Breeding Clinic (Heatverse)

Chapter 29

Chapter Twenty-Nine

KAT

The way Liam keeps looking at the powder blue onesies covered in pastel cartoon dinosaurs tells me what he’s thinking. He adores our three daughters, but I know how much he wants a boy too.

I reach out and touch the one with the green stegosaurus pattern and consider it. A boy would be nice. “You know, I asked Dr. Fugo if there’s any natural way to choose the baby’s gender.”

Liam’s grip tightens on our shopping cart. “Really?”

“They can do that?” Matthew asks.

“There’s research that says diet and timing can make someone more likely to have a specific gender,” I say.

Now Matthew looks interested. “What sort of diet?”

“Foods rich in sodium and potassium for a boy rather than magnesium and calcium.”

Matthew makes a thoughtful sound. “So no more chocolate during preheat.”

It’s a small price to pay if it works. As much as I love the onesie, it feels like bad luck to buy it early. Like it’ll jinx things. I leave it on the rack and throw a yellow one with lambs on it into our cart instead.

Liam grabs the baby shampoo and bedtime lotion the girls like from the cardboard display and adds them to the cart. “What’s the timing thing about?”

“Something about how boy sperm swim faster so you want to wait until closer to the end of the heat,” I say.

“Interesting.” Liam seems thoughtful for the rest of our shopping trip. Matthew loads our cart up with potassium rich foods. Leafy greens, avocado, potatoes, and bananas. And of course our traditional cabbage. Lily’s six months old and eating solids. This next baby will be our last one. After baby number four, I’m getting an IUD. Each birth has gotten easier and faster since Holly’s surprise entry, but still. Four kids are enough. We don’t want to become outnumbered.

We pick up the prescription Dr. Fugo called in on the way home. When we get home, Gabriel is passed out on the couch in a cuddle pile with all three girls. Our youngest, Lily, is curled up on his chest. They’re good nappers. Their favorite show, the cartoon with the dogs, is still playing in the background. There are toys and stuffed animals everywhere. It’s like a bomb full of plastic shrapnel went off. We bring the groceries in and put them away as quietly as we can.

Waffles’ excited meow and Syrup’s rapid tail thumping wake them. They’re excited we’re all home. I pop Lily on my hip and put the bananas away. Then Matthew waves me away, saying he’ll finish, then get started on dinner.

After dinner, the kids have tub time. A quick nighttime feeding for Lily. Then teeth brushing and, finally, stories. The others each take a kid while I put our littlest down in her crib and make sure her baby monitor’s on. By nine, they’re asleep.

I collapse with my pack on the couch, watching some TV show that’s mostly forgotten about. Matthew brings me two frozen cabbage leaves. I crunch them and shove them down my nursing bra and shiver as they make my sore nipples harden.

“I’m always sad to see them go,” Liam says, eying my breasts. They’re not as full as they are when my milk production is higher or right before a feeding. My supply always drops off quickly once the babies start eating solids.

I snort. “You’re just sad you can’t touch them for the next five days.” No breast or nipple stimulation outside of Lily’s feedings. It’s firm bras and cabbage leaves and ice packs for me for the next couple of days.

“Can you blame me?” he asks. “They’re glorious when they’re full of milk. Still, it’ll be worth the sacrifice.” He puts a hand under the throw blanket and palms my stomach. Leans in close to me and drops his face next to mine. “I can’t wait to put my son in you,” he whispers into my ear.

“We should practice,” I tell him. “Make sure we remember how.”

It’s harder to find time alone, all four of us, with three kids. Two of us can sneak off easily for some adult time, but it’s difficult for all of us to disappear together now. It’ll be easier once they’re all in school. Jen thinks I’m crazy for having so many close together, but at my age that was a necessity rather than a choice. And I love my girls. I can’t imagine a life without them anymore, even when it’s hard.

