Chapter 20 #2
“Mm, poor kid.” He didn’t want to think about how that was gonna be his life soon. Of course he did. He wanted to think about it all the time. But right now, he needed to get to Mercury.
Talon headed to the bedroom, Mercury wasn’t there, so then he went to the nursery. Sure enough, Mercury was rocking Kami’s baby in the rocking chair they’d gotten, and singing.
“How are you feeling, love? I brought you a milkshake.”
“Thank you. I’m a little frightened, but not hysterical, yet.” Mercury winked at him. “Give me time.”
“I can do that,” Talon said, sitting down next to Mercury on the ottoman that was near the rocking chair. “Here you go, hailee. How about I trade you a baby for a pineapple milkshake?”
“Oh, I think I can do both. I’m going to have to learn to multitask, right?”
“True enough.” He reached over to hand Mercury his shake. “Physically, how are you doing?”
“It doesn’t hurt yet. I know that it’s going to, but right now it’s okay.
Every so often I’ll just feel tight. Rowan said not to worry.
That first babies take a while, and that I should stay close to home, relax as much as I can, walk some, take a bath if it feels good.
He said not to panic, everything was fine.
” Mercury actually smiled at him. “I’m thinking about walking down to see Donnal actually before I have the baby, make sure he’s okay since I won’t be able to see him for a couple of days. Do you think we could do that?”
“I don’t see why not. If Rowan says you should walk, then we’ll walk. First, let’s have the milkshake.”
“Are you scared?” Mercury asked him.
And Talon smiled. “Nervous, very nervous. I hate the idea of you hurting. I’m excited to see the new baby. I can’t believe we haven’t talked about names yet. What do you want to name the baby?”
“Biram. Biram died so that I could live. I would like to have his name live on. I was thinking Biram Triton.”
“I think that’s amazing.” Talon was more than pleased. I think that’s very smart and I like it very much.” He smiled at Mercury. “You look good holding the baby.”
“I’ll look better holding our baby,” Mercury shot back.
“I know you will. Just the thought makes me kind of warm and gooey inside, hailee. But you still look really good holding this one.” He sipped his milkshake to keep himself from saying anything else, because he was gonna break down and start babbling any minute.
Mercury sucked his milkshake down in a heartbeat. His body must have been working really hard for him to need that much energy that fast.
“Kami, come take your baby. I want to go see Dannol,” Mercury called.
He came bustling in to take Miranda from Mercury. “Are you sure you want to walk that far?”
“Rowan told me to walk, so I’m going to walk. If I get where I can’t make it back, my mate can carry me.” How different Mercury was now from when he’d first arrived. He was so much more confident and happier. He smiled all the time. Talon couldn’t have been more pleased.
Mercury got up and moving. Once he got his feet shuffling along, he did pretty damn good.
Talon went with him, while Reno and Kami stayed behind.
He had a feeling they were gonna prepare the bedroom for the birthing, but it didn’t matter.
He would wait with Mercury as long as he wanted to be out of the apartment.
“Whew.” Mercury stopped about halfway down to the med bay, leaning against the wall with one hand and the other hand on his belly. “That was a tough one.”
“That good, huh?” He began surreptitiously timing the contractions. Talon didn’t want Mercury just dropping the baby in the hall.
“That good.” Mercury grinned and straightened up. “Okay, let’s keep a move on. I don’t want to lose any time that I could be doing other things to just standing around.”
“I’m right here with you.” Talon paced Mercury all the way down to the med bay where Dannol lay in a bunk surrounded by pillows, blankets, books, flowers, and balloons.
“Wow, look at all this.” Mercury beamed at Dannol.
The big dragon was still super skinny, but he was starting to look much healthier, and, for the first time, he was in human form as he lay in bed today. He raised an eyebrow at Mercury. “Someone tells me you sent me the balloons.”
“I did. Everybody deserves balloons when they’re recovering from something awful.” Mercury bent over slightly, panting, and on his belly.
Dannol’s gaze sharpened and his nose quivered. “Are you having a baby? Immediately, as in you’re in labor right now?”
“I am. My water broke a little while ago, and the midwife says I needed to get up and walk.” Mercury waved a hand as he straightened back up. “Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine.”
Dannol scowled at him. “You shouldn’t be here. There are sick people here.” That made Talon like the guy more than he had all along. The fact that he would worry for Mercury meant he was a good guy.
“They told me yesterday there’s nothing contagious going on. I wanted to come see you before I’m stuck up there for a while with the baby. I will call you though because I don’t want to miss you.”
