Chapter 3

When I awoke, the drapes over the window were shut, and the hospital room was dim and dark, the only light coming from the LED lights of the monitor and all the bright equipment buttons.

I wasn’t sure how long I’d slept, but I was strangely comfortable. My body felt numb, and I was so tired, it took a moment to lift my head from my pillow. The scent of baby filled the air—a smell I never thought I’d love so much.

There was a sound coming from the bassinet next to my bed. From where I lay, I could see Marina’s tiny little fists fussing in the air. She wasn’t crying, but she wasn’t sleeping either. She was sniffling and wiggling quietly in her bed.

I spotted Mal across the room, sleeping on the visitor chair with nothing more than his suit jacket covering him as a blanket. I shifted quietly into a sitting position, not wanting to wake him. He was such a wonderful support during everything. He needed rest after all this excitement too. We were likely going to have quite a few sleepless nights ahead of us anyway.

Childbirth had been painful, yes, but it was so much more than I’d thought it would be too. There’d been moments when I’d felt so strong amidst the pain—like I was the only one in the world who could do this. Maybe it was the endorphins running through my brain, or the soft scent of baby emanating from the bassinet beside me, but I could hardly recall the pain at all. Just the way it felt to hold my little girl against my chest—the relief of knowing she was okay. She was here.

I eased out of my bed and onto my feet, peering over the bassinet. Marina was swaddled in a blanket, though she had wiggled around and it looked loose. I redid the swaddle the best I could, so only her round, smushy face and a head of dark hair poked out from her blanket. She fussed, her nose wrinkling and her brows squeezing together. Once she realized she couldn’t move her arms, the look of struggle on her face relaxed into something peaceful. Swaddling Marina seemed to calm her, and I knew that if I were to leave her alone, she would easily drift to sleep. But I couldn’t help it. I had to hold her again.

I reached down, wincing a little as I scooped her up under the butt and beneath her soft, sweet head. It ached a little to lift her onto my chest, but it brought me a comfort I didn’t know I’d needed. I eased back into my bed with her, humming softly as she settled into my skin.

“How are you feeling?”

I jolted a little at the sound of Mal’s voice. I must’ve woken him with my humming. He rose from his chair and came to stand beside my bed, gently brushing a thumb over Marina’s cheek. “Are you in any pain?”

“I’m tired and sore,” I told him. “But I’m just…in awe. It’s wild, isn’t it? We created this little thing, and now she’s here and she’s alive and she’s…real.”

Mal leaned in and kissed me sweetly. “I know,” he said, pressing another kiss to my forehead. “You were amazing. It was the most incredible thing I’ve ever seen.”

He was smiling down at Marina with so much love, but when his eyes moved to me, the warmth in them didn’t change. I was never going to get tired of this—how much he loved me. How much he showed it in everything he did. The way he kissed me and the way he looked at me, and how he never let go of my hand. Not for a second while it was happening.

There was something bothering me, though. We had wanted to keep the sex of the baby a surprise—and had names ready in either case—and I never thought twice about it, but…the Tamarack pack. Didn’t they need a son to carry on the legacy? I wanted to ask Mal, but he spoke up before I could.

“I can feel you thinking, baby. What is it?”

I hesitated. “She

a werewolf, right?”

Mal’s smile broadened. “Definitely. I can smell it on her. She’ll be a strong wolf.”

I let out a breath of relief, though I was surprised I had been so invested in that aspect of our daughter. Since when did I care if she was a wolf or not? I supposed Mal’s legacy was important to me too.

“So, what is it that’s bothering you?” Mal asked.

I considered the question for a long moment, unsure of if I wanted to know the answer. “I know how important she is to the Tamarack pack. I know just how vital her

is. And I know how much you were anticipating all this—confirming the Haywood legacy. But…doesn’t that mean you wanted a son?”

Mal’s brows twitched momentarily in confusion. Then he shook his head. “Of course not. I’m sorry if I ever gave you that impression. All that matters to me is that she’s a strong wolf—one that will be able to shoulder the leadership like I have. And I can tell she’s a fighter. She’s going to be everything the Tamarack pack needs.”

“How do you know?” I asked, unable to disguise the worry in my voice.

“Because she’s a little bit of me,” said Mal, leaning in to affectionately touch noses with me. “And a whole lot of you.”

I smiled, brushing my nose against his for a brief, sweet moment before he pulled back. “I’m not worried,” he said. “The pack will love her, just as much as I do. They have to.”

