Chapter 17
ZACK
“Any movement?”
Ford shook his head. “But I need to pee.”
We’d perfected the routine when my mate had to use the bathroom. I got into the nest, making sure I had contact with the three eggs. Ford would leave the bathroom door open while I narrated what was happening, which until now, was a big nothing.
“And they’re on the final straightaway with Egg 1 nudging ahead. Number 1 hasn’t changed their position in weeks and doesn’t seem inclined to reach the finish line.”
Ford giggled as he washed his hands.
“Egg 2 looks comfortable, but we’re certain once they start moving, they could overtake Number 1. And as for Egg 3, they seem settled in the blanket folds and have no intention of catching up to their siblings.”
“I’m back, babies.” My mate clambered into the nest and snuggled with the eggs. He outstretched one hand, and I clasped it. We sat in silence, something we’d enjoy little of once the eggs hatched.
“Who’s that?” My mate’s shifter hearing was better than mine, and he’d picked up a vehicle on the road. “If it’s some guy who’s signed a lease on this place, please turf him out.” He grinned.
“Maybe I should have done that with the first omega to feed me that line.”
My mate rolled his eyes and blew me a kiss.
Before getting up, I waited until the car slowed and bumped along our driveway. Peering through the window, I recognized Asher’s truck.
“It’s Alpha and Weston.”
“Okay.”
My mate was fine with visitors because sitting and willing eggs to hatch was a slow business. We wanted to meet our babies but didn’t want to hurry them.
“Hello.” Alpha clasped my hand. He held up a bag. “We come bearing gifts and plenty of ready-to-heat dinners.”
Soreena asked if we had eggs and were we going to eat them.
“These are special eggs.”
Her eyes grew wide, and she grabbed Weston’s leg. “Why?”
“Because they have babies inside them.”
I didn’t have to insist that they pick up their daughter so she didn’t wander close to the nest. She put up her hands to Weston, and he picked her up. Alpha and his mate tiptoed into the second bedroom.
“They’re bigger than I imagined,” Asher noted as he followed me into the kitchen, and I placed the meals in the freezer with one in the fridge for later.
This was my first time seeing dragon eggs, and I admired my mate even more because he’d carried and pushed them out.
“They are pretty.” Soreena pointed at the iridescent purple one.
We had one purple and one yellow egg, just like their papa whose scales were the same color. The third egg was a green that matched Ford’s beast’s eyes.
“Can they play with me?” Soreena was trying to get down, but Weston told her the eggs were precious and needed quiet time. She pouted and her eyes teared up, and Ford offered to let her touch one egg.
“Very gently.”
Weston got on his knees at the edge of the nest and leaned forward. I held my breath because little ones could be unpredictable, but she stroked the yellow egg, and her dad pulled back.
“Thank you.” She hugged Ford.
There was a slight movement from Egg 1, and I held my breath. Was this it? Were we finally going to meet our babies? Seconds turned to minutes, and when nothing else happened, Alpha and family left, and I heated up one of the meals. I was enjoying not having to cook or shop for ingredients.
“We have another visitor, and I know whose car that is. Mr. Sampson.”
Mr. Sampson was back working full-time in the store during Ford’s paternity leave. I greeted him on the porch and took the huge bunch of flowers he’d brought and helped carry in a rocking chair Ford had ordered.
He was worried he might break the eggs if he walked close to the nest, but my mate assured him the shells could withstand that. He tiptoed around the nest, telling us how beautiful our eggs were. Egg 2 rolled to one side, and the older man slapped a hand over his mouth.
“Did I do that?”
“It’s okay. It’s getting close to hatching time,” Ford told him.
I put the flowers in a vase after Mr. Sampson had departed.
“Do you want to take bets on who comes next?” I wandered to the front door, expecting another car.
“Maybe more visitors would help Egg 3 get a move on.”
“Good idea.” I should call someone.
“Zack.” The urgency in Ford’s voice had me running into the bedroom.
