Team A.L.P.H.A. by Susi Hawke and Crista Crown

© 2018 Susi Hawke and Crista Crown

All rights reserved.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Cover design by Ana J. Phoenix (anajphoenix@gmail.com)

Epilogues

Team A.L.P.H.A.

Susi Hawke

Crista Crown

Grabbed Epilogue

by Crista Crown

My mother looked beautiful in her ivory, mermaid-style wedding dress. Pax and I had gone with her to pick it out, and the moment she stepped out of the dressing room, we'd refused to let her buy any other dress. I knew we'd done well when Wendy's eyes lit up at her first sight of Mom at the end of the aisle.

"Is it weird?" David asked me, replacing my empty glass of champagne. "Watching your mom get married?"

I didn't even have to think. "Nope. I'm just so relieved she's found happiness. I don't care what that looks like."

It had been a surprise when Mom had told me she was dating Dr. Wendy Anderson, the obstetrician most of Team ALPHA used for their pregnancies, but any strangeness had faded the first time I'd seen her blush after a quick smile from Wendy.

David shook his head. "I can't even imagine my parents being apart, let alone with someone else."

I took a sip of the champagne, smoothing my raised hackles forcefully. The only good thing my dad ever did for me, besides giving me life, was teach me how to control my emotions. Not that I'd bothered, most of my youth. "It's easier when your dad was a sadistic asshole. It's very easy to imagine a lot that isn't that."

"Oh shit, Preston. I wasn't even thinking!"

I shrugged. I knew David didn't mean any harm. Of the omegas, he was probably the biggest trickster—he had to learn to be, growing up with Ezra and Zeke as older brothers. It was just self-defense. But he wasn't catty or mean. He just sometimes stuck his foot in it without thinking. "I'm pretty sure your dad's not a sadistic asshole, so let's drink to your parents having many long, happy years together."

We clinked glasses.

"And the same to your mom and Dr. Wendy," David said.

I smiled as Wendy dipped Mom backward in the middle of a song. "Speaking of toasts, I probably should make mine soon. Do you know where my mate is?"

"Being hunted." David pointed at a small cub, a bow tie still wrapped around its furry neck, prowling through the reception with its nose to the ground.

"Is that Tony?" I laughed. In human form, he looked like a mini Boomer, but in wolf form, he was all David.

"Tony, Amy, Irene, Rose, Allan—hell, all of the pups who can walk or crawl, whether they're able to shift or not."

"How long have they been playing?"

Tony lifted his head suddenly and cocked his head to one side as if he'd heard something. I tilted my head toward him, and faintly heard a soft yip from the far side of the crowd before Tony bolted, knocking into the back of Matthew's knees but not injuring him.

"About an hour," David replied. "It's basically hide-and-seek, but instead of one seeker, there's one hider, and they all have to try and find him, and then they have to take him down."

I closed my eyes and shook my head. "Of course they do. Well, I suppose I should join the hunt!" I set my half-full glass on a table as I passed by, following Tony's path.

We were at a private park just to the west of Chicago. The wedding had been held inside the clubhouse, a stately mansion, and was surrounded by 500 acres of forest and fields. The owner was a friend of Papa P's and Ray's, so we'd been able to have it all to ourselves for the day. It was nice to not have to worry about humans. The idea of full integration was nice, but the reality… had a long way to go. My mom didn't have to worry about her wedding day being interrupted by human-first activists or bigots, and the kids could feel just as free here as they did in their own homes.

I laughed when I finally found Noah, tracking the yips and howls of young pups. They'd treed him up a young oak, sitting on a branch about four feet from the ground. Even the triplets and Timothy were circled around the base, though they were too young to shift yet. Their chubby little baby bodies were simultaneously knocked around and supported by the bouncing wolf pups that surrounded them.

I sighed as I realized Noah's beautiful suit was torn to pieces from little wolf claws and teeth. David hadn't been kidding when he said the pups had been taking Noah down.

"That's a vicious pack there," I said, drawing both Noah and the pups' attention. "However will you escape?" Amy, her coat a light, tawny color, bounced over to me, but I held my hands up before she could pounce on me. "No, no, no, Amy. No bouncing on Daddy in his nice clothes, okay? Just head rubs."

She ducked her head and rooted her feet to the ground, butting her head against my knees and rubbing the full length of her body against me. I was going to be covered in light hairs, but oh well. I was never going to say no to a puppy snuggle from my girl.

With the pups distracted, Noah leaped from the tree and took off at a run. The pups yipped in excitement and took after him, Amy tripping over her feet in her excitement and rolling tail over head with a surprised yelp before scrabbling to her feet and chasing after her father.

A wave of… something came over me. Was it regret? It felt a little bit like regret. Wishful thinking. I wished my childhood had been so carefree and beautiful. I'd never played with my father the way that Amy and Jack played with us.

Tears tickled my eyes and I sniffed them away, following the little pack, keeping pace with the slower, two-legged toddlers. One of the pups pounced on Noah's heels, and he immediately fell with a dramatic flair, tucking into a body roll and landing safely on the ground, where the tiny pups all jumped on him, growling fiercely and continuing to rip his once pristine suit into shreds.

Even the two-legged toddlers growled as they flopped onto Noah's belly, rubbing their faces into his shirt, imitating their wolfy cohorts.

Noah growled back at them and carefully rolled onto his hands and knees, trapping the giggling triplets beneath him, while the wolf pups jumped onto his back. Tony sprawled over Noah's shoulders, biting at his hair. I saw Noah wince as a sharp pup tooth snagged his ear, but he continued his playful growling, crawling on all fours as the pups jumped on and over him.

"If you were going to do that, you might as well have shifted and saved your suit," I said from several feet away. "That way, you'd at least have your fur for protection."

Noah sat on his heels and looked down at his ragged suit in dismay, as if noticing the damage for the first time. "Whoops."

Amy jumped up, grabbing her father's collar and trying to drag him down to the ground again. I finally stepped forward and snagged her out of the air, turning my Dad voice on the rest of the pups. "Okay, everyone. Time to shift back and put your clothes on. We have to head back to the reception for a little bit, and then you can come play again."

There was a chorus of whines, but the pups sat back and let Noah stand. I set Amy on the ground—boy, she was getting too heavy for me to carry these days—and picked up two of the Chiarelli triplets. Noah scooped up the other and Timothy, and we returned to the reception.

"I really did a number on this suit, didn't I?" Noah twisted his head, inspecting a rip along his shoulder.

"At least you had the presence of mind to get the kids to strip before they started playing."

"As much as I'd like to claim credit, that's not exactly how it happened."

I shifted the girl on my left a little higher on my hip. "Oh?"

"Amy and Rose had already shifted and were stalking your mom's train on her wedding dress, so I was just distracting them. Once we started playing, all the other pups joined in."

"So where are Amy's clothes, then?"

Noah shook his head. "I guess we'll just have to see if she remembers where she put them."

Amy didn't remember, so as we rejoined the party after a half-hour search, Noah was holding a very self-satisfied wolf pup. As comfortable as we shifters were with nudity, no one was comfortable with a nude little girl in the wedding photos.

"There you are!" Pax exclaimed. "The DJ has been harassing me for the last fifteen minutes about announcing the toasts."

I shrugged dismissively, my hackles rising. After a lifetime of regimented events, I really didn't care about sticking to an arbitrary schedule. Especially since Mom and Wendy had completely mixed up the traditional order of events, putting the toasts at the very end to send the couple off on their honeymoon. But I did care what Mom thought. "Is Mom stressed?"

Pax shook his head. "Are you kidding me? She's so giddy right now, I don't think she has a clue how long she and Wendy have been dancing, and I wouldn't let the DJ get within five steps of her to upset that. Are you ready?"

I grabbed a couple of flutes of champagne from a passing server for Noah and myself. Amy whined in the back of her throat as she saw the other kids, a little more unkempt than they'd been when the day started, holding their kid-safe toasting glasses.

"That's what you get for being a naughty girl and losing your clothing," I reprimanded. She suddenly starting yelping and scrambling to be let down. She leaped from Noah's arms and disappeared beneath the tables. Noah and I only had time to exchange a look before she came running back, her dress hanging from her mouth and dragging along the ground.

We delayed just a couple more minutes to get Amy dressed. Once she was sitting happily at a table with Papa P, Ray, and a sleeping Jack, I let Pax give the DJ the signal that we were ready to start the toasts.

He lowered the music, and I cleared my throat into the mic.

