Chapter 11 #2
“No, you won’t. Your mother is sitting on the throne and has every intention of making Aquilia great again. She has named Nixie as her heir.”
I grimace at that. My sister is going to kill me, but my mother is probably the best choice. It was her throne to start with, and she was groomed to rule, much like I had been before I left to join the circus.
“Nikos, how are you feeling?” Dr. Link asks as Lila and I approach him.
“Tired, hungry, sad, and mad,” I tell him, embarrassed as the words tumble out of my mouth.
“Of course you are. You’re pregnant. I remember it well,” Lila coos and rubs a hand over my aching back.
Her willing touch is enough to make the hurt go away.
“I felt all of those and more, and what your dad did to you would have made everything worse. Link’s going to scan you, and then I will heal you and we’ll get you into the Aquilian pool where you can spend some time under the lights on that platform in there. ”
“Will you be with me?” I ask her, hopeful she will join me.
She shakes her head, and my heart sinks.
“Not to start with.” She must see my disappointment because she continues in a hurry.
“But only because the warlock king and queen are here to return my memories so Xavier and I can seal our intimate bond. He has waited long enough, and I wasn’t waiting any longer while your father played his games. ”
My disappointment abates. “Of course, that would be cruel to make him wait longer than he already has,” I agree, and her eyebrows jump in surprise.
I guess she was expecting me to be unreasonable and ridiculous.
It’s the act I have always put on in the past. I use it as a way of weeding out sycophants and people who don’t care about status.
Anyone who was happy to be treated like that was instantly dismissed.
I was a real asshole, but it was fun playing the idiot.
Maybe I can have a little fun with my mate.
“I will need some time to recover my stamina before we can swim the dance of love again,” I tell her, winking suggestively, and a wide grin breaks out on her face.
“Now there’s the Nikos I know and love. You really had me worried when you hadn’t even made a comment about my naked breasts,” she tells me, but I am focused on the word “love.” She loves me.
“When I am back to full health, I will show you exactly just how much I appreciate your naked breasts,” I reassure her and feel my cock stir beneath my scales for the first time since we did our mating swim. I was worried it was broken, but now I know it’s a one woman cock.
“Well, let’s just see exactly what’s wrong with you, and then we can decide on a plan of action to get you back to full health,” Link suggests. “Lila, if you bring him over here and support him by letting him rest against you while I scan him, that would probably work best.”
The doc has to hang onto the side with one hand while he holds out his diagnostic one to sweep over my body.
Lila assists me in helping me lie with my head on her shoulder and body flat for Link to get the best angle on the baby.
He frowns and mutters under his breath, but Lila and I are patient while he finishes his examination.
He curses quietly when he gets to my belly, and both my and Lila’s hearts start to race almost simultaneously.
Lila rubs a hand along my spine, stroking back and forth reassuringly, and I want to melt into her, but I keep my body where it needs to be.
He finally pulls his hand away, frowning.
“Well, you are malnourished mostly because the baby has been stealing all of your nutrients to sustain its life. If you hadn’t been so healthy, I’m not sure either of you would have made it.
While Lila can heal your aches and pains, she can’t actually fix that.
Only a few good meals will be able to counteract the neglect, but it doesn’t look like it’s done any damage to your baby.
It’s just a little smaller than I hoped considering where you are in your pregnancy. ”
“Smaller?” Lila sounds surprised. “But look at his belly.” She reaches around and runs a gentle hand over it, and I feel my cock twitch again.
“Yeah, there’s a reason for that. It also explains why Nikos is so unwell,” Link says slowly, and he looks at Lila like she may freak out from what he’s about to tell her.
“And that is?” she asks as I realize what he’s about to share with her.
“Nikos is carrying twins. Do you want to know what you are having?” he asks, and I hear Lila gasp behind me.
I struggle to sit up, and she lets me, but she doesn’t let go of my body, which is a relief because hearing we’re having twins probably is a bit of a shock for her.
She probably doesn’t even realize Nixie and I are a set ourselves.
“Seriously? What is with you guys and multiples?” she grumbles. “How can we go from no children to seven in a matter of months?”
