Alpha Dom and His Human Surrogate

Ella

The trip improves by leaps and bounds the moment we stop at the campground for the night.

“Finally,” I sigh, taking a deep breath of the fresh air as I climb down the steps of the RV, my

baby curled in my arm and looking around him with bright and interested eyes. “It’s good to be on

steady ground again.”

“Remind me never to take you on a boat,” Sinclair murmurs, coming down the stairs behind me.

If you didn’t like this…you won’t respond well to that.”

“Yes sir,” I say passively, smiling down at the baby, who frees one of his arms and reaches out

into the cool evening air, clasping his fingers at a firefly who passes close by. I don’t mention that

I liked the sea voyage to the desert much more than I liked this, even though the accommodations

weren’t as nice.

“What about this?” Sinclair murmurs as he steps down the final step and comes to stand behind

me, wrapping his arms around my shoulders. I smile as I lean back against his chest. “Is the forest

an improvement?”

I look around our isolated campsite, lit with grey and blue tones in the dying light of the day. I

smile at what I see, appreciating the cool air and the blinking light of the fireflies that float lazily

through the space.

“Yes,” I say with a decisive nod. “This will do quite well.”

“Good,” Sinclair replies, giving me a quick kiss on the cheek before releasing me and moving to a luggage compartment low on the RV. I watch as he opens it and begins pulling out camping gear – chairs, a cooler, some bags with extra snacks and bug spray.

“Oh!” I say, surprised by it all as my mate begins to set it all up around a burned-out ring where a

fire goes. “Oh, we’re very prepared.”

“Of course we are,” Roger says, climbing out of the RV with Cora behind him. When he reaches. the ground, Roger flicks the switch that prepares Henry’s little elevator. “We’re always ready to go

glamping in this family.”

I laugh at the term, settling into a chair that Sinclair waves me towards, smiling down at the baby “What do you think, Rafe?” I whisper to him “Do you like glamping?” He gives a happy little coo in response and I laugh, grinning up at his father. “I think that’s a yes

“Kid has taste,” Sinclair says, winking at me as he continues his work

faster than I thought was possible

Cora and I and giving us a smile, “when

they’re

Sinclair protests, his eyes

chimes in, making us laugh. “If I’m

your baby is gonna eat a lot of hotdogs,” I murmur to

looks over at me from her chair

hire us chefs,” I consider. She raises her eyebrows, pleased at

and everything, chatting lightly about what we’ll be doing in our mutual future but not touching on any of the big, scary subjects that lurk behind the conversation. We all know that they’re there, after all – and we all simultaneously decide to

tonight is just about laughter, and

I bite into a smore that Sinclair hands me, the marshmallow burned to a crisp just the way I like it. “Oh my god,” I murmur, closing my eyes as I chew. “This is so good, I can barely

“you’re going to get marshmallow

to open my

with my s’more anyway Cora, Roger, and Henry laugh as well as Sinclair walks Rafe away from me, apologizing in a loud murmur for how messy and inconsiderate his mother is I wave a

my s’more and look around at my family, watching them quietly Henry watches Sinclair and his grandchild while Cora and Roger sit close to

dark Camp 7 didn’t think I’d like sitting outside in the dink by a tie as much

dark

about pantele Roger murs to sing

murmurs

looking up at the stars and then

him.

as I watch them. And

I decide that

quiet as I can, I stand up from my little camping chair and send a pulse down my bond

up at me, curious and I nod my head first

My mate follows my gaze

and puts a hand on his

as stealthily as we can – which is

lifted into the RV with a noisy platform – the three of us

and Roger alone by the fire to have a

you think they’re talking about,” I say to Sinclair as he climbs last into the

the baby still curled in his arms. I’m sitting in the little

window at Roger

says, coming to sit with me on

moment, rolls

some television, though we both know

looking up at my mate and reaching for my baby,

you know I

murmurs, slipping his arms low around me and

his chin on my shoulder so that he too can look out

the details of my

not,” I say, still peering out at them. “Roger’s hot. He probably has

girlfriend drama -”

Sinclair asks, his body going

I ask, turning