Chapter 305 305
Aurélie POV
There had been a few nights last week when I’d had to wake them both, only to discover Delphine curled up in Dominique’s room again. Somehow, she always found her way to him in her sleep.
She still needed him close.
Her twin.
Her other half.
“Daddy?” Delphine calls out now, her bottom lip pushing forward when Damien doesn’t answer.
“I’m sure he’ll be back soon,” I tell her gently, steering her toward the stairs so she can take her things up to her room. I don’t actually know where he’s gone his car is still parked right out front but there’s no point worrying her.
Once they’re upstairs, I head into the kitchen. The space opens seamlessly into the dining area, anchored by a long table and a deep inglenook. Thick, solid oak beams rise vertically through the room, giving the whole place a sense of permanence of strength.
When we designed the house, we planned for guests to stay at least a night whenever they visited. That meant space to entertain, space to breathe, and enough bedrooms so no one ever felt cramped.
The house had eight bedrooms, with an outbuilding that held four more. It was enormous far bigger than I’d ever imagined myself living in but Damien had dreams of filling every inch of it with children. I wasn’t nearly as convinced. I kept reminding him that we should see how this birth went before he even thought about talking me into another.
I lift the kettle and carry it to the sink, filling it with water. As I do, my gaze drifts out through the window, past the garden and into the fields beyond.
And I freeze.
A large marquee stands on our back land, white and unmistakable.
What on earth…?
“Dominique, Delphine I’m just going into the garden,” I call upstairs.
They don’t answer. Instead, I hear the thunder of feet as both of them bolt down the stairs, appearing at my side in seconds flat. The garden had always been their favourite place.
Damien had gone all out back there massive wooden play equipment, a treehouse built just for Dominique, a playhouse designed exactly to Delphine’s taste. Ropes, ladders, swings… he hadn’t held back.
They fling open the back door and race ahead of me, already bouncing on the built-in ground trampoline by the time I reach the gate. I continue toward the marquee, my steps slowing as I notice cars scattered across the back field. Music hums from inside the enormous white tent.
As I get closer, I hear hushed whispers.
Really?
They honestly think they can surprise an Alpha?
A pregnant Alpha?
“You’d better act surprised, Mummy,” Delphine whispers, suddenly appearing at my side.
“Yes Dad’s been planning this for a whole month,” Dominique adds, lowering his voice conspiratorially.
The moment I step inside the marquee, the entire place erupts.
“Surprise!”
I try to look shocked. Truly, I do. But at this stage of pregnancy, I’m far too tired to care how convincing my reaction looks. This baby needed to arrive soon. Walking had become a challenge, sleeping even more so.
“You could’ve tried harder to look surprised,” Damien murmurs with a smirk as his arms slide around me from behind, cradling my very round belly. He presses a kiss to my mate mark, sending tingles rippling through me and drawing a soft sigh from my lips.
“This is a surprise,” I tell him honestly. “Thank you.”
“Hm.” He doesn’t let go, breathing me in as though he needs the reassurance as much as I do.
That was what I’d missed most during my pregnancy with the twins Damien’s constant presence this late on. Just being near him, just his scent alone, calmed both me and my wolf.
“Everyone’s here…” he groans through the mind-link.
“Everyone?” I reply with a quiet laugh. Too bad.
He never should have invited everyone.
“Yes. Everyone.” He gives me a knowing look, and I feel a flicker of annoyance ripple through the mate bond from him.
I understand immediately.
Élodie sweet, unstoppable Élodie comes charging toward me and wraps me in a fierce hug. She barely gives me a second to breathe before tugging me away from my mate, launching into an enthusiastic update about her own baby sleeping in her arms, along with the latest Saint Wolf pack news.
And just like that, the surprise becomes real.