Three Hearts by Grace Duncan

Thanks so much to Elizabeth for hosting me today!
 
I was quite grateful when Elizabeth asked me for a particular post for today. One of the things I gave a lot of thought to when I was thinking about writing Three Hearts was the specifics of how it works. I’ve read a lot of mpreg over the last few years (especially leading up to writing this story), and there was one consistent thing that drove me nuts about most of it.

Absolutely no explanation whatsoever of how or why.

While I had a why in my head for Three Hearts, it never made it into the story. I just couldn’t seem to find a place where it didn’t feel like an info dump completely shoehorned in. So, that didn’t make it. For the record, the wolf population had been dwindling and at one point, a few guys were born omegas. I don’t go into religion in this story, though they are polytheist. My head says it’s something the gods did to help expand the population. As happens, that gets passed on and the number of omegas grows.

Well, the why part was actually kind of easy and can be much more mystical than the rest. We have so much of our own history we can’t explain, so I figured it could be as ambiguous, especially since it wasn’t going to make it into the story. It’s still a little up for discussion. ?

So, while the why of it was still kind of fuzzy, I wanted the how absolute. I saw a lot of shrugging and “I don’t know” when it came to other mpreg stories. Some at least had consistency on when but still no understanding of “how.” I mention in another blog post that I absolutely respect any author’s decision when it comes to their world. It’s up to them how they want to do things and how much of it makes it into the story.

For me, however, I needed to see more. I always thought there should be a reasonable explanation of how these guys got pregnant—and how they gave birth. Most of the stories I read either kept that part extremely vague or insisted it had to be a cesarean section because “how else would it come out?”

My first question to that was… how did it get IN there? If they don’t have girl bits, the little spermy has to get to the egg somehow. So, if it’s based on anal sex (which, guys, right? It’s going to), then I knew I needed to have something there to carry the sperm to the egg from that direction.

I also knew there needed to be some place for the baby to grow. Now, while you’re writing some pretty out there sci-fi, you can do pretty much anything. But if we’re talking about something that’s supposed to be a normal thing for some male wolves, there has to be some sort of uterus. So, that’s what I did.

Liam
Omegas had what was essentially a dormant uterus in our abdomens. We weren’t hermaphrodites or anything. We didn’t have fully-functioning ovaries and all the rest. We had a finite number of eggs stored in us and the pseudo-uterus. If an alpha were to mate with me, his hormones would awaken the organ and set the eggs to release—usually one at a time.
 
 
If this is normal, then I also decided all the rest of it needed to be. I mean, if conception is natural (rather than a fertilized egg getting implanted somewhere), then birth and the rest has to be natural too. In straight sex, there’s a reason certain things self-lubricate. So, if an omega is built to give birth, it made sense to me that they’d also self-lubricate—again to help that happen.
 
Liam
Of course, that also meant that when the doctor checked my organ, he also checked my rectum—and prostate. Along with the uterus and eggs? We also self-lubricated. I mean, I guess it made sense. Our bodies were built to reproduce, so it would be reasonable that it would be built in such a way to make that as easy as possible. But it was embarrassing as hell if it happened when we’re not, like, at home alone. I once got so turned on daydreaming at work, I had a wet spot on my pants. Talk about humiliating.
And when the doctor would check me, along with the boner, I’d start to lubricate.
 
 
I was thrilled a couple of weeks ago when Christy Duke of Rainbow Book Reviews tagged me in the mpreg group on Facebook to tell me she was squeeing over a particular bit in the story. Not quite sure what she was referring to, I did as she asked and sent her a private message. She proceeded to assure me she was referring to what we all love to call “ass babies.” (That phrase kills me!)

Again I thought if there was a natural way for the baby (sperm) to go in, there had to be a natural way for it to come out. Now, Liam acknowledges a lot of omegas simply choose c-sections. Considering they’re wolves who heal easily with shifting, it made sense. Why not since they wouldn’t have the after-effects of surgery like humans do?
But while they could choose to do that, it didn’t feel right for me that it was the only way, so I worked it out in my head for them to give birth that way. Complete with (probably) more details than some wanted. ?
 
Liam
The other part of that process—the actual delivery—was something I did not like contemplating. Some omegas preferred to simply schedule cesarean births and be done with it. I’d never been sure it would be how I’d want to give birth, but I also wasn’t too keen to think about it.

Because there’s only one other way for the baby to come out.

The uterus was accessed, yup, through the rectum. An extra, small opening at the top was normally sealed. Again, alpha hormones woke it up and removed the seal, thereby allowing us to get pregnant. It again sealed after, protecting the womb from waste and bacteria. And that’s how the baby would have to come out. It was like taking a supersized dump. Only with a lot of pain, as I understand it, since there was no way something the size of a baby was coming out of there without it.
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Yeah, not a part I wanted to think about.
 
I even go through the delivery, but if you’d like those details, you’ll have to wait until chapter fourteen.
 
Thanks again to Elizabeth for the prompt and sharing space with me today! I hope you enjoyed this peek into the hows behind my omegas. There’s one more stop yet on the tour, so be sure you don’t miss it.

​Published by Grace R. Duncan
Release date: March 3, 2017
72k Words
Cover artist: Jess Small
M/M Paranormal/shifters

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Blurb:
 
Liam Scott is sick. That’s not supposed to be possible. As a wolf shifter, he’s supposed to be able to heal. The omega gene he was born with means he’s capable of carrying shifter young and Liam is worried that whatever is wrong will mean his one-day hope of having pups will be dashed. But despite the fears keeping him away from the doctor until now, he knows he needs to go.
 
It turns out the sickness is temporary, but the treatment causes a whole other problem.
 
Mason’s alpha gene means he’s one of very few wolves who can impregnate an omega male. For two years, he’d been watching Liam, but things kept getting in the way. When Liam shows up in heat, Mason recognizes the opportunity he needs and doesn’t hesitate make to Liam his mate and the father of his pups.
 
But Liam has old wounds and fears to work through which the pregnancy is only making worse, and Mason isn’t sure how to get past them to show he’s serious about making a life together as loving mates. It’s not until a female wolf decides Mason should be hers that Liam makes his biggest worry known—and Mason can finally put the fears to rest.
 
Buy Three Hearts at:
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Amazon
 
Barnes & Noble
 
Kobo

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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I am also celebrating my 4th publishing anniversary with more giveaways and even a full scavenger hunt! See below for more.

Link: http://www.grace-duncan.com/4thanniversary

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​Author Bio:
 
Grace Duncan grew up with a wild imagination. She told stories from an early age – many of which got her into trouble. Eventually, she learned to channel that imagination into less troublesome areas, including fanfiction, which is what has led her to writing male/male erotica.
 
A gypsy in her own right, Grace has lived all over the United States. She has currently set up camp in East Texas with her husband and children – both the human and furry kind.
 
As one of those rare creatures who loves research, Grace can get lost for hours on the internet, reading up on any number of strange and different topics. She can also be found writing fanfiction, reading fantasy, crime, suspense, romance and other erotica or even dabbling in art.

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