"When I looked up how to write this thing, the first piece of advice I saw was to introduce myself." That got a quiet chuckle. The wedding was small. Wendy's clan was pretty solitary, and only her siblings and parents had attended. I had met each of them already, as they'd spent the week helping out before the wedding. "So I pretty much decided that advice from the internet wasn't going to fit this occasion." I turned to look at my mother, who leaned against the broad form of her mate, looking happier than I'd seen her since we'd found each other right before Amy's birth.

"Mom, we've been through some tough times. Times that might have been easier if we'd been together, and that was through no fault of our own. Tough times are always easier when someone you love is by your side." Noah rested his hand on my shoulder as a knot formed in my throat, causing me to stumble over my words. "Your mate is supposed to be there for you. To be your support. Even after we found each other, we couldn't make up for lost time. I had found my partner, and I was just so happy to have you back in my life, I didn't realize you might be missing something. Until you met Wendy." I smiled at my mother's mate.

"Wendy, you are one of the most nurturing people I know. You've cared for many of us here, and we've never questioned whether we were in good hands or not. Which is why it's such a relief to know that my mother found you. She's not delicate, she's tough. But she deserves to be treated like the queen she is now and then. And I can't think of anyone better than you to fill in all the gaps in her life, to be her support, to help her through tough times, and for her to do the same for you. To your marriage!"

As soon as I finished my sip of champagne, I turned to hide my face in Noah's chest, the tears of happiness and relief that I'd been suppressing finally escaping. But my mom didn't let me hide for long. Within moments, she had wrapped her arms around me and Noah, and then Wendy came behind her and joined the group hug.

"Thank you," Mom said, crying as well. "I couldn't have asked for a better son than you."

I couldn't speak, even though there were so many things I wished I could have added to my speech. Things I just didn't know how to put into words.

But that didn't seem to matter. This moment, this hug, seemed to convey everything. The regret for the time we lost. The joy for the time we had been given. The hope for our futures.

When we finally untangled from our hug and I looked around, it seemed like not an eye in the place was dry. I wasn't sure how to move things on, to get the attention off us, but Wendy suddenly poked at the largest rip in Noah's coat and exclaimed, "You'd think these Team ALPHA boys could stay out of the war zone for at least one day!"

That did it, as the room turned from tears to laughter, and the toasts continued.

Wendy's words stuck with me. At times, it certainly felt as if life was a constant battle. We fought for freedom. We fought for justice. We fought for love. Even the children's games were rooted in war.

But at the end of the day, there was always love. And that made everything worth it.

Taken Epilogue

by Susi Hawke

Cody was waiting for me when I got out of the shower. "All right, big guy. Bend over and spread 'em, we're in a hurry. We don't have a lot of time to get our shopping done before we have to pick up the twins. Get a move on, baby. I've got special plans for you today." Cody's eyes twinkled as he swatted my ass and pointed to the foot of the bed.

Dropping my towel, I bent to kiss his forehead, darting forward with a laugh when he smacked my ass a second time. "Yes, sir. How do you want me? You know my body is yours to do with as you wish. Just name it, baby."

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe I've already given a clear and direct order. Bend over the bed and spread your cheeks open for me, big guy. Don't make me repeat myself." Cody's commanding voice was silky and confident as he moved to pick up a package from the dresser.

I laid myself over the end of the bed, reaching back to hold my cheeks wide open, revealing my pucker to my mate. I swallowed thickly as I glanced over my shoulder and saw him pull a fat, egg-shaped plug out of the bag, holding it by the protruding arms at its base as he grabbed the lube and squirted some on, liberally slicking it. "Umm… Cody? What is that, sir?"

"HUSH, boy." Cody moved to stand between my spread legs that hung over the end of the bed.

"I'm sorry, sir. I shouldn't have asked." I kept my voice submissive, playing the role we both enjoyed so well.

Cody glanced up at me with a furrowed brow as if trying to decipher my words. A half-second later, his face cleared and he started to giggle. "No, that's its name. HUSH, by Lovense. It's a powerful vibrating plug that's going to make today's outing into one for the memory books."

I was so afraid of where this was going… "Umm… Cody? What exactly do you have planned?"

"To HUSH you, of course." Cody snickered, pressing a lubed finger into my hole and stretching the rim a little. He grinned as he pulled it out and reached for the toy. "I thought I'd made that clear, Levi. So tell me, you're gonna be a real good boy and shush while I HUSH you, right?"

While I was groaning at his pun, he flashed me a wicked wink and slid the plug in to replace his finger. My groan deepened at the stretching burn. My hands shot forward and I clawed at the bedding, clenching it in my fists, gritting my teeth as pain morphed to pleasure. Once the plug was firmly in place, Cody gave it a smack.

"Nghh." My eyes rolled back as it grazed my prostate.

"Be my good boy," Cody said with a purr, giving my ass another swat. "Now get dressed, we have places to go and things to do.”

While I got up and went to get dressed, Cody took both of our phones and busied himself with them while I looked through my lingerie drawer.

"Wear the red lace ones, I want to picture them cupping that big alpha cock under your heavy black jeans," Cody said without looking up from the phones.

"Do I want to know what you're doing?" I asked a few minutes later as I sat beside him to put on my shoes.

Cody looked up with a wink, passing my phone over. "I was downloading the app for our toy and syncing it to both our phones."

"Wait. What? You've got something shoved up my butt that can be controlled by a phone?" I stared at him in horror as everything Jonah had ever said about Big Brother went through my mind. "Baby, what if our phones get hacked?" For that matter… "Wait, you didn't tell Jonah or Pax about this, right? Because they'd hack it for sure and…"

BUZZZzzzzzz.

Cody snickered as I jumped up from the bed, clutching my ass with a very unalphalike shriek.

"Was that you? Please tell me that was you." I was still thinking about Pax and Jonah finding out about the app.

"HUSH," Cody said as he looked up from his phone. The vibrations miraculously stopped as he stood and tucked it into his pocket before wrapping his arms around me, his hands sliding down to cup my ass and pull me firmly against his smaller body. "Tell me this isn't going to be fun." His eyes danced with glee as he pulled back to tug at my hand. "Come on, big guy. It's time to go. We need to replenish your underwear collection."

"Wait, what now?" I followed obediently behind him, always ready to do whatever my tiny mate wanted. But something about that spark in his eye was giving me second thoughts this time.

We took Cody's car, for reasons that became all too clear when he proceeded to tease me the entire way downtown. I’d just get over one wave of vibrating torture and start to relax, when all of a sudden my ass would start buzzing again. I leaned against the headrest, gritting my teeth and trying to ignore the beads of sweat that were dripping down my temple as I clenched around the toy and tried to breathe. "Baby, I can't go into a lingerie store with a rock-hard cock. People are going to think I'm a pervert."

After he had the car parked, Cody glanced over at me with a narrow-eyed gaze. "You can and you will. And Levi? They'd better not see my hard cock. That doesn't belong to you, remember? That belongs to me. Go ahead and adjust yourself. Untuck your shirt if you have to, but keep that bad boy covered. Nobody sees what’s mine."

I took a deep breath, nodding my agreement as I slowly got out of the car. As I was bent in preparation to stand, I squeaked and jerked to attention when I got startled by a quick buzz. Shaking my head, I discreetly adjusted myself and yanked my shirt down to cover my prominent bulge as I shut the car door. I met Cody at the front of the car, murmuring softly as I slipped an arm around his shoulder. "What's gotten into you today, sir?"

Cody flashed me that wink again, snickering as he responded. "Isn't it more a matter of what's gotten into you? HUSH. It's time for us to do a little shopping."

My eyes widened as we walked into our favorite lingerie store. A few months ago, they’d started carrying more masculine-friendly items, and we were probably their biggest customers, no pun intended, given my size. We’d found two of our favorite things here: lacy underwear with a low-hanging crotch pouch that Cody liked to see me in, as well as a pair of leather boxer briefs that laced up the front. Ever since those and similar items had slowly begun finding their way onto the shelves, our visits had become more regular.

The two human sales associates that always giggled and tried to flirt with me whenever Cody and I came in, rushed over to greet us. "Ooh! Just the gentlemen we've been waiting to see! We've got a few things put aside from the last shipment that we thought might interest you boys." They looked at each other and giggled. When the blonde one stepped a little too close to me, Cody slipped his hand in his pocket and made me stand at attention as my ass began to vibrate.

"Are you okay, hon? You look like you might need to sit down. Or maybe something to drink?" Blondie gazed up at me with concern while I gritted my teeth and desperately shook my head. "Are you sure? We can get you set up in the dressing room and bring some things in for you to try if you'd like."

"I'm sure—" I started to say in a strangled voice when Cody interrupted me mid-sentence.

"What my husband is trying to say is that he'd sure appreciate that. Why don't you show us the room, and I'll help him get comfortable while you ladies go ahead and get us set up with those items you put aside for us."

