Page 88 of His Rejected Alpha Mate
“Sure, little kit.” I reached out a hand automatically, and she clasped it.
Jasper cradled Hayden in his arms when we got to the bedroom. Angelica crept quietly and slowly towards him. When she reached the side of the bed, Hayden looked at the movement. The awe in her eyes as they met Hayden’s was almost enough to bring me to my knees. She would be his fiercest protector as they grew together. “I love him,” she whispered. Carefully, as to not startle him, she reached a finger out to stroke his tiny hand. He clutched her finger, and she gasped, looking between me and Jasper. “Can I hold him, Papa?”
“Of course you can. Come up here, take your shoes off. That’s it. Get comfortable.” Jasper coaxed Angelica into a seated position with cushions all around her before gently placing our baby in our daughter’s arms. Hayden settled easily, just as fascinated with his sister as she was with him. That was the moment that their unshakable sibling bond was formed.
Grady and Trey met Hayden next and took their leave soon after to give us some much needed family time. We all ended up on the bed together and somehow all got a few hours’ sleep before Hayden woke hungry. Jasper helped Angelica feed her brother as I made us all some food. Shifter healing was fantastic, but Jasper’s body still needed fuel.
No one had told me how difficult it was leaving the house with a baby! I’d gotten complacent with Angelica, that was for sure. With her, we could just leave the house without changes of clothes, feeds, and diapers. I’d even scoffed at Kade once for needing so much help, and I struggled with one baby.
I loved the triplets, but I was sure they were a lot of work. While Felix and Greyson were both pretty chilled out. Elliotte was less so. It was like she knew how much chaos her arrival had caused and lived for the drama. Felix just sweetly smiled at everyone. He was just adorable and had everyone wrapped around his finger. Greyson was more serious. He studied the world around him.
Eventually, we managed to leave the house. I strapped Hayden to my chest in a handy carrier, a gift from our baby shower. Jasper chuckled as he fastened and tightened straps around my body before helping place Hayden in it. “Rather you than me, he is so going to throw up on you.” While I wanted to scoff, I’d already had to change clothes because of baby vomit, so chances were that Jasper was right. I packed a spare shirt.
Our walk was lovely after being inside for so long. My bear was proud and mentally strutting. He wanted to show our strong alpha cub off to everyone that we met. He was almost disappointed because the air around the compound was tense, and had been since the surprise attack. Everyone was on edge, and he wanted to celebrate. I would have laughed, but I still couldn’t get my head around it. Though we had prepared for an attack on the babies, it still came as a shock. There was no prepping mentally for such betrayal of our own.
The changes were startling. Guards always worked in pairs. During higher traffic times, we sent more guards to the gates. There were patrols of the entire fence line. Now that we had birds in the pack, Jake and Sebastian periodically flew over the area and gave reports. Hakeem had made a joke about getting some dragons, but they were sadly extinct. Their mix of magic, shifting, and ability to fly would have been pretty useful.
We used more magic than ever before, both from the witches and the elves. The magics were strangely compatible and Poppy had remarked that she felt her magical well grow with trying some techniques that the elves had shown her. Which was useful since she was a regular visitor to the compound.
People stopped us as we passed to say hello to the newest member of the pack. All children were pack despite not taking the oath until much later. We considered Angelica pack even with her being born in another pack, yet she wouldn’t join the Sweetwater link until she was eighteen. The same went for Kade’s children and Hayden. They had access to our family link with our blood connection.
My link to Jasper created one with Kade and Angelica, since technically they weren’t mine. We didn’t use it often, sticking to our mating bond. It was useful for emergencies and had helped Kade track Elliotte while Roan lay bleeding. Never get between an omega and their baby. Kade had nearly ripped the intruder apart before they could question him.
Our longest pause was at the omega area of the compound as the other omegas all came to welcome another baby. The pack had been so blessed, but still didn’t take any birth for granted. They gave Hayden multiple blessings and kisses until he got a little fussy about the attention.
Picking up speed and cutting off conversations felt rude, but necessary. Our little man was tired of people and wanted to eat.
“Oh, we should invite Dad and Papa and get family pictures! Do you think Axel and Chase will be there?” Jasper asked.
“That’s a great idea. I want to look back and remember this time. All the babies meeting for the first time.” Shifter babies grew quickly until they began to walk. Something about not being vulnerable and having their shifter side match their human form. Generally, shifter babies were saying words and walking by six months old. I was already looking forward to Hayden sleeping through the night. We’d pay for it in the teenage years with hormones and alters causing chaos.
Jasper made some calls as we approached the house and, by the sounds of it, the prospect of taking photos excited our extended family. “We need to get Roan in the pictures, too. He’s part of our family, especially after saving Elliotte.”
I adored Jasper’s forgiving heart. He never once spoke of feelings of recrimination towards the young man. He’d understood that Roan was too young to carry such a burden and to go against his alpha. Roan had done the right thing and likely saved all their lives. “You’re right. He’s family.” His own had long since lost contact while he worked for the council to earn his pardon.
The mansion was in an uproar with furtive looks and whispered words when we entered. They stopped to say hello and look at Hayden, but he started crying for his milk, so we rushed to the family room to feed him.
“Wait!” a familiar voice called. “You can’t go in there.” Dalton dashed after us. He was Axel’s assistant, another of the betas still recovering from the sickness. Like Axel, he’d been down for a month. More than half of the pack betas had been down that long and all woke within hours of each other. The whole thing was utterly bizarre.
“We need to feed Hayden.” I said, heading for the slightly ajar door. I paused when I heard raised voices.
“They won’t be long, by the sounds of it. How about you head to your desk and feed him there? He’s a cutie, by the way.” Dalton looked dreamily at the wriggling baby in my arms.
Go. I’ll wait here. Jasper said.
Dalton led me back to where our desks stood in a large vestibule next to Blake and Kade’s offices. He stood guard, holding Hayden for me as I cleaned my hands and made up the bottle. “Would you like to feed him?” I asked. Dalton’s expression broke my heart. There was a desperate longing and aching sadness that had me making the offer.
His eyes lit up. “Could I? I’ve not had a chance to feed the triplets yet. I love babies so much!”
My heart broke for him. Wordlessly, I handed over the bottle and a muslin cloth to prevent any spills from making a mess.
The beta sat at his desk carefully, adjusted his position and fed Hayden. His expression changed to one of wonder, though there was still a tinge of pain.
Goddess!Jasper exclaimed as I opened the bond for him to see.I just wish—
Yeah, me too.
Hayden guzzled his milk, and Dalton made a valiant effort to burp him, to no avail. “Here, let me try.”
