Page 87 of Black Moon

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Colt

No one went home after the pack had picked their new alpha.

Everyone wanted a moment with Linden, and though he had promised me a quiet afternoon, cuddled in bed with his books and my questing hands, this was better. This was Linden Grove, stepping into the role he’d been made for.

Wolves came up to him and for the first time ever, it didn’t grate my nerves when they turned, exposing their necks to their alpha. Whenever anyone did that to Dad, it drove me up a fucking tree.

Of course, I’d never seen Linden growl anybody into submission, so that helped.

Also helped that I couldn’t think of a single better thing than baring my neck to him and feeling the scrape of his fangs against my skin. That was just the energy of the pack around me, obviously, and had absolutely nothing to do with how much I wanted to peel Linden’s precious sweater off his body and ride him till I passed out.

He introduced me to what felt like everyone in his pack—more than a hundred names I’d wouldn’t remember unless I had a lifetime to learn them. And still, I tried to focus, commit them to memory, just to see if I could.

One of the older women had taken Linden aside to ask about something that, to my uninformed ears, sounded personal, so I’d taken the opportunity to slip back inside The Cider House to get refills.

Inside, Claudia was perched on a stool, staring at the shiny glass bottles on shelves behind the bar. She was holding a mug in hand that looked just like Linden’s, twisting it back and forth in the same wet ring she’d left on the counter.

“Anticipating trouble?”

She startled and her brows shot up, but her shock disappeared when I nodded at the drink in her hand. She gave it a funny little frown, like she’d forgotten about the sweet, nonalcoholic brew she’d been sipping.

“No. Well, yes. Well...Maybe. Do you have a second?” Claudia was wearing a grimace that pursed her lips. “I kind of need your help.”

“Of course. Yeah. Anything.” There were people all around, but Claudia was giving off a vibe that said she needed a minute to herself, so the stool next to her was empty. I slipped in beside her and leaned in close. “What’s going on?”

It occurred to me immediately that I was willing to go above and beyond for a woman I’d only known a couple weeks. There were friends I’d had for years that I didn’t trust so much, but I also knew Claudia, at least enough to know that she wouldn’t ask anyone for anything she could do herself, and she wouldn’t take more than she was willing to give.

Still, the words weren’t coming easily to her, and it was hard to sit there and wait.

“Okay.” She waved her hands by her shoulders and took a deep breath, struggling to shake her nerves off. “Okay, well, I just became second of this pack. Which is great. Obviously, that’s great.”

“It is,” I agreed slowly. God, I hoped she wasn’t working up to say she couldn’t do it. Linden would be crushed.

But more than that, Claudia Wilson, the snappish, stubborn omega that she was, would be second to a pack this size. That was incredible, and I wanted to see it happen. I hated to think what some of the wolves who’d been reluctant to accept an omega second in the first place would say if she dropped out.

“It’s really, really great, Claud. Honestly, I couldn’t be more thrilled about it.” The Grove pack was on a path I admired. More than anything, I wanted to see it work out for them. “You’re going to be great.”

“I know that,” she snapped. Her eyes narrowed, but only for a second. “I’m sorry. I mean, I know. I’m not...Just, give me a second.”

She took another deep breath, her nose flaring, the color draining out of her cheeks.

I kept my mouth shut. She’d work her way up to it, or she wouldn’t have started.

“So, it’s great. But, well, I’ve been getting kind of queasy in the mornings? Okay, more like puking my guts out. Which I figured—hey, stressful time, you know? Brook missing, Aspen Senior dying. But, well, Birch had this idea that it might be—and we’ve been trying for a while...”

She trailed off, and like a sack of potatoes, I sat there staring, not a thought in my head. She looked right at me, her eyes wide, waiting for me to—oh. Oh!

“You’re pregnant!” I hissed. She clamped her hand over my mouth, glaring at the wolves around us. None of them seemed to be paying attention to us, with music playing in the bar and the crowd all around.

“I’m sorry,” I mumbled into her palm.

“It’s fine. We’re just...not telling people yet. It’s early, and—”

She didn’t have to say it, the lines at the corners of her lips said everything. She was worried, scared. Because the Condition.

Every omega knew it hit especially hard during pregnancy—a healthy omega could go from vital and vigorous to listless or worse in just a few months.

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