A chair was brought into the living room, and Gator shoved Reno into it. Gator aimed a gun at Reno's head as T-Rex moved in. T-Rex towered over the man.

"I was paid to bring you in for justice," T-Rex said. "But you've fucked with the wrong people, namely us. You stole information that could cripple this country, intending to sell that information to our enemy."

Reno spat at T-Rex. Although the guy looked like Wilbur, their personalities were night and day. It was like looking at Wilbur's evil twin. Stripper shuddered at the thought of his mate ever acting this way. He knew Wilbur didn't have it in him to be this cunning and selfish, and Stripper was glad.

"I want a lawyer," Reno said.

T-Rex's expression was as eerie as a graveyard. "We aren't the cops, and we don't follow the same protocol. You'll be lucky to make it out of this house alive."

"I have rights!" Reno snarled.

"Not with us you don't," T-Rex stated. "If those transactions can't be stopped, then I'll shoot you myself."

Reno didn't seem fazed by T-Rex's threat-that is, until Stripper swiped his leg out, with Reno crashing to the floor. Stripper was on the man, sinking his canines deep into Reno's side. Reno cried out and then shifted. Stripper took the man down when Reno's bear backed away.

"Tell us the password, or I'll let my guy tear your throat out," T-Rex said to Reno. "He'll kill you slowly and painfully."

Stripper shook his head sideways and tore flesh from bone. Reno roared and fell to his side before shifting back into his human form. He lay there panting, sweating, with a good portion of his side missing. He was bleeding out, and Stripper's bear wanted to finish what it'd started.

"Wilbur." Reno panted. "The passcode is Wilbur."

"Did you get that?" T-Rex shouted to Gator's man, who was steadily working on the program that Reno had purchased to break the codes.

"Got it," the guy shouted back at him.

Stripper hovered over Reno, waiting for the man to make a wrong move. Reno shifted back into his bear form but lay there without making a move. The bastard was healing himself.

"Fuck!" Gator's man shouted. "That wasn't a passcode. That was a trigger."

"For what?" Gator asked as his eyes went from Reno to the office door.

"Give me a sec," the man hollered back. A minute later the guy came rushing from the room. His gaze darted to Gator. It was apparently important, but the man didn't seem ruffled. "I killed the transactions but using the password 'Wilbur' set off a timer. We need to haul ass."

"A timer?" Shott looked at the guy. "Please don't tell me we're running from another bomb."

The man shrugged as he and Gator headed toward the door. "Fine, I won't tell you that you have less than a minute to get the fuck out of here."

Stripper shifted. "What about Reno?"

T-Rex glared down at the guy and then shook his head. "Bring him."

Stripper grabbed the bear still lying on the floor, bleeding, and dragged toward the door. As soon as he was outside, Reno attacked. But his attack didn't last long. The guy who'd been perched up in the tree took a single shot, ending Reno's life.

Stripper dropped the dead bear and hauled ass away from the house. It exploded, sending large debris into the air.

"Damn it," Shott said as they continued to make their way back to the SUV. "If I have to run from one more exploding house, I'm retiring."

"You love your work too damn much to walk away," T-Rex said as they slipped into the SUV and took off. They would have to report to the company who had hired them that the information had been destroyed, along with Reno.

But Stripper didn't care at this point. They'd rescued Ms. O'Connor, what they'd been paid to do. It was just a bonus that Reno was dead. He knew Gator and his men were already heading out of town. And Stripper was okay with that. Having Gator's team here wasn't a good thing. They lived for their work, and Bear County was too slow-paced for them.

As they drove home, Stripper thought of the chaos and destruction Reno had caused. A quick death had been too good for that man. He wanted to bring Reno back and slowly kill the guy. But now that the threat was behind them, Stripper had other worries to concentrate on.

After Wilbur's confession in the weapons room, Stripper knew he couldn't shut the guy out. For better or worse, they were in this together, and he would step up to the plate and be the mate Wilbur deserved.

Chapter Fourteen.

Two months later...

"Do you have everything?" Wilbur walked around the bedroom-correction, waddled around the bedroom, trying to make sure they had everything they would need. He was a nervous wreck and had packed and unpacked, only to repack the diaper bag for the hundredth time.

Stripper was no better. He just stood in the middle of the room, scratching at his head, glancing around. "I think so."

The doctor wanted to take the baby a week early, foregoing the stress Wilbur would go through during labor. He'd called it a C-section. Wilbur was not looking forward to any kind of surgery.

