Backstage at the Freak Show (Harem of Freaks #7) - Crystal Ash Page 0,34

up at her, his smile cunning.

“What?”

He pressed the side of his face to her belly and amped up his purr. The vibration carried throughout her whole body in a steady, crackling rhythm. Within a few minutes, I felt small kicks fluttering against my palm.

“I saw that!” Raz cried out, crawling up to get closer. “Keep doing it.”

Arjun kept his purr going while the rest of us gathered eagerly around Mel’s belly.

“You think he likes it?” I wondered, watching the flurry of movement with awe. “Or is he kicking and punching like, ‘cut that shit out!’?”

“Of course he likes it,” Arjun grumbled. “Everyone likes purring.”

“Sweet boy,” Raz said, his voice thick with emotion as he nuzzled Mel’s belly. “Te iubesc, fiul meu.”

After telling our son he loved him, he continued whispering in Romanian. I couldn’t understand all of it, but I got the sense that it was full of promise and praise.

Hunter lifted his head, looking toward the open bedroom door. “You guys can come in here.”

Roo’s head poked through first, then Rinna’s. “We can? I thought the bedroom was for adults only.”

“Just this one time you can,” the white wolf grinned at his pups. “Your little brother is moving around in Mel’s belly. Come see him!”

They didn’t need a further invitation than that. The kids sprinted toward the bed and tumbled onto the mattress.

“Easy,” I warned them, still protective of Mel’s condition.

“Gentle, guys,” Hunter added. “Give me your hands.”

Together, his pups stuck their palms out. Mel grabbed Rinna’s and Hunter took Roo’s.

“You can feel him,” Mel smoothed our stepdaughter’s hand over her belly. “Right about here.”

“Ah! Is that his foot?” Rinna squealed excitedly.

“I think so,” Mel smiled. “Your turn, Roo.”

Hunter’s son opted to press his ear to Mel’s belly, acting dramatically like he was getting kicked in the face. Eventually, the kicks calmed down and Mel was no longer teary-eyed. The pups remained snuggled up to Mel’s belly, gently nuzzling against her and talking softly to their new sibling. No one seemed eager to leave her side, so it was a good thing our bed was big enough to fit everyone.

“Need anything, babe?” I slid an arm around Mel’s shoulders, rubbing out the tension in her neck as she began sinking into the pillows.

She turned her face toward me with a sleepy smile. “I have everything I need.”

“Look at you,” Arjun breathed softly as he lifted up to his knees, staring at her and all of us surrounding her. “I wish you could see yourself like this. You’re a fucking goddess.”

“Oh stop,” Mel laughed.

“It’s true,” Raz chimed in, stroking an affectionate hand down her leg. “You’re so beautiful. So perfect for us, it’s unreal.”

“That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you for nearly a year.” I dropped a kiss on her cheek.

“I still can’t believe this is real, sometimes.” Hunter clasped his fingers between hers, their rings making a soft, metallic clink. “Some days I still expect to wake up in a cage, stuck between shifts.”

“But Mellie and Connor saved us!” Roo declared, crawling over to his dad.

“And us.” Raz nudged Arjun.

“Ditto here,” I sighed, resting my head on Mel’s shoulder. “From myself, my demons, everything imaginable.”

“You guys, seriously!” Mel fanned her face, tears welling up in her eyes again. “Stop, my fucking hormones—”

“Mellie said fucking!” Rinna cackled, falling over.

“Shit.” Mel bit her lip, catching herself again which got Roo started on the laughing.

Raz tickled the bottom of Rinna’s foot while Arjun pretended to bite Roo’s arm, amplifying their giggles, which spread laughter across the whole bed like wildfire.

“Hey!” I clapped my hands once loudly. “I have something to say.”

Everyone quieted, confusion on some faces at the sudden seriousness in my tone. I waited a few tense moments before speaking.

“I love this fucking family. That’s all.”

The kids collapsed into giggle fits again while the adults tried to keep their disapproving faces on, but it didn’t last. Through the smiles and the way everyone piled around together, I knew we all felt the same.

Part IV

The Circus of Parenthood

12

ARJUN

The thought of home tugged at my once closed-off heart. Years ago, I never thought I’d make it to this age. Every now and again I had to sit back and just absorb that, not only was I alive, I had a good life.

I had a wife who I missed terribly while away. I had a son, my little tiger cub in every way but blood, which didn’t matter to me in the slightest. He was every bit mine just as the humans who