Accidental Surrogate

I’m groggy, a few hours later, when I wake up because I honestly haven’t gotten much sleep. But still, I’m instantly aware that I’m awake because something in my body is…different.

s my eyes crack open, I have absolutely no idea what it is, and no real interest in finding out. Because nothing feels wrong or off…just… different… So, I yawn and snuggle my body back against my naked mate, my spine pressed to his warm stomach. Sinclair gives a deep, sleepy little growl as he tightens his arm around me, holding me close even as he sleeps. I smile at this, happiness sweeping through me as I think about how lovely it is to have a mate that holds me and protects me even when he’s mostly unconscious.

And he’s so warm, and the bed is so soft, and the sheets are so smooth under my bare skin that I almost… Almost fall back asleep… But then? My eyes suddenly fly open.

Because there is…there is something new within me.

As I start to put the pieces together, I am instantly, starkly awake – and so is Rafe, I realize, as I peer through the dark over the side of the bed. My sweet baby is peering at me curiously through the slats of his crib – almost as if he can feel it too This new…new thing within me, a bond that wasn’t there hours ago – but which is there now, just a tiny silver thread of something new My hands fly to my mouth and my eyes instantly fill with tears because even though I didn’t experience this with Rafe – my wolf wasn’t awake then, after all, to help me feel it – I suddenly know precisely what it is.

My voice is shaky as I breathe the word, hardly daring to voice it.

up so that he can be closer – almost

coherently, or make any sense Sinclair blinks suddenly awake, his hands tightening on my

as well, shifting me back a little so that I’m sitting in his lap, his arms going tight around me as he stares down into

feeling it out- making sure that it’s really there – ” Ella, it’s…” “A baby!” I shriek, throwing my

happy breaths, passing all of his emotions to me along the bond Happiness, and sudden anxiety, and joy, and pride, and a thrilled sense of fatherhood- I put my hand on my mate’s cheek and pull his face up to mine, grinning at him with abandon and wiping away his shocked and happy tears. “A little baby, Dominic,” I murmur, beaming into his face. “A brand new baby!” “The best surprise I’ve ever gotten, Ella,” he murmurs, staring at me like I’m a marvel as he sniffs his tears away, still laughing a little in shock. He pulls away from me just a little bit, looking down at my stomach almost like he will see a baby bump – though of course there’s nothing yet I laugh again, pulling Sinclair’s face back up to mine and kissing him, passing all my own joy down the bond. Because this moment – I’ve been waiting for it my whole life. A little surprise baby, much desired and already much loved Sinclair kisses me back with all the love in his heart, holding me close and rocking me back and forth before he

right? – is- “Here,” he says, putting a steady hand on my cheek. “Close your eyes,” he murmurs, his voice excited, if soft. I do as he says, loosing a deep breath and draping my arms lightly around his neck before I close my eyes. I feel Sinclair

line of sweetness and determination within it not that that Rafe lacks those traits, but

I ask quietly, completely overwhelmed. “When Rafe was still

I ask, smacking him on the shoulder