Page 96 of The Delta’s Rogue (Crescent Lake #4)

“How’d you know to come outside when I shifted?” I ask Sebastian.

We meander around the far side of the Crescent Lake shore, heading towards Wesley and Haven’s house. The lake is as smooth as glass. Not even a ripple of wind disturbs its surface.

We walk hand in hand under the near-dawn sky, dressed in spare clothes from a tree on the pack’s border—me in an oversized T-shirt and some nylon gym shorts, and Sebastian in a too small pair of black sweats that cling a little too tightly to his ass and thighs.

I glance at them, eyeballing the muscles and how the fabric hugs them, licking my lips a little as I do.

Está para chuparse los dedos . He is finger-licking good.

“Was the quickie against the tree not enough for you?” Sebastian wiggles his eyebrows.

I dart in front of him, with my hands clasped behind my back and my chin tilted up so I can bat my eyelashes at him. “I’ll never get enough of you.”

His hands rest on my hips, and he lowers his face to mine. “That feeling is mutual, Little Rogue.”

He kisses me. While our lips meet and his hands rest on my body, he doesn’t let any other part of us touch. He keeps a space the length of a hand between us.

I strain against his hold, trying to get closer to him so he’ll wrap me in his perfect embrace and shield me from the world with his towering body, but he doesn’t yield to my demands .

He chuckles into our kiss, then backs away, slipping his hand into mine once more. “Haven mindlinked me,” he confesses. “She commanded me to wake up through the link and then told me to join you both outside. She didn’t tell me why, though. If she’d told me what she was trying…”

“Would you really have stopped her?”

He sighs and glances at me sideways. “No. I know how much you wanted your lycan back, and I know how much she wanted to help us. You.”

We walk in silence again after that. I take in the scenery, memorizing all the little details.

Crescent Lake won’t be our home, but it’s part of him and it’s part of our story.

This is the place that shaped him and made him the male he is today.

His friends and family are all here, and I’m sure we’ll visit as often as is feasible.

He veers us away from the lake and down a newer path that winds through the dense trees, until we reach a gorgeous cabin with a huge front porch and large windows on the upper floors that look straight out into the trees.

“Wow,” I exhale. “That’s impressive.”

“What’s more impressive is that Wesley kept it a secret from Haven for over a year while it was being built.”

I smirk as we climb the porch stairs. “You Stone males sure do like grand gestures.”

He smiles in response and reaches for the door. It opens before he can grab the handle, and Wesley stands framed in the doorway. His brow raises as he surveys our secondhand clothing that doesn’t fit, and his nose wrinkles at the scent of sex that clings to both of us.

He crosses his arms and stares down his nose at us. “Well, while you two were off practicing how to make a baby, my mate gave birth to ours.”

Wesley tries to appear annoyed that we’re so late and that we took the time to have a quickie while Haven was in labor, but a zealous smile breaks through his act, and his brown eyes glitter with pride and happy tears.

“I’m a dad.” His expression shifts once more as the realization hits him. “I’m a dad,” he repeats in a whisper.

Sebastian grins at him as Wesley runs his hand down his face, trying to hide the tears threatening to spill over his eyelids. Sebastian pulls Wesley in for a hug, his hand gripping mine as he gives his brother the emotional support he needs at this moment .

“Congratulations, Wesley.” Sebastian pats Wesley’s back. “I know you’ve dreamed of this day for a long time.”

Wesley’s smile is tear-filled as he nods his response and moves to let us inside.

“Haven wanted a little more time before seeing everyone, and Selene is cleaning everything up. I offered to help, but they both shooed me away so I could tell you all the good news. When Haven is ready, I’ll take you upstairs to introduce you. ”

We follow him into the living room, where Cassandra and Nolan sit on the floor in front of the massive stone fireplace with Cav curled into a ball next to them.

“I told you we should have run here.” Cassandra glances at Nolan.

I laugh as he sighs and lowers his mouth to her ear, whispering something quick—and probably dirty—to her that has a blush forming on her cheeks.

“You didn’t go to the pack hospital?” Sebastian takes a seat in an armchair and pulls me into his lap.

Wesley collapses into the other empty chair and shakes his head.

“Not with Selene here. We figured it was better to keep that information a secret, otherwise…” He gestures vaguely, but we all understand.

The kind of chaos the news of Selene’s presence would bring isn’t what they need right now.

“Dr. Russo was on standby the whole time, but Selene talked Haven through most of it. I don’t think I helped much other than letting her use my hand as a stress ball while she pushed. ”

“Any word from Reid and Taryn?” I ask.

“Not yet. I’m sure he’ll be bragging about it as soon as he’s able to, though.”

“Who wants to bet on how long it will be before she’s pregnant again this time?” Sebastian asks from behind me.

“Taryn said she’s never having two babies less than a year apart again,” Cassandra says. “I say…two years.”

“One and a half,” Sebastian counters.

“You’re on.”

Cassandra and Sebastian mimic a handshake in the air, and Nolan and Wesley groan.

“Where are Mom and Dad?” Sebastian asks Wesley, ignoring their sounds of annoyance. “Do they know they have a grandbaby?”

“Do they know you marked your mate?” Wesley quips back .

Sebastian rolls his eyes. “Considering it only happened a few hours ago, and all this other crazy shit happened afterwards, no. I haven’t had time to tell them yet.”

Through the bond, there is a flash of pride—of excitement—as he thinks of breaking the news of our marking to his parents.

It’s the same pride and excitement he felt when he officially introduced me to them earlier this week, the same pride he felt when we broke the spell on their memories and they realized Sebastian would be the future king.

His fingers curl around my hip, and I send that same excitement right back to him down our wide-open mate bond.

