Accidental Surrogate for Alpha

#Chapter 307 – Old Friends

Ella

Two hours later, Sinclair and I welcome our friends back to our house for a casual breakfast and coffee

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or mimosas, according to preference to celebrate Rafe’s moonlight baptism. I can tell our guests are dragging – they’ve been up all night, after all – but spirits are high.

“Wow,” I say, leaning back against Sinclair’s chest with a croissant in one hand, a cup of coffee in the other. Rafe, thankfully, is asleep in his little recline stroller. Usually I’d put him to bed in his crib, but I want people to be able to say goodbye if they have to leave. “I can’t believe everyone I still up,” I say, peering around at our friends and family. “I mean, I know we’re on baby time so normal hours mean nothing anymore, but everyone else…”

“It’s a special occasion,” Sinclair murmurs; lowering his face to my hair and taking a long sniff of my scent. “We’re used to it. In wolf culture shifter children are rarer than we’d like, so we take the time to celebrate them when they’re born.”

“That’s so nice…” I say, sniffing a little, my eyes filling with tears.

“What?” Sinclair asks, pulling away from me a little, shocked. “Are you – why are you crying –

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I swat at him, laughing a little. “What! Hormones! I’m tired! Leave me be.” Then I brush the tears off my cheeks, smiling despite them. I’m just overwhelmed and grateful, honestly, for all the love that our family has shown our baby. “It really is a beautiful tradition,” I murmur, and Sinclair kisses my cheek before moving away to talk to some of the Alphas who have come to see their new prince.

As Sinclair moves away, Isabel quickly moves to my side to take his place. “Hi, mama,” she says, giving me a warm smile as she wraps an arm around my waist. “How are you doing?”

my arms around her again,

way she smiles at her mate across the room lets me know that her words are an understatement. James raises a hand to me, little Sadie

rooms?” I ask Isabel quickly, taking her hand and squeezing

“I’m so glad we could be here and meet the baby – but we both want to get home. We have…a lot of work to do there.” Her face changes, then, and I

to a little love

as private as

sad, “I know that you’ve been distracted – and there’s nothing wrong with that you’ve had such a hard pregnancy, and I know that the birth wasn’t easy on you either

my hold on her hand, “please just tell me –“My

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boat. It’s nothing that he’s done wrong

the idea and I flick my glance towards my sleeping baby. If I were ever separated from him by war – just, had no idea where he was,

anxiously looking to where Sinclair is standing.

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on my face. “I need to know, Isabel -I’m getting strong, I need to do this sort of work. If Sinclair intends to lead these people, I don’t intend to stay home and be a happy little house

you’d feel that way. That’s why I told you – not because …well, Ella, if you’re still healing, you need to focus on yourself first. You can be so selfless you always put others

—

still worried but touched by my friend’s concern. She knows me so well. “Thank you, love,” I say, giving her a little smile. “I’ll take care of myself,

lowering her voice and looking around the room.

not understanding, but giving her the space to work through

she says, more urgent now, “we both know that the right side won this war. That Damon would have worked to disenfranchise the humans completely, to enslave them if he could. Sinclair, we know, wants equal rights and peace – but there are people even on Sinclair’s side who still have…complicated ideas about hierarchies

the councils during the war when even some

looked askance at the humans, at Cora, my own sister. I frown to think of it, to see some of those