“Seven?” I ask, trying to do the math. Lila sighs and spins me around so I can face her, her tail beating fiercely to keep us both afloat.
“Yes, I mated with Maxsim and Echo. My whisperer abilities allow me to be both alpha and omega, so I am compatible with both of them. Like you, Echo penis-napped an egg or two while he was lodged deep inside. He is pregnant with two. Add in Cas’s three and yours, and that brings our child total to seven.
We are definitely going to need a nanny.
” She turns to Link and pouts. “But I really don’t want to share their love with a stranger. ”
He smiles sympathetically at her as I allow the information she just shared to run through my mind. I don’t feel anything but joy. My babies are going to grow up with a big, wonderful, loving family, unlike my childhood which was uncomfortable at best.
“No, don’t tell me, I want it to be a surprise. Will they be born in mer form if Nikos gives birth in the water?” She looks between me and Link, but he allows me to answer.
“Yes. We give birth in the water. I can give birth in the Aquilian pool.”
“You can, but we also have a pool in our quarters now, so that’s an option too. Now that the others have shifted, they don’t need the water pods to sleep in, so they are available for your babies.”
I just stare at her, my mouth and eyes wide with surprise. She looks confused.
“What’s wrong?” she asks, and Link chuckles.
“I think Nikos is surprised that you are inviting him to live in your quarters.” Link starts to climb out of the pod, using the ladder on the side.
“Oh, well, he’s my mate, so I want him to live with me, but if you don’t feel comfortable with that, it’s fine,” she says, biting her lip with her blunt teeth.
“I would be honored to live with you, but it would probably be best if the children and I stayed in the Aquilian pool until they shift for the first time,” I reply, thrilled and disappointed at the same time.
“When will that be?” she asks, and I have to think about my baby knowledge.
“When they are about six weeks old.”
“And how old will they be when they shift?” she asks worriedly, and I frown.
“Six weeks old. Why?”
“Because the kraken babies are already presenting as the age of Earth toddlers,” Link explains from the other side of the pod, a towel in hand as he rubs his silver hair before drying off the rest of his body. “Lila was a little surprised.”
“Oh, I understand. Our babies will be something similar,” I tell her, and Link looks fascinated.
“I wonder if it’s a survival thing. There are many more dangers for shifter and Aquilian children, so evolution has helped out by maturing them quicker.”
“Sounds reasonable to assume,” Lila says before she turns back to look at me.
“I have to go, but Link is going to wheel your pod to your living quarters and make sure you are properly fed and stay with you to monitor your progress while I complete my bond with Xavier,” she explains, and I nod, not wanting to ask about our bond, but I must not do a good job of hiding my yearning.
“We need a little more time, but I want this, I promise. I’ll swim with you before I have to leave to rescue my grandma. I promise I’ll tell you everything when I do, okay?” she says.
“Of course, my little sea squirt. I look forward to seeing you again. Maybe you can enjoy the sun in your beautiful form with me. You will look gorgeous in that bright light,” I tell her, taking in her new shiny colors.
She smiles. “I’d like that, and I can change into my Celestian form and see if I can do anything to heal you as well.
” She flicks her tail and swims closer, wrapping her arms around me, and I shudder from feeling her tail flick against mine.
“I would like to swim with you again too, if that’s possible,” she whispers in my ear, her hands caressing my back.
“I find the sight of you pregnant with my child quite erotic, and I would like to feel your cock in my slit again.”
Holy coral crusts! Lila is flirting with me.
My life is complete. I return her hug, my large belly making it a little tricky, but my cock writhes beneath my tail, trying to push out.
I will it to behave. “I’d like that,” I tell her honestly, and she pulls back, but not before brushing a kiss across my lips.
“I’ll see you soon,” she promises before releasing me, and her body shimmers, changing into human form before she climbs out of the pod.
I sink down to the bottom, the smile on my face as big as it has ever been as I watch Link wrap a towel around our beautiful mate.
Now I just need to get my strength back so that when we do swim, I can keep up with her.