Chapter 223: Perfect name
Watching an Alpha cherish and warm a newborn infant against his own chest is physiologically restorative for a newly delivered breeder. It rapidly surges the bloodstream with endorphins and oxytocin, melting away post-labor trauma and easing the sharp ache of recovery.
Magnus stood tall beside the window. In the pale, silver glow of dawn, his broad, dark silhouette cradling the tiny bundle in his arms resembled my deepest, most cherished dream brought to life.
Back when I had given birth to Matthias all alone, I used to dream of waking up to find Magnus sitting by the bedside, holding our baby boy and keeping him warm, helping him adjust to his parents’ scent and stabilizing his body temperature. But those dreams always shattered into tears as I woke up clinging to empty air.
Tonight, the urge to cry rose in my throat once more—not from sorrow, but from a staggering, overwhelming sense of absolute joy. Labor had been brutal and unrelenting. I barely had the physical strength left to lift a finger.
𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖
Magnus had walked through every inch of that hellfire by my side. It had been agonizing for him, too, watching me suffer while being utterly powerless to stop it. He had rumbled a low, fierce vow in his helplessness, swearing we would never have another child if it meant putting me through such torture again.
At the time, I had completely agreed with him. But now, looking at the two of them, I figured I had already changed my mind.
The little girl, capped with a crown of pale, nearly translucent down, squirmed unhappily in his massive, tattooed hands. Hurrying over, her father sat down on the edge of the mattress, bringing her close. We were waiting for her to open her eyes on her own—it had already been two hours since her birth, and she was stubbornly keeping her lashes tightly shut, squinting against the world.
Carefully shifting her away from his warm chest, Magnus coaxed her gently. She let out a tiny, discontented pout, her murky, tear-bright green eyes fluttering open at last.
“She has your eyes,” the Alpha whispered, his voice cracking before he abruptly averted his gaze toward the window. His powerful body went taut, freezing like a drawn bowstring.
“And she looks like you,” I murmured, forcing myself up slightly on one elbow to press my free hand against his shoulder, soothing the corded, trembling muscles. “She’s a piece of us both. Just like Matthias. They are our continuation. Our blood and soul.”
Magnus gave a stiff, sharp nod, his lips pressed into a thin line as he stared unblinkingly out the glass.
Watching him now, I knew with absolute certainty that his bond with our daughter would run even deeper than the one he shared with our son. We were something more than human, and the beast’s instinct ran deep within our veins.
Male wolves rarely missed their mate’s labor unless circumstances forced their hand; the primal tether pulsed violently during those hours, and the newborn desperately required both parents to awaken the dormant spirit within. While the parent-child bond took root in the womb, it was forged into steel in the crucible of birth.
“Will you help me?” I asked my husband softly, tracing a feather-light finger across our baby girl’s velvet cheek.
She looked out at the world with demanding intensity, and I could feel how desperately hungry she was. Long ago, I had stumbled across a medical article noting that ordinary humans lacked our innate, sharp attunement to their children’s biological needs. I genuinely couldn’t imagine how difficult it must be for them to navigate parenthood without that primal compass.
Magnus turned in silence, his stormy eyes watching questioningly as my weak fingers unzipped the hospital gown.
“Let me feed her.”
With infinite care, the Alpha guided our daughter into my arms. She instantly wrapped her tiny fists against my chest and latched her plump lips onto me with fierce, instinctive hunger. Magnus watched her eat, his gaze utterly transfixed.
“Does it hurt?” the man murmured with palpable doubt, gently stroking her flushed, chubby cheek.
“No. Did you know that when an omega nurses, inhaling the baby’s scent floods our bloodstream with calming hormones and pure happiness?” Hoping to pull him out of the dazed, overwhelmed state he had slipped into since the birth, I offered a reassuring smile.
“I didn’t… Right now, I’m just so lost, realizing I have no idea what to do next. She’s… so tiny and fragile that I’m terrified even to hold her.”
“Magnus, she’s much tougher than you think,” I chuckled, a flash of memory reminding me of how terrified I had been to hold Matthias for the first time. “If you do something wrong, she will let you know—very loudly.”
He blinked, staring into my eyes as if waiting for me to elaborate.
“She’ll start crying so hard that not only you, but every guard on the estate perimeter will hear it. Trust me, Matthias rarely cried, but when he did—oh, gods, the whole neighborhood knew.” Realizing that might not have been the best reassurance, I watched the panic flare even brighter in my husband’s silver-grey eyes. “Though she might cry for other reasons, too. Colic, teething, or just a wet diaper. There are a dozen reasons a little diva will throw a tantrum. Once she learns to talk, things will get infinitely easier.”
“You already have so much experience, but I don’t even know how or where to begin being her father.”
“For starters, let’s give her a name,” I smiled, feeling our daughter finally relax in my arms, drowsily letting go of my skin as she drifted toward a milk-drunk sleep.
“Rose. If you don’t mind, I would love to name her that.”
Watching my fierce, battle-scarred husband carefully lift her back against his broad chest, I felt a tidal wave of joy crash over me, eclipsing everything I had ever known. It was the perfect name for our little girl.