It’s overwhelming how connected to him I feel, how all his emotions are also mine. Everything flows between us like the ocean, like the rise and fall of the tides or the crashing of the waves against the shore. It’s constant, it’s intense, and it’s unending.

I’ll never tire of it or wish it away. It’s everything I wanted, everything I dreamed of during our years apart.

Wesley laughs. “They know, yes. They’re helping Reid’s dad with Savannah and will visit in the morning.

Mom wants to make us breakfast and stock up the fridge with meals and…

” His eyes widen, his smile fades, and he leans forward, dropping his head into his hands.

“Oh fuck. We’re supposed to attack the traffickers today. ”

“I don’t think that’s going to happen.” I sigh. “With you and Reid out of commission, we’re down two of our best fighters.”

He shakes his head. “No. We’ll be there. We—”

“Micah will have to pivot, and rethink and postpone,” I interject.

“I know I’m not the lead on this mission anymore, but I also know Micah won’t expect you or Reid to be in the right frame of mind to fight with us.

None of us expected your babies to come early either, but we’ll deal with this hiccup and work out another plan. ”

“Thank you,” Wesley says. “I know this mission is important to you. I’m sorry we messed it all up.”

“It will all be fine.”

My throat tightens as I reassure him, knowing that by postponing our attack, we put more girls in danger.

But this is the right choice. Having Wesley and Reid with us during this attack could mean the difference between succeeding or failing, between coming out on top with only minor injuries or sustaining hard, long-lasting losses on our side .

Sebastian wraps his arms around my waist and hooks his chin over my shoulder, holding me as I threaten to break. I close my eyes, pushing all that aside for now.

Today, we’re celebrating life, love, and new beginnings. Tomorrow, we’ll focus on our next steps, our new plan.

A smile forms on Wesley’s face, and his joy washes away my worry and my guilt. “She’s ready for visitors.”

He jumps to his feet before he finishes his sentence. Wesley rushes up the stairs, and we all follow him. His giddy energy leaks into us, and by the time we reach the doors to their bedroom, all of us wear matching goofy grins.

He leads us inside and strides to the bed, brushing Haven’s hair out of her face as he bends to kiss her.

Then he gazes at the tiny bundle wrapped in a purple blanket, embroidered with the moon and stars, that Haven holds against her chest. Selene stands off to the side, near the enormous windows, keeping her distance to give us a moment with the new family.

We crowd on the opposite side of the bed. Haven smiles with tired but proud eyes as she adjusts her position so we can all see the sleeping baby in her arms.

“Everyone, this is the future alpha of Crescent Lake—our son—Dylan.” She beams down at him as she says his name, her finger tracing over his tiny nose before she strokes the top of his head, which is dusted with the softest downy strands of red hair.

“Hi, Dylan.” Sebastian leans in towards them. “I’m your Uncle Sebastian, and this is your Aunt Sarina.”

“ Tía ,” I correct him. “ Tía Sarina.”

“Right. Sorry. This is your Tía Sarina,” he says with a chuckle. “He’s perfect,” he adds, glancing at Haven.

She nods and continues staring at her son. “He really is.”

Wesley’s phone rings, and he jumps up, grabbing it from the dresser. “It’s Reid,” he announces. “He’s video calling.” He holds the phone away from his face as he answers.

Before Wes says anything, Reid’s voice blares through the speaker. “I’m a dad again!”

“Me too!” Wes beams. “Well, not again, but yeah. Our baby is here too.” He crosses to the bed and waits at the edge. “Should we introduce them to each other?” he asks Reid.

“Absolutely!”

“You go first,” Wesley says .

There’s some shuffling on Reid’s end of the phone as he gets ready, and then he says, “Here’s our little gummy bear!”

“He has a name!” Taryn yells over the sound of her hand smacking Reid.

Sebastian laughs and wraps his arms around my shoulders. Nolan, Cassandra, Sebastian, and I wear smiles that stretch across our faces and hurt our cheeks as we watch the future leaders of Crescent Lake “meet” each other for the first time.

“And that name is?” Sebastian asks.

“Austin,” Reid says. “Austin Laurence Thomas, Crescent Lake’s future beta.”

“All right, Austin.” Wesley angles himself so Haven and Dylan are in the camera’s shot. “This is your future alpha, Dylan.”

“I can’t believe you two had your babies on the same day.” Nolan shakes his head. “Then again, I can’t say I’m surprised either. It feels like it was meant to be.”

Wesley passes the phone around to everyone so we can all see Austin and gush over him like we did with Dylan.

Reid and Taryn look just as exhausted yet happy as Wesley and Haven do, and for a moment, all thoughts of the traffickers, of my mental and physical scars, or of anything that exists outside of this room leave our minds.

The only thing that matters is right here and right now, and the little pocket of joy we’ve all found amidst the chaos.

Cassandra tenses as she hands the phone back to Wesley. Her eyes go hazy. The phone slips from her fingers, and Nolan grabs her as her knees buckle beneath her. She gasps for air, and her terrified green eyes meet his worry-filled hazel ones.

At the same time, Wesley’s front door slams open and footsteps pound up the stairs and towards their bedroom.

“Cassandra? What happened? What did you see?” Nolan asks, keeping her upright as she trembles in his arms.

“I saw them,” she chokes out as Dominic bursts into the room, his chest heaving and sweat drenching his body. “Nuncio. Amara. The rest of the traffickers. They’re coming. They’re coming here . To Crescent Lake.”

Dominic nods. “That’s what I ran here to tell you,” he says between his gasping breaths before anyone can respond to Cassandra. “Brenna just told me the same thing in a dream.”