bChapter /b180

    E

    The day of the pic dawned bright and clear, with just enough of a breeze to keep the summer heat from being unbearable.

    I stood at the entrance to the pic, where there was arge archway set up with a wee sign, my hand resting on top of the small bump that now protruded from beneath the blue sundress I was wearing. The dress had an empire waist, ensuring that my belly was on more prominent disy than usual.

    Had to ensure everyone knew that the Ashw Alpha and Luna were expecting an heir, after all. But I wasn’tining. Not today.

    Five and a half months pregnant, and I was finally starting to show properly. The sight of my rounded belly still caught me off guard sometimes, but in a good way.

    “There you are.” Alexander appeared at my side, looking devastatingly handsome in dark jeans and a casual button–down shirt. The sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, and he’d skipped the tie for once. Readyb?/bb” /b

    i” /i

    I nodded and took his extended arm, stering that practiced smile on my face as we made our way into the main event space.

    We’d done this dance so many times now that slipping into our public roles felt like putting on a well- worn pair of shoes.

    Over the next few hours, I smiled until my cheeks ached, answered questions about the baby’s due date at least fifty times, and let what felt like half the territory touch my belly for good luck. Alexander stayed close, his hand never straying far from my back or my arm, ying the devoted mate to perfection.

    But there were moments–brief shes when he thought no one was looking–where his concern felt genuine. The way he steered me toward a chair when I’d been standing for a little too long, or how he made sure I had water and something to eat every hour on the hour.

    It reminded me of the kitchen two nights ago, of how he’d looked at me, how he’d touched me…

    Right before Gabriel had interrupted us.

    I’d been trying not ito /ithink about that kiss, but it was proving fucking impossible. Every time Alexander touched me, even casuallyb, /bI remembered the feeling of his hands in my hair and the taste of him on my

    tongue.

    We hadn’t finished what we’d started that nightb, /bof course. I figured that he thought it was a mistake and just wanted to bury it. If he wasn’t going to bring it up, then I wasn’t going to humiliate myself by doing so, either.

    “Ladies and gentlemen!” Gabriel’s amplified voice cut through my wandering thoughts. He was standing on a small tform near the center of the festivities, holding a microphone. “We have a special treat nned for this afternoon. A good old–fashioned game of capture the g!”

    The crowd cheered, and I felt my pulse quicken. I hadn’t yed capture the g since I was a teenager, back before I was forced into the role of Luna and, well… before everything went to shit.

    “We’ll be dividing into two teams,” Gabriel continued. “And our team captains will be Alpha Alexander and … Drumroll…i” /i

    The crowd waited with anticipation. I pulled my shoulders back, assuming that the other captain would be me.

    “Miranda Wilkes, captain of the Ashw training league!”

    I turned to Alexander with raised eyebrows. “What about me?” I asked.

    “You’re pregnant.”

    “So?” bI /bcouldn’t help butugh. “I’m not about to pop right now. Besides, the game only allows shifted wolves. I’ll be perfectly fine ying a game in wolf form.”

    Alexander looked like he wanted to argue, but before he could, I strode up to Gabriel and took the microphone away. “Change of ns,” I said, ignoring the way both Alexander and Gabriel put their heads in their hands. “I will be taking Miranda’s ce.” I grinned and patted my belly. “Although I’m not sure if I should count for one yer or two.”

    The crowd cheered again as I handed the microphone back to Gabriel, who looked ready to burst. Alexander, however, seemed to be hiding the faintest of smiles as I made my way back to him.

    “You’re impossible,” he muttered.

    I smirked. “I thought I was going to die five months ago. A game of capture the g is exactly what I need.”

    Alexander snorted. b“/bJust behave for the rest of the day then, will you?”

    b“/bNo promises.”

    As Gabriel prattled off the rest of the rules, Alexander and I made our way to the game grounds. I rolled my shoulders, reaching deep within for my wolf’s presence.

    “It’s been a while since we shifted,” she said, and I could hear the excitement in her voice.

    “Looking forward to stretching your legs?”

    “Something like that.”

    The teams formed quickly, with about twenty people on each side. Alexander’s team imed the eastern edge of the property while mine took the west.

    As the others began to shift, I closed my eyes and reached for the familiar sensation. For a moment, nothing happened, and panic started to w at me. It had been so long, and I hadn’t shifted since before

    my wolf had gone dormant; what if something was wrong?

    But then I felt that tingling, burning sensation as my bones began to lengthen and my muscles started to reshape themselves.