“That’s all I need to hear,” I assured him, stretching my neck up for a kiss. He gave me one, sweetly and chastely on the lips. He was right about one thing. Marina was going to be loved, because it would be impossible not to love her.

***

It was a few days before I was allowed to return home to New York and the house Mal had bought several months prior in Albany.

It was a large home—something I could have only dreamed of owning in my past life. The wide windows offered a clear view into the two-story A-frame. It was the perfect distance to campus but tucked away far enough into the woods that we didn’t have to worry about pack members coming and going in whatever forms they chose. We had a wonderful view of the woods with all the privacy we needed, and all the access and security the pack could ever want.

It was early morning, and thankfully Marina seemed to be an easy sleeper so far. It didn’t take much coddling or rocking to put her down—something I was incredibly grateful for as a first-time mother. So far she cried once a night, but after a feeding and diaper change, she seemed to drift blissfully to sleep. I was going to have to count my blessings while I could.

I was sitting on the bed beside her bassinet, swiping through my phone and responding to the plethora of texts filling my phone. So many people had tried to contact me while I was in the hospital, but after giving birth to Marina, I was too exhausted to respond. Leonard was curled up beside me, ears twitching blissfully as I pet him while he slept. He had been a wonderful kitty when the time came to meet Marina. He gave her a gentle sniff, nose-to-nose, and nestled against her little pink cheeks.

The last few days had been hectic to say the least, and I had a lot of learning to do as a new mom, but that didn’t mean I had a lot of flexibility when it came to my other responsibilities. Grad school was going to start again in a few weeks, and I had considered going part-time so I could be home with Marina. My plan was to go half-time for the first semester with the baby. Just enough to keep my scholarship intact. It’d be one physical lecture and one research project that I could do at my own pace.

I had so much to catch up on, and I’d barely made it through my text messages. I took a break from responding to everyone’s well wishes and scrolled through my inbox, piquing when I saw the email from Stephanie. She hadn’t bothered to text or call, but she had emailed me? I grimaced. This couldn’t mean anything good. I already knew she was pissed about the wedding—I just didn’t know how to address it. After all, it wasn’t like I could put a rain check on

Reluctantly, I clicked the email.

I could only laugh and swipe the email away. It was so like Stephanie to send something passive-aggressive like this.

“What’s so funny?” I glanced up from the device at the sight of Mal, standing at the entrance with nothing but a towel wrapped around his hips. Water was still beading off his chest, glinting in the light coming through the windows. I took a moment to appreciate the look of him. I felt myself get hot under his gaze, that same smolder as always.

When he took a step toward me, I broke our gaze, hugging myself as I said, “Nothing?” Mal quirked a brow at me, and I went on. “Just come sit with us.” I gave the bed a pat beside me, and Mal’s smile relaxed into something a little wider.

He moved toward me, but after one single step, a loud wail erupted from Marina’s bassinet. Leonard jumped to his feet and puffed up like a porcupine, frightened by the sound. She might not have been as fussy as the typical baby, but she sure did have a set of lungs on her. I gave a sigh and shifted to the edge of my bed to tend to her, but Mal waved me off. “You’re still sore, baby. Relax, I’ve got it.” He moved to the bassinet and reached gently for Marina. I always felt a little anxious anytime anyone else lifted her up, but Mal was the exception. He’d picked up the method instantly, wedging his strong forearm under her and lifting her tiny body into his arms.

He rocked her softly, paying no mind to the way I ogled him. I knew I’d just had a baby, but…he was a stunning man. And he looked even more incredible holding our baby in his arms. Strong and slender—all his muscles haloed in the light from the bedroom window. I was weak at the sight of him. I couldn’t recall a time when he’d looked sexier.

He was lulling her back to sleep, making little shushing noises to calm down her fussing, and soon, Marina was drifting off.

I was so distracted by the sight of him, I’d barely noticed the buzzing coming from my phone until it nearly vibrated itself right off the bed. I glanced down and at the sight of Simon’s name, my eyes went wide. It was rare that my younger brother ever texted unless there was an emergency, or Mom was forcing him. I opened his incoming text and read it silently to myself.

Mal must’ve noticed the disturbance on my face. “What’s wrong? Did something happen?”

“That was Simon,” I told him. “He says my mom didn’t want to tell us, but they’re going to be here in an hour.”