Page 11 of King Luna

My heart stings when I meet Noah’s wide stare; he’s mortified by his own scent.

I grasp his hand, drawing him closer before he can second-guess my initial reaction a second longer. “No, no, my love, this scent isbeautiful. Look at how deeply you’re comforting her.”

Immersed in Noah’s scent, Lexi’s cries shift from screams to whimpering tears, her body loosening until her arms fall limp at her sides.

“There you go, Lexi. We’re right here with you until your mommies come home.” I attempt to steady my voice, taking a deep breath as I look back to Noah with a wobbly smile. “Keep going, Noah. She loves it, see? And I do too.”

Noah swallows hard, his eyes wide and jaw taut. It’s clear he’s uncomfortable, but it’s almost like his scent is beyond his control today; both of our eyes widen as a far sweeter scent fills the kitchen.

My mate ducks his head, but as he steps closer, returning us to his embrace, Lexi lets out a soft, purring whimper. Then her little arms pop up—outstretched for Noah.

I stare in awe. Not because she’s aching for Noah—that comes as no surprise to me with how loving my mate is—but because I’ve never seen a simple gesture hit Noah’s heart like this. As his eyebrows flinch, his big hands hoist her into his arms, tucking her under his chin in a desperate snuggle. Noah squeezes his eyes shut tight, cradling her. As a far more potent scent spills from him, my heart flips.

I stand, rubbing Noah’s back as he nuzzles Lexi’s hair. His cheeks flame red.

“Oh, my love. This is so good. You’re a natural nurturer, see? And your scent is just what we all needed,” I whisper.

Noah is far too flustered to speak, keeping his head lowered.

I press my knuckles to my lips, my shoulders raising at the gorgeous picture Noah and Lexi paint before me. She nuzzles closer into him, peace washing over her as he holds her little, tired body in his massive arms. Noah softens his warped forehead, his hand sweeping down Lexi’s back through her leftover shuddering. When a different, sweet scent fills the air, my breath catches; Lexi is returning Noah’s loving scent with her own pleased emotions.

Noah lifts only his eyes to meet mine, his eyebrows contorting like he’s near tears. From how touched he feels in our bond, I know this moment strikes a deep nerve for him. I stroke his hair from his eyes, biting back tears with him. Our bond unearths a deep pain hidden on Noah’s side of our bond, but Lexi’s adoration of Noah’s uncontrollable, nurturing scent appears to be healing something in both of them.

“Okay, my loves. Let's sit down and watch a movie with some snacks and cuddles.” Guiding Noah to Amy and Kira’s royal blue tufted couch, I adjust the pillows for Noah before he sits. But instead of sitting right away, he holds Lexi close, stooping over me to plant a shaky kiss on top of my head.

My shoulders soften. Looking up, I steady Noah’s arms, gazing at my mate with a quick look of recognition at how powerful this moment was for him.

Thank you, Noah mindlinks, his eyes racing across my face to absorb my expression—as if he might’ve been wrong, and that I’d still end up judging him for his scent.

Stroking his cheek, I smile.I love you, Noah. No matter what.

Noah’s eyelids blink slower, his taut torso slackening before my eyes. I didn’t realize how worried he still was about his unexpected scent, but between Lexi and me showing him how beautiful it was, I hope he can take it easier on himself tonight.

Lexi has no plans of moving, content to be bundled in Noah’s arms, even as he repositions her to settle on the couch. Fetching a blanket from across the room, I turn around to find Lexi staring up at Noah in deep trust, her hand fidgeting with his shirt collar. When Noah breaks into a soft smile, gazing back down at Lexi, my heart flips into my throat.

Noah, you’re going to keep me gushing over you all night at how gorgeous you are with each other. How am I going to survive when you’re holding our pup like this?

Widening his grin, Noah peeks at me as I drape a fuzzy, royal blue blanket over them both. Lexi purrs, nuzzling her stuffy, red nose into Noah’s chest. With it, she urges out another surge of Noah’s nurturing scent, stirring my heart into overwhelm. Noah’s breath speeds, but this time, he doesn’t look to me for reassurance. He stares down at Lexi, unblinking—as if he’s in awe at how contented she seems, thanks to him.

“You’re her lifeline right now,” I whisper, running my fingers through his dark hair.

Noah doesn’t respond, but our bond certainly does; the most precious hope stirs his wolf’s tail into a happy wag, the sweet sight of it in my mind deepening my breath.

Goddess, help me. I didn’t realize how deeply Noah not only wanted kids, but also needed to nurture. Has he been hiding this part of his scent intentionally?

Noah feels far too shy and nervous about this for me to point it out later tonight—and the last thing I want is for him to feel like this type of scent is a bad thing, especially since shame was his default response. I don’t know what convinced him that this nurturing scent was shameful, other than what’s clear from my experience in Greenfield thus far; this is not a scent I’veeversmelled from an Alpha.

I don’t want to label it for Noah, but I recognized it right away. Comforting Lexi in Amy and Kira’s kitchen, he smelled purely of Omega.

But what does this mean? My scent wavers between pheromones like this too, but it doesn’t seem like either of us are exhibiting “normal” Lycan scent behavior.

Staving off my overwhelm, I kiss Lexi’s cheek, then Noah’s. “So, do you both want some blueberries?”

“Bluebears.” Lexi’s eyes widen.

Noah grins. “Doesn’t she only know like 50 words at her age? She recognized that immediately.”

I break into giggles. “Ah, yes, you are your mother’s child, Lex. Momlovesblueberries.”

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