The girls fell over themselves to see who would get to escort me to the dressing room. Blondie won out while the dark-haired one rushed off to the back in search of whatever they been holding for us. I walked with mincing steps, fighting to stay upright as Cody continued with the vibrating assault. Thank fuck the toy was silent and humans couldn't smell shifter pheromones, or I would've been a whole lot more embarrassed. As it was, I could feel the heat in my face from the red-hot blush that I knew was filling my cheeks.

Once we were safely in the dressing room, Cody firmly locked the door to the cubicle, sending Blondie on her way. Mercifully, the buzzing abruptly stopped as I dropped to my knees, staring up at Cody with a puppy-eyed plea for mercy. "I can't take it anymore, sir. It’s too intense. My legs almost gave out on me halfway through the shop."

"HUSH," Cody said and grinned. "That never gets old, does it?" I begged to differ, but kept my face impassive lest he make that damned buzzing start again. Easily reading my face, Cody quirked an eyebrow. "Does my boy need a quick lesson in who decides what happens to him?"

I shook my head quickly. "Cody, please, you've got to give me a break. If I come in my pants, I'll mess up my underwear and I'll be too much of a mess to try anything on."

That wicked gleam came back into his eyes as he slipped his hand into his pocket and the buzzing started again. I saw my bright red face contort in the mirror as I bucked back and forth, hanging on by a thread and trying not to blow my load. Cody bent over me, sliding a hand down my shirt and pinching a nipple between his fingertips, giving it a twisting tug as he rasped a command in my ear. "Come for me, boy. Do it now… Come!"

My head rolled back as I moaned his name while he captured my lips under his own, rubbing the toe of his foot against my fabric-covered crotch. He kissed me while my body convulsed and I came in my pants, just like I'd predicted. I was gasping for air from the buzzing that was still vibrating against my overstimulated gland when a sharp knock sounded on the outside of the dressing room door.

"Hey, boys!" Blondie chirped from the other side. "We’re back, and we've each got an armful of goodies for you to try on."

Cody broke our kiss, looking smug as he slipped a hand into his pocket and turned off the app of torture. He patted my cheek and pressed a kiss to my forehead before stepping back and pulling out his wallet. He took out a credit card and opened the door a crack. "You know what, hon? If those are all in my husband's size, why don’t you gals just go ahead and wrap them up? He’s feeling a little flushed right now. I think I need to get him home. Here's my card, I'll meet you at the register."

While he was talking to Blondie, I glanced in the dressing room mirror and winced at the large wet spot on the front of my pants. The unmistakable scent of cum in the small cubicle was obvious, even to a human nose. As good as the hot, sticky cum felt right now, I knew the lace was going to be painfully stuck to my dick when we got home. Cody shut the door and flashed me a knowing smile. "Quit worrying. Let's get out of here. Tonight’s going to be fun after the kids are in bed. You're going to have a bunch of new things to model for me."

I groaned as I pushed up from the floor. "You’ll have to give me a sec, baby. I'm not sure if I can walk just yet."

"Oh, HUSH." Cody giggled.

"No," I said sharply, desperately reaching for my phone to see if I could turn off the app. “Please, anything but HUSH."

Struck Epilogue

by Susi Hawke

"No, no, baby. We don't need the glitter until the frosting is on the cake. First we lay the base coat, then we decorate and make it sparkle, capiche?"

Tony sighed at my words, his lip sticking out in a reluctant pout as he watched me set aside the three jars of glitter that he’d worked so hard to open while my back had been turned.

"What in the world are you boys doing? Simon Chiarelli, have you lost your mind?" Mama C walked into my kitchen, her mouth agape as she surveyed the carnage Tony and I had made. I looked around, taking the kitchen in through her eyes, ducking my head in shame as I noted the dripping batter that was spilling over the counter and already drying in a puddle beneath Tony's step stool. Measuring spoons and cups were scattered everywhere, nestled among the spilled flour, broken eggshells, and… yeah. It was a mess.

"We making Mawko a cake, Gwamma!" Tony's chest puffed with pride as he pointed a stubby finger at the misshapen cake that was on the cooling rack.

"You call that a cake? I've seen better lookin' toilet cakes, Simon. Tell me this isn't what my Marco is getting for his first birthday. You can’t present that at the party, you’ll give people food poisoning. It looks raw in the middle there, and it’s all burnt to hell around the edges. How did you do even do that, baby?" Mama set her purse and sweater aside then pushed her sleeves up as she came closer, as if girding herself to do battle with the dishes, hmphing to herself the whole way. "I don't know why my own son didn't come to his mama for help with making a cake for that sweet bambino. But hey, who am I? I'm just an old lady, I don't know much about kids or cakes, I suppose."

"No, Mama. Aww, please don't make this a thing. I wanted to keep it simple and do something fun with Tony for his baby bro. Come on, Mama, you know I love you. And no, you don't gotta help. Me and Tony have got this… I think." I nervously bit my lip as it suddenly occurred to me that maybe I really didn't have this as under control as I thought. "But hey, I do have one question. Do I need to use canned milk for the frosting you always make? And what’s the difference between evaporated and condensed? Ain’t they both the same?"

"Saints preserve us. Tell me this much, did you at least remember the powdered sugar?" Ma walked toward the pantry as she spoke.

"Here it is, Gwamma! I gives it to you." Tony helpfully picked up the powdered sugar, squeezing it around the middle as he hugged the flimsy five-pound bag to his chest. His chubby face was red from the exertion of holding it. I stared it like a ticking bomb, rushing to grab it before…

POOF!

Right as I almost had it, the bag burst open with an explosion of powdered sugar.

"Ahem." Mama cleared her throat somewhere in the dust cloud, while Tony and I both hacked up a lung, choking on the thick powder in the air. Shit, this couldn’t be good for us. I waved a hand, trying to see through the smokelike cloud.

"It’s okay! I can help, Daddy!" Tony scrambled down from his stool, bumping into my leg on his way past.

"No, Tony! Wai—" Before I could stop him, there was a small clatter as Tony knocked something over in his rush to turn on the small, rotating fan David kept in the kitchen, making the mess ten times worse. I blinked at the swirling fog of glittery rainbows and gold as it mixed with the powder. I was trying to make sense of it all when I remembered… fuck me. I'd set the damned shit in front of the fan and now I'd been glitter-bombed by my own ever-so-helpful kid.

Mama went into action, bustling past and grabbing my arm. “Move your buns, Simon! We can’t be breathing this mess! It ain’t good for nobody. Hell, we’re all gonna be passing glittery stools for the next week.” She pulled me along in her wake, stopping long enough to scoop Tony under an arm and turning off the fan before opening the back door. After we staggered outside, she put Tony down and sagged against me as deep, belly laughs began rolling out of her throat.

As I looked down at my sugar-coated Mama with the gold, silver, and rainbow glitter sparkling all over her body, I couldn't help but laugh along. Mama and I sat down on the steps, laughing our asses off while Tony ran around in circles on the back lawn. "We're rainbow peoples now, Daddy! Aren’t we shiny?" He paused, his voice turning almost reverent as he peered at his arm. “So pretty.”

Glancing down at my arms that were indeed shiny and sparkling with glitter, I laughed even harder. "Yeah, baby, real pretty," I choked out between laughs. "We sure are shiny, all right."

Mama caught her breath, shaking her head as she looked back and forth between me and my boy. "This is worse than the time you got the trigger stuck on that damn Reddi-wip can at Thanksgiving when you were nine. I hope you know you're gonna need a hazmat team on that kitchen, baby. Either that, or gimme a minute and I'll call in the army of your lazy sisters."

I chuckled at that one. "Yeah? How exactly are you gonna convince them to get their lazy butts over here?"

"Easy." Mama giggled girlishly as she tilted her head to the side and ruffled glitter from her tight curls. "I'm gonna tell 'em that the big, important Mr. Boomer himself just got glitter-bombed by a three-year-old."

Yep. That'd do it.

Hacked Epilogue

by Crista Crown

Something drew me from my sleep, but it took me a while to figure out what. The kids weren't crying… I didn't have to piss…

Ahh… my hands were bound above my head, and I was naked.

Being naked wasn't a surprise. I wasn't a fan of pajamas and slept nude regularly. Pax kept warning me that would have to change as the twins got older, but I wasn't certain I agreed with him. We were shifters. Nudity was a natural state of being—they'd get used to it. My brothers and I had.

I tested the strength of the bonds at my wrists, bound together, and my ankles, apart and drawn to the corners of the bed. They were metal, with just the faintest hint of silver burning against my skin. That was what had woken me, that slow burn. I wouldn't be getting out of these quickly.

