Page 56 of Pucking With My Head (Pucking Pregnant #4)
Gideon
H ow things could change in the blink of an eye.
My daughters were eight years old and four weeks old. I had been a bit concerned about the girls having such a large age gap, but Joey was loving every minute of being around her baby sister.
I was half expecting her to ask Bethany for another one soon. The poor woman was going to be inundated with more baby requests—her fault for making such an adorable daughter, in my opinion.
If the requests did become too much, I would call a family meeting to ensure that Bethany wasn’t pestered beyond what she was comfortable with. But given her grin of delight every time someone asked, I didn’t think she was that upset about it.
“You know, your daughter has some impressive spit-up skills,” a soft voice said from the doorway with a laugh.
Looking up from my boring legal paperwork, I smiled at my omega leaning against the doorframe. Her scent now infiltrated every part of our home, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. Crisp sweet apple was my favorite smell, and nothing was ever going to change that.
“Oh, I see. When she’s good, she’s your daughter, but when she’s being a pain, she’s mine?”
Her grin widened as she pushed off the doorframe, padding into the room. Her head tilted to the side. “That’s the gist of it. Sometimes she’s Cullen’s daughter, but that’s reserved for when she’s being extra grumpy.”
“Ahh, makes sense.” I nodded as I pushed back my chair and opened my arms so she could sit in my lap.
Bethany had been extra cuddly since childbirth, and I loved it. Her face was so radiant, it was like she was glowing from the inside out. I thought women were supposed to glow while pregnant, but Bethany just seemed to be constantly happy now. Blissfully so.
I kissed her cheek, rubbing against her, scenting her. The fact that I could rub my cheek against hers whenever I wanted, and she was open to it, gave me the kind of joy I never thought I would have. Bethany was so open and loving. It was strange in the best way.
“Do you ever regret bonding with such old men? You’re so young and could be free.”
Bethany laughed, sitting in my lap and wrapping her arms around my neck. “Oh, yes, I would totally much rather be out partying in uncomfortable heels and going home on my own to a lonely apartment,” she said, her tone dripping with playful sarcasm.
“Brat.” I laughed.
She cocked her head at me, a serene smile on her face.
“I love my life right now. Did I expect to be a mother of a baby and an eight-year-old at my age? No, but I wouldn’t change a thing.
Our little family is perfect—and, hey, you’re not that old.
” She grinned. “You are merely more experienced in certain areas of life, and I greatly enjoy that.”
I shook my head. Her words rang with sincerity, but I still found it hard to believe.
Maybe she would just have to show me, every day for the rest of our lives.
“Did you know Cullen wants to make a chicken and mushroom risotto for dinner tonight?” I asked, unable to help myself. Her reaction to the idea of eating fungus was just too cute.
Instead of recoiling, though, she beamed at me, kissing my cheek.
“I assure you, I already know. Joey and I will be going and getting chicken nuggets just as soon as he starts cooking. We planned it and everything. We are going to dive into the car the moment he mentions mushrooms and flee without a word.”
“And where will our youngest daughter be during this escapade?”
“Either in Daddy Gideon’s or Daddy Jensen’s arms—though I’m not opposed to taking her in the car seat, but that will slow down our escape efforts.” She tapped her chin thoughtfully. “I can’t wait until she’s toddling around. It’s going to be so much easier to plot and plan.”
I bit back a smile. “If Zoey is anything like her sister, she will be plotting plenty all by herself. As soon as she could crawl, if we took our eyes off her for a second, she was gone—under the bed, down the hall, even into the washing machine. It gave me nightmares. We may need to put a bell on Zoey if she’s the same.
I don’t think my heart could take it otherwise. ”
Bethany chuckled, brushing some hair off my forehead. “Well, you are getting old now. Your heart can’t take as much…”
My mouth dropped in faux outrage.
“You’re not wrong, but it’s rude to say it,” I scolded lightly.
Bethany burst into laughter, a beautiful sound. “Rude? I think we are past rude, Gideon Noble, considering the things you did to me to make Zoey!”
“The next few weeks can’t pass soon enough!” I groaned. “I love all the cuddling. Fuck, I adore it—I never thought I was a cuddler, but I digress. But you, Bethany Noble, turn me into a horny teenage boy.”
She kissed my cheek playfully. “If it’s any consolation, the wait is just as horrible for me as it is for you!”
“I doubt it,” I grumbled. “You’re going to regret bonding a bunch of old men when our cocks shrivel up.”
Her giggles were probably heard throughout the house.
“Well, I happen to love my old men and my girls, and I think it’s going to be a long time before your…appendage is out of commission!”
This woman. Strong, powerful, sweet, and all mine.
Standing, I swept her up into my arms. “I think we need nest cuddles,” I said, striding out of the room with ease. Thankfully my back didn’t twinge, because that would make me seem like even more of an old man than I felt.
Bethany wrapped her arms around me, snuggling deeper into my chest as I strode into the nest room, knee-walking across the nest, omega still in my arms.
The nest was one of my favorite places in the house, and I would take any opportunity for a little cozy time with my omega. Every surface of my home had apple or bubble gum scent on them—my omega and my daughter.
We were just snuggling down happily when the door burst open, and Jensen came ambling in, his hair sticking up in different directions, clearly having just woke from a nap.
“You sneaking in some cuddles without me?” He pouted playfully.
“You were busy.” Bethany snorted, her lips pressed against my neck, unwilling to move from her position tangled around me.
Jensen turned to the open nest door. “Hey, Cullen! Pack cuddle puddle!” he shouted.
I glowered at him over the top of Bethany’s head, but I couldn’t stay mad at him as he dove into the nest, pressing against her back. He was pack.
We were family.
“Mom!” Joey shouted, dashing into the room and climbing into the nest, Cullen hot on her heels. She wasted no time sliding between Bethany and me. My omega pulled away from me the instant our daughter was near, dragging her into an embrace.
“Come here, baby,” she muttered, kissing the top of Joey’s curls.
“I heard there was a cuddle puddle,” Cullen said, kicking off his shoes and joining us.
“This nest is getting rather full,” I commented.
“You’re welcome to leave.” Cullen laughed as he joined the party.
I may have sounded like a grouch, but I was blissfully happy. Life had taken some rather unexpected turns, but fuck if I didn’t love it.
“No, we just need a bigger nest,” I said.
“We can go shopping!” Joey whispered excitedly to Bethany, beaming up at her as they cuddled.
“That sounds like a perfect idea,” she agreed with a sleepy, loving smile. “I love you, baby.”
“I love you too, Mom.” I could hear the joy in my daughter’s voice as she said those words.
“We are going to need a nest the size of this room if we keep having kids,” Cullen said lightly after a moment.
Bethany chuckled. “I mean, give me a few weeks to recover. Then we can revisit that topic.”
“But I only want girls!” Joey said.
“Unfortunately, we can’t control that, munchkin,” Jensen said.
“I have faith in you,” Joey said, her voice so serious, we all descended into fits of laughter as we basked in the presence of our pack.
“A boy may not be the worst,” Joey admitted quietly after a few moments.
“Sometimes, trying new things is good for us, kiddo,” Cullen murmured.
“Unless it’s mushrooms,” Joey said solemnly.
“Unless it’s mushrooms,” Bethany agreed.
I shook my head.
Mushrooms.
The argument we would never win.
If the universe had a sense of humor, Joey would one day scent match with an alpha who stank like a damn mushroom.