Liam kisses my throat, making his way down to my mating bite. He nibbles it, making my scent gland perfume. “Good idea, kitten. Let’s get that pussy nice and ready for your heat because once your fever spikes, you’re not getting any dick until it’s time for me to get you pregnant.”

Part of me is excited. It’s going to be an edging like no other. But the rest of me is worried that it might literally drive me insane.

My future self is probably gonna hate me for this.

My preheat lasts only a few hours. It’s gotta be the extra strong meds, or maybe my age. I’ve heard that heats get more unpredictable with age before they eventually stop altogether.

“Liam,” I whine, gripping onto him. My hips swiveling to work myself on his fingers. But fingers aren’t what I want. “Please.” It hurts. The endless cramping. The bottomless need. The constant river of slick flowing down my thighs, soaking into the nest.

“Sorry, kitten.” He doesn’t sound sorry at all.

I growl and reach for his dick.

Liam chuckles in response, and Gabriel grabs my wrist, pinning my arm above my head. I growl louder, jerking my arms to test his grip. Gabriel’s grasp tightens. Fighting them is useless. They’re all bigger, stronger, and more determined than me.

My previous resolve to hold out as long as I can is a faded, distant memory. I need a dick in me and I need it now. I might die if I don’t get it.

“Keep growling at me, hellcat, and I’ll let Matthew take over.”

What sort of alpha leaves his omega in heat without dicking her down into the mattress first? I growl louder still. Jerk harder against Gabriel’s restraint, trying to get loose. To pounce on him and make my alpha put his cock in me.

Liam shakes his head and pulls his hand from my pussy, leaving the nest. Leaving me? Panic makes me whine. No, I need him. I need his safety and his knot. His protection. Where’s he going?

Matthew comes into view, eying me thoughtfully. Always thinking. Calculating. He leans over, blotting out my view of my alpha. “Don’t worry.” The beta grins. “I’ll keep her distracted.”

With his dick? I perk up at the hopeful thought.

Matthew strokes me between my legs. Spreading my slick around. Making sure I’m nice and wet. My belly cramps with need, and fresh slick trickles out, telling the beta that I’m ready. Ready for fucking. Ready for breeding. That once they put a cock in me I’ll stop fighting them.

Instead, he plays with me. Fucks two fingers in and out of my needy pussy. Adds a third. But it’s still not what I want. It’s not a cock. A knot. Nothing else will sate my body’s terrible craving. Still, the pumping of his fingers helps. It eases some of the ache and awful cramping.

My hips move with him, fucking me harder on his fingers. Making wet, filthy sounds.

He pulls his hand free before I come, ignoring my disappointed whine, and brings it down on my pussy with a smack. I jolt, let out a yelp, and bring my bent knees together to protect where I’m most vulnerable.

Matthew grasps one of my legs and wrenches it open. His hand comes down on my mound repeatedly. Sharp smacks that make my eyes cross and my swollen clit throb. Warmth blooms between my legs as he spanks my pussy. Slaps right over my empty hole and clit.

I can’t take it. It’s too much.

Wiggling, I fight Gabriel’s hold. Where is Liam? My head swivels, searching for him in the dim room. He’s kneeling on the nest, his beautiful cock in his hand. Stroking it. Pre-cum dripping down his knuckles and soaking into the sheets. Wasting it.

I whimper. Slick trickles in thick ropes down my ass. My core clenches with every smack of Matthew’s palm. Despite my irritation, my body likes it. Likes any sensation that gets it closer to coming. Even if it’s not exactly what I want.

“If you come while he spanks your naughty pussy, I’ll put my cock in you,” Liam promises.

Yes. My labia swells, engorged and warm from the spanking. My clit swells too, erect and sensitive. Matthew focuses his fingertips on it. Spanks it lightly until my hips roll into every hit. Need tightens, aching and awful. I need relief. Need a cock and a knot and some fucking relief. I gasp, and moan, and wiggle uselessly under Matthew’s heavy hand.

