Eli insisted he could go to his appointment on his own but Liam wouldn’t hear of it. His mate was protective to the core.
Liam must’ve sensed his worry because the bear shifter approached him and held his hand. Liam squeezed his fingers. That gesture instantly calmed his nerves.
“Hey,” Liam said.
The werebear’s amber gaze was focused on him and him alone. It was as if Liam only saw Eli and nothing else in the world mattered.
“I’m fine. You have nothing to worry about.” Liam told him. “Just overthinking shit.”
Could Liam just be worried about Eli and the baby?Eli felt warm all over. Eli was the center of Liam’s universe. He always loved that about his misunderstood and growly mate.
“Are you both excited to learn the genders of the babies?” Dr. Lee asked.
The doctor was nice enough to give them their little moment.
“Absolutely,” Eli said.
Dr. Lee placed the transducer over his stomach. “Are you feeling any discomfort?”
Eli shook his head as the doctor moved the device around. A grainy imaged appeared on the screen. Eli squinted at it, amazed when he thought he finally spied his baby’s heartbeat.
Hold on a second.Was he seeing double?
“Both girls—” Dr. Lee began.
“Girls? Plural?” Liam interrupted.
The big and tough werebear looked like he was about to have a heart attack.
“Appear healthy,” Dr. Lee said. The doctor paused, “Are you not aware you’re having twins?”
“No,” Eli whispered.
He looked at Liam, panicked. Eli knew Liam would always stick by him no matter but worry wormed its way in his gut. Liam promised Eli he would help raise and love his kids. However, neither of them had expected Eli would have twins.
“Is that fine?” He asked Liam in a small voice.
“What are you saying?” Liam demanded. “Look at our beautiful babies.”
Liam said ‘our’, Eli thought with some relief.
“They’ll be a handful but we’ll manage,” Liam told him.
His mate leaned forward and slanted his mouth over his. His momentary doubts vanished. What was Eli worried about anyway?
Liam was a devoted and caring mate. Eli loved his bear with every fiber of his being.Something still nagged at Eli’s mind. Once Liam released his mouth, he turned to the doctor.
“Is it too early to tell if any of my babies are Omegas?” Eli asked in a whisper.
Liam frowned at him, not understanding. Eli clutched at Liam’s fingers, not sure if he could explain his fears at that moment. Being an Omega had always felt like a curse to Eli. Eli didn’t want his girls to go through the same ordeal he did.
Eli knew the only reason other Alphas kept a wide berth from him when they were in town was because of his possessive mate. If Eli didn’t have a protector, would he be in constant danger?
He understood his fears were a little irrational. His parents and Steve had planted them inside Eli for years but it didn’t hurt to be careful.
“Not at this stage,” Dr. Lee said.
“There’s nothing to worry about,” Liam told him. “Omegas or not, I won’t let anything happen to either of them.”
“You’re right.”
Eli was just being silly but in the back of his mind, he just couldn’t rest easy or let his guard down. The only reason Steve hadn’t found him was because he chose such a remote location to lay low.
Staying at the lodge made it harder to look for him because only a few locals in town caught sight of him.
Eli didn’t have any social media accounts Steve could track. He applied for a new credit card but it was under a different name.
He made all the necessary precautions but part of him wondered if he was living on borrowed time. Eli ran away from his past but sooner or later, it was going to catch up to him.
12
Liam/ Eli
Liam
“You sure you’re going to be fine?” Liam asked for the third time.
He knew he was being fussy and extra possessive but Liam didn’t want to take any chances when it came to his mate. A normal person would be annoyed but his Omega only touched his arm. Eli began massaging the tense muscles there with his fingers.
“You don’t need to worry. I won’t be alone. Logan’s with me,” Eli said.
As if Eli knew Liam needed extra convincing, Eli added, “Your brother won’t let anything happen to me.”
Liam knew Logan was still slowly warming up to Eli. He didn’t hold anything against Logan. Logan chose who to trust with care but once his loyalty was won, no one could ask for a better ally.
He nodded. It was his other brother he was more worried about. Lucas had left the lodge in the early hours of the morning to check a disturbance he heard in the woods.
Lucas hadn’t been back and that didn’t sit well with him. Out here in the wild, Liam and his brothers were at the top of the food chain.
All three of them were vicious in a brawl. Having a black reputation around these parts only attracted all kinds of monsters to them.
Liam and his brothers had fought off more than their share of aggressive shifters and other nasty paranormals over the years. Those bloodthirsty bastards seemed to have plenty of time on their hands. They all wanted the same thing—to find out who the stronger monster was.
He would defend himself, his family, and his mate when provoked but he wasn’t addicted to violence. He couldn’t imagine anything or anyone capable of hurting Lucas.
Lucas could hold his own in a fight but what if he was outnumbered? His brothers weren’t pushovers but Liam was still the oldest of the three of them.
After their dad died, he took it upon himself to keep tabs on Logan and Lucas. Both their parents were gone. Hell would freeze over before Liam lost another member of his family.
Logan was still asleep. Liam had a feeling Logan
