Page 77 of The Beta's Heart

His voice was gruff and his eyes were the amber of his wolf. She touched his cheek. “I missed you too.”

He pressed his hand lightly to her belly. “I missed you kids. Hope you were good for your mom.”

She laughed. “Aside from waking me up with a craving for steak, they were perfect.”

He grinned.

Acksel, Brynn, Sam, and Keyarielle joined them in the line. Key hugged Ren lightly and then gave Kismet a big hug. “I’m so happy for you both!”

“Thank you for sharing in my special day,” Kismet said.

“I wouldn’t have missed it for the world.”

Brynn moved to hug Kismet, but froze, her face screwing up as she clutched her stomach. “Oh, crap.”

“What?” Acksel demanded. “Are you okay?”

“I…think my water just broke.”

Rich appeared and said, “Let’s get you to the clinic.”

“Dang, I didn’t want to miss the reception,” Brynn said. “I was hoping mini-me would wait until tomorrow to make an appearance.”

“We’ll save you some cake,” Kismet promised.

“Yes, please!” Brynn said, waving as Rich and Acksel hurried her through the back door.

They greeted the rest of the guests, getting hugs from every single person there. The king and queen congratulated them on a beautiful wedding, and Porth, the jeweler, handed Kismet a gold bracelet engraved with the names of their unborn children.

“Oh, Porth, it’s lovely, thank you,” she said as he slipped it on her wrist.

“You’re welcome. Bring it back to me whenever you have children and I’ll add more names to it.”

Rose chuckled. “Maybe you’ll fill it up and need a second bracelet.”

Kismet liked that idea a lot. She wanted a houseful of kids.

The king, queen, and jeweler left, opening a portal to the fae realm as they weren’t staying for the reception. Luke and Eveny were one of the last ones in line. Luke held their newborn daughter, Rowan, who was a week old.

“I’m so glad you could come,” Kismet said, rubbing the back of her knuckle on the baby’s soft cheek. Her eyes were closed in sleep as she lay safely tucked in Luke’s arms.

“We wouldn’t miss it,” Eveny said. “Congratulations to you both.”

Her father, brother, mother, and Ren’s parents joined them. “Ready to go to the reception?” her mom asked.

“Definitely. I’m starving!”

Her father opened a portal wide enough for their group to step through to the reception. The alphas’ backyard was filled with tables and chairs decorated with white tablecloths, flickering candles, and pink flowers of every variety. A portable wooden dance floor was set up by a table where a DJ played music. Kismet, Ren, and their families sat at the head table, and were served an elegant dinner of prime rib and herbed potatoes. When they cut the four-tiered, orange-cream cake layered with fresh oranges and white chocolate frosting, the pack cheered as she and Ren fed a bite to each other.

“Orange for a sweet life, right?” Ren asked as he kissed her.

“Yep.”

“I love these traditions, sweetheart,” he said, tucking a lock of her hair behind her ear. “And I love you.”

“Best day ever,” she murmured against his lips.

“The first of many, many more to come,” he promised.