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“That a baby takes on their father’s scent at four weeks old and won’t lose their parent’s scent until they’ve gone through puberty,” I summarise. Food has been pushed to the side for everyone except Ben, and I’m eager for this discussion.
“So the bare minimum then,” Ben says with a snort. “Scents are one of our most important enhanced senses.”
“Really?” I ask, narrowing my eyes. Seb’s chest rumbles at the perceived insult. “Sorry, I just… are you really telling me that scents are more important than superhuman strength or eyesight?”
“What does eyesight really tell you?” Alex asks. “It’s not like seeing further changes much. At the very least, our hearing is more potent than eyesight.”
I roll my eyes, and all four of them laugh. I relax further into Seb, appreciating that, despite everything, we’re still here together, and it’s nice to not be alone.
“If Seb were inclined to do more than just sniff your neck, he’d be the best to explain,” Topher says, giving the man at my back a pointed look. Seb’s reaction is to bury his head into my hair and take another strong sniff. “Well, that answers that question.”
Alex chuckles lowly. “A scent is another form of communication for us. It’s different to hearing or seeing. It’s one of the only things that can’t be taken away, not really.”
“Our eyes can lie to us, our hearing can be muffled… but our sense of smell? It’s never going away,” Ben says, and a smirk fills his face. “It’s how I can tell Phoebe has thrown up on you and rather than having a shower, you just wiped it off.”
I roll my eyes. “If I showered every time I was covered in bodily fluids from her, my skin would be insanely dry.”
“Good excuse for lack of good hygiene,” Ben says. I only don’t snap at him to watch his words because he actually seems to be sincere.
“Ben makes a good point about our sense of smell, though. It’s the best sense because it’s the one we can trust the most,” Topher says as he reaches forward to grab a beer off the table. He takes a sip from the neck of the bottle and takes his jacket off.
“Let’s start with Phoebe’s scent,” Alex says, with a warm smile directed at my sleeping daughter. “When we first met you both, she smelt only like you. There were wisps of her own scent, but that doesn’t come in properly until she’s bonded with her wolf.”
“Why does she smell like me for so long?”
Topher is the one to smile now. “It’s very uncommon for a wolf baby to be born to a human. I’m not saying it’s never happened until now, but you’re the person I know who has had a wolf child as a human—never mind that you gave birth to a little girl. In the first few weeks of the postpartum period, the mother is very connected to the babe.”
“It’s fucking scary,” Ben mutters. “Talia nearly killed me after she had the twins.”
“You can’t separate a mother from her pup. You’ll be hard-pressed to even be allowed to hold the pup,” Topher adds, giving me a wry smile. “A female wolf may even attack their mates in the early days if they get in the way.”
“Holy wow,” I whisper. “That sounds… dangerous for the baby.”
“Never,” all four men say at once. Seb’s word was said firmly in my ear, sending shivers down my spine.
“She could never hurt her pup,” Topher says. “Not even accidentally. A woman grows their baby for nine months, and I’ll never know what that’s like?—”
“But if out of the four of us, one would be growing a baby, Topher’s definitely the one who would do it,” Ben says, with a laugh.
“And that means?” I ask, cocking a brow at Ben.
“Um… that his dick is the?—”
“Nope.” I turn around in Seb’s lap to give Ben a dirty look. “I don’t want to know how you were going to finish that sentence. Finish your food, and only contribute if it’s helpful.”
Topher laughs before sobering up. “What I was going to say is that, whilst we can’t imagine how overwhelming it is, the way it’s been described is that this intense protective drive comes with further bonding and strengthening the connection between the pup and her mum.”
I deflate. This is just another area where I’ve deprived Phoebe of a need she has. It’s another way I’m deficient.
Seb lets out a low growl and lifts me up to turn me so I am facing him. He grips my chin, tilting my head so I’m looking into his hazel eyes with the bright green flecks. “Phoebe knows your scent. She knows her mum. She feeds from you, she is loved by you. Do not doubt your parenting.”
I frown. “How did you?—”
“Seb’s what you call a natural tracker,” Alex adds, and Seb hums under his breath and presses a kiss to my forehead. “His sense of smell is so much sharper than even an alpha wolf. Nothing scent wise can get past him.”
“Nothing,” Kane echoes very proudly. He smirks at me. “I can detect your hurt and sadness, even if it’s covered up by your bigger feelings.”
I try to nod, but Kane—or Seb—won’t let go of my chin, so I sigh. “I think learning about the norms for a werewolf baby is always going to upset me because I feel like I’m not doing enough for Phoebe.” I’m not brave enough to look him in the eyes as I admit this, so instead, I focus on his nose.