Good.

Last time, my wolf's impatience had overcome my control and I'd shredded through the cheap Velcro bindings with a blinding need to take my mate and be taken by him.

It was always a battle with Pax. Sometimes he had the upper hand, sometimes I did, but generally, we both won. My little bird was a worthy opponent, and I wouldn't have it any other way.

Speaking of my mate, where was he?

He entered our bedroom at that moment, his asymmetrical shock of black hair falling over one eye, his lips painted in the bright pink I couldn't help but imagine wrapped around my cock, and he was wearing nothing but a strappy leather harness that looked both delicate and dangerous. I wanted to wrap my fingers in it and pull him to me.

"You're getting slow," Pax reprimanded. "Sloppy. There used to be a time I couldn't roll over in bed without waking you up. And yet you slept like a baby while I trussed you up like a Thanksgiving turkey."

"I blame your son for my ability to sleep so soundly."

I'd thought my training for Team ALPHA had prepared me for everything. Sleep deprivation. Extreme weather. Extended fasting. Battle.

It hadn't prepared me for Pax, though. And it hadn't prepared me for the mental, emotional, and physical exhaustion of six straight months of teething with twins. I wasn't sure if it was a blessing that they seemed to alternate who was in pain, or a curse. Would it have been easier if they went through teething spurts at the same time? At least then, we'd have a few nights in a row where we could actually sleep. Theoretically.

Tonight should have been one of those nights. I glanced at the clock. Three AM, and neither of the kids had woken up. It was practically a fucking miracle.

There was a chance I could have slept in… maybe until six, if I was lucky. I desperately needed it. I hungrily eyed my mate's lithe form as he stalked over to the dresser. Pulling open our adult toy drawer.

I needed this more.

My cock twitched as Pax slowly drew each item from the drawer. His eyes were on me, gauging my reaction. Cock ring. Fairly vanilla for us. Riding crop. I was definitely in the mood for its sting. Candle, for wax play. Always fun.

Pax paused for a moment, licking his lips, then drew his long, curved knife with its purple glittery handle from the drawer.

My breath caught and my eyes narrowed. What was my mate's knife doing in our toy drawer?

Pax nodded and closed the drawer, grabbing a bottle of rubbing alcohol from the corner of the dresser. I hadn't noticed it before. He doused the blade with alcohol, rubbing it with some cotton he'd stashed somewhere, and then stalked toward me, leaving the remaining toys on top of the dresser.

"Hon? What are you doing with that knife?" I'd thought the whole being tied up thing was a precursor to sexy times, but what if I'd been wrong? I cast my mind about, trying to remember if I'd angered Pax in some way recently. I couldn't remember anything, but what if it had been a while ago? Pax was very good at holding grudges.

Pax flipped the blade around, as if carving symbols in the air. "I love this blade," he said, a soft smile playing at his lips. "She's never really been christened, though." He straddled my waist, pinning my traitorously excited cock beneath him, his balls resting on my stomach.

"Pax. Put the knife away. It's a weapon, not a toy." I tested the cuffs around my wrists again, but pulling against them just intensified the silver burn.

Pax held the knife between two fingers, twisting the blade up and down. The metal flashed in the dim light of our bedside lamp, the sparkling glitter diminishing its sense of deadliness, though I knew Pax kept the blade razor sharp.

Pax raised his eyebrows in a challenge, smiling at me as I tested the cuffs. "Safe word?"

Oh hell no. My mouth snapped shut. I would never yield to my mate on a threat alone. Well… almost never. And definitely not this time. I couldn't lie, there was a very large, long, hard part of me that was extremely interested to find out what he had in mind.

Flirting with Pax was like flirting with the edge of a cliff. At any moment, a gust of wind could push you off the edge, sending you flying, falling. But the adrenaline made you aware of every moment, every movement, and if you did fall? At least it would be exhilarating to the end.

Pax ran the flat back side of the tip of the blade down my sternum with just enough pressure to make me shiver. "I've always wondered what it feels like to slice through skin," he said with a purr.

I should have felt wary, alert, like every other time I'd been threatened with a knife. Instead, my body tingled with anticipation while my mind seemed to fall into a strange, zen-like state. Normally, I was aware of every tick and creak of the house. The rustle of sheets. Every soft breath of the twins.

I felt as though I had entered a tunnel, and Pax was the light at the end. The only thing I could see.

My eyes closed of their own accord, my attention captured by the feel of Pax's cold steel drawing over my stomach. Pax made a small sound of appreciation, but I heard it as if it were in the distance.

The knife lifted from my skin and I felt untethered, unfocused. But then Pax pressed the cold metal to my skin again, to the outside of my left pec, and once more my attention was completely captured.

Internally, I quivered with the same anticipation that came over me just before battle. Externally, I was as still as a statue, but I must have given Pax some signal that I was enjoying myself, because his constant encouragement was a soothing murmur in the back of my mind.

"Zeke. Zeke, baby, come back to me."

I opened my eyes, feeling like I'd had a few too many Long Island ice teas, my mind sluggish, resistant to leaving the strange focus and relaxation Pax had put me in.

"I need a check," he said, his eyes smiling, excited. He was a fucking enchanter, weaving his spells over me. That must be why I didn't hesitate when he flipped the blade around, placing its sharp edge against my skin, and asked me, "Yellow?"

"Green," I said. Green meant go, one hundred percent.

With the practiced flick that indicated the hours he'd spent mastering his knife, he drew the blade against my chest without drawing blood.

It still made me gasp in the expectation of pain, but it was like a paper cut, nothing, and then a low, aching burn.

Pax drew the blade over my skin three more times. Once straight down, and then two across.

"Are you… are you drawing a tic-tac-toe on me?"

Pax's grin was mischievous, and it drew me out of my haze and back into the real world. This was my beautiful, delicate, dangerous mate. Who I trusted with my life.

"Is that all you're going to do?" I challenged him. "Those marks will be gone within the hour."

Pax's eyes flashed with anticipation, though his hand hovered hesitantly over my skin. This was something that we hadn't played with before, but right now, I couldn't help but wonder why not? We were both drawn to danger, we had both flirted with the edge our entire lives. I hadn't thought anything could make me feel closer to my mate, the bearer of my children, but as his knife lowered to my skin, as he pressed it firmly through the layers it took to draw blood, he drew me into himself in a way we had never explored before. Blood welled under the knife's blade. It was only a scratch, but it was enough to release a wave of endorphins into my bloodstream. Pax drew the blade down an inch or so and I moaned, a combination of ecstasy and pain. Not a lot of pain. It was only a scratch. But the deliberation of the movement made it feel like so much more. As a shifter, it wasn't as if the shallow cut he was placing on my skin would actually hurt me. The bloodless cuts would have healed within the hour. The cut he was placing now would be healed by lunchtime.

Pax carefully re-carved his board into my skin. Two lines down. Two lines across. Had it been only seconds? Or had it been only hours? I'd never felt this suspension of reality before. If this was what druggies experienced, I could see the appeal.

But I didn't need drugs. Just Pax. And maybe his knife.

"You first," Pax said.

"Huh?"

"You're X. Which spot first?" He tapped my skin in the places between the cuts. "Top left, top center, top right, middle left, middle center—"

"Middle center, of course." Even my endorphin-and-lust-hazed brain knew that. But somehow, I didn't expect the cuts that came with telling Pax where to place my mark. Carefully, far more carefully than Ezra or I had ever marked our victims with our rusty knife, he cut an X in the center of my chest. It hurt most across the sternum, where there was little muscle to protect the space between bone and blood.

"I'll take top right," Pax said. He didn't need to tell me, I could feel it, but the anticipation of his warning made the cut all the more exquisite. It was the first curve he had carved into my skin, and he drew it out, whether from caution or sadism, I didn't know.

Though was it sadism when he could feel how it affected me? How my cock swelled beneath his ass? How I gasped with the mixture of pleasure and pain?

"Your turn."

It took me several seconds to realize what he meant, and another few seconds to try and remember what I was supposed to do. "Bottom left," I said. As the knife started to cut, I swore. "No, my left! Your right!" I meant to block one of his paths to victory, not set myself up for a dead end.

Pax chuckled. "Too late." The cut of the knife excited my sense of indignation, but a sharp jerk of my arms, brought short by my bindings, reminded me that I was playing by Pax's rules in every possible sense.

Without speaking, he placed his second circle, bottom right, his right. My next move was clear, middle right to block him.

