Page 14 of Interlude

“Good, now can I get you anything else?” he asks, and I swallow before shaking my head.

“No, thank you, this is perfect and just what I needed. How did you know?”

He winks before stating, “Because I’m attuned to everything about you. It is my greatest joy to be able to provide for my intimate.”

My heart melts, and I fall even more in love with him. How did I get so lucky? Despite everything being out of my control, the universe has picked perfectly for me so far. Each and every one of my mates is wonderful, even my silly can of tuna. I can’t wait to get to know him better, and I’m excited for the impending arrival of our babies, even if I worry I can’t give them the attention they need. Xavier was also right, though, when he said they have seven daddies to pick up the slack, not to mention three devoted great-grandpas. I’m excited to see what their great-grandma is like. Hopefully she isn’t too traumatized by her time in captivity, and if she is, I’ll have a discussion with Xavier about having those memories removed and give her the option.

Xavier waves goodbye and leaves me on my own, retreating to the bedrooms. I wonder if he’ll join the other two in my bed or if he will escape to his own private space. I know he can sense that I need some alone time, even if it’s while I finish this meal to decompress and get myself ready for tomorrow. Thankfully, this doesn’t upset or annoy him like it has a few of the previous men I’ve dated in the past. Fucking Earth men are so needy and insecure, or at least all the ones I dated were.

Lila

Ifinish up my dinner and get a big piece of pecan pie with whipped cream to round it off, as well as coffee after I finish my Relaxious. I haven’t been missing coffee, but I had a sudden craving for it. I think it’s probably a comfort thing. I would go to a late night diner not far from my bar job and have this exact thing quite often after work. Maybe I’m just craving a reminder of when life was a lot simpler—boring but simpler.

Once I’m done, I slide all the dishes into the dishwasher and turn it on. We’re practically using it daily, sometimes twice a day, with how many people are in our family. Maybe I should have had them put in two. Turning off the overhead light, I retreat to the bedroom area. I’m still only wrapped in my robe, and my feet are bare, but I’m going into the cats’ domain. They still have a den-like bedroom, and although this one doesn’t have snow-covered tundra to cross, it will be considerably colder, and I’m not exactly dressed for it.

I could shift, but I’m reluctant to because I want to save all the power I just absorbed until I need it. I don’t know how long I’m going to have to hold my earth elemental form for, and there won’t be time or an opportunity for a quickie. I consider returning to my room to grab some shoes, but I’m exhausted, so I decide that I’m just going to be quick. Once I get to the nest, Echo’s and Maxsim’s body heat will be enough for me. I get to their door and press my hand against the sensor. It slides open, and a rush of cold air hits me, causing goosebumps to erupt all over my skin.

“Shit, it’s cold,” I mutter, regretting my laziness. The lights are dimmed, but I know their nest is on the far side of the room, with a small living area in front of it so they can hang out in the subarctic temperatures when they need to. I step in, and the door closes behind me, my teeth start chattering as I navigate the room. I bash my hip against something and grumble, rubbing the spot.

“Lila.” Maxsim suddenly appears in front of me, and I squeal in fright.

“Fuck, you move so stealthily,” I tell him to make up for my moment of shock. He smiles, but I can see concern in his eyes when he looks down at where I’m rubbing my hip.

“Did you get hurt? Why didn’t you turn the light on?” he asks as he leads me through the rest of the furniture to the sunken nest bed. The light is even dimmer back here, but my eyes suddenly adjust, and I can see Echo curled up amongst all the soft furnishings.

“I’m okay, but I think my eyes just shifted,” I say and glance around. Sure enough, I can see everything clearly now, but as my body shakes with a shiver, I realize that it was just my eyes.

Maxsim swoops me into his arms and jumps down into the nest. His fur already chases away some of the chill, but once he lowers me down and Echo snuggles in, being cold is a thing of the past.

Echo nuzzles my cheek as Maxsim snuggles into my back. “Hello, pretty mate. You smell like you’ve been well taken care of.” Echo’s eyes sparkle with interest as he takes a deep breath in through his nose. “Very well taken care of.” His tongue flicks out and swipes up my neck, and I wrinkle my nose.

Maxsim reaches for the belt of my robe and strips it off, leaving me completely naked. The two of them crowd closer until I’m completely surrounded by their bodies, and then Echo reaches for the blankets and pulls them up. Before long, I’m toasty warm, and I jolt in surprise when I realize I’m purring with pleasure despite not having shifted.

“Why aren’t you changing?” Maxsim grumbles in my ear.

“I need to conserve my power for our trip tomorrow. I will only have Xavier if I need to refuel,” I remind him.

His arm tightens around my waist. “I don’t like it,” he murmurs, and I smile at his concern.

“I know. It isn’t ideal, but I’m hoping it won’t take too long.”

“Make sure you use the dragon if you need him. It’s about time he pulled his head out of his ass and properly joined this family,” Maxsim replies, and Echo’s eyebrows jump in surprise.

“Really?” I can hear the disbelief in his voice, and I share it. Maxsim is usually pretty damn possessive, so I would have thought the alpha in him would have balked at the alpha vibes Tirrian puts out.

He sighs heavily. “I am aware that this family is going to continue to grow due to Lila’s mimic nature. How can I be angry at something she can’t control? That would be supremely unfair. Does this mean I will sometimes need you all to ourselves? Yes, but I can see the benefit in having all these powerful men to protect my omegas and our young.”

“That’s very mature of you.” Echo leans over me and gives his alpha a quick kiss. “I’m proud of you,” he says, and I watch as they nuzzle each other’s noses, and I smile. Echo nuzzles mine next before he pulls back, and I give him a kiss. Now that I’m warm and surrounded by them, I feel my eyes grow heavy. “Sleep, our pretty mate. You need your rest so you can rescue the Adams brothers’ wife tomorrow. Don’t worry about anything here on the ship. We will take care of the babies.”

I reach out and press a hand against his stomach. There is a tiny pooch developing there. “How are you feeling?” I ask him, and he smiles.

“Really good.”

“I went and saw Nikos earlier,” I tell him, and he nods.

“Yes, I can smell him on you.”

“Can you maybe get together with him and ask him what kind of things we are going to need for his babies? I know he births them in the water, but I’m not sure how long they stay there, or when they are going to shift, and how old they are when they are born. All of the really important stuff. Also, order it all so that when it’s time for them to leave the water, they’ll have a place here in our home.”

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