“Oh my gods.” Egg 3 had a crack in it. “Go Egg 3. You’ve been fooling us thinking you were going to be last.
But the egg must have decided one crack was enough and nothing else happened. Eggs had their own schedule and nothing could hurry them.
The rest of the afternoon saw more visitors arrive with food and gifts for the babies. Athena and her grandsons came with firewood that the boys had chopped, and I gave them a high five.
Chuck and Veronica, the brother and sister I’d counseled, brought three baby blankets they’d crocheted, and Theo arrived with coffee which I needed because sleeping in the nest with three babies wasn’t productive to a good sleep.
When dusk arrived, I put up a sign saying, “We’re nesting,” and locked the front door.
If anyone else comes, I’ll tell them you’ve gone hunting. My bear was proud of that excuse, and I couldn’t be bothered pointing out the obvious flaw in his plan.
I’d consumed too much of Theo’s coffee, and after Ford fell asleep, I stayed awake talking to each of the eggs in turn.
“Egg 3 turned out to be a sleeper agent but surprised us by cracking first. What say you, Egg 2 and 1?” They didn’t reply, and there were no more cracks. I closed my eyes but sleep remained elusive.
Around three in the morning as I was reading a novel, a crackle alerted me something was happening. Was it Egg 3? Or had their siblings decided they were going to win the hatching race.
Egg 2 had rolled over, and there was a tiny hole in the end. I shoved a fist in my mouth and stifled a scream.
“Ford, the babies.”
My mate mustn’t have been in a deep sleep, as his eyes opened and he sat up.
“Oh, look at Egg 2. Maybe they thought Eggs 1 and 3 were getting too much attention.”
I put my arm around my mate as we watched Egg 2. Nothing happened for an hour. It must have been tiring trying to break out of a hard shell. Ford had no memories of hatching, not that I expected him to.
My mate flapped his hand at Egg 1. The shell had that crackling effect and each piece looked so fragile, as if they were being held together with gossamer thread.
But the other eggs weren’t to be outdone by their sibling.
A tiny claw poked through the hole in Egg 2’s shell and Egg 3 swayed. Each roll cracked the shell more.
“And we’re off to the races.” I glanced from 1 to 2 and to 3 as bits of shells littered the nest.
Egg 2’s shell collapsed, and Ford and I gasped as a tiny purple dragon lay in the remains. They looked at us with their green eyes that mimicked Ford’s and kicked their legs before transforming into their human baby self.
“A little boy.” I wrapped him in a blanket Veronica and Chuck had given us and kissed his brow before giving him to Ford.
Egg 3 kicked what remained of their shell and got on all fours. He frowned at us as bits of yellow shell stuck to his scales. But he plopped onto the blanket and his scales vanished. The baby cried, and I scooped him up and held him close.
“And another boy.”
Were we going to have triplet sons? Just as well we didn’t live in an apartment in the city. I was thankful we had lots of space for them to run around in.
“Egg 1, you can do it.”
The remaining egg’s arrival was laidback. The baby dragon poked their head out of the shell. Even in the dark, their green scales shimmered. They stood still, eyeing us holding their siblings. Their scales disappeared, and they got on their tummy and wailed.
‘Oh, no, little girl. The big wide world isn’t that bad. Come here and meet your dads and brothers.”
Ford and I sat in the middle of the nest, hugging and examining our babies. They all had Ford’s green eyes, and they matched with him, as they all had a small scale that remained on their arm which I’d noticed the day my mate arrived on my doorstep.
As dawn broke, Ford held all three who were fast asleep, and I dismantled the nest and rolled in the three cribs. After being cleaned, diapered, and dressed in onesies, I placed the babies in their cribs. My mate sat in the rocking chair, and I got in the armchair.
“We should probably sleep.” Ford yawned.
“Yeah.” But even though I was exhausted, I couldn’t close my eyes. We had three babies. Who needed shuteye when they’d just become a new dad?
You’ll regret it, my polar bear told me.
Oh yeah, are you going to sleep?
No way. I have to protect the babies.