Page 16 of Labor of Love

Pregnant and on the run from his ex-alpha, Emre hides with his wolf pup in a run-down apartment. He's out of cash, out of food, and his neighbor next door is cooking something that smells delicious.

Desperate to feed himself and his pup, Emre knocks on his neighbor's door.

What he doesn't expect is a handsome alpha, a fluttering crush, and the realization that he could get into deep trouble, all over again.

CW/TW: past domestic violence, history of dead family, brief discussion on child kidnapping (this book is really sweet though!)

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THE MOST EMBARRASSING MEET CUTE

Emre’s stomach rumbled, but nothing in his apartment smelled good.

He rubbed his round belly and stared miserably at his empty fridge, knowing he had to scrounge upsomefood because Abbie needed to nurse from him soon, and his body couldn’t produce milk from nothing.

He didn’t have money to go to the grocery store and buy whatever caught his fancy, though. Didn’t have money for more than the basics. He cursed his past self for getting all three of them into this situation—him, Abbie, and the unborn baby in his belly.

If only he hadn’t continued to stay with Ronald, even after all the beatings. If only Emre still had his pack to return to.

He shook off all his what-ifs. They weren’t going to help him now.

Maybe if he peeked into the dumpsters behind the grocery store, there’d be something he could salvage...?

He was just about to check the clock to see if it was late enough for dumpster-diving, when the most heavenly scent wafted into his nose.

Emre froze. He sniffed again. It hadn’t come from his imagination.

The wonderful aroma smelled like a hearty meat stew, like one of Gramma’s recipes that he vaguely remembered from his childhood. His mouth watered.

The pup in his belly kicked. Emre grunted.

“No, we can’t have that. It’s not ours,” he told his child.

He kept sniffing at the scent, though. His windows were shut tight because it was the middle of winter, so the scent had to have come from under his front door. From one of the neighbors in the building.

Emre stretched out his wolf hearing. Sounds of chopping and stirring came from the apartment two doors down, the one that had been empty for ages, except a new neighbor had moved in recently.

Maybe it was a kindly old grandmother who lived there now. It sounded like there was only one person in the apartment. Maybe... Emre could ask for half a cup of stew? It would help him finish his stale loaf of bread.

He made sure Abbie was still sleeping in Buttwheel—his shopping cart friend who thankfully didn’t need any food.

“I’m going next door just for a minute,” he whispered to Buttwheel.

There was magic in metals. As ores were purified, the magic in them accumulated. When these metals were shaped into objects and the metal parts moved, their magic interacted, turning objects sentient. It was how locks could smile, and shopping carts could frolic.

Buttwheel flipped its crooked wheels obligingly, rocking unsteadily back and forth to keep Abbie comfortable.

“Thank you.” He patted Buttwheel’s side. Then he checked to make sure his shirt was mostly clean, stepped into his shoes, and left his door unlocked.

Emre inhaled as he padded over to the apartment where the wonderful smell was the strongest. He clutched a mug tightly in his hands, and his heart hammered.

At worst, all his neighbor would do was say no.

He raised his fist timidly and knocked, feeling as though he was interrupting something. The chopping in the apartment paused. So he knocked again, and held his breath.

Heavy footsteps stopped behind the door. His neighbor was big, Emre realized, a moment before the lock clicked and the door opened.

The glorious scent of stew, Emre was prepared for.

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