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“Lennon’s pregnant,” Jupiter announced like he was the daddy.

Kodi fired him a warning glare that missed its mark when Jupiter was knocked out of the way by Wilder and Isley.

“Pregnant! Oh my god, when did this happen?” Isley gasped, reaching for Lennon’s hand.

“How many weeks are you?” Popi sounded as if he was ready to burst into tears with how watery it came out.

“Why don’t we give Lennon and Kodi a minute alone,” Dad suggested, and Kodi threw him a grateful smile. “Come on, let's order more takeout for everyone.”

“Can we order Thai,” Silas asked. The following reply was muffled by the door closing after everyone filed out.

Lennon still wore a wide eyed, glazed look. “It’s alright, your family knows.” Kodi tried to justify spilling the news when Lennon didn’t seem to know what to say.

“Yes.”

Kodi’s brow furrowed. “Yes, what?” He noticed the tear in Lennon’s top while checking once more that he was unharmed, and made a mental note to buy him another one.

“My family knows.”

Kodi’s anxiety went up several degrees and he tugged at the neck of his T-shirt. Was Lennon in shock from the non-fall? “Yes, we ascertained that last night. You’ve lost me, my love.”

He ran his fingers over Lennon’s cheek, noting his color had returned. Was there something else wrong that he couldn’t see? Had he harmed the baby by tugging so hard on Lennon’s clothes?

Lennon’s eyes glazed, and he sniffed. “My family knows,” he repeated, his voice thick with tears.

“Yes, my love.” Kodi struggled to keep the panic out of his voice. “I know that. Are you okay?”

Please be alright!

“Yes,” he sobbed, “it's just that I realized that now we’re mated, your family is mine.”

Oh. Was this good or bad?

“I know they’re a lot to take but they’ll be good to you and the baby, I swear it,” Kodi promised, thinking Lennon had an issue with this.

Lennon removed the gap and snuggled right into Kodi’s chest, his arms clinging around his waist. “Of course they will.” The wet chuckle didn’t help release the knots of tension bunching in Kodi’s shoulders.

“I just love all my friends, and it always felt like they were a family I picked for myself. Not that I don’t love my family, I do. Now they really are my family,”—he glanced up, tear drops clinging to his eyelashes like small diamonds glittering—“it’s so cool.”

Kodi sagged with relief. “You’re happy?”

“I couldn’t be happier,” he murmured, rubbing his cheek against Kodi’s chest, making a contented noise.

Kodi’s laughter was boisterous. “Let’s see how you feel when we step into the kitchen and the Spanish Inquisition starts!”

“They can’t be worse than my family.”

“Yours are just different,” Kodi managed to choke out, his laughter getting louder. “Mine…you’ll see.” He slipped an arm around Lennon and walked them to the door and opened it quickly.

Booker, Silas, and Jupiter tumbled back to avoid being hit by the door. Laken, Kari, and Taylin were hanging back but close enough to earwig. “See. Nosy.”

Dad was leaning against a counter cluttered with boxes of kitchenware, wearing an amused smirk. Had he guessed about Lennon?

Kodi glanced past the mess. Lennon had more kitchen items that Kodi had ever seen outside of a store. And that was saying something when Popi loved to bake.

There was no sign of the omegas, and Popi was missing, too. Kodi could only imagine what they were up to when he could hear footsteps above them.

“We’re just making sure—”