Lielit
The nurse couldn’t look me in the eye as she moved around me.
The doctor wasn’t any better. Blaidd stood in the far corner of the room, watching like a creep.
After giving them a urine sample, they drew some blood and checked my blood pressure.
Surprisingly, it was normal—considering I wanted to stab Blaidd.
Is there any way I can stab his dick off without hurting Fenrir? I raged at Bouda.
Hmm. Probably not.
I lay back on the crisp paper.
Pity.
But should I really have been surprised that he controlled people like a puppet master? That was his whole MO.
I sagged onto the bed.
I just wanted to see my family.
They applied a thick gel, and I focused on the screen, squinting—it was so small. Probably a portable ultrasound device.
“Move that closer to her,” Blaidd snapped.
I ignored him.
His confirmation that morning about Fenrir had rocked me to my core. How had Fenrir ended up bound to him? And why now, after centuries? I might not have believed it if I hadn’t seen Fenrir’s gigantic form with my own eyes.
Ugh. Why did he have to be attached to him?
I stared at Blaidd, hoping he could feel my disgust seeping out of me.
The rapid flutter of a heartbeat filled the room. It reminded me of hummingbird wings. I calculated quickly—I was almost eleven weeks pregnant. Excitement surged as I stared at the screen.
I ignored his scent as he moved closer.
“Oh, that’s wonderful,” the nurse said, shifting the wand. “You’re having twins.”
Wonderful, she said. Twins? I need to push two babies out of my vagina?
Twins, Bouda sighed.
Don’t you start as well, I snapped.
Something brushed my hand. I tore my eyes away from the screen.
God. He was trying to hold my hand.
I yanked my hand back and swung for his face—but the bastard was too fast. He lunged backwards, just out of reach.
“Doctor, can you give me some advice on how to survive hormonal changes?” he asked, smoothing his tie down his pristine white shirt.
“Uh… hmm.” The man was visibly nervous.
My preference would’ve been a female doctor, but the reality was that Blaidd would’ve just forced some poor woman to do his bidding.
I took a deep breath and turned back to the screen, staring at the two tiny sacs.
“I want lots of pictures,” I told the nurse. “Lots.”
She nodded and carefully moved the wand through the gel, pointing out the innocent new lives growing inside me.
Bouda stayed silent, but together we choked up as we watched and listened.
Thank God I had her—her unconditional support.
When I did a side-eye, Blaidd stood in the shadows, his gaze fixed on the screen.
?
?
?
I escaped as soon as all the monitoring was completed.
It was a relief to know they were healthy—and that my body was coping well with the strain of pregnancy.
The bloodwork would reveal more, but the doctor assured me it would be processed as a priority.
I suppose everyone tripped over themselves to please Prothero.
Not you, Bouda snickered.
Yeah, not me, I smiled as I reached the last step.
Boxes, bags, and sealed plastic parcels were piled beside my door.
I sifted through them, opening a few to find a variety of clothing, swimwear, books, and toiletries.
I hadn’t asked for any of it. As much as I wanted to throw it all back in his face, the feel of soft fabric and the range of colours drew me in.
I was sick of wearing men’s clothing.
There was an entire box of new books—gardening, pregnancy, baby care, history, baby animals, Norse mythology. Inside one of the boxes, I found a bag filled with multiple packets of seeds.
My grandmother had taught me how to weed, germinate, and grow. How to return organic waste to feed the earth. Or, as it was called now—compost.
Would she even get a chance to meet my children?
I dropped the bag back into the box and went to my room, clutching the pregnancy book to my chest.
What would someone like him even know about family?
?
?
?
The morning sun shone through a crack in the curtain, and I stretched, stroking my belly. The way they’d suddenly popped out made sense now, and the steady growth since then was normal.
“Good morning,” I whispered to them.
Bouda lifted her head, and a soft purr began in my chest. It was the first time she’d made that sound, and I found it unexpectedly soothing.
We lay there in peace.
A family of four—perhaps five, if Fenrir could bitch-slap some humanity into his human.
I have a feeling he tries, Bouda said without missing a beat in her purring.
Possibly, but I won’t hold my breath.
He’d had stamina during the rut because I’d felt completely out of control during that period. The heat was brutal. I resented his scent because, willing or not, I gravitated toward it.
That’s due to the bite. We choose who we mate with—not the other way around, Bouda said.
“I don’t like it,” I whispered.
It didn’t soften me toward him, but it did make me crave sex from time to time. According to the book I was reading, it would only grow worse during the second trimester.
It would be better if he fucked off from the island—but then I thought about how fixated he’d been on the twins yesterday.
That wasn’t going to happen anytime soon.
?
?
?
After changing into a pair of denims and a light, knitted cream top, I went downstairs and heard him in the kitchen. I couldn’t face him this morning, so I opened the front door and escaped.
Despite myself, I began noticing good spots to grow various plants and herbs in the extensive garden—patches with more sun, others tucked into shade.
“Breakfast is ready.”
I almost jumped, but instead I walked off without looking at him.
Perhaps if he followed me to the cliff’s edge, I could shove him off.
Then I remembered Fenrir.
Damn it.