Page 52 of Surprise Mother Pucker

Actually, I wanted her to feel more than just at ease with me, but I needed to take this slow. I had met her only five minutes prior, and already, I was thinking about the long term with her.

Suddenly, I fully understood Eli's obsession with her.

“How old is your daughter—her name’s Charlotte, right?”

Kennedy nodded. “Charlotte, Char, Lottie. The poor girl has too many nicknames.” She giggled. “She’s almost eight months old now.”

“I call her the tiny terror! The cutest terror that ever terrorized, in my humble opinion!” Micha declared, craning his head to smile at us in a way that wouldn’t disturb the baby in his lap.

“And I don’t want to pry…”

Kennedy shrugged. “Isn’t that what we’re doing today? Getting to know one another?”

“Her dad?”

“Not around. He doesn't even know that she exists. I met a cute guy when I was working at the local ice rink. The next day, we ended up at the same club, and one thing led to another. He told me his name was Charlie and gave me his phone number, but when I tried calling him to let him know that, you know, I was pregnant, the number was disconnected.”

“So, there's a man out there who has no clue that he has a child? Well, that’s a disgrace to the Charlie name!” I insisted.

Laughter erupted from Kennedy's chest. “Well, maybe you can bring some honor back to the Charlie name.”

I intended to do just that. Some moron had messed up, leaving such a cute and delicious-smelling omega behind. There was no way in hell I would do the same.

“So, you did it all on your own?” I asked.

She nodded. “I worked part time, up until I was six months pregnant, and I had several scholarships that helped with some of my living expenses. I did every odd job that I could to saveup in preparation for giving birth. I had already been accepted into my master’s program when I learned I was pregnant, and I didn't want to give that up. I knew that the best chance I had for my baby was to get a good job to support us.”

“The alpha who put you in this situation should have supported you—wait, that’s presumptuous of me. Was her father an alpha or beta?”

“Alpha,” Kennedy confirmed. “Considering he didn't even bother to give me his correct number, relying on him wasn’t an option. We've been doing all right.”

“That doesn’t make it okay. I hate that you had to do it all alone. You know you won’t be this time, right? Regardless of what happens romantically between all of us, you are family now.” I looked over to Micha. “I'm pretty sure he's decided that he's keeping your kid.”

“She’s so sweet!” Micha said, beaming at Kennedy. “Just like her mama.”

Kennedy shook her head, though she was grinning. “You guys are too much.”

“Nah, I think we arejustenough,” Micha said.

“We aren’t overwhelming you, are we?” I asked calmly. “The last thing I want to do is stress you out. Especially in your condition.”

“Trust me, pregnant women can deal with a lot of stress. I'm honestly surprised Char didn’t come out with anxiety.”

Eli chose that moment to come back in with a steaming mug of tea in hand. He handed it to Kennedy while frowning. “Well, you're not going to be so stressed during this pregnancy.”

Kennedy rolled her eyes. “I know, you guys keep telling me that.”

Eli turned to me as he sat next to Kennedy. “She needs a bit of time to believe we’re more than just talk,” he explained, andas he did so, Kennedy opened her mouth indignantly, thought about it for a moment, closed her mouth, and pouted at him.

“He's infuriating when he's right, isn't he?” I asked.

“He is,” she growled.

“Where’s Storm?” Eli asked.

“He hasn’t left his room yet today,” I admitted. “I think he was out late, partying…”

Eli frowned. I’d known he was going to be pissed. Storm understood he was bringing Kennedy today, and he had decided to go out drinking until the early hours of the morning instead of being here.

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