“You’re amazing, you know that?”
“Yes, husband.” She laughed and squeezed my hand, which was shaking with nerves. “You tell me every day.”
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen Magda so excited.”
“I’m excited too.” She kissed the back of my hand, and I felt myself relax.
We were in a caravan of SUVs headed to the Catskill Mountains in upstate New York. I had promised my mate that we would take vacations away from the penthouse. Still, I didn’t know how that would be possible until Aurora, who was the best and sexiest problem solver I knew, found a resort that catered to shapeshifters run by a bear shifter and his human mate. She even found a resort for shifters in Hawaii. It still felt too good to be true, but Aurora’s excitement made me willing to try.
We reserved a small cabin for ourselves and a deluxe cabin for Magda, her children, and grandchildren. She goes to visit them often, but this is the first time they’ve ever been able to vacation together. For good measure, we invited Dr. Chen and her family. Under her care, my progress has been steady, but she was right about there being setbacks. She was also right about the time and effort needed to make a lasting change. The hard work was worth it for moments like these.
My incredible wife had made this all possible, and I fell in love with her more every day.
We got a marriage license the day after our lunch reunion. A week later, we married in the west wing with Magda, my father, and Aurora’s parents as witnesses. Our busy schedules made taking time off after the wedding impossible, but after six agonizing months of waiting, I had my beauty all to myself.
I carried her over the threshold and straight into the bedroom where I undressed her, kissed every square inch of her body, and made love to her in every position I could, in every way that she wanted, and as many times as she could handle it.
“Can I ask you a question?” she asked. We’d collapsed onto the mattress, sweaty with chests heaving.
“You’re my boss.” I tucked my lips between my teeth to hold back a laugh. “Ask away.” She chuckled and slapped me in the chest.
“Why do you insist on calling me Aurora, when everyone else calls me Rory?”
“Because you’re special. I don’t want to call you what everyone else calls you. You’re mine, Aurora.” I kissed her. “And because Aurora means dawn. You were my sunrise after a very,” I kissed her nose, “very long night. You bring light to everything you touch, including me.”
“Well,” she said in a croaky whisper. “You should’ve said that first.” She sniffled before kissing me again.
“Were you always this soft?” I squeezed her body closer.
“Shut up.” She laughed. “Are you nervous?” She made lazy circles around one of my nipples with her fingernail.
“It’s the first night of our honeymoon. I don’t have to go. I can stay here with you.”
“Nice try,” she said in a chuckle. “But this is the whole point of coming to a shifter resort. And you get cranky—well, crankier—when you go too long without shifting.” She craned her neck up to kiss me. “Now, go. We’ll be waiting for you when you get back.”
I tightened my arms around her waist again as her words settled in my mind.
“Wait.” I tilted her chin up so we could lock eyes. “What do you mean, we?”
“I mean me... and our baby.” She smiled at me. “I’m pregnant.”
“How do you know you’re pregnant?” Existential dread and unfathomable joy were waging war in my chest.
“Magda suspected it.” She grinned. “And I took a pregnancy test.” She kissed me. “I have a doctor’s appointment in three weeks. I thought you might want to come with me.”
I nodded, unable to form words.
“Are you okay?” she asked and smoothed a palm over my cheek.
“No,” I chuckled. “But that’s a good thing.” I was terrified but excited about becoming a father. I wanted to see Aurora’s belly swell and watch her nurse our cub. I thought of my own mother, and my chest tightened.
“Your doctor—” I began.
“Is a shifter, and she’s aware of what happened to your mother and of my anxiety. Aneurysms are rare, but she’s going to be monitoring me very carefully. Everything’s going to be okay.”
She gave me one of her serene and confident smiles. I would’ve believed anything she said because she was always right.
“So, I guess I have to be more careful when we’re having sex.”
“You better not.” She slapped me in the chest again. “Now, stop stalling and go. My husband has fucked me past the point of exhaustion, and I need to sleep. I’m currently manufacturing a person, you know.”
“I love you, Aurora Douglas-Pine.”
“I love you too, papa vilkas.” As much delight as I felt at her Lithuanian lessons from Magda, hearing my fated mate call me a father and a wolf resonated with me in a way I didn’t think would ever be possible. For the first time in my life, I believed those two concepts weren’t mutually exclusive. I kissed her again and quickly climbed out of bed so she couldn’t see the tears forming in my eyes.
“Do you want to see?” I asked as I removed my boxers.
“Always,” she whispered with a yawn.
“You’ll have to let me out.”
She nodded and climbed out of bed before pulling on a robe. I gave her a final kiss before I dropped to all fours, letting the wolf inside me take my skin. I followed my wife to the front door, where she held it open for me. Her slender fingers slid through my fur as I stepped into the crisp night air. I’d never been truly outdoors as a wolf before. Despite the considerable fortune and time I spent on attention to detail while crafting the west wing, my facsimile was pitiful compared to the real thing.
The air was so cold and clean; it burned my nostrils. Noises that I wouldn’t have been able to discern in my human form even with heightened senses were so loud they almost overwhelmed me. My nose filled with the scents of the earth, the trees, and the others. There were so many others in the night, not quite animal and not quite human. Others like me.
I looked back at my mate, leaning against the doorjamb with her arms folded wearing a sleepy grin. My heart was so full of love for her at that moment. Part of me wanted to change back, carry her into our cabin, and hold her in my arms forever.
That part of me wasn’t in control. My wolf had been denied fresh air for over forty years. He was desperate to run, roam, and explore. I threw back my head and let out a loud elated howl. For a moment, the woods were silent until my call was answered by howls that were unmistakably from more wolves. They were accompanied by growls, barks, and other animal noises that I couldn’t identify, but couldn’t wait to investigate.
I looked at Aurora one last time. Her grin widened. Her eyes were alight with wonder as she looked around, absorbing the sounds of the wild chorus before she looked at me again.
“What are you waiting for, baby?” She laughed. “Go!”
I bounded off of the cabin’s porch and ran into the night.