As a matter of fact, he was trembling at the thought. "Diapers?"

Stripper seemed to come out of his trance and nodded. "We have it all, Wilbur." His mate crossed the room and pulled Wilbur into strong arms. Over the past two months, Stripper had been nothing but loving and attentive, no matter how much Wilbur tried to rile the man up so they could have makeup sex. Stripper hadn't taken the bait. Wilbur had been on bed rest for the past month, and although he didn't want to have surgery, he was glad to get out of the house.

They grabbed the diaper bag, the car seat, and Wilbur's overnight bag and then headed downstairs. Everyone was standing there, waiting for them, wishing Wilbur and Stripper good luck.

Steven stepped forward. He and Wilbur had become pretty good friends over the past few months. The guy had sat with Wilbur often, helping him pass the time as Wilbur suffered through the boredom of bed rest. They had played checkers, cards, and had listened to all sorts of music. Turned out, Steven was a very interesting man and had a witty sense of humor. Gabe, Cameron, and Taylor had sat with him to, but it was Steven's visits that Wilbur had looked forward to the most.

Steven handed Wilbur a stuffed bear. It was soft to the touch and was brown and tan. "That's for the little guy or girl."

Wilbur and Stripper had refused to know what the sex of their child would be. They wanted to be surprised. "Thanks." Wilbur took the stuffed toy, and to his surprise, Steven hugged him.

"Remember, breathe," Steven whispered to him. "Focus on your focal point."

Wilbur nodded and then moved to the door but stopped when he reached T-Rex. He smiled up at the man. "When we first met, I really didn't like you," he said. T-Rex had been adamant that Wilbur was Reno. He knew being a team leader meant T-Rex had to be tough as nails, but he'd seen another side to him as well "But you're an okay guy."

T-Rex smiled and squeezed Wilbur's shoulder. "And you're still one of a kind. Now go make Stripper a proud papa."

Wilbur nodded and waddled out the door. Stripper helped him down the steps and into the truck. Putting the seat belt on had become tricky since Wilbur had grown to the size of a whale, but Stripper made sure it was in place before his mate slipped behind the wheel.

"If you keep looking this calm, I'm going to smack you," Wilbur threatened. "You're working my nerves."

Stripper chuckled as he started the truck. "Trust me, I'm quivering shamelessly on the inside. But one of us has to remain in control."

Wilbur narrowed his eyes. "You brought your Game Boy, didn't you?"

Stripper had the decency to look embarrassed. "I've almost knocked the Crimson King out a second place."

Wilbur rolled his eyes. "Just don't pull the damn thing out in the operating room, or I'll climb off that table and beat you senseless."

"So violent," Stripper said as he chuckled. "I promise to keep it in my pocket until you've been moved to your room and are fast asleep."

His mate was hopeless.

They drove to the secluded clinic that employed nothing but bear shifters and had only bear shifters as patients. The only human exceptions were those mated to bear shifters. And since Wilbur was, off to grandmother's house they went. Too bad he didn't have a basket full of goodies. Wilbur was hungry. But he had been forbidden to eat anything after midnight.

He was ready to gnaw on the steering wheel.

They made it to the clinic too quickly in Wilbur's opinion. As soon as the wooden building came into sight, his heart began to beat faster. Not only because he was having surgery, but he was about to give birth. Wilbur was about to meet the child that had been growing in him for months now.

"I'm not ready to be a parent," Wilbur said in a panic. "Can we come back later, like next year?"

Stripper pulled the truck into the parking lot and cut the motor. He turned and framed Wilbur's face with his hands. "You can do this, beautiful. I have faith in you."

Wilbur wished he had that much faith in himself. He was ready to get out of the truck and waddle down the driveway, escaping. He took a deep and cleansing breath before he nodded.

Stripper helped him out of the truck, and then the two walked inside. Jennifer, the receptionist, gave them a warm and friendly smile. "You didn't chicken out, Wilbur."

He stuck his tongue out at her. "Showed you, didn't I?"

"Then let's get you back there and ready for surgery," she said. Wilbur spun around and tried to shuffle away, but Stripper grabbed him and steered him to the door Jennifer was holding open.

"Oh no you don't," Stripper said.

"Traitor," Wilbur mumbled. "You're supposed to be on my side."

"I am," Stripper replied. "Even when you don't want to do something that's necessary."

"But who's gonna take care of Harry?" Wilbur asked. "Who's gonna feed him tomorrow?"

