Trina was trying so hard to keep it together, but there were sniffles in the crowd and Leah was losing it fairly loudly. She held out her hand, and he cut it. It hurt, but it was a sting that was temporary, and this scar, the same scar so many shifters had been giving for generations, would be a reminder of his love.
Trina blew out a steadying breath and cut his hand, linked their fingers, and then pressed her palm to his. She looked up into his eyes and said, “When I was thinking about today, I wanted to bind us in every way I could. You give me purpose. You make me feel safe and secure, and I never question if I’m loved because you are there reminding me every day. I thought a match for me didn’t exist, and then you came and showed me it’s okay to let people in. I asked your brothers what crows do for ceremonies like this. I know you aren’t a crow, but they’ve called you their brother over and over the last couple months, so it feels fitting. Ethan said crows give each other gifts when they choose each other. You’ve been giving me gifts this whole time, probably more gifts than you even realize.” She released his hand and offered him the small white gift bag.
He canted his head, and his dark brow furrowed slightly. “What’s this?” he asked pulling the tissue paper out of it.
Trina pursed her lips against her overwhelming emotions as he reached for the wooden carvings in the bottom. They had little magnets on them so they were all stuck together.
We are not separate.
He dropped the empty bag and turned the figurines in his hands. “There’s three,” he murmured in confusion. “Wolf…mountain lion…” Kade pulled the wolf pup from the side of the mountain lion and held it up with a questioning look.
“I don’t know if our baby will be a wolf or a mountain lion, so I just took a guess. There is the reason I haven’t been able to Change.”
Kade’s eyes went wide, and he looked back at the little family of carvings. Carefully, he placed the wolf pup back on the mountain lion, then jerked his attention to her again. His chest heaving, he dropped to his knees. “Trin, are you serious?” he asked, gripping her hips. “You gotta baby? My baby?”
She would lose it if she said a single word, so she nodded her head instead and clasped her uncut hand over her mouth as twin tears streaked down her cheeks.
He stared at her tummy and shook his head slowly back and forth, back and forth. “I never thought… I never thought I was going to be worthy of…”
“You’re going to be”—her breath hitched—“great at this.”
Kade slid his hands around her back and pulled her tight against him, resting his ear on her stomach. As she ran her fingers through his hair, she committed this exact moment to memory.
The family that was crying happy tears for them. The friends who had shown up just to watch them bind their lives together. The little miracle in her belly. The gift Kade had given her without even realizing how important it would be for them and their future. The wolves were gone, the alliances between her friends were concrete, and this right here was the moment that changed an entire life.
This was a moment she wanted to remember for always.
Because even with the uncertainty of life as a shifter, she knew without a shadow of a doubt that she and Kade were at the very beginning of their story. And it was going to be a beautiful one.
We are not separate. From this day forward, she and Kade would never be separate again.
And everything was perfect.