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His face fell. “That’s not nice, omega. Of course. I trust you with my life and his. I’m…”
“Just an amazing alpha who cares and worries about his family. I know. You show us every day.”
Locke sighed and took a seat on the bench. “I’m going to sit here and worry. You go do your thing, Coach.”
I got in with Theo and introduced him to the water. He kicked his little legs, and we followed the instructor’s lead while she taught us how to get our babies to learn.
Locke took some pictures of us, and soon the lesson was over. It would progress to getting Theo under the water and training him to turn over and swim on his own, but the whole thing was a process.
“That wasn’t as painful as I thought.” He laughed.
“Of course not. Oh, I forgot to tell you. We’ve got dinner at my parents’ house tonight.”
My parents and even my brother, Jenson, couldn’t stand to be away from Theo for very long. Three road trips and missing him convinced them to sell their home and move into our neighborhood. Jenson now lived in their guesthouse. Theo was surrounded by family and, even more than that, Locke was as well. He didn’t have his parents anymore, but mine took him in as a son.
“I know. I…was actually thinking Theo could have another first today.”
“What?” I asked, toweling off while Locke handled drying off Theo.
“I thought tonight, he could have a sleepover with his grandparents. I already called them and asked.” I gasped. Locke and I hadn’t had a full night alone since Theo was born. “I booked a fancy hotel room and everything.”
“You did? For us?”
I didn’t deserve this man.
“Yes. Well, it’s selfish, really. I have an incredible mate. I want him all to myself tonight.” He leaned over and kissed me. “But, if you don’t agree, I understand.”
“I want you all to myself as well. My parents are going to be thrilled.”
Locke blushed. Blushed. I hoped he blushed for the rest of our lives. “I already called them. They are, in fact, thrilled.”
“That sounds like them. Thank you, alpha. I need a night out. How did you know?”
“Because I know you. I will always try to give you what you need.”
Now my cheeks heated. “I love you, Locke.”
“I love you back,” he said and leaned over, kissing the breath out of me.
An Excerpt fromHesitant Alpha
Chapter One
Saint
Tuesdays were the heavy-lifting days. Despite the fact that most in the country got their coupons from apps on their phones, the supermarkets and just about everyone else still printed out their multi-page flyers. I didn’t mind because some of my customers really seemed to enjoy them. And one lady used them to line her birdcage, claiming her parrot liked all the colors. She also thought he might be able to read “a bit,” and liked to keep him mentally stimulated. Who was I to argue?
Adding to the weight of my bag were the smaller packages I seemed to get more of every day. The larger ones I dropped off on a big loop through the route before I set out to walk from mailbox to mailbox. Many of my coworkers no longer walked at all, preferring to drive up to each address and lean if possible or hop out if necessary to stuff the mail into the box. I’d spoken to citizens who claimed their packages were thrown onto their property by other carriers. I did not report them, but I did let the customers know that they certainly could file a report with the postmistress if there was any damage.
And that was what got me in trouble.
Not that I’d ever been the most popular mailman at our office, but I had a decent relationship with most of my coworkers. Better than the pack members who should have been both family and friends. Still, I never quite felt as if I fit in. They had so many inside jokes. At first, I asked what they meant, but that only made them laugh louder.
I’d begun to believe I’d never fit in anywhere. My pack was different than most others, and not in a good way. Oh, maybe for some, but if you had the slightest desire to have feelings of your own or experience any kind of freedom, it would never be comfortable. Our alpha was older than dirt—he said that himself, once, but gods forbid anyone repeat that in his hearing. Or where one of his toadies might be listening.
Old-fashioned, some of the elders said, but I had met a few other wolves, mostly passing through town, who claimed their packs followed the old ways. And they bore little resemblance to ours. They had, however, heard of us.
I gathered most other packs had.