"Steven agreed to look after your goldfish," Stripper said. "Now stop stalling and get your beautiful ass back there."

Jennifer snickered as she led them to a room. The room held a bed with railings, machines, and Doctor Gallagher. The man smiled at Wilbur as Stripper stood by Wilbur's side.

"I'll let your mate help you get undressed. Once you're in your gown, I want you up on the bed," Doctor Gallagher said.

Wilbur nodded and let go of a shaky breath as the doctor and Jennifer left the room. Wilbur was slightly embarrassed that he became hard when Stripper began to undress him.

"Sorry," Wilbur said.

Stripper shook his head before he placed a kiss on Wilbur's lips. "The day your body stops reacting to me is the day I start worrying."

Stripper helped him into his gown and then onto the bed. His mate pulled the sheet up to Wilbur's lap before he went into the hallway and called the doctor back in. Some other guy that Wilbur didn't know came into the room with a small tray in his hand.

"This is Justin," the doctor said. "He'll be putting your IV in."

Justin gave Wilbur a friendly smile before he went to work setting Wilbur up. The morning flew by as Wilbur was prepped. He had to ball into the fetal position to have a spinal tap. By the time he was wheeled into the operating room, he was feeling a bit loopy. The medication was kicking in.

"How do you feel?" Doctor Gallagher asked.

"Like I can wrestle a bear," Wilbur answered and then laughed. This made the doctor and Stripper smile. His mate was dressed in scrubs, a surgical mask clutched in his hand. Wilbur was grinning from ear to ear. "You look sexy in that outfit. See if you can keep it and we can play doctor. I'll be your willing patient."

Once Wilbur was settled in the operating room, Stripper leaned close, his soft lips pressing against Wilbur's ear. "You're on."

"On what?" Wilbur asked, quickly forgetting their conversation. Stripper just shook his head and moved out of the way as the doctor moved in.

"Ready?" Doctor Gallagher asked.

"Let's get this party started," Wilbur said and then lifted one arm and pumped it. "Whoop. Whoop."

Stripper's nerves had been drawn tight throughout the surgery. Anything could've gone wrong, and he worried the entire time about Wilbur.

But now that he stood in their private room at the clinic, holding his son in his arms, Stripper's eyes were brimming with tears. He'd never held such a perfect creature in his arms before. Aside from Wilbur. His mate was in the bed, fast asleep. Gallagher had assured Stripper that Wilbur was fine.

It wasn't until now that Stripper could finally breathe. Throughout Wilbur's pregnancy, Stripper had been a bundle of raw nerves. He had worried at every ache and pain that Wilbur experienced, his mind racing to the worst-case scenario. But he kept his worries to himself and made sure he was at Wilbur's beck and call.

"Look at you," T-Rex said as he walked into the room. "You're a natural."

T-Rex crossed the room and peeked at the bundle curled in Stripper's arms. "He looks just like you."

"You think so?" Stripper asked. He felt his son looked more like Wilbur. He couldn't wait for Wilbur to wake so they could share this moment. The doctor had given Wilbur something so his mate wouldn't be in pain. Gallagher had said he wanted Wilbur as comfortable as possible.

Shott and Sam walked in next, wide smiles on their faces. Shott took a peek, and his smile grew. "Handsome little devil."

"Thanks," Stripper said. He took a seat, still nervous about holding a bundle so small. He was afraid he would drop his son at any second.

"Does he have a name yet?" Sam asked as he set a bag on the table by the window. There were balloons attached to the bag announcing, "It's a Boy!" in blue letters.

"What about Wilbur Junior?" T-Rex asked.

"And what will his nickname be, We-Jay?" Stripper asked. "Wilbur and I discussed names. If we had a girl, we were going to name her Serenity. We decided on Abriel for a boy's name."

"Well, hello, Abriel," T-Rex said as he bent at the waist and ran a knuckle down Abriel's face. Stripper hid his smile when T-Rex started making baby sounds.

"Please don't tell me that's my son," Wilbur said groggily. "I did not give birth to a dinosaur."

T-Rex chuckled good-naturedly. "Welcome back to the land of the living."

Stripper waited until Wilbur was fully awake before he laid their son into his mate's arms. His eyes widened slightly when tears began to trickle down Wilbur's face.

"We'll step out into the hall," Shott said as he ushered the two men out of the room. "You two need a moment."

"What's wrong, beautiful?" Stripper wiped Wilbur's tears away. "Are you feeling okay?" He felt panic settle in and started to reach for the nurse's call button when Wilbur shook his head.