“That’s it, sweetheart,” Matthew says. “Let go. Let us make you feel good until it’s time to fuck you. Can you come from having your pussy spanked?”

It takes a minute for his question to penetrate the fog of my heat. Can I? I close my eyes and nod, breathing heavily.

“That’s our good girl,” Matthew says, slapping my mound harder. Tapping over my clit. “You’re being such a good omega, Kat. Such a good slut taking her spanking so well. You were naughty earlier when you tried to mount Liam while he was sleeping.”

Did I do that? I don’t remember it.

“That’s okay, sweetheart,” he continues. “We know you’re sorry. That’s why we’re gonna let you come.”

Come. Yes. I need to come. Pinned between my two betas, I let go and surrender while Matthew disciplines my naughty pussy. Spanks it until my breath catches in my chest and I flush with heat. Tension coils in my pelvis.

“That’s it. That’s our good girl. You’re taking your pussy spanking so well,” Matthew croons. “Come for me, sweetheart.”

I come against his hand, a strangled moan rattling through my throat. My back arches, and Gabriel’s hands tighten. He pins me down harder until I stop pulling against him. My channel clenches, slick dripping down my ass. It soaks into the bedding.

Matthew palms my swollen, hot mound. My pussy spasms against his hand, tight and swollen. Throbbing. “Good girl. Now bend your knees to your chest for your reward.”

I bend my trembling legs up and wait. He slides away, and Liam takes his place between my thighs. Fists his cock and rubs it up and down my pussy. Spreads my slick around and taps his head against my clit. Drifts lower, notching against my entrance. Teasing my hole.

Yes. Yesssss. Oh my God. I need it.

He presses slowly inside, and all the breath rushes from my lungs in relief as I sigh. The stretch is glorious and long overdue.

“Liam,” Gabriel says in warning.

“Just getting slick,” Liam answers. He thrusts in slowly. Too slow for what I want. He buries himself to the root until I’ve taken all of his big, alpha cock. “Trust me.” He pulls out. Not halfway to push in again, but all the way out. I whine from the loss of him as he notches lower at my ass. His slicked up head presses against my asshole and pushes in slowly.

Nooooo. Not there. He can’t give me a baby there. I like it when my betas fuck my ass, but not my alpha. Whining, I fidget. Try to twist and contort and pull away. What if he doesn’t realize he’s fucking the wrong hole?

“It’s your fault, pretty kitty,” Liam says, pushing into my ass. Shallow, controlled thrusts. He palms my hips and keeps me still underneath while Gabriel still has my arms pinned above my head. “You’re the one who made me promise not to fuck your sweet pussy for three days. To edge you.”

I don’t think I meant this . This is torture. “Liam,” I groan, my voice rough with lack of use. From all the screaming I did earlier.

He bottoms out inside my ass and starts rocking in and out. Slow, measured thrusts that don’t satisfy my heat.

“Do you want your pussy plug, meu docinho ?” Gabriel asks.

I nod. Yes. Anything to fill this void.

“I have a better idea,” Matthew says. He gets out of the nest, and I hear rustling sounds. He takes something into the bathroom and runs the tap. A moment later, he’s back. He’s holding the vibrating butterfly toy, the one they gave me as a mating present. We use it on our rare date nights out.

Matthew pushes it into me and palms the remote. It buzzes to life, the butterfly’s wings vibrating my mound while its feelers tease my clit. Its bulbous body curls inside my pussy. Too small to be satisfying. Too large and vibrating to be ignored.

This is fucking worse. It’s like starving for days and then having one bite of ice cream.

I choke on a sob. Unshed tears gather at the corners of my eyes. Liam fucks me slowly. Gently. His big cock stretching the wrong hole.

“Hmm. This might have gone too far. I can grab the condoms,” Matthew says.

Yes. I nod. He should grab the condoms and fuck me.

“No, she made us promise,” Liam says. “We don’t know if the spermicide might make the cycle fail.”