The game played out almost automatically, but the game wasn't the goal, of course. If it hadn't been for countless hours of playing the children's game with Ezra, I wouldn't have been able to play at all, my attention one hundred percent on my overly alert nerve endings. We ended in a tie, the first cuts already scabbed over and healing. I had passed beyond the feeling of being drugged, of existing in the space between my body and Pax's intentions. I felt alive. I was hyperaware of every sensation on my skin. Not just Pax's knife, but the weight of his body, its warmth. The varying pressure where his body pressed into my hip bones but simply rested on my thighs. The ghost of his breath over my chest as he looked down at his work.

Suddenly, Pax lifted the knife and lightly sliced it across the back of his arm.

I lurched forward, as much as my bindings would allow me, snarling. "What are you doing?" It was one thing for my mate to use his knife on me… an entirely other, unacceptable thing for him to use it on himself.

"I wanted to know what it felt like," Pax said, unperturbed by my reaction. "I practiced not drawing blood on myself before even thinking about trying this with you. But I'd only knicked myself on accident. I wanted to know what it feels like doing it on purpose."

I gritted my teeth. "Little bird. Please. Don't ever, ever do that again."

Pax quirked his head to the side, looking like the little bird I called him. "Why is it okay for me to cut you, but not myself?"

"I can't bear to see you hurt," I said.

"I'm not a delicate flower, Zeke. I thought we'd established that."

"I know." My wolf grumbled with displeasure deep in my chest. "But… I just can't… Please don't do it on purpose."

Pax considered me for a moment before nodding. "I won't cut myself again."

I relaxed. Pax didn't lie to me. He fought me tooth and nail, but he was never sneaky. "Thank you."

"But why is it okay for me to cut you? It seems like you enjoy it."

"Trust," I said automatically, surprised at the answer even as it burst from my mouth. "The trust, the act of trusting you, of being so vulnerable… of trusting you to not go too far… the endorphins that surge with just that small bit of pain…"

Pax's smile was triumphant. "Of submitting to me, you mean."

I growled. He was right, but I'd never actually admit it aloud to him.

Pax set the knife on the nightstand next to the bed and reached for the bag of baby wipes that was a permanent fixture in every room of the house, now that we had children. He wiped away the blood, some of the already healing scabs tugging away from my skin as well, leaving thin pink lines that would be gone by evening. He then stood, and a lesser man than I would have whimpered at the loss of his light weight. He unlocked my feet.

"I can't wait to grab you by that harness," I growled, excited to move on to the next stage.

"Is that what you think you're going to do?" Pax asked, propping his hands on his hips once my feet were free. I shook my hands, urging him to finish freeing me, but he shook his head. "I don't think so. On your stomach, alpha."

Oh, the fucking tease! What point was there in wearing a harness like that if you didn't intend to use it? But my body was still in submission mode, and I flipped to my stomach before my mind had time to come up with an appropriately snarky response.

"Hips up," Pax murmured. I heard a drawer open and close as I complied, and then Pax climbed onto the bed behind me. "Sometimes you just need to be reminded who's the real boss in this family."

I snorted, hearing the click of a bottle of lube opening. "Just unlock these cuffs, and I'll show you who's bo-o-o-o-ss!" The force of my statement was weakened by the moan that escaped as Pax slid his dick inside me without preparation. It stung, different from the knife, but that same edge of pleasurable pain. Pax didn't give me a moment to breathe before he set a steady pace, thrusting into me, emphasizing the ache as my muscles acclimatized to his presence.

"You were saying?" he grunted.

I had no idea what the fuck I was saying. "Harder," I urged him. I wanted it as rough and raw as Pax could take it. It felt like we were making up for all the nights we'd been too exhausted, too frazzled, too stressed to enjoy each other. I wanted the memory of his touch scored into my skin, burned into my muscles.

The short crop snapped across my back and I lifted my head with a gasp. The stripe burned across my back, stinging longer than the cuts had, though with my chest flexing with our movements, some of them were tearing open, extending the reminder of Pax's work. "Again!"

Pax sped up his thrusts and struck me harder, each strike sending a rush of desire racing to my cock. I wished it was buried deep within Pax, or at least had something to rub against, but the angle Pax had placed me at left me swinging in the air, leaking cock slapping against my stomach.

"Say it," Pax growled.

I couldn't even ask what he meant, I was so lost in sensation.

"Say I'm the boss," Pax demanded.

I couldn't have, even if I wanted to. He thrust in and struck me with the crop once more, and it was just too much. Untouched, I came, my ass locking down on his cock and pulling him with me, both of us shouting, practically roaring, until I fell forward in a giant pile of my own jizz, Pax limp on top of me.

Pax took only a moment or two to gather himself before he drew his body away from mine, leaving me feeling empty as he disappeared. He wasn't gone for long, though. The first thing he did on his return was unlock my wrists and rub the raw circles where I'd strained against the silver-laced metal. Then he rubbed some kind of salve into my back, wiped me clean with a warm washcloth, and then had me flip over so he could do the same to my front before crawling into my arms.

I kissed the top of his head, feeling completely blissed out. Warmth tingled from the tip of my nose to the end of my toes. I felt calmer than I could remember feeling since before we had the twins.

"How are you doing?" Pax asked.

"Great," I mumbled sleepily.

"That wasn't too much?"

"Did you hear me yelling 'cumsquat'?"

Pax snickered at my safe word. It was an old family joke about the one and only time Mom had tried making kumquat, and David had heard "cumsquat."

"I think we're going to have to get a different knife if this is going to become a regular thing, though."

"Was the blade too big?" Pax asked. "I was a little worried about that."

I held Pax tighter. "You'll never hear me complain about something being too big. I just don't want to start getting inappropriate boners every time you start threatening someone with your giant purple knife."

Pax snickered again. "That seems like an excellent reason to keep using my giant purple knife."

Already, my body was stirring. It had been too long since I'd had the chance to enjoy my mate like this. And we hadn't yet decided who was the boss…

Just as I prepared to turn the tables on my little bird, the thin wail of a baby who was upset with the world scraped through the air.

I couldn't help but sigh as I started to push out of bed.

Pax patted my cheek and pushed me gently back into bed. "I've got it. You're recuperating." He tapped my chest.

I rolled my eyes but folded my hands behind my head. "If recuperating means I get thirty minutes more of sleep…"

"I'll even give you forty-five." Pax winked as he pulled on a pair of boxers, the wailing growing in volume.

"You're a saint," I said, my eyes already dropping shut now that the opportunity for more on-on-one time with my mate was firmly closed.

"I'd say I identify a bit more with the other side."

"A dark angel, then," I muttered. "A beautiful demon."

Pax scoffed. "What? Like I'm going to trick you into selling me your soul?"

I opened one eye. "What good would that be? You already own it."

Pax was on the bed, leaning over me in a moment. "Flatterer."

We kissed, the short, familiar kiss of two exhausted parents as one left to do battle with hungry infants and dirty diapers. My life and my team might not have prepared me for the long nights, the emotional weariness, but neither had it prepared me for the joy and the overwhelming sense of love.

Pain and pleasure. The two were forever intertwined. And if I were to experience the heights of pleasure then I would happily take the depths of pain, as long as I had my little bird by my side.

Stolen Epilogue

by Crista Crown

Ezra's large hand covered the face of my phone, pushing it away. "Babe. The kids are fine. This isn't Jonah's first rodeo. Of all our friends and family, he's the one we can trust the most, other than the grandparents."

I guiltily stuck my phone back in my pocket and took my mate's hand as we walked from our car to the movie theater. "I know… it's just… he doesn't normally have four kids by himself."

"You and Alice switch off handling three on your own regularly. Jonah will do great. Besides, the girls should sleep most of the time we’re gone."

I didn't push the topic further, though I still thought Ezra was being a little cavalier. Both our nanny Alice and I had practice with multiple kids at once. She'd had four under four, though they were all grown now. Ezra didn't know how different it was having one kid and having three or four. All he knew were our triplets, and that shifted his understanding of reality.

But I managed to keep my mouth shut and my phone in my pocket while we bought our tickets and popcorn. It would have been much easier on my mind if we could have gone to a weekday showing, when Alice was working, but Ezra had really wanted to go on a double date with Zeke and Pax to see the new superhero movie.

They waved to us as we entered the theater, having secured seats in the absolute center of the room. I snuck a look at my phone while we settled in, but Ezra's big hand plucked it from my hands, holding it out of my reach easily as he turned it on silent and stuck it in his own pocket.

"Relax, Cain. Let's enjoy this, okay? It's not like this is our first date away from the kids."

"What?" Zeke leaned around Pax to look over at me. "Are you afraid the triplets of terror are going to tear their Uncle Jonah apart?"

Pax pushed Zeke back into his seat. "No throwing stones, bud. I remember a certain someone checking his phone every five minutes a few weeks ago when we went out on a date night."

