Page 43 of Gift from the Stone

“Is there some type of way I’m supposed to carry myself now? And how did your mom feel about the news?” Gaster, the traitor, laughs at the blank expression on my face.

“No, act exactly as you always do,” I answer, ignoring her second question completely.

Gasping, putting her hand on her chest, Willow completely turns around in my lap and gives me a death stare. “Oh my gosh, you haven’t told her. Why don’t you want her to know? She even asked you if you had a special lady in your life.”

“Because once she knows, she’s going to have to send out a royal release and announce it to the realm. Since true Primaries are rare, when the ruling family finds one in their line, it has to be announced. It gives the people some sort of unrealistic hope. Then the hounding of when we’re going to complete the bond will begin, then she’ll want a ceremony. It’ll be a nightmare, and we should buy some time before that happens.” Caspian thankfully jumps in to save my ass.

Although he makes it sound ten times worse than it truly is. She wouldn’t hound us, per se, more so ask, constantly, what we are waiting for.

“Aww, that’s sweet. She’ll be happy, but yeah, I don’t want the whole realm knowing just yet, nor do I want any pressure to complete the bonds before we’re ready.”

Oh, we’re ready, baby. I think about it all day every day.

“Then it’s okay with you to wait to tell her? As soon as I do, we’ll have to plan a trip there or she’ll be popping up at the academy,” I say.

“Yes, I’m okay with waiting. But I don’t want her to hear it from somewhere else. I feel like that’s not a good way to start my relationship with her, so maybe when the time comes, sooner rather than later, we’ll just be honest with her and tell her it’s not a good idea for the whole realm to know yet.”

“Aurora is very understanding, Willow. You have nothing to worry about. She’ll be head over heels for you the moment she lays eyes on you. Both she and Tilly wanted girls so bad to doll up and pamper but were blessed with these heathen boys, which they still ended up spoiling rotten. She’ll love you.” Gaster laughs and carries on picking, but he’s telling the truth.

“I don’t know if this is rude to ask or not, so I’ll just ask, then you can correct me, but is your mom a true Primary?” Willow asks.

My chest rumbles with silent laughter. Her curiosity is uncontrollable, and she can’t help the questions that pique her interest. But no one corrects her, ever. She can ask whatever she wants, and we’ll answer. I never want that wonder and curious light to dim in her.

“Yes, my mom is a true Primary to my four dads. Roye, Dyce, Neil, and Theo Vito,” I tell her.

“Oh, I’ll never forget the day they all met. When it came to light that Orien wouldn’t have a Nexus and Aurora was named next in line, Drudy, the boy’s grandmother, really upped the strictness of Aurora’s life. She honestly barely had a life. It was by sheer Elementra interference that Aurora met her Nexus. Drudy was having Nexus interviews set up to pair Aurora with a strong group. When she surprised her with one, no warning, nothing, Aurora ran out of the palace, Tilly right on her heels. Those two were inseparable, close enough in age to be mistaken as twins.

“Aurora was distracted, yelling over her shoulder for Tilly to hurry it up. She didn’t see anyone at the end of the palace drive and smacked right into Roye. I remember Dyce, Neil, and Theo chuckling at the madder than hornets look on Roye’s face. The awakening happened as soon as he gripped her around her elbow and picked her up,” Gaster recounts the story, making all of us smile.

We’ve heard the love story countless times, but it never gets old. It was by sheer fate that my mom’s defiance led her right into the arms of her Nexus and they’re still grossly in love till this day.

I want that.

“Probably another incredibly personal question but…growing up with four dads, how did you two address them? And which one or two, I guess, is your biological dad?” she asks shyly, her face blooming a bright red.

Her question takes us all by surprise and I stare at Caspian, giving him the opportunity to answer. He just smirks back, basically telling me I’ll be the one to do it. I would’ve assumed she would’ve read this on her own about true Primaries and true Nexuses, but I guess not.

“Well, about our dads, we just called them well…dad. Dad, Dah, Pa, Papa, whatever came out, they answered. It’s normal for everyone here to have a group of dads, so it wasn’t something anyone had to discuss with us or talk to us about. If I were to be talking about one of them specifically in a group like right now, I’d say their name so you or anyone else wouldn’t get confused. What makes you ask about which one is biological or not?” I ask, wondering where this is coming from.

“When I stayed with Oakly, she made the comment that her parents decided which man in the Nexus was the strongest, and that is her biological dad. But she said that’s not how true Nexuses work. I was a little drunk and emotional at the moment, so I didn’t ask any questions. I guess talking about your parents and how there ended up being two of you, which is rare, I guess made the question come to mind.”

“Well, really, child, Drudy was the first phenomenon. She had three children, the first and only to date ever in Elementra, and all after the age of seven hundred. We were starting to think the Vito line would die with her.” Gaster chimes in, chuckling at Willow’s audible gasp.

“I’m sorry, come again. Seven hundred and having her first baby?” she asks, dumbfounded.

“Women of Elementra typically don’t have their child until somewhere between the two-hundred-to-three-hundred-year mark, princess, so she was late by our standards as well,” I tell her, hiding my own laugh at the comical look on her face.

“Um, really late. If we were in the nonmagical realm, we’d be gearing up to start a family now. Most women have babies somewhere between mid-twenties to mid-thirties, some earlier, some later,” she exclaims.

I can’t help it as my mind instantly goes to picturing Willow round and pregnant with our child. Fuck. It’ll be at least two hundred years from now, but damn, that thought turns me on. Judging by the others’ hungry gazes, they’re thinking the same.

I look at Tillman at the sound of his grunt, knowing he’s definitely picking up all of our thoughts on that.

I can’t lie and say I haven’t been jealous of him sleeping in her bed. Since the night of his nightmare, he’s stayed in there with her. The only exception was when we got home the night before she shifted and heard what was going on behind her door. We left her and Draken to have their moment, but it took everything in us to walk away, not stand there and listen.

Sleeping in her bed beside her the past two nights, even getting up every few hours to check on her, was better sleep for me than I ever get. At best, I’m lucky to close my eyes and rest a couple of hours a night. Lying beside her, cuddling her in my arms, I felt like I could sleep the days away, but I don’t want to push her or make her uncomfortable, so I haven’t asked to join.

Clearing my throat and adjusting Willow in my lap, I force my mind back to the topic at hand and think about how I’m going to explain this next part to her, when truly I don’t even understand it.

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