I reached over to tickle his armpit, and earned a giggle for it.
“Let me get dressed, and I’ll throw some breakfast together,” I told them both, turning to brush my lips over Elliot’s one last time before wrestling my way out from under the tiny, chubby tornado that my toddler was.
“Already done.” He flashed me a grin. “You’ve got time for a shower, in case you don’t want to go to work with all that on your belly.”
I glanced down at my abdomen, and found a disgusting amount of mixed bodily fluids streaked across my thighs, abdomen, and even boobs somehow. “Oof. Yeah. I’ll be quick.”
“Take your time. Ev and I have everything covered here.”
“You’re spoiling me,” I warned, heading for the doorway.
“Get used to it.” He grinned, grabbing Evan by the leg and tugging him up into the air. Ev shrieked with laughter, yelling his adorable version of Elliot’s name while Elliot hauled him out of the room behind me. My gaze followed my guys as Elliot flipped Evan the right way around before he made his way down the stairs.
I heard Elliot talking to Evan about a park that had a canopy over the equipment to keep the snow off of it, where they could meet up with some other crazy little dudes to play with. Smiling to myself, I shut the bathroom door behind me and turned the shower on.
Everything was…
Good.
Really good.
Stupidly, adorably good.
I’d run my classes, maybe hit the park with my boys, make lunch, have some alone time with Elliot during Ev’s nap…
Damn, I really was spoiled.
And I kept hoping like hell that reality wouldn’t strike and end this new life I was starting to love.
As I showered, I remembered the way my parents had shown up at the door, and my good mood faded. I still needed to text them the address—one of the townhouses, most-likely—and time.
But I still hadn’t met all of the pack members in-person; I definitely needed to do that.
Maybe there wouldn’t be alone time after all.
I sighed at that thought, hurrying through my shower now that I knew there was shit to do.
Getting dressed afterward only took a minute, and I threw my wet hair up in a high ponytail before I headed down the stairs, not bothering with makeup.
I was a fitness instructor, not a supermodel, after all.
Elliot and Evan were having a very serious conversation about why Ev needed to eat the peaches on his plate, not just the bacon and eggs, when I made it down. Considering Ev was already in his wolf form, whining at Elliot, I knew the kid was going to win that round.
My gaze scanned the clock. I had ten minutes—not long, but long enough.
“Your food’s in the microwave,” Elliot told me with a grin. “And you look so da…ng sexy in those workout clothes that I’m tempted to join your class just to watch you move. It’s a good thing you only have women there, or my wolf would kill someone.”
I rolled my eyes at him, even though my lips curved upward in a smile I couldn’t control. “Thanks, I think. And good catch, by the way.”
“Can’t have our little squirt learning to swear before he learns how to read.” Elliot scratched the little wolf’s head, grinning at Ev when he snapped his teeth playfully at Elliot’s hand.
I laughed. “We definitely agree on that.”
After tugging the microwave open, I pulled my plate out and carried it to the kitchen table. On the way, I unplugged my phone, too.
There were bacon, eggs, hash browns, and pancakes. My mouth watered so much I nearly drooled. My definition of a fancy breakfast was instant oatmeal—most days, I only had a chance to grab an apple and a bottle of water, which wasn’t exactly enough with a werewolf appetite.
Luckily, my need for food had stabilized after my first year as a werewolf—probably because I’d gained an assload of weight during my pregnancy, and never lost all of it afterward even while working out a lot for my job. I still needed more food than any human, but I survived without anywhere near the mass amount I’d eaten during that year.