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Zach had given birth.
To three babies!
In his family home, on the sofa, and... Okay, Val was in shock, too. But he was so relieved that it had gone well, and that everything looked fine. He hadn’t wanted to admit to anyone, not even to himself, how scared he was of anything happening to Zach or their babies.
Three babies!
Okay, he had to stop repeating that in a high-pitched crazy voice inside his head. Relief was taking over shock, calming him, and now that Zach wasn’t shuddering and crying anymore, he felt like everything was going to be okay. He kissed the top of his omega’s head again, tightening his arms around him, as the doctor checked the babies, clamped and cut the cords one by one, handing each baby to one of their friends to hold.
Zach groaned at some point, tensing, and the doctor pressed down on his still round belly. “Yes, push, Zach, good work. It’s the placenta this time. Push it out.”
A few more grunts, and his exhausted omega flopped back against him, panting harshly. “Ow,” he said weakly.
“It’s all over now,” the doctor said. “Not saying you won’t feel like hell for the next few weeks, and I heard that taking a dump will hurt as much as giving birth for a while, but...”
Zach grunted.
That sounded so not fun.
“I’ll give you a cream to use, and I’m sure you’ll have support from your alpha and your friends,” the doctor said, and Zach meeped. He had to be mortified. “Sex will be off the table for a while as—”
“All right, doc, we got the gist,” Val rumbled, nuzzling the back of Zach’s head. “How are the babies?”
“Babies are perfect. Of course, I would like to take them to the birth center and weigh them, measure them, and make sure everything’s all right. Same with you, Zach.” The doctor flashed a light between Zach’s legs. “As soon as you feel you can move from here, we should go to the center. It won’t take long.”
“My babies,” Zach whispered. “I haven’t held them yet.”
“Oh, that’s right. Of course.” The doctor beamed at them. He looked like the kind of guy who loved delivering babies and making the world a noisier, better place. “Here we go. Hello little baby. Woo, you’re so cute and filthy.” Chuckling, he lifted the squirming baby from Tate’s awkward hold and carried him over to Zach. “Put him to the breast. He’ll like that.”
“He will?”
His omega sounded a little dazed, but the doctor didn’t seem concerned, so Val told himself to relax and enjoy the moment as their first baby was placed in Zach’s arms, on top of his belly. Zach stared down, eyes wide, at the newborn, wiggling, pink little creature that they had created.
Then gasped when the baby obviously found his nipple.
“Good, good,” the doctor said. “That’s the way. You’re a natural.”
Zach was shaking his head. “He’s nursing,” he whispered, awe in his voice. “He’s a natural, not me.”
“He has your colors,” Val said, staring over his omega’s shoulder down at the baby.
“What? He has no hair!”
“His eyes, though.”
“His eyes are a muddy gray.”
“Guys, give it some time before you decide who he looks like.” Alex was laughing so hard he was holding his belly. “Baby was only just born. His eyes will change.”
“And he will grow hair, eventually.” Kai winked at them, then cooed down at the baby he was holding.
“Good to know,” Zach whispered, and when he looked up at Val, he had a smile on his face. “I hope he gets your good looks.”
“Bah. I hope he looks just like you, love,” Val said with an answering smile. “You’re the prettiest omega in the world.”
“Could you two get any cheesier than this?” It was Jai, whom Val hadn’t noticed at all. Truth was, he hadn’t noticed anyone since he’d realized Zach was in labor. “And look at all your pretty babies. Congratulations.”
“Thank you,” Zach said, still smiling, still looking tired but happy.
“Yeah, thanks,” Val muttered, cocking his head at Jai and his former life.
All was well with the world.
***
Leaving their friends and the guests at the estate to feast and dance and make merry, they made their way to the birth center in the limo they’d arrived in. They sat in the back, side by side, holding their babies, comparing grimaces and funny expressions and laughing. Halfway to the center, Zach had fallen asleep, and Val had been content to just look at him and the babies, thinking how their life had changed in the blink of an eye with the arrival of these little guys.
They were beautiful. Perfect. Did all fathers feel the same way about their babies? No way, right? These babies, their babies were the best. The best looking, strongest cleverest babies in history.
Had to be. After all, their omega father was all these things.
Damn, he was so in love with Zach. The feeling ran so deep that Val knew it could never fade, a rut made deeper with every year of their lives.
At the center, a nurse came with a wheelchair to take Zach inside, and another nurse came to help Valerian with the two babies he was carrying—the third one still in Zach’s arms—but he declined the help. He followed and stood aside as the babies were cleaned and swaddled, weighed and measured, and generally checked over.
But when it was time to check Zach, he stood beside him and held his hand.
His omega’s sweet smile was all the reward he craved. Knowing his Mate felt better having him there was what he himself needed.
As one. That was what the bonding, the Claiming meant, and that was how he felt.
The doctor came, took another look, and declared Zach fine, though he should take it easy in the next few days and rest a lot. Val vowed to make sure of that. A nurse came to clean Zach up and help him put on a hospital gown, since his own clothes had been ruined with birth fluids and blood during the birth.
He looked so small like this, kind of frail, and yet strong. Val had seen his strength during the childbirth and it had awed him.
