haniel and Nicholas, as they slept soundly in the crib beside his hospital bed, swaddled up tightly. “I'm no fortune teller, but so far so good,” I smiled at him, then made note of his p

en, my wolf surged forward in my chest and almost knocked me forwards. I grabbed at the edge of Holden’s bed to steady myself and did my best to keep a straight face as my wolf pawed, yelped, and ran in circles in excitement.“You're a week early!” Holden exclaimed. Zayne broke eye contact with me and gave his cousin a huge smile, “Well, some things have changed...” Suddenly, a sharp cry cut through the room. Holden and I glanced at the twins who were still sound asleep in their crib, and then back to Zayne who was grimacing sheepishly. He walked into the room carrying a baby car seat, set it down beside Holden's bed. He reached down to the car seat and picked up a tiny pink bundle. The crying immediately stopped and he held the wrapped up bundle close to his chest. “This is my daughter, Hope,” he introduced us to the newborn baby who couldn't have been more than a few weeks old. “ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!” Holden exclaimed, struggling to sit up so he could see the baby. “Where did you get that beautiful thing?!” Zayne laughed, “I had her!” “Just like that, huh?” Holden grimaced. He'd had a hard time conceiving, and I wondered how much Zayne knew about that. “Zayne, we spoke just a few weeks ago! What the hell, dude?!” he exclaimed, then looked at Hope with total adoration. “Wow, she's beautiful.” “She is, huh?” Zayne smiled proudly. He was right – she was one of the cutest newborns I'd ever seen, and I'd seen plenty. My heart swelled as I looked at her sweet, chubby face. “Was her dad...?” Holden asked carefully. “Yeah. I'm her only dad now,” Zayne replied nervously. My eyes became fixed on Zayne. Half of me was taking him in, trying to put together the Zayne I used to know with this adult father; the other half was in doctor mode and diagnosing him with some serious exhaustion. There were dark rings under his eyes, he could barely keep his lids open, and he was wobbling on his feet. “When was the last time you got some sleep?” I asked. Zayne looked at me with surprise. I realized, embarrassingly, that this was the first thing I'd really said to him since he'd arrived. “Oh, uh... What's sleep?” he laughed. I immediately grabbed the chair beside Holden's bed and told him, “Sit down.” “Yes, sir! You've always been so bossy,” he smirked. It was the same smirk that had always made me crazy, and now it smacked against me like a punch to the face. I wanted to kiss him. I wanted him punch him. I felt just like I had when we were boys. “I've always been right,” I insisted, scooping Hope out of his arms as his lids started to droop further. “Mm, that too,” he mumbled as his head dropped to the side and his shoulders slumped down. “Zayne, are you okay?” Holden asked, seriously worried. “Thanks, Pax,” Zayne mumbled softly to me before he drifted off and started snoring. Hearing him say my name made my heart race, and I took a deep breath to keep myself centered. “He's got postpartum fatigue,” I told Holden, snapping back into doctor mode. “It's uncommon for shifters, but it happens under times of serious stress. I need to find him a cot.” “Give me that beautiful baby,” Holden said, reaching out for Hope. “I'll take her while you find a cot for her old man.” “Are you sure?” I asked. “I'm surging with pregnancy hormones, Pax. Please give me all of the babies to hold.” I laughed and carefully passed him baby Hope. My heart ached as I handed her over, and I wondered if I was suffering from exhaustion, too – it such a strange reaction to have towards a baby I didn't know. I hadn't felt like that about any kid, except for my daugh