"But Rose wasn't feeling good!" Zeke protested.

Pax rolled his eyes and wrapped one arm within mine. "Pay no attention to the macho men, Cain. But Ezra is right. The kids will be fine. Jonah will be fine. And if there's an emergency, Jonah basically has a mini army just a call away. Even though Ma is watching the twins, you know she’d head over there in a second if Jonah called her."

I took a deep breath and nodded as the previews started playing. They were right. This wasn't the first time we'd left the girls for a date. I wasn't sure why I was so anxious. I just needed to put it out of my mind and enjoy the movie.

"That car bomb was so lame," Zeke complained as we left the movie. "Boomer's bombs throw them much higher than that."

"If you want realism, maybe you shouldn't go see a superhero movie, Zeke." Pax's tone was sarcastic, but the look he gave Zeke was exasperated love.

"So, dinner?" I asked. After a few previews, my anxiety had faded, and I realized Ezra had been right. I just needed to relax and enjoy myself.

Ezra stopped walking suddenly. "Uh… maybe. Wait a minute."

The tone of his voice put me on high alert. He was looking at his phone, so I hurried to his side to see what had made him anxious. There were twenty-three missed calls from Jonah, and three voicemails.

Ezra started to play the first and lifted his phone to his ear, but I said, "Put it on speaker."

"Ezra? Why can't I get a hold of my brother?" Jonah's voice was thin and anxious. "And why didn't you tell me—no, Faith! Don't you—step away from your sister!"

The voicemail ended. With an exchange of worried glances, Ezra hit play on the next message. Zeke and Pax hovered nearby.

"Ezra, your children are the spawn of Satan, and I suggest that if you don't want to come back to a scene that looks like it's straight out of The Exorcist, then you'd best—Timmy! No!"

The third voicemail was much calmer, which was even more terrifying. "Hello, Ezra. Everything is fine here, but I suggest you come home as soon as possible."

Ezra was heading straight for the car even as he was calling Jonah.

"We'll have to postpone dinner!" I shouted to Zeke and Pax.

They were already headed for their vehicle. "We'll meet you at the house!" Zeke shouted back.

Ezra thrust the phone at me as he jumped into the driver's seat.

"Hello?"

"Jonah! What the fuck is wrong? Are the girls okay?"

Jonah's voice was the same unnatural level of calm as his last voicemail. "They have been contained. Your house, though… it might not be salvageable. I prepared the house for an external assault, not an internal one."

"Jonah, you're not making any sense. What the hell is going on?"

"You'll see when you get here. Don't speed. The girls are safe."

I stared at the phone.

"What? What did he say?" Ezra asked, his knuckles white on the steering wheel.

"He said the girls are fine… but he fucking hung up on me." Ignoring my brother's advice, I gave my mate a grim look. "Floor it."

It really was remarkable we didn't get pulled over, but I would be grateful for that later. Ezra threw the car into park and we leaped from the vehicle, Zeke and Pax on our heels. As soon as Ezra had the door open, I was yelling. "Jonah? Jonah, where are you?"

The intercom clicked on. "Surveillance room."

For once, I was grateful for my brother's paranoid tendencies. Normally, Ezra and I only used the intercoms to try and scare the hell out of each other. But if I'd had to go searching through the whole house to find Jonah…

Pax and I went straight to the surveillance room while Ezra and Zeke started sweeping the house, looking for danger. We found Jonah sitting alone with a sleeping Timothy.

"Where are the girls?" I asked, anger billowing in my gut. Why was Jonah not watching my girls?

He simply pointed at the main screen in front of him, just as I heard Ezra over the audio system. "We found them, Cain."

"Oh, God!" Zeke exclaimed, choking.

I leaned forward to look at the girls. They seemed fine. Happy, even. They were in the master bathroom attached to Ezra's and my room. But their beautiful dresses, the pristine white floor, walls, and tub smeared with…

"It's like a farm's shit pit exploded in here!" Zeke said.

I let my anger with Jonah rest in the back of my mind while I ran to see the damage for myself.

Oh… oh god. The stench, like a whole room full of dirty old men who hadn't showered for a month, hit me as soon as I stepped in the bedroom. I spotted the discarded diapers on the floor, though they looked more like brown rags than diapers. I pinched my nose shut, making my way into the bathroom.

It was even worse here. Brown and yellow poop covered every surface imaginable, even the ceiling. I wasn't sure I wanted to know how it got up there.

Zeke and Ezra had already popped our three giggling girls in the tub, and Ezra was spraying them off with the shower hose while Zeke filled a bucket with water in the sink.

"Are the girls really okay?" I asked even as I hurried to the tub, unable to accept my brother's assurances until I checked for myself.

"Not even a bruise or scratch," Ezra said.

I got soaked, jumping in to scrub the girls down, cleaning the places the spray just didn't reach. Pax brought towels for the girls, and soon Pax, Ezra and I each held a happy, clean triplet.

Zeke had disappeared for a moment, but returned wearing a surgical mask, cleaning gloves that went up to his elbow, and carrying an industrial-sized bottle of bleach. "I'll get started on this." His voice was muffled by the mask.

"We should make Jonah do it," Ezra grumbled.

I nodded thankfully to Zeke. "You're a saint."

We closed both the bathroom and bedroom doors behind us as we took the girls to their room. It, thankfully, seemed to have escaped the poopocalypse.

"I'll watch the girls while you talk with Jonah," Pax said, accurately reading the turn of my thoughts.

"It's gonna be bloody," I growled, the anger that I'd pushed aside until my girls had been taken care of returning ten times as strong. Ezra cracked his knuckles.

"Good thing there are cameras up there," Pax muttered. "Zeke will be sorry he missed this."

As a united front, Ezra and I stormed over to the surveillance room. Jonah was waiting outside, holding his sleeping boy like a shield.

Ezra growled menacingly. "Jonah, put the kid down while I thrash you for leaving my girls locked in a bathroom by themselves."

"Not if I get to him first," I said, though I doubted I sounded as scary as my mate.

Wisely, Jonah did not put Timothy down. I wasn't sure if either of us would really throw a punch at Jonah, but we definitely wouldn't while he was holding a child.

"You didn't answer your phones," Jonah accused.

"You're a grown-ass man!" Ezra returned. "Who changes diapers daily. You should be able to deal with a little poop!"

"That was not a little poop," Jonah said, and he was right. "That was a contamination of defecation! And I contained the contamination—safely, might I add. And the only time the girls were out of my sight while they were in that bathroom was the short time it took me to get from there to here. I would have gone to them had they put themselves in danger."

Probably, my anger filled in. Out loud, I said, "What if they'd climbed on top of the toilet seat, Jonah? What if they'd slipped and fallen headfirst onto the tile? I told Ezra we could trust you. That out of all of the team, you were the most safety minded. When you couldn't get a hold of us, why didn't you call Zeke or Pax?"

As I hurled my questions at my brother, I saw his fight or flight instinct fade, as he realized that in avoiding one danger—and to Jonah, germs and dirt were the ultimate danger, right after anything to do with the government—he'd ignored other dangers.

Maybe it was mean and petty, but I threw my trump card. "What if it had been Timothy?"

Jonah's shoulders sagged, but I really didn't feel a ton of sympathy. You didn't get do-overs with kids. All it took was one mistake.

I sighed. "Why don't you head home, Jonah. We're good now."

"I'm sorry," Jonah said. "I just… I couldn't…"

Ezra clapped him on the shoulder. "I'm still pissed as hell at you, man. Not rusty knife carving mad, but…"

Jonah nodded, hefting Timothy to his shoulder. "I'll head home now."

It felt strange, watching the brother who had done so much for me, even giving me this house, slink out with his tail tucked between his legs, but my kids came first.

Ezra took Jonah's vacated chair and pulled me to sit in his lap, letting his head rest against my shoulder as the tension seeped out of him.

"Well… as dates go, that was one of our more eventful ones," I said, trying to lighten the mood.

"Am I allowed to punch your brother in the face when I see him at work on Monday?"

I rested my head on top of Ezra's. "Let's see how I feel on Monday."

After a few moments, I leaned forward and flicked through the security cameras. Zeke had made a good start on the bathroom, and Pax was playing dress up or tea party with the girls, maybe both.

Ezra leaned forward, squishing me between him and the desk, and I protested.

"Just a minute, babe. I want to see what actually happened."

He started the video in the girls' room at about the time we had left the house. He played it on quadruple speed, so we saw Jonah come in and check on them a couple times with Timothy, two hours speeding by in just minutes. Then the girls woke, and he got them out of their cribs, setting them on the floor. The girls were wearing matching dresses that their Grandma Dempsey had made them, each in a different color. Jonah turned his attention away from the others when he realized that Hope needed a diaper change.

