“Yes, you are my love, and you’re going to kill it,” I replied, and her eyes widened while mine closed. “I meant you’re going to kill it as in being a great mother, the best.”
“What if he sticks to you more?” she asked. “I don’t want that.” I chuckled, and she did too while wiping her tears. “I don’t want to do this again.”
“Then we won’t if you don’t want to,” I told her. “We’re in this together, okay? Whether we have one child or three, you’ll never have to do anything alone, and you’ll be a great mother.”
She cupped my cheek. “He’s definitely going to stick to you more,” she leaned forward and kissed me. “You’re going to kill it as a father.”
“Thanks,” I whispered, and she sighed.
“I really am excited about seeing everyone, and Marian’s done such a good job planning the party,” she muttered, and I nodded. “I’m going to get ready, okay? Are you finished working?”
I nodded and helped her to stand. “I am. I really was about to start getting ready.”
“So,” she tipped on her toes. “Do you think we can maybe have a little quickie before everyone arrives?”
I started laughing and pinched her chin. “You’re like a tornado, you know that?” I kissed my mark on her neck. “But yes, yes, we can.”
***
Outside the packhouse, the party was in full swing. Everyone had arrived, absolutely everyone, and Diana was having a blast. I could hear her singing along with the music with Marian and her coworkers from the supermarket.
Exiting the bathroom, I made my way downstairs and ran into Nazanin, who was just entering the house.
“How are you enjoying the party?” I called out from the second floor, and she held her drink out.
“This is my third one, so I’d say great.” She replied. “Marian knows how to throw a party. I’ll give her that. She’s a sweet girl.”
“She loves Diana,” I said when I joined her by the door. “And at this point, she’s here so often she can move in.”
“Don’t say that too loud,” Nazanin laughed. “If she hears you, she’ll move in tomorrow.”
I didn’t doubt that for a second, but she’d been a significant help and support system for Diana these past couple of months, and I knew my son would be safe with her. She was human, but she’d earned her place in the family.
Nazanin and I stepped out to rejoin the party, but we remained by the door to watch everyone. A month ago, Mathieu marked her as his mate, and the Bluemoon Pack, under their leadership, was thriving.
Children started screaming, and I tensed up until I realized they were only playing.
Marian had a witch cast a smell for blue butterflies made of glowing energy to flutter around the party, and instead of red flames, the torches throughout the area had blue flames. The entire theme of the party was blue, for a boy, of course, which made the gender reveal portion of this evening pointless.
Still, Marian was insistent, but otherwise, this was a great idea after all.
Diana was dancing and being showered with love, and I wasn’t going to complain about that.
“It seems like only yesterday you and I stood together, surrounded by our pack, and you revealed you had lost your mate,” Nazanin said. “Now we’re celebrating her and your unborn child.”
“You’ve come a long way, Kaleem,” she whispered, and I swallowed hard because Nazanin was one of the few people who truly knew my suffering after losing my parents. “I’m proud of you, and they would be too.”
She meant my parents, and when she patted my shoulder, I covered her hand with mine. I missed her, with her being a part of Mathieu’s pack, but she’d helped to raise me. She’d been my support, friend, and acting Luna, and I was grateful to her for sticking by me.
“Thank you, Nazanin, for always being by my side, even when I didn’t make it easy.”
She’d been like a second mother to Killian and me, and that never changed. She reached up and cupped my cheek when the music stopped.
“Hello! Hello! Hello!” Marian announced while pulling Diana toward me. “Thank you all so much for coming. I mean, well, you guys didn’t have a choice.”
Everyone laughed, and Nazanin stepped aside so I could hold Diana around her waist.
“Just look at them,” Marian gushed. “Have you guys ever seen a more beautiful couple?”