“Kat did say she refused to go through with a shitty heat more than once,” Gabriel says.

I’m a fucking idiot. I can’t do this, not even once. Why did I think I could stand it ?

“We’re almost there,” Liam says, still rocking. He leans over me and uses his thumb to wipe the tears from my eyelashes. “Twelve more hours, kitten. You can bear it. We’re almost there. Don’t give up. You can take it.”

His soft, sweet words fill me with rage. My lips peel back from my teeth and I clench them together, hard. Growl. A primal need to hurt him as badly as he’s hurting me now by not fucking me face down in this perfect nest I built for him. In our bond, he’s sweet and sorry. A gentle balm that does nothing to soothe my irritation.

Matthew clicks a button that makes the toy buzz harder, faster. Makes my hips rise up and fuck my ass deeper on Liam’s buried cock. His cock rubs against the toy in my pussy through my wall and finally—fucking finally—there’s a break in my all-consuming need. A brief flash of relief.

Liam grunts, feeling it through our mating bond. His hands tighten on my fists and he pulls his hips back and slams them into me. His cock slides against the bulbous toy. Pushes it up, rubbing it against my sweet spot.

I gasp and go still. My focus shifts. My growl stutters into a hesitant purr.

“Is that what you want, kitten? You want me to pound this tight little ass?” Liam thrusts hard again. Bounces me on his cock. “That, I can give you.”

And he does. He fucks my ass hard. Harder than they’ve ever fucked me back there before. Matthew cranks the toy up and it doesn’t take long for me to come. For my body to clamp down on everything stuffing me full.

Liam groans, his thrusts slowing. His cock pulsing. Coming inside me and wasting good alpha seed in the wrong hole. He pumps my ass full and sits there, his knot on the outside, breathing hard as he squeezes it with his hand.

“God, I wish I could fuck her mouth,” Gabriel says .

“Are you crazy?” Matthew asks. “She’s half-feral right now. She’d bite your dick off.”

“What a way to go,” Gabriel jokes.

The toy stops buzzing, but my need’s only half-satisfied. The silicone toy’s not enough. Liam pulls out, leaving me emptier. Cum drips down my ass, wasted, and soaks into the absorbent bedding.

“It’s still not enough,” Liam says, looking down at me thoughtfully.

“We should have bought that fucking machine we looked at,” Matthew says.

Liam rubs the back of his hand over my body at different points. “Her heat’s gotten worse. She has to be ovulating.”

Yes. I’m ovulating. He can fuck me once I’ve ovulated.

“We agreed to wait until seventy-two hours,” Matthew reminds him. “To be sure.”

“It’s up to you,” Gabriel says to Liam. “How badly do you want to have a boy? I can stop giving you your rut blocker.”

Liam eases my legs down and lays his palm on my belly. “Sorry, hellcat, but I’m not fucking your sweet pussy until you’re ready for me to give you a son.”

“Let me check her,” Gabriel says. “Switch with me.”

They change places, Matthew holding my wrists over my head while Liam watches and Gabriel slides between my thighs. Gabriel pulls the toy from my pussy and tosses it aside, then fingers me. His middle finger presses deep, tapping against my cervix. Checking my readiness for breeding.

“She’s soft but mostly closed. She hasn’t ovulated yet. Could happen in the morning.”

With a sob, I give up struggling. I don’t know how much more of this I can take.

Liam purrs, distracting me with kisses. He rubs his cheek against mine, scent marking me. “Just a bit longer, Kat. You can be patient. I promise you it’ll be worth it when you hold our baby boy for the first time. I promise. You can do this.”

I’m not sure I can. Rage and desperation fade away to resignation. The worst of my need’s been fed, like cracking a valve to vent a boiling pot. But I’m still heated. Still full of bottomless need.