"Rookie move," Ezra muttered.

Faith and Destiny weren't long booking it out of the room, their slightly younger cousin Timothy glancing between them and his dad in confusion, but choosing to stay in the girls' room, playing with a wooden train.

Ezra switched the camera to the hallway, where Destiny chased after Faith, who was always the leader of the girls. They ducked into our room, unsurprisingly. I didn't know if it was just exciting to be in our room because they weren't there often, or if the scent was just comforting to the girls. Even though they weren't old enough to shift yet, they still had shifter instincts. They were born with them.

And that was when Faith started hitching at her dress… and then her diaper. I saw the look of calculating wonder as the dirty diaper dropped to the floor, and within seconds she was lifting up her sister's dress, showing her how to do the same.

Ezra and I were chuckling quietly. Of course Faith was the one to figure that out. Besides being our little alpha in training, she was also our most mischievous child.

That's when Jonah found them, Hope and Timothy on his hips. What followed turned our quiet chuckles into guffaws of laughter as Jonah set Hope and Timothy down and tried to snag first Faith, and then Destiny. He succeeded with Destiny, but by then, Hope had smashed her hands into one of the dirty diapers, and started chasing her Uncle Jonah with poop-covered tiny hands. Jonah was on his phone, yelling. That must have been the first time he tried calling us.

He dropped his phone and flipped over the bed, an impressive tuck and roll that protected Destiny, holding her tight against his chest, when Hope almost caught him. He distracted her away from the phone and scooped it up, calling us again when Timothy started for one of the diapers. He set Destiny down, scooped up Timothy, and then stared in horror as Faith undid Hope's fresh diaper.

The girls jumped up and down in excitement as despair dawned on Jonah's face. He ran back to the girls' room, dumped Timothy in one of their cribs, and then ran back to the bedroom, where all three of the girls now had handfuls of poop. He leaped over them onto the bed, stripped off the comforter, and in a giant, protected hug, scooped the girls up and deposited them in the bathroom.

Ezra quickly switched cameras again, checking briefly on the girls before following Jonah, who tossed the infected comforter back on the bed, then picked up Timothy and retreated to the surveillance room before calling us.

From the time of his last call to us busting in the door was only ten minutes. We scanned through the bathroom footage. To her sister's wonderment, Hope promptly squatted and pooped directly on the floor, which explained how there was so much poop in the bathroom while their diapers were outside. The girls never did anything more dangerous than roll around on the dirty, slimy floor, falling to their butts and giggling.

Tears of laughter were streaming from Ezra's eyes. "I would have paid fucking money to see that."

"I don't think I'm mad at Jonah anymore." I couldn't stop the giggles bursting from my chest. Jonah had been right. None of the girls had even attempted anything slightly dangerous like crawling on the tub or toilet. My anger and fear had faded with the ridiculousness of the situation.

"Me neither," Ezra agreed. "But you better believe I'm taking this footage in on Monday, and he's never hearing the end of it."

"Of course. It's only fair."

My mate and I shared relieved smiles.

"I guess I'm not going to ban Jonah from watching the girls," I said.

"I'd be surprised if he hasn't banned himself from watching them." Ezra shook his head. "Did you see the look on his face when Hope just grabbed up those two handfuls of poop?"

That set us both to laughing again until I managed to push myself off Ezra's lap, tapping away at the keyboard. "I'm not waiting until Monday. I have to show this to Zeke and Pax now."

Ezra stood as well and kissed my cheek. "While you do that, I'm going to help Zeke finish up. Probably throw that comforter in the wash with a bucketful of bleach."

"Honestly, we may just want to toss it in the trash and buy a new one," I said. "Call a cleaner to do the carpet. Sleep in one of the spare bedrooms. That smell was rank."

Ezra winced. "You're probably right. I love you, babe, but I don't think I can make love to you with that stench surrounding us."

I sighed dramatically. "You just want me for my body, don't you?"

Ezra wrapped his arms around me and pulled me in for a kiss. "I definitely want you for your body, but there's no ‘just’ about it. I want you for your laughter and your heart. I want you forever."

My heart fucking melted. "Even with the triplets of terror?"

"Especially with the triplets of terror."

I held on to my wonderful mate for a few moments more. Maybe our date had gotten derailed, but the purpose of a date was to make you feel closer, right? To give you an experience together.

Well, we had certainly had an experience. And I looked forward to many more with this strong, protective, handsome mate of mine.

Hidden Epilogue

by Susi Hawke

"All right, Shakespeare. You stalked me all day while I attempted to do my job, now you've got me—so tell me, what are you gonna do with me?" Matthew's husky voice set my nerves on fire as goosebumps broke out along my arms.

"I don't believe it's called stalking when I'm merely utilizing the cameras and satellites within the vicinity to assure myself of your safety. I prefer to think of myself as being your benevolent eye in the sky who can call in backup or set off alarms and fire sprinklers with the mere touch of a button." I set my laptop down on the bed, positioning it so I could see my mate’s beautiful face while I quickly undressed. My hands stilled on my zipper, a breath catching my throat when I saw Matthew's shirt go flying off behind him as he settled back in full view of the camera and took his dick in hand.

"That's it, stroke it for me, Agent Sugar Bear. Show me how you’d take a perp in hand," I said in my sexiest voice as I wriggled my hips, pushing my jeans down in what I hoped was an alluring manner. I kicked my foot back to step out of them and went flying forward as an irritated, yowling screech emitted from the flying ball of fur that scrambled between my pants and the carpet, tripping me in the process. How she managed to not get trapped beneath my falling body was a question for the ages.

While I was fighting to sit up and get free of the pants that were now wrapped around my ankles like manacles, Flower had perched her bratty ass on the bed and was sniffing Matthew’s image on the monitor. A loud, rumbling purr filled the air as she stroked her cheek against the screen when he began talking to her. "There's my baby girl. What's the matter, honey? Did your daddy try to step on you again? Don't worry, precious. Papa will be home tomorrow."

"But right now, you're interrupting a private conversation. Let's go, baby girl." Flower hissed as I scooped her up in my arms and carried her out to the hall. I unceremoniously dropped her down onto the carpet and closed the door behind her, ignoring the threatening snarls I heard from the other side. I went back over to the bed and took a seat. I noticed Matthew chuckling while I scooted up against the headboard. I looked at him curiously as I turned the laptop to get the perfect angle. "What? Let me guess, you thought it was funny to see me almost get cockblocked by a cat."

Matthew shook his head. "No, that's not it at all. I'm imagining all the ways that Flower is currently plotting revenge. If I were you, I'd check my shoes before I put them on tomorrow."

I groaned, and not in a good way, as I banged the back of my head against the headboard. "I told you I wouldn't be any good at this whole virtual sexing thing. And now I've gotten myself in trouble with the cat. See? I knew this was a bad idea."

"Calm down, Shakespeare. The only thing you did wrong was neglect to close the door. Come on now. Forget about before and give that cock a stroke for me. Let's get this back on track." As he spoke, I took a fortifying breath and began lightly rubbing my fist along my cock. Just because I wasn't that comfortable with trying something new didn't mean I wouldn't give it my all. Matthew licked his lips, his eyes lighting with approval. He glanced away from my cock long enough to make eye contact for a moment. "Thank you for playing along. I know that I'll be home tomorrow night, but it's been a long week away from you and Timothy. I miss our family, I miss our home, and I can't wait to cuddle Timothy and cover his face with kisses. But most importantly—I really miss your cock right now."

My hand stilled as I gaped at him. "Are you seriously trying to get me in the mood by mentioning our son?"

"It's called multitasking, dear. Who knows how long we'll have? My phone could go off any minute telling me it's go time. Once we get the warrants, we’re arresting this guy and I'm on the first plane home instead of having to wait for the replacement team to take over tomorrow. Now come on, stroke that big alpha cock and tell me where you want to put it. I bet you have a few ideas, hmm?"

Oh. He wanted me to dirty talk too? Okay. I could do that. Obviously we wouldn't just be watching each other jerk off. No, I supposed not. Yeah, it made sense that you’d have to talk dirty for this to work. My brain scrambled for sexy words.

"Okay, Agent Sugar Bear. You want to know where I'd like to stick this hard pole? Right in your fat butt. And then we’d both come and then we'll kiss." I stroked a little faster, feeling more than a little pleased that I'd been able to satisfy my mate.