Dannol made ack eyes at Mercury. “You can just talk to me in my head.”
“Right. I just wanted to make sure you weren’t going to think that was invasive.”
“Mercury, pay attention.” Talon looked at Dannol, then looked at Mercury, then looked at Dannol. “He’s a human now. Remember when he was just a dragon? That’s why he couldn’t easily come through the halls?”
Mercury blinked. “Oh well, then as soon as you’re able, come up and see me and the baby. I don’t have to miss you now.”
“You didn’t have to miss me before, but I will if I’m welcome.” Donnal looked at Talon, who shrugged.
“Of course you’re welcome. How long do you have to stay down here?”
“I’m waiting for a place.”
Mercury panted softly. “Tell Cain there’s a place on our floor.”
Donnal flushed a bit. “I think that there’s going to be a place for me up near the seers.”
Mercury frowned a little bit, but Talon thought he got it.
Maybe just a touch.
“I think maybe Cain wants to make sure that he’s safe, Mercury.” Yeah that was it. Cain was worried about Dannol’s safety.
“Well, I want him safe and comfortable, too, so I hope you find an apartment soon. I’d say you could totally stay with us, but we’re going to be very busy. Too busy to be able to have a house guest.” Mercury kind of smiled. “In fact we’re having a new permanent house guest.”
Donnal actually chuckled. “I think that that’s amazing. And I think that you shouldn’t be here where all these sick people are. Talon, will you please take him away? Let him go be with you and baby-ing. This whole thing is quite distressing.”
“Not used to having pregnant omegas wandering around your space?” Mercury teased.
“I haven’t seen a baby in a century. So no. No, I don’t think so.” Donnal chuckled and actually stood. He was tall and painfully lean, but obviously healing. He came to Mercury and hugged him. “Thank you for everything. I’m so glad to see you, and I cannot wait to meet your son.”
Mercury grinned, “Me either. I just wish it didn’t have to be so painful along the way. It’s a little scary.”
“You have your braaken. He will protect you and support you through this.”
Mercury looked at him with big eyes, his expression so trusting and sweet that Talon just melted. “Yes, my braaken is the most amazing and wonderful braaken ever. No offense.”
Dannol snorted and smoke came out of his nose. “None taken. I’m a terrible braaken. Or at least so I’m told.”
That had Mercury stiffening, and Talon felt the same steel in his spine. Talon was the one who growled, “By who?”
Dannol laughed and held up his hands. “No need to get all defensive on my behalf, although I appreciate it. Pretty much by my entire keep, although they have been wiped out, and I am still alive.”
Before Talon could process the thought of losing his entire keep to some sort of brutal warlike action, a contraction bent Mercury over at the waist, and Mercury wheezed, cupping his hand under his belly, which felt like it was trying to push out an alien.
“Sorry. Sorry, that one hurt.”
“I think it’s time we got you back up to the apartment, hailee.” He just didn’t want Mercury to have to be walking that far if contractions were getting that close together and that hard.
Mercury straightened up, giving Dannol a wry smile. “I think Talon’s right. I probably should go.”
“Please, go on. I will see you soon.” Dannol bent to kiss Mercury’s cheek, but Talon didn’t even feel the tiniest bit of jealousy over it. This was a dragon desperate to have a friend.
“Soon you can meet our baby. I’ll be excited to see your apartments too.” Mercury gasped and tensed, still trying to smile. “Time for me to go.”
“I pray it goes gentle for you.”
Talon scooped Mercury up and started moving up and out of the med bay.
Rowan came out of a hallway about the time they left, and he gave them a worried smile. “Mercury? What are you doing here?”
“I was visiting Donnal.”
“Oh, that’s lovely.” Rowan motioned with his head. “Well, come into my office, let me check your birth line, and then you can go upstairs.”
“Do you think we need to?” Mercury asked, and Rowan shrugged.
“We might as well. I’ll check you out, then you can go upstairs, take a bath, walk around for a bit, and they’ll call me when everything’s ready for me to come up. But since you’re here, I’m going to take advantage of—”
Mercury cried out, breathing hard.
Rowan frowned a little bit. “That was a good one, wasn’t it?”
They waited the contraction out, and then headed to their little med bay where Rowan had his lovely office. It was a sweet space because Rowan had been here at the keep for the beginning of all of it.
Now, there was a whole little section of healers and doctors, but still there was only one Rowan. One was as many as the keep needed.
They got to Rowan’s office, settling Mercury on the uncomfortable bed. Then Rowan lifted his tunic, eyes going wide.
“Well, let’s just say we’re going to have a change of plans.”