Page 32 of A Bunny for the Bear
"Well, don't wait. Come here, sweetie. We need to get that baby fed. Correction, those babies," she quickly said as she gently reached out to pass her hand across stomach. She paused before touching him, her gaze moving to him. "May I?"
He smiled widely. "Yes, please go ahead. You have free range to do so."
She shook her head as she gently laid her hand on his stomach.
"I understand that you keep telling me that, but I have knowledge that most pregnant people do not desire to be touched consistently all the time. Your mood could change from day to day. Sometimes you like it and sometimes you don't. I don't ever want to do anything that might upset you. Besides, consent is very important. Isn't that right?" She looked at me.
I held my hands up. "I am the king of consent. I made sure my mate was cognizant before anything ever happened. It just so happened we made four babies that day."
Uncle Champ held his hand up.
"That's what I'm talking about. Good job, nephew." He gave me a high five, then went back to sneaking food.
My aunt snapped her dish towel at him, and we all broke into laughter at the way he jumped out of her line of reach while still managing to grab another blueberry.
The man was obsessed with the things.
I felt renewed watching everyone enjoy themselves. Something about having my mate and knowing our future was secured gave me peace too.
I walked up and wrapped my arm around him as I leaned over for one of the blueberries. When I popped it in my mouth, my mate sighed contentedly against me. He held his hand over his full mouth as he chowed down on his own stolen berries.
My aunt eyed us both, her own smile beaming.
"I can't wait to have you as my neighbor," she said. "This is going to be perfect…”
Chapter Thirteen
Ross
“Areyou sure I'm doing this right?” I asked Nolan since Barrett was nursing their youngest baby as I held their other one in my arms.
I had just successfully changed their diaper after a fifteen-minute fight. I didn't know babies squirmed so much. It was something I had not prepared for.
Nolan patted my back gently, careful not to jar me too much. “You're doing great, Ross. I promise it gets easier with time. The first few moments holding a child are nerve-wracking, especially when it's your own. I'm glad you're getting some practice in.”
He winked at me as he left to go check on his mate and other child. I shook my head as I froze. I didn't want to possibly drop the baby, and I felt like there was a great chance of that happening if I moved.
Judy kicked my leg from where she sat on the couch. I hissed at her for it as I cautiously turned. When I turned to look her way, she grinned.
“You’ve got to loosen up. If you're tense, the baby is gonna know that you're tense.”
I scowled. “How do you know all this?”
“How does anyone know all this?” She shrugged. “We learn it. There's not really a class on how to be a parent, not when you're talking about shifters. Each baby is unique. Yours will be too. Do you still not know what you're having?”
I shook my head. “No. The babies have been very sneaky. The two scans we'd had with Dr. Hepbuck were inconclusive. He said that some babies just didn't want parents to know. Apparently, ours fell into that bunch.”
Judy laughed and rubbed her own growing stomach. She still had a while to deliver and though I felt a sense of jealousy over the fact that she would get to carry her baby longer, I also understood that I was lucky to go through the process quickly.
They had all told me about how months and months of endless pain was annoying. I only got a single month, a few weeks, and then I got to hold my precious babies.
“Have a seat. It's gonna be okay,” Barrett called from his place across the room on the couch.
I backed up slowly, then did the most careful squat known to man. By the time my butt touched the seat, I was damn near sweating.
“Now that wasn't so bad,” Judy said as she bumped my shoulder.
I glared at her. "Woman, I am probably going to have to see the doctor about heart palpitations after this.”