“We’re going to help you go back to sleep now,” Liam promises. Instead of fucking me, my alpha pulls out my pink knotting toy. He inserts it into me. Dimly, I’m aware of my body spasming around its vibrations. Of the fake knot inflating, stretching me. It helps. But it’s not really the same. There’s no warmth to the toy. No pulsations or throbbing. No cum drenched in my pack’s pheromones spurting into me.

But it’s enough to sleep. For a few hours of sweet oblivion.

They take turns washing up, and then someone wipes me clean with a damp rag. They drag the blankets over me. My limbs get heavy, and they let me go so I can curl up on my side, my legs tucked to my chest. They cover me with more soft blankets and stroke my hair. Liam purrs for me.

I sink into a fitful sleep.

“Nuh-uh, sweetheart,” Matthew says, grabbing a fistful of my hair. He tugs, prying me off Gabriel. “Naughty girl.”

I whine, annoyed. My eyes crack open, gritty from sleep. Matthew manhandles me onto my belly. Slaps me on the ass with his other hand, his grip in my hair still firm. “Get on your knees. Let Gabriel check you.”

“What time is it?” Gabriel asks, his voice sleepy .

“Does it matter?” Matthew asks. “She’s in heat. It’s fuck o’clock. Ass up, omega. That’s it.”

I lift my ass until it’s as high as I can go. Gabriel moves behind me, his fingers a blunt intrusion into my pussy. Made possible only by the river of slick my body’s pumping out like crazy. He taps his fingertip against my cervix.

“It’s time,” Gabriel says, his hand pulling free with a wet sucking noise.

“Thank fuck,” Matthew sighs. “Liam, get your ass up and put your cock in her.”

“I’m up,” Liam says, groggy. “What time is it?”

“It’s fuck o’clock, alpha,” Matthew says. “Now dick your omega down good before one of us does it for you so we can finally get some real fucking rest.”

“So grumpy,” Liam mutters.

“We’ve been wrestling a half-feral omega for three days. I’m tired ,” Matthew whines. “My arms ache. She nipped me yesterday. I didn’t sign up for cardio or abuse.”

Gabriel chuckles “Go take a break, babe. Eat something that needs cooking and take a hot shower. These two don’t need beta babysitters anymore.”

“I should probably be offended,” Liam says under his breath. His palm lands on my ass, rubbing it. “But we’re all tired, aren’t we, kitten? You most of all. You’ve been so patient.”

I whine, annoyed that he’s not fucking me yet. My pussy’s right there .

Liam strokes between my legs. Smears my slick and teases my clit. When the head of his cock rubs between my puffy lips, I want to cry.

“Such a good girl,” he says, pushing into me.

The slow thrust of his cock in my pussy after three days of bitter denial makes my thighs tremble. He pushes all the way in. Hits my cervix. The stretch after having nothing but toys and fingers in there is perfect.

Oh, God. It feels so fucking good. I moan as he pulls out and thrusts in again. He purrs for me. Deep and loud. The sound of a satisfied alpha. The vibrations rumble in his chest and his cock almost rattles inside me.

More. I need more. Whimpering, I push back against him. Drive him deeper until it hurts a bit. He’s so big, his cock stretching me wide. And I haven’t had a cock there in three long days.

Liam chuckles. “I was gonna take it slow to get you warmed up, but that’s not what you want, is it?”

No. I want to be dicked down. Knotted. Bred. Like a proper omega.

Liam pulls out, ignoring my groans. He changes position, crouching over me. Lowering himself in a squat until his dick lines up with me again. He feeds it back into me, then grabs my hips and starts to thrust.

Rapid, hard, and rutting. I orgasm on his cock, fast and unexpectedly. My walls clamping down, trying to milk a knot that isn’t there yet. To make him come and breed me.

“I love how needy you are for my hard cock,” he says. “Come for me again, kitten. Show me how much you want me to put this baby inside you.”

My pussy spasms as he talks dirty to me. Telling me how he can’t wait to fill my womb. To watch my belly swell and my breasts get big. To suck the milk from my big tits. It drives me wild when he talks like that. It’s too much. But there’s no choice but to take it. I’m pinned under him. There’s no moving an alpha once he’s started rutting.

