Chapter 20
TYREL
Adrian continued to feel sick every morning until the second month of his pregnancy was over.
I'd told him he would show by this time, but the baby bump was more pronounced than I'd thought it was going to be.
Not that I was complaining. I loved seeing him this way, seeing him carry my child.
But I hated how exhausted he looked. Yes, a dragon pregnancy was supposed to be hard on the human body, but was it really supposed to wipe my mate out like that?
He looked like he hardly ever got enough sleep, and he already spent most of his day in bed.
I didn't know how to make him feel better.
Normally, I would have gone to my mother with issues like this, but that was hardly a possibility now with the way she had behaved during our last conversation.
"You don't understand, Tyrel. You have no way to control that human."
"I don't want to control him, Mother."
"He's going to make you do things that aren't good for you, son. I don't want to see you throw your life away over a mere human." She'd dabbed at her eyes during that last part.
I still wasn't sure what she'd meant.
I also still hadn't found a good home for myself and my mate. I was lucky I was rich or the hotel bills would have wrecked me.
It was only worry about the future that wrecked me now.
Adrian was sweet about it. Tired as he was, whenever he noticed me get distracted with negative thoughts, he tried to cheer me up.
"Have you thought about names yet?" he asked me one night, sitting cross legged on our bed while I was staring out the window, contemplating our situation.
"I admit, I haven't given it much thought." At this point, I only wanted the baby to be born happy and healthy and far away from my mother.
"Really? I have a list."
"You may pick a name then."
He pouted. "No. You need to like it, too."
"Alright. I suppose you have a point. What's on your list?"
"I'm not telling you until you've made a suggestion of your own." He grinned at me as I frowned. "Only one," he added. "C'mon."
"If I must." I sighed for effect, even though he wasn't bothering me that much. I liked to think about him and our child, though I truly hadn't thought of a name yet. I'd always figured he would have one, and that it would be perfect.
"So, what's it going to be?"
I closed my eyes for a moment, going through a list of names in my head. "Do you think it's a boy or a girl?"
"I'm not sure, but let's say it's a boy."
"Fine." I liked the idea of a little boy with his features. "In that case, I think Taryn is a good name."
He tilted his head. "Why that one?"
"You wanted a name, not a reason."
"It's a good name."
"We have a custom of naming your first born son after your father, but I will never name any child of mine after that coward, so a grandfather's name it is."
Adrian gave me a soft smile. "I like that."
He stood from the bed and wobbled a little on his feet. I was at his side to steady him in an instant.
"Maybe you should sit back down."
He did, slowly. "Just got dizzy. I know you said this was going to be tough, but is this really normal?"
I took a deep breath, and admitted the truth.
"To be honest, I'm a little concerned." That was an understatement.
I wanted to strap him to a bed and feed him through a straw just to make sure he was going to be fine.
I'd never thought I needed a mate, but now that I had Adrian, I couldn't stand the thought of anything happening to him.
He was my perfect companion. The human I hadn't thought existed.
Funny how I'd wanted to see if he could resist me, and now it was I who couldn't resist him.
"Are you worried?" Adrian asked.
"I don't know how well versed human doctors are in these issues, but I'm going to make an appointment for you."
"Okay." He snuggled up to me as if I was a giant plush doll. I let him. "Do you think they'll be able to tell the gender?"
"Maybe. There's a possibility" But I wasn't concerned with our child's gender now. Only with my mate's well-being.