Page 42 of Claiming Xan (Shifters of Greymercy #7)

XAN

My boots crunched in the fresh snow as I tried to bend down and scoop up a snowball in my gloved hand—easier said than done when you were practically as big as a barn!

I grunted and huffed and puffed, but managed to pack one, then sent it flying. It hit River square in the back of the neck.

I crowed out a laugh. “Gotcha!”

“Jesus Christ!” River spun on me, his eyes narrowed dangerously and for a moment, I thought he might be mad. Then he growled, “You’ll pay for this,” and flung a snowball right back. I squealed and dodged—and so began our snowball fight.

We took turns lobbing half-formed snowballs at one another, ducking and darting behind trees and vehicles for cover. It wasn’t long before I was panting for breath, but I wasn’t going to admit defeat that easily!

When I smacked River right in the face with one, he came barreling towards me, scooping up snow mid-run. He tackled me and stuffed the snow down the front of my puffy blue jacket, laughing the whole way.

Icy cold soaked my front and I shrieked and flailed. “COLD!”

“No shit!” River retorted, ruffling my hair.

I laughed and lunged at him, throwing my arms around his neck. “Let’s go sledding.”

“We don’t have any hills around here,” he pointed out, which was true.

I huffed. “Okay, fine. Let’s make snow angels!” I decided instead, but River stood there, looking confused. I cocked my head. “What? You’ve never made snow angels?”

“No?”

“Aww.” I smiled. “Here, I’ll show you, but you’re gonna have to help me get back up when we’re done.”

I carefully got down on the ground and laid on my back in the snow. “Oh god, this is way harder when you’re pregnant.” I groaned softly.

But it would be so worth it. The closer we got to my due date, the more nervous and excited I became. Soon, I’d be holding my little boy in my arms.

River smirked down at me. “Good thing I’m not pregnant then, huh?”

I kicked snow at him, then began to make a snow angel, swinging my arms and legs wide. River watched me, his head tilted, eyes curious.

I pointed beside me. “Do one next to mine.”

So he did, and we laid on the cold ground together, just swishing our arms in the snow. Then he got back up. I held out my hands to him and he hauled me to my feet. We stepped back to look at our creations.

“Hmm,” River said.

“See? They’re perfect little angels.” I beamed. “In a couple of years, we’ll have three little angels on the lawn.” I grinned at the thought, then hugged River again. He wrapped his arms around me, the swoosh of his jacket material covering my ears, but…something felt off.

I pulled away, looking around the woods. “What?” River pressed, his tone quiet.

I held up my hand to silence him. “I thought I heard something.” I flared my nostrils, drawing in a deep breath, but only smelled the crispness of winter and the faint lingering smell of pack.

River stood still, surveying the woods alongside me. I felt validated, because my mate was taking my concerns seriously. Not that I was even sure what I was concerned about, because there was nothing out here.

“It was probably just a deer,” River said finally. The tension left his body, so I relaxed as well. I was so damn jumpy lately. Ever since TJ’s assault.

Not to mention Thanksgiving and Sky’s weird warning, but we were halfway through January and nothing had happened. I was looking too far into things.

“Or the wind.”

“Yeah,” I agreed, leaning back into my mate. He nuzzled my neck, his breath whuffing warm over my chilled skin. I shivered and craned my head to the side to give him more room. He responded by kissing his way up to my earlobe, nibbling gently. The things this Alpha did to me.

“Riv…” I whispered.

“Mmm?” He pressed me back against the car, then kissed me. Slow, sensual sweeps of his tongue had my knees turning to jelly. I melted into his touch, into the kisses with a soft moan of need. River reached between us to cup me through my leggings and my head fell back on my shoulders.

“River.” The word came out breathless. “Take me to bed already.”

River chuckled. “Yes, my Omega.”

He plucked me up off the ground as if I weighed nothing at all, then carried me into the house. We stripped from our snow-damp clothes, our skin chilled, but we soon warmed up.

There was fucking and there was making love—there was a difference—and while the beginning of our rocky relationship had been wild and hot, the closer we got to my due date, the gentler and more passionate River became.

We made love atop the duvet, River panting softly against my skin, sucking at the mating mark he’d made on my neck months ago. It sent quivers of pleasure through me, and it didn’t take long.

“Oh god!” I cried out. “River!”

I clung to him, shuddering as his cock struck home and sent me spiraling into oblivion. As my Alpha sank in deep and knotted me, we fell back into the sheets, our breaths ragged and bodies spent.

River held me close, nuzzling his nose into the nape of my neck, his leg curled over the top of mine. I sighed happily. I’d never felt more loved by anyone in my life. River was everything I’d ever wanted, and then some. He was so worth the wait.

After we cleaned up, I was content to cuddle my mate. I pulled out my phone and tapped on my notes app. “Have you thought of any baby names yet?” I asked, curious.

“Hmm. Not really. We still have time,” River said.

“Babe.” I laughed. “It’s almost February. We’re quickly running out of time. I want at least a short-list of choices before the day comes.”

“Okay. So do you have any baby names picked out?” he asked, rolling over so that he could face me.

I paused. “Well. No. But I know I want an earthy-sounding name, like River. Maybe Storm? Or Rain? Rain DuPree.”

River surprised me by growling, low and rumbling. “No.”

I hesitated. “No? You don’t like the names?”

“No. We’re not using my last name,” he stated. “My father was a good-for-nothing who left my mother to raise two wild children on her own, and my family has been nothing but terrible. The DuPree name is bad news, and I won’t let it poison our child. He’ll take your name. End of story.”

He crossed both arms over his chest. I could tell he was dead serious. I was quiet for a moment, studying him. The hard set of his jaw. The way his gaze locked on the wall across from us.

“And what about you?” I finally asked, my voice soft. “Will you let that name poison you, too?”

“It’s a bit too late,” he remarked.

I took a deep breath. “I mean… I know it’s too soon, but if, down the road, we got married… You’d be welcome to take my name too, you know.”

River’s head snapped up, those bi-colored eyes suddenly staring into my soul, like he hadn’t thought of that.

I smiled at him, reaching over to squeeze his hand. “I love you. I’m happy to share my name, my family, and my life with you, River.”

I saw his throat work. “I love you too,” he murmured, his voice thick, before he pulled me into a tight embrace. When he finally let me go, the tension in the room had all but dissolved, and I knew that I’d said exactly the right thing.