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But he looked so happy. His friends gathered around him, old and new, where he sat in the super-comfy folding chair they’d brought over, a cushion under his butt. The chair even had an attached footstool so Sebastian could keep his feet up.

“You go sit with him, man. Mason and Xavi have Abby, and Iago is dealing with traffic flow. I’ll set up the thing here with Xander.”

“Yeah?” At Gent’s nod, he moved to pull a chair up next to Sebastian, checking to make sure he had a drink and his little battery-operated fan.

“How’s it going, baby?” Colton asked.

“Good! Hank was just telling me about this little mining ghost town over by Cortez.”

“Mmm. The place with the amazing green chile enchiladas.”

“That’s the one. The hotel restaurant there used to have the best fish fry on Fridays.”

“Yum.” He reached for Sebastian’s hand. “We’ll put it on the schedule for next year.” He was taking off a couple of months while Sebastian had his last month of pregnancy and they did the first bit of their combined parenting. He would work on his book but not go on remote jobs.

“Cool.” Sebastian squeezed. “So how does the spread look?”

“Amazing. Xander even brought a little hotel pan so he could keep hot dogs in hot water for Abby and some of the other kids.”

“He’s so nice.”

“Well, he’s kind, for sure.”

“Colton!” Hank gave him wide eyes but a big smile too. “Damning him with faint praise.”

“What can I say?” He winked at Sebastian, who had slapped his hand gently.

“That you’re sorry for maligning me?” Xander brought over a plate with dip and veggies for Sebastian, dip and chips for Hank.

“I am. Especially if you bring me some.”

“No problem.” Xander gave him an evil sort of grin.

“No spitting!”

“Uh-huh!”

“Ew.” Hank made a face. “That’s nasty.”

“Can I sit in?” Charlie, who worked at the Grand Springs hotel, and who had stalled Colton’s folks for days, dragged over a chair. “My man wants to commence burning meat.”

“Sure, come have a sit. Really appreciate you. Keeping the beasts at bay, and well, you know, doing me the favor you did.” Sebastian cleared his throat and kind of rolled his eyes, and Charlie nodded.

“Of course. I was happy to do it. It seemed as if it were a situation that was a bit…fraught.”

“God, I love that word.” Sebastian chuckled softly, munching on a carrot. “I mean, fraught, fraught, fraught, fraught. It’s just a great word.”

“You are something else.” And Colton loved that, how Sebastian was getting to be the happy, pregnant omega this time.

“So, how’s Abby? Is she ready for a little sister?”

Sebastian shrugged. “I think it’s pretty normal, you know?

Half the time she’s going to love it and the other half she’s going to eat it.

But hey, that seems pretty average for a four-year-old sibling.

I only have a year with them both home together, though, before Abby starts going to school. Can you believe that?”

Colton sighed at Sebastian’s words. “Could you quit saying that? I don’t want there to be any sort of growing-up situation happening right now.”

“Go over and grill meat with Kaleb,” Sebastian said. “So we can all discuss the vagaries of how babies grow up without hurting poor alphas’ ears.”

“I’m so abused.” He winked at Sebastian and finished his chips before heading over to the grill. His leg was getting better all the time. It really didn’t have a choice given that he was chasing around a very active four-year-old.

Speaking of active four-year-olds, Abby slammed into his backside, almost toppling him over. “Papa!”

“Careful, little one. What do you need?”

“Dease are just my friends.”

Everyone was bringing their kids, and so he wasn’t sure which one of the dozen little ones that Abby was leading around were friends or who belonged to who, but… Well, at least he knew who he belonged to. “Friends, this is my Papa.”

Chorus of ‘hi’s sounded, and then the kids were off again, running, Abby’s ponytail bouncing. She had picked out her outfit for the day, choosing to go with denim overalls, a pink unicorn T-shirt, blue galoshes, and rainbow fairy wings.

It was the perfect sartorial choice.

Elliot, Hank’s husband, caught him before he got to the grill. “How’s that book going?”

Elliot was an amazing resource, as far as the publishing world went.

“Surprisingly well. How’s everything with you?”

“We’re great. I’m on my third book in a series. Hank’s business is just growing. Of course, he’s not near as interested in being in front of the camera. He likes to be behind the microphone. He’s a podcaster down to the bone, a storyteller, you know?”

“Well, you know, I can see that. I mean, you two got along like a house afire.”

Elliot snorted. “Did I ever tell you how we met? I was sent by a magazine to debunk ghosts on his tour.”

“No shit?” He couldn’t believe that. Hank had a knack for ghosts.

“No shit. And now look at me. My daughter’s named after a ghost in the hotel.”

“And I hear that the ghost activity there is really kind of calmed down.”

Elliot nodded. “So long as there’s not some sort of nefarious shit going on, it’s very, very quiet. I would imagine it’s kind of like your house.”

He snorted. “My house isn’t quiet at all. In fact, I have to admit to you that it’s a little odd to me that Sebastian can be so casual about it. There’s a ghost, la di da.”

Elliot twisted his lips as if he was pondering something.

“Well, he grew up with them, right? I mean, these are his people. Like with all of us? It’s not personal.

These are all strangers. But with Sebastian and Abby?

This is their direct lineage. These are literally the spirits of their ancestors.

I don’t imagine that will ever be the same. ”

“No. No, I guess not.” And there was something very comforting about the way Elliot had put that.

“Colton? Where do the presents go?” Thierry the medium came bouncing down the stairs into the park.

He had grown a beard and gotten some more tattoos since they had shot the footage from the house, and he was smiling to beat the band.

He was standing there with bags and boxes and baubles. “I come bearing gifts.”

“There’s a table set up over there. I’m so glad you could make it.”

“It was nice to be invited. Thank you.”

Colton got the idea that a lot of the time Thierry didn’t get invited to things, but there was something about the little medium that made him happy, and Sebastian kind of adored him.

He heard Sebastian’s laugh. “Thierry, hey, you made it. I’m so glad! We’ve missed you.”

“Careful,” Elliot teased. “Or that little guy’s gonna just stay.”

“I know. That’s okay. We’re collecting folks, right? Hank assures me that it happens around these parts.”

“It does.” Elliot surveyed the assembled group, grinning as one of the teachers from the local school got mobbed by her kids. Her school kids. Her partner carried their wee one strapped to his chest. “We’re glad to be folding Hot Springs Junction in.”

“Yeah? We’re an odd bunch.” He grinned, because he loved this squirrely little town. “But honestly, there’s nowhere for us to grow, so Secret Springs will be our go-to.”

“Hey, I can’t complain there.”

A wave of laughter came to him across the pavilion, and he glanced at Sebastian, who sat with his friends, just cackling over something Thierry had said. Then Abby ran over to put a hand on Sebastian’s belly, showing it off to all her friends.

That was his world, right there, and he could never have known about Abby. He might never have seen Sebastian again.

And now there were presents, and cake, and scads of friends and family, because his guys and Xavi and Xavier were family, and he couldn’t wait to see what happened next.