“You’re so wet for my cock, kitten. Because you know this pussy’s mine. That I claimed it with my cum. And I’m gonna keep claiming it forever. Keep filling you up. Keep you pregnant.”

His thrusts and dirty talk make me come again. And still he doesn’t stop. He fucks me and keeps talking until his breathing’s hard. Until he grunts and moans with every surge of his cock.

“So slick. You like it hard, don’t you, hellcat? Like getting put in your place. On my cock. Whose pussy is this? That’s right. It’s mine. It’s my pussy and I’m gonna breed it raw. You’re gonna drip come for a week straight.”

He slaps my ass with a hard crack of his palm, then grabs one of my arms and twists it behind my back. Pins it to the small of my waist and changes our angle, somehow fucking me even deeper. Until it feels like he’s trying to fuck his way right into my womb. I come again. Deep, pulsing waves that make my belly cramp and my pussy flood with slick. Easing his rough claiming.

“Fuck, your pussy got tighter. Wetter. Did you come again, kitten? That’s good. You’re being such a perfect cum slut for me. Are you ready to take it? I’m gonna make you a mother again.”

I can’t speak. Can’t think. All I can do is lie there underneath him as his knot starts to swell. As his pace slows down and his dick pulses. He groans like my pussy’s squeezing the life out of him. His knot pops, fast and wide. Locking his sperm up tight so it has nowhere to go but inside my open, fertile cervix.

“What a good girl,” Liam says, stroking me. “That was a big load. I saved it for you. Come on my knot, kitten. Let’s get you pregnant.”

Liam gets on his knees behind me. His knot tugs against my pubic bone where we’re tied together as he settles. He covers me and wraps a hand around my front, searching for my clit. Fingering me when he finds it.

“That’s a good girl, kitten. Take some more. You can fit more cum in that tight pussy, can’t you?”

He doesn’t give me a choice. Liam fingers my clit until I come on his knot. Walls fluttering, milking out one last pulse of semen. Again. Another, until my groin’s overstuffed and uncomfortably full. I whimper and come again. Until his balls have to be empty, drained dry. There can’t possibly be anything left in them after that.

“Fuck,” he groans, rubbing me down. “I came so hard, I think you’re gonna have twins.”

My eyes flutter shut. It’s impossible to keep them open. Calm now, I purr. My heart is perfectly satisfied.

“Go to sleep, kitten. That’s my good girl,” he whispers in my ear. “Let my sperm do their job. Daddy’s gonna make you a mommy again.”

I fall asleep with his knot in me and a pussy full of cum. It’s the deepest, best sleep I’ve had in forever.

“Who wants to go outside and work on the garden with me?” I ask the girls.

“Me!” Holly races to the back door.

“Hold on,” I tell her. “You’re not ready. What do we have to do before we go into the garden?”

She freezes and ponders it. “Put on boots.” Then she plops onto the ground by the door and pulls her yellow rubber boots from their spot by the door. She sticks her tongue out while she concentrates on pulling them onto her feet by their pull tabs .

“Good job, baby,” I tell her once she’s done. “Now you’re ready.” I switch out my sneakers for my gardening shoes. Then I put Lily into her harness on my back and carry Marcia on my hip. Holly runs ahead of us and waits at the gate for me to unlatch it for her.

The kids have their own play garden full of sensory toys. Small plastic shovels and rakes, smaller plastic nursery pots and a tiny functional watering can. They don’t do much more than create a lot of mud, but that’s fine. It’s good for kids to get dirty. Together, we check on the marigold seedlings we planted last week.

I sit Marcia down with her sister in their fenced-off garden so they play while I check on our vegetable garden. “Oh, look,” I tell Lily. “We have our first tomatoes.” I brush the leaves aside so that she can see the budded green fruits that will ripen soon. Lily babbles, talking to me in her baby talk while I point to different plants. I tell her what they are and what their fruit will look like once they’ve ripened.

