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Once outside, I immediately looked to the cloudy sky. The sun was hiding behind dark clouds, and you could feel the snow in the air. How much would we get this time? Would Lewis want to go out in it, or would he want to stay home and cuddle? I’d discovered that my mate adored the snow. He loved to watch it fall and be out playing in it. Until recently, I couldn’t say when the last time was that I’d gone out and actually played in the snow, but it had been a long time. But then there was Lewis, and my mate loved to spend time outside, even in the cold.

I was just leaving Council Square when I heard my name being called. I turned and wasn’t surprised to find Reinhold hurrying toward me. “I won’t keep you long. I just wanted to congratulate you on finding your mate. Chase is quite fond of Lewis and was incredibly happy he’d found his mate finally.”

“Thank you,” I said. “How are your mate and second set of twins doing? Or better stated, how are your mate and children?” I’d not met any of Reinhold and Chase’s children, but I didn’t need to either. It wasn’t a secret that Chase had given birth to two sets of twins, all dragons, and all alphas.

“They’re all doing wonderful. Chase is an absolutely amazing father, and I love that man more than I ever thought possible.” That was, of course, wonderful to hear, but everyone knew how much Reinhold adored his mate. He’d never made that a secret. “I never meant to keep you though. I just wanted to offer my congratulations. I hope things are going well for the two of you.”

I smiled at that. “Thanks again. They are. Lewis is feeling better every day, and although it was a rough return to the bakery this morning for him, I’m almost positive he’ll be back in a day or two. He already has plans for his day of lemon-flavored everything from what I’ve heard.”

That caught Reinhold’s complete attention. “I would say I should let Chase know to be on the lookout, but Da still helps out there at least once a week, so I’m sure he’ll bring something home if he spots it.”

“I’ll be sure to pass that along to Lewis.” Reinhold smiled again. “Go. I won’t keep you. I’m going to stop off at the bakery on my way home and grab some cookies if there are any left, but I know you are probably anxious to get back to your mate. Have a good evening.”

“Thanks, Reinhold. You do the same.”

We went our separate ways, and although the walk wasn’t long, it seemed as if it took longer this afternoon than it had earlier. Through our bond, I felt Lewis starting to wake from his nap just as the neighborhood came into view, and I picked up my pace. Lewis was going to be fully awake soon enough, and I wanted to surprise him and be there when that happened.

I jogged the last bit to the house and had just made it to the back room when I saw Lewis’s hands rise up over the back of the couch as he stretched. I peeked over at him and smiled. “Hey there, little mate.”

Lewis’s eyes lit up. I was thankful that Chief Daegal had sent me home to spend time with him.

Chapter 18

Lewis

“Are you nervous?” Vaughn asked as we walked to the omega clinic for our ultrasound with Dr. King.

“No. Should I be? I’m actually really excited to see the baby.” I looked up at Vaughn, curious. “Are you nervous?”

He smiled down at me. “Not in the least. I only asked because you seem anxious.”

I shrugged. “I’m excited. I’d love to see our baby. And I really want to know what we’re having. I’m impatient that way, sorry.” I knew Vaughn didn’t mind, but I also knew he wouldn’t care if we waited and it was a surprise. Next time. This time, I really wanted to know if we were having a boy or a girl, and if we were having a gargoyle or fae.

I was almost positive the baby was fae because I’d not had any sort of issues like Alpha Mate Mael had mentioned. Granted, I was only just shy of halfway through the pregnancy, but I wasn’t huge, and I was almost certain I would be if I was. I had a bump, one that Vaughn always called adorable, and that was just something else that had me thinking we were having a fae baby. If I was having a gargoyle, wouldn’t I be showing more? I wasn’t exactly a large person.

“Little mate, we can do this however it is that you wish. If you want to know everything about the baby so you can be better prepared, that’s what we’ll do. You are the one carrying our baby; I’m just doing whatever it is I can to take care of you. If that means we’re finding out what we are having, that’s what we’re doing so you can be as prepared as you need to be.”

I sighed. This man was just wonderful. “Maybe next time, I’ll want everything to be a surprise, but this time around, I really want to know what we’re having. Beau is having a little fae boy, and I wondered if I would as well and if our sons would grow up to be best friends like we were.”

“You suddenly got sad. What’s wrong?”

I looked up at Vaughn. “I hate the tension between me and Beau. It’s still there, and I don’t like it. He tiptoes around me at work, or lately, he’s just not there when I am. He leaves early or sends me home early once he’s there, and I just don’t know how to fix things.”

“I wish I had an answer for you, but I don’t. Sometimes, things just take time.”

I knew Vaughn was right. That didn’t mean I wasn’t frustrated with the situation. Master Edison had given me the same option that he’d given Beau. More employees were being hired to work at the bakery on the front side of things, and Beau and I were happy to be more focused on the baking. Not that we didn’t use magic for the majority of it.

As we walked past the bakery on the way to the clinic behind the council building, I noticed a long line out front of the café. “Do you think they’re having a special or something?” I asked Vaughn. “It’s cold out here. Why would they all be waiting outside?”

Vaughn glanced that way before he shook his head. “I’m not sure. We can ask at the clinic, and if they don’t know, we can stop by after our appointment and see if we can find out.”

In my time back at the bakery, I’d learned that the café was run by a brother and sister from Lucky Lake. His name was Bowen, and he had a mate. She helped out every so often, but she was busy with their young children. Bowen’s sister, Braylee, had just graduated high school, and she worked at the café with her brother while attending the local university. They had two others who helped regularly, but the majority of the work was done by the two of them.

Vaughn’s hand wrapped around mine tugged a bit more, and I focused on what was happening around us instead of staring off toward the café. We were standing in front of the split that would lead us either to the clinic, the childcare center, or the unmated enforcer housing. I grinned up at my mate and started toward the clinic. When we reached the door, Vaughn opened it, and I stepped inside. I was greeted with warmth and the scent of vanilla and cinnamon.

“Hi, Owen,” I said as the older omega waved at me from where he was up on a step stool, hanging a sparkling snowflake on the window.

“Do you need help with that?” Vaughn asked as he hurried over to the other side of the room.