In a world full of magic.
A world full of love.
A world where no one was kept out because of fear or prejudices. Where witches, vampires, demons, and shifters—and maybe even the occasional ghoul—could walk hand in hand down Main Street.
“Nothing sounds better.” He wrapped his hand around my neck. “I love you, Sugar.”
“I loveyou,Wolf-Man.” I closed my eyes, letting my forehead rest against his. I slid a hand over my abdomen, not surprised when he placed his over it. “And our little pumpkin.”
There was no doubt in my mind that this child would be a redhead, just like us.
He grinned. “I hope they look just like you.” Barrett kissed the tip of my nose. “Your cute little nose and those big blue eyes.”
I traced the freckles on his chest with my thumb. “They’re doomed in the freckle department, that’s for sure.”
Barrett’s laugh filled the room, and the feeling of love flowed through me, enough that I almost felt like bursting. His joy wasso contagious, and it filled up every bit of me, the emotion so powerful through the bond.
“How long have you known?” I asked, thinking about the look of relief on his face earlier. Like he’d just been waiting for me to catch up.”
“Only a few days.” He ran his fingers through my hair, playing with the strands. I’d been letting it grow lately, and he was obsessed with it, like always. “Your scent changed. It’s even sweeter now. Didn’t think that was possible, but…” He placed both hands on either side of my stomach, like he was cradling our baby. “I was going to tell you, but… I wanted to see the look on your face when you realized it yourself.”
“Is everyone going to know?” I asked, feeling my cheeks warm. “If you can… smell me, then can’t everyone else?”
Barrett rubbed his thumb over my stomach. “I’m so finely attuned to it that it would be hard for me not to. The others… They probably won’t notice right away. But we can ask the guys to keep it quiet until we’re ready to tell everyone.”
Key differences between our races—witches didn’t have an overwhelmingly powerful sense of smell. Not like shifters and vampires seemed to. Even the demons had heightened senses, which just felt unfair.
I nodded. “I just don’t want to get our hopes up in case…” I bit my lip. I didn’t want to say it—to even think it—but what if I got used to this idea, and then it was ripped away from us? It was so early. Probably too early to know if it would take for sure. And yet, the happiness on my mate’s face, the joy at the knowledge that I was growing our child inside of me, was impossible to ignore.
“Wolf pups are hearty,” he told me. “Strong. We have a harder time conceiving, normally only managing successful fertilization during a heat cycle. For us…” He looked down at my stomach. “We don’t really know. There’s no records of anywitches and wolves who have been mates before. But we’ll take it one day at a time, okay, baby?”
I nodded, and he kissed my forehead. “One day at a time,” I promised him.
And just like every other promise he’d ever made me, I knew this one would come true.
extended epilogue
BARRETT
NINE MONTHS LATER…
“Barrett,” Eryne groaned from her desk. The Witches Brew was decorated with red and pink hearts, since Valentine’s Day just a few days away, and I was dutifully sitting by her side, reading reports of various monster sightings from around the country.
I might not have been accepting new jobs right now, but that didn’t mean I wasn’t keeping tabs on what was going on in the world.
Perking up my head, I looked at my wife. “Is the baby okay?”
She was a week overdue, and I knew how stressed she was. At five-foot-two, she wasallbelly. I wasn’t exactly small, and our pup was measuring in the ninety-ninth percentile of height and weight. He was all shifter, that was for sure.
“Fine,” she answered, rubbing at her spine. “But my back is killing me.”
“Willow keeps asking me when you’re going on maternity leave,” I said, giving her a stern glare.
She’d tried—for one singular day—and then went back to work, saying that she’d take time off when the baby was here.
“I feel so worthless sitting around. There’s so much to do.”
She’d been nesting like crazy over the last few weeks. The nursery in our new house was completed. We’d said goodbye to the small, cozy house where we’d fallen in love, needing more space now that we were adding another member to our family. It was bittersweet, but a necessity.
