Page 37 of Mating the Omega
He shrugged and beamed proudly at them. “When the gardening gets too hard for you,” he reached down to palm my belly briefly. “I thought you could sit and work on baby things and supervise.”
Icoulduse more time to work on baby things. I had one blanket made, and only a couple of little outfits. Shifter enclaves often couldn’t afford store bought, except for a few things that could be bought in bulk, like jeans and t-shirts. Mercy Hills was wealthier than that, but it was hard to shake my upbringing. “It’s wonderful.” I turned and hugged him, then ran over and sat in one of the chairs. “Who’s the other one for?”
“Me,” Bram said, and plopped down in the other one.
“Whoever he wants in it,” Mac said firmly, and crooked a finger at him. “Get back to work.” As soon as Bram reluctantly hauled himself out of the chair to trudge back up to his fork, Mac took his seat. “Duke made them. I traded him for a shift, so you’re going to miss me an extra evening this week.”
“I always miss you when you work.” I glanced up to where Bram was turning over another patch of soil. “I suppose Bram could come over for a while. He can help me pin together a few more outfits, and I’ll work with him on his sewing.”
“You know, you don’t have to make everything. We can buy some.”
I shook my head. “I don’t want to be a burden. And I don’t mind. It gives me something to keep my hands busy when my bossy alpha mate tells me to sit down and rest.”
“Your bossy alpha mate loves you and he wants you to be healthy.”
“I am. And I love you to.”
Little Mac woke up and stretched. Mac laughed and put a hand on my belly, letting Little Mac shove and pummel his palm.
I put my hand over his, and looked up. “Bram, he’s awake! Did you want to feel?”
Okay, maybe I wasn’t so jealous after all.
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
I finished packing what I thought I might need while we were in the city. It wasn’t much—Laine said he expected it would only take a day to show Montana Border that their suit was pointless. But just in case, I packed enough for both of us for two days.
“Ready to go?” Mac asked, padding sock-footed into the bedroom.
“Yeah, I think so.” I put a hand to my back and stretched. The timing of the court date was all wrong. Technically, I was due tomorrow, and we’d asked for an extension for that as well, but my old pack had refused. The only thing I could hope for was that I’d go over, like Adelaide said first time bearers often did.
“I’ll get that.” Mac picked up the suitcase and headed downstairs and I followed him.
Abel was on the phone in the kitchen, talking to Laine, as it turned out. “We’re about ready to leave.” He paused to listen, then said, “Courthouse doors as soon as we get there. See you then.” He ended the call and looked up at me. “You look nice.”
“Thanks.” I’d used the last of the money I had from the gardening to buy material to have clothes made that looked like they belonged in a courtroom, but still left room for the baby inside me. The baby in question stretched, but there wasn’t much he could do—he’d outgrown his rooms and if he wanted to get any bigger, he was going to have be born. I buttoned the tidy jacket I wore over the loose suit, and looked for Mac.
“He’s out packing the car. I’m bringing Duke with us, just in case.”
“So there’ll be six of us in the room.” Laine had booked a hotel room for us, guessing that I’d be tired after a day stuck in a courtroom. He was right—I was already tired, stretched thin, and ready to have this baby. My womb tightened and I hissed out a breath, waiting for the cramp to pass.
“Jason? Are you all right? He’s not coming now, is he?” Abel asked.
I shook my head and took a deep breath. “I don’t think so. I think it’s just those weird practice contractions. I’m not sore—” I broke off and flushed. I was hard enough to talk about my Omega line with Mac. Doing it with the Alpha, my almost-mate, was really awkward.
Luckily he didn’t push. “Let me know if you think it’s starting.”
“I will.” Everything settled down, except for Little Mac, who did his best to show me how displeased he was with his recent squeezing. I grunted and put a hand to my ribs, then shook my head at the Alpha. “He’s just cranky. He probably wants out right now as much I want him to be out.”
Mac came in the door. “We’re ready.” He walked up and took my hands. “Are you ready?”
“I’m good as long as I have you.” We shared a kiss, and he led me out to the car.
Duke drove, with the Alpha in the front seat, and Mac and myself in the back. Dad and Garrick had gone up yesterday with Laine.
They were ready for us at the gate. Our papers were briefly inspected, and my watermelon of a stomach was goggled at by the guards. But that was as far as it went, and then we were on the road.
I let myself drift during the trip. Mac put his arm around my shoulder and I leaned into him, not thinking, just enjoying the way it felt to be held by my mate, my pup growing and squirming inside me, getting ready to be born.