My mouth fell open when Matthew began to laugh. "Oh, Shakespeare. You've always had such a way with words. You're gonna stick that hard pole right in my fat butt, huh? And just like that, we'll both magically come? And after all that, I'll actually have the privilege of getting a kiss too?" His eyes narrowed playfully. “And babe? I don’t care how much you love it, do not call my ass fat, okay? Round, juicy, bouncy—these are appropriate adjectives. Fat is not anyone’s definition of an appropriate word for sexy talk. Well, unless you’re talking cock. Who wouldn’t want fat, thick, and girthy there, right?”

When my cheeks heated, Matthew quickly shook his head. "No, don't get embarrassed. This is supposed to be fun. Okay, let me give you an example to get us back on track. See, when I'm not right there to touch you, then I have to use my words to help you imagine my touch while I tell you what I'd rather be doing right now."

Okay. Yeah. That made sense. I nodded quickly, my hand moving again as I carefully lifted the laptop with the other hand, resting it on my thighs to give my mate a better view. "You said something about an example?"

Matthew made a show of licking his bottom lip. "First, I'd want you to lick down the length of my spine, running your tongue along my crack to lap at my slick-soaked hole. You'd lift my hips, reaching between my legs to fondle my sac and stroke my length in your firm grip while you continued to assault my rim with your tongue."

I could feel my cock getting harder with every word he spoke. I gulped, licking the roof of my dry mouth before I could speak. Now that I knew the rules of the game, I was ready to play. "And only when you were completely senseless, unable to think of anything but your need for my cock, I'd pull away… leaving you bereft as the cool air washed over your wet hole. Before you could whimper or beg for me to return, I'd plant a palm between your shoulder blades to hold you firmly in place while I’d thrust forward and impale you with my—"

My door flew open. "For the love of all that's holy, please do not finish that sentence."

I jerked so fast that the laptop went flying off my lap, landing sideways on the bed beside me as I looked up in shock to see my brother's ridiculous mate, Ezra, standing in the doorway with Cain right behind him, his eyes bulging with the same horror that I felt.

I heard Matthew laughing from the tipped-over laptop while I scrambled to cover myself with something… anything… I looked around helplessly until I spotted something that would work. I bent to grab the discarded sock from the floor, sliding it over my shaft before realizing that was probably a worse idea. As its toe-end hung over the tip, it bounced with each breath I heaved as if waving at them. Ezra bent over double, clutching his gut as he guffawed.

Flower streaked between the two of them, coming back into the room with an irritated meow. She jumped over me and went back to rubbing her cheek against the laptop screen while I tried to make sense of what was even happening. Thankfully, Cain had averted his face and had a hand up to shield me from his view. Pulling the sock back off, I finally spotted my underwear and put those on instead.

Taking a deep breath, I ran a shaky hand through my hair and swallowed before addressing my brother’s averted gaze. "Umm. I hate to state the obvious and say something about how you should probably knock before entering someone's private domain, but what are you even doing here in the first place? You guys weren’t due back with Timothy for at least another hour."

Cain's voice was muffled by his hand as he answered. "We took the kids to a carnival we passed at one of the local elementary schools. Turns out corndogs and cotton candy weren't the best mix for Timothy's tummy, so we had to bring him home early."

Ezra stopped laughing long enough to look impressed. "Dude, you should've seen it. He totally ralphed on the merry-go-round. If it'd been going a little bit faster, it would've been a perfect reproduction of that old Problem Child movie. But don't worry, our boy still managed to spray a few people in the crowd. It was epic."

I was trying not to gag at that imagery when I heard my name being called. It took several tries for Matthew to get my attention. I looked back over my shoulder and remembered our video chat. After a bit of a struggle, I pried the laptop out from under Flower, who’d flipped it over and had perched herself on the keyboard, purring as she rubbed up against the screen. Matthew was pulling his shirt back on with a reluctant smile. "As much as I hate to leave and miss the end of whatever's happening in our bedroom, I just got the text and our warrants finally came through. Once we get this guy in cuffs, I’ll head to the airport. With any luck, I'll be crawling into bed with you before you even wake up in the morning."

Cain groaned in the background. "Please don't mention the two of you and crawling in a bed anytime soon." Ezra started laughing all over again. The fucker had actual tears streaming down his face at this point.

Flower spoke for both of us when she sat beside me, arching her back as she bared her fangs at the two of them and hissed.

Cast of Characters

Team A.L.P.H.A.: Accept, Love, Protect, and Honor Always

Cast of Characters

Ray Perkins — “Bossman,” alpha father to Noah, creator of the squad, and unofficial team dad along with his mate… watch out, he may join Papa P in song at any time.

Justin Perkins — “Papa P,” omega father to Noah, co-creator of the squad along with his mate… he will definitely break out in song anytime he hears something that makes him think of one!

Noah Perkins — “Bossboy” or “Baby Boss” to his squad, dedicated alpha, team leader. He leads his team with a strong hand and a heavy dose of humor. (Alpha MC from GRABBED)

Zeke Dempsey — playboy, poet, gunner with creative ways of torturing perps, twin to Ezra (Alpha MC from HACKED)

Ezra Dempsey — crass yet romantic gunner with an eidetic memory and a strong moral compass, twin to Zeke (Alpha MC from STOLEN)

Jonah McKiernan — paranoid tech wizard with a past (Alpha MC from HIDDEN)

Levi Thurman — sniper who may or may not be wearing lace (Alpha MC from TAKEN)

Simon “Boomer” Chiarelli — he likes big booms and he cannot lie (Alpha MC from STRUCK)

Preston Tierney — Noah’s mate (Omega MC from GRABBED)

Cody Evans — Levi’s mate (Omega MC from TAKEN)

Cindy Tierney — Preston’s mom, separated from him for most of his life thanks to his father’s conniving hand.

Mama C — Boomer’s mom, a typical Italian mama who makes a mean gravy, although the boys frequently enjoy her yummy baked goods too.

David Dempsey — The twins’ younger brother, mate to Boomer (Omega MC from STRUCK)

Pax Dempsey — Zeke’s mate, and the mysterious hacker who’s been friends with Jonah for years (Omega MC from HACKED)

Rose Dempsey — Zeke, Ezra, and David’s ma. A fierce Irish woman who demands respect from her boys and has a heart of gold.

Cain McKiernan Dempsey — Ezra’s mate and Jonah’s brother. Kidnapped in his teens by the cartel, he was forced to do whatever it took to keep himself from being yet another trafficked omega. (Omega MC from STOLEN)

Matthew Hutchins — Jonah’s mate, and undercover FBI agent (Omega MC from HIDDEN)

Babies of Team A.L.P.H.A

Amy — Noah and Preston’s daughter

Irene and Allan — Levi and Cody’s twins

Tony — Boomer and David’s son

Rose and Adam — Zeke and Pax’s twins

Jack — Noah and Preston’s son

Isaac — Ray and Justin’s youngest son, Noah’s brother

Faith, Hope, Destiny — Ezra and Cain’s triplets

Timothy — Jonah and Matthew’s son

Marco — Boomer and David’s son

Also by Susi Hawke

Northern Lodge Pack Series

Northern Pines Den Series

Blood Legacy Chronicles

The Hollydale Omegas

Three Hearts Collection (with Harper B. Cole)

Waking The Dragons (with Piper Scott)

Team A.L.P.H.A. (with Crista Crown)

MacIntosh Meadows

Lone Star Brothers

Rent-A-Dom (with Piper Scott)

Legacy Warriors

Also by Crista Crown

The Outcast Chronicles

Freedom For His Omega

Acceptance For His Omega

Healing For His Omega

Rebirth of His Omega

Waking His Omega

Reaching For His Omega

Following His Omega

The Greaves Brothers

Beastly

Poisoned

Pride and Pregnancy

Smoking Harts

A Loving Lie

A Dangerous Declaration

Susi Hawke

I've been a fan of Mpreg Paranormal Romance for so very long! I'm excited to share my own omegaverse(s) with you. What's not to love about adorable Omegas and the Alpha men who love them? If I'm not writing about men sporting baby bumps, I'm probably reading about them!

I'm a native of Las Vegas, NV, so I'm pre-wired to love everything weird ~ Join me on my search for fated mates in the exciting world of paranormal romance.

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Susi’s Non-Shifter Contemporary Mpreg:

Pumpkin Spiced Omega: The Hollydale Omegas - Book 1

Cinnamon Spiced Omega: The Hollydale Omegas - Book 2

Peppermint Spiced Omega: The Hollydale Omegas - Book 3

Champagne Spiced Omega: The Hollydale Omegas - Book 4

Crista Crown

Crista Crown is from upstate NY, but she is a self-described vagabond, finding it difficult to live in any one place for longer than a year. Thankfully, she carries her home with her, in her family.

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crista@cristacrown.com