beamed at him, then down at the baby, whose dark eyes stared up at me. “Canyon. It’s perfect,” I breathed.

River only smiled. “And so are you, Xan. So are you.”

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Continue reading for a sneak-peak at the first chapter of Fletcher and Adam Rose’s story, Adoring Fletcher.