Still, the urge to protect him was stronger than ever, and when Zach looked up at him, smiling, Val’s heart flipped over.
The nurses brought the babies over, swaddled and asleep, small bundles with their heads sticking out on top, like tiny burritos.
“Just look at them,” he whispered, choked. “What are we going to name them?”
“Z-One, Z-Two, and Z-Three?” Val suggested, grinning.
“Be serious.”
“Did you give it any thought? They did arrive kind of unexpectedly early. I thought we had more time to discuss the naming part.”
“I know, but I thought... I thought maybe we could name them after our fathers.”
“Now, are you serious?” Val stared at his omega. “I thought you and your fathers didn’t see eye to eye. After all, they sold you to the academy, didn’t they? And made you feel like you weren’t wanted. Fuck, babe...” He lifted the slender hand he held to his lips for a kiss. “I’m mad at them on your behalf.”
Zach’s smile turned sweeter. “You are? That’s so frigging romantic.”
Val chuckled.
“But yeah, I thought... to rewrite their names somehow. Write over them. Make their names loved, because they will belong to our babies, so that we will get over the hurt of the past. You know? Am I making any sense?”
“You are,” Val said after a moment. “I get it. Are you sure about this?”
He didn’t hate his own alpha father. He had at first, and now he wished he’d known that the old bastard hadn’t completely changed his will and hadn’t blamed him all the way to the end. He wished they’d had a chance to discuss before he’d passed away.
But wishing didn’t bring his father back and giving his name to one of their babies was a legacy. A commemoration. A nod to the old man and to all he’d left them, cantankerous old bastard or not.
“What do you think?”
“I think it’s a great idea,” Val said. “Let’s do it.”
“Really?”
“My love, I’d do whatever you wanted, don’t you know that? But I also happen to think it’s a damn fine idea, and besides, we’ll find nicknames for them anyway, so what does it matter?”
“You...” Zach laughed.
“I know. I’m right, though, and you know it. Like that one.” He nodded at the baby the doctor was currently holding in his arms. “Waving his arms like that all the time. Windmill? Swimmer? Birdie?”
“Val! Stop it.” But Zach was still laughing. “Ow, don’t make me laugh so much, it hurts.”
“Sorry, my love. So little Swimmer here, for instance, won’t even remember his real name after a while. Why should we?”
“I can’t believe I let you Claim me,” Zach wheezed. “Idiot.”
“You love me, though.”
“God, I do.”
“Then all is fine in the world,” Val whispered and smiled.
***
“Aw, such cuties!” Tate had stars in his eyes as he gazed down at the babies, lying in a row on the bed in Val’s room in Howl Academy. “They’re precious.”
“I sense baby fever,” Alex muttered.
Luke grunted, muscular arms folded over his chest, looking for all the world as if he wasn’t paying attention, but Val could swear that his friend was closely watching Tate, eyes flickering at Tate’s every move.
Like a predator waiting to jump on his prey.
They’d all gathered in Val’s room where he’d had Zach’s things moved. They now officially lived together and he was relieved, because the need to take care of his exhausted omega and their lively babies was made so much easier.
If the Dean hadn’t given the go-ahead, Val would have kidnapped his family to bring them over, swear to God.
Zach sat on the bed, beside the row of babies, reclining on a mountain of pillows, looking tired but happy. Dressed in a pale jade robe that Val had bought for him to match his eyes, his belly still a little swollen from the pregnancy, dark circles under his eyes, he looked gorgeous.
Always would.
He looked like the man Val loved and nothing would ever change that.
“What are you looking at?” Zach stuck his tongue out at him. “Do I have something on my face or what?”
“You look beautiful and I can’t stop looking at you,” Val admitted, and damn his face was growing hot. What was this and why did he feel like a schoolboy in love?
Zach snickered but patted the bed beside him. “Hold me?”
“Always, love.” Relieved, Val padded over and sat on the bed, opening his arms and drawing his omega against his side. “Better?”
“Always better when you’re here,” Zach whispered with a small sigh.
“You two are cute, too,” Tate observed, head tilted to the side, a smile on his face. “Love is in the air.”
“Right?” Alex drew Kai against him, wrapping his arms around the dark-haired omega.
Luke glared at nothing, arms still crossed over his chest.
What the hell was going on with him, anyway? All this talk about Claiming Tate but making no move to talk to the pretty omega, Court him, seduce him. Why had he decided to do it? Or was it all talk? Val had tried to get Luke to open up about it but nada.
Maybe his friend was a conservative, traditional alpha wolf, after all. It surprised Val, but it wasn’t like he knew Luke all that well. Some alphas were real assholes, picking an omega for his looks to get babies with and then dipping their dick in every omega that passed by. Val had never pegged Luke for one of those, but he’d been known to be proven wrong before.
After all, he himself had never believed in love at first sight, true soulmates, and having a family. Didn’t think he’d want it. That he deserved it. And yet here he was, so fucking happy he thought his heart might burst.
So yeah, you never knew.
One thing he knew was, whatever came next, whatever job he found and however big their family got, he was right where he wanted to be.