Once the vegetable patch is pruned and tied back into submission and fertilized, I join the girls in their play garden.

“Look at my flowers, Mommy,” Holly says with pride. She squats and holds the watering can above her marigolds. There’s no water in the can right now, but she pretends to water them anyway.

“Wow, they’re so beautiful, baby. You’ve done a good job taking care of your flowers.”

“I know.” She drops the watering can and moves on to scooping dirt into an empty flower pot with her plastic shovel.

I hold back my snort of laughter. I love her confidence. “What are you making now?”

“More flowers.”

Pulling out the packet of seeds I bought at the store today, I show them to her. The flowers are pink, her favorite color. “Should we grow these ones?”

“Yeah!”

I show her how to pack the dirt, and make a divot with her finger. How to put a few tiny seeds inside and cover them with soil. Then I fill her plastic can from the hose and show her how much to water them. “Good job. It’ll take a few days for them to grow. We’ll check on them again tomorrow, okay?”

“Okay.”

“You know, babies are a bit like seeds,” I tell her. “They grow in a mommy’s tummy like flowers grow in a flowerpot. I’m growing you a sister or brother right now.”

“A baby?” Holly tilts her head and thinks about it. Then she drops her plastic gardening toy and points to my stomach. “In there?”

“Yeah.”

“And it’s gonna come out when it’s big?” she asks.

“Yes.”

“Wow,” she says, blinking while she thinks.

“Do you want a sister or a brother?” I ask her.

Holly’s silent for a bit as she thinks some more. I give her time to process it. “I want a brother. When will the baby come out?”

“Not for many months. They take time to grow.”

Holly nods. “Like my flowers.” She stares at my stomach. I wonder how much, if at all, she remembers about my last pregnancy with her sister. “How does a baby get in there?” she asks.

“Umm…” I cup my stomach and take a second to think of an age-appropriate answer for that. “A mommy and a daddy put it there when they love each other.”

“Okay.” She looks toward the house, distracted. “I’m hungry.”

“I bet Papa’s working on dinner. Let’s go have a tubbie and get in pajamas. But first, can you put your garden toys away please?”

“Okay.” Holly grabs her plastic shovel and brings it to her tool basket. I pick Marcia up from where she was scratching in the dirt with a twig and pop her on my hip while Holly runs to the kitchen door.

“Boots!” I shout, reminding her to take her garden boots off. She runs back outside and sits down to pull off her muddy boots.

By the time she’s done, I’ve met her at the door.

“Daddy put a baby in Mommy’s tummy,” she tells her papa, Matthew.

“Yeah?” Matthew puts his macaroni and cheese-covered spoon down in the spoon rest. He glances at me, wide eyed, for direction.

“I told Holly that babies grow like seeds in a mommy’s tummy.”

“What do you think about that?” Matthew asks Holly.

“I want a brother. I have sisters,” she says matter-of-factly.

“We won’t know if it’s a boy or girl for a bit,” I say. “Come on, let’s get washed up for dinner.” I take her hand and lead her toward the stairs so she doesn’t get distracted and get mud everywhere.

After baths and dinner and bedtime routines, we finally have some time for ourselves.

“I heard you had the birds and the bees talk with Holly,” Liam says, snuggling me closer on the couch.

I put my hand on his stomach and my head on his shoulder and tuck my legs up under the blanket. “Not in depth, but yeah. I read that it’s better to talk about it before the baby’s born. I doubt she remembers my pregnancy with Lily. She was too young.”

“I can look for a kid’s book,” Matthew offers. Reading to the kids is his favorite. He says he wants them to love books and reading as much as he does.

“That’s a good idea,” I say, smiling.

“I’ll have the real birds and bees talk with them all when they’re older,” Gabriel says. “And the dynamics talk when they hit puberty.”

“Thank God,” Liam says. “I wasn’t looking forward to that.”

“What time is the doctor’s appointment tomorrow?” Gabriel asks.

“Five,” I answer. “Can you make it?”

“One of the other PAs is coming in early to cover the rest of my shift,” Gabriel says. “I’ll be there.”

The next day passes in a hectic blur until Chelsea knocks on the door in the afternoon. Waffles and Syrup both come running. “Hi, Chelsea. Come on in. I stocked the soda and chips you like. Help yourself to whatever’s in the fridge. We won’t be out too late tonight.”

“No worries,” she says. “I’m always happy to baby and pet sit.”

I take a minute to catch up with her. “How’s grad school? You’re almost done, right?”

“Good. And yeah.” She tucks her long hair behind her ear. “Only one semester left after this one.”

I’m glad for her, but also terrified to lose her. She’s been a blessing to help us whenever Jen is busy. “Have you thought about what you’re doing after?”

“I want to start my own company,” she says.

“So you’re staying here?” I ask, hopeful.

“Probably. There’s nowhere else I really want to go.”

Before I can ask her what kind of business she wants to open, she scoops Waffles up and starts talking to him like he’s a baby. Waffles eats it up, purring. She carries him into the living room where the girls are watching an animated musical and coloring.

“Chelsea!” Holly yells. “Do you want to color with us?”

“Of course. Do you have pink?”

“We have lots of pink ones.” Holly digs through her crayon box and pulls out every shade of pink she can find.

Gabriel brings Lily down from changing her and gives the baby to Chelsea to hold. Our babysitter grabs a piece of paper and starts drawing flowers and hearts and cat-eared anime girl doodles.

Chelsea glances at the TV. “Is that Rapunzel? She’s my favorite. I like her dress.”

“Because it’s pink?” Holly asks, scribbling across her own paper.

I lose track of the rest of their conversation while I check that we have everything. My phone, wallet, new insurance card, and Liam’s keys. We head outside, locking the door behind us, and make the short drive into town.

“Fill this out with any changes,” the receptionist says, handing me papers.

I take the clipboard and fill out the all too familiar paperwork. Our ultrasound tech is new, a beta named Ashley. By now, this routine is familiar. But that doesn’t stop my pack from being a nervous wreck. Liam is nearly crawling out of his skin. Today is the day we find out the baby’s sex.

“Okay, that’s everything I need. I’ll grab the doctor.” Ashley sets the probe in the holder and steps out.

A few minutes later, our obstetrician comes in. “Hello again,” he says, smiling. “So are we ready to find out the sex?”

“Yes,” Liam says, sitting on the edge of his seat.

The doctor sits down and adds more jelly to the probe. He puts it on my abdomen and finds the angle he wants. Then he smiles. “Congratulations. It’s a boy. ”

Relief and happiness wash through me. We did it. All of that hell I went through was actually worth it.

“A boy,” Liam repeats. “It’s a boy?” He stands up abruptly and does a fist pump. “A boy! Finally. Oh my God.” Then he fists his hands in his hair, leaving it crazy looking. He leans over the screen, invading the doctor’s space. “Are you sure?”

I laugh as my alpha loses his mind. “Please excuse him. Our other three kids are girls.”

“I’m sure,” the doctor says.

“Liam, sit down,” Matthew says, pulling at Liam’s shirt.

Liam sits, his expression stunned.

“He’s hardly my first eager dad,” the doctor says kindly. “I sent the pictures to the printer. I’ll give you all a moment. Kathleen, you can make your next appointment with the girls at the desk on your way out.” He drops the probe on a hook and leaves.

Gabriel wipes the jelly off my belly with a tissue and pulls my shirt down over my abdomen. “We should give Liam a minute so he doesn’t faint.”

I look at my deliriously happy alpha, my pack, and the ultrasound screen with baby number four on it, and I think about how this all started with one small clerical error on some paperwork.

That was one hell of a meet-cute. Maybe I should put it in my next book.