Page 33 of Soren

Soren knocks on the door, knocking me out of my thoughts. "Lara? You okay in there? I brought the water and crackers. Can you get up? Do I need to come in?"

"No!" I say a little too quickly. "I'm fine, I'll...I'll be right out!"

After a few seconds to compose myself, I gather the stick and the paperwork and push open the door. Soren's already standing there with a worried look on his face. "Darling, are you..."

I cut him off and throw myself into his embrace. The warmth of his touch and the quickness of his heart give me the courage for what I do next. I pull away, smile as big as I can, and push the stick into his hand. "Look."

He turns over the stick, laughably small in his huge hands. "This is one of your...human supplies?" He cocks an eyebrow, shaking it next to his ear like it's supposed to make a noise. "What is it?"

I choke out a laugh at his reaction. He might be a fearsome warlord on his planet, but right now, he's my adorably clueless mate. "It's a pregnancy test, Soren. See there?" I take the test from him and point at the window. "That means I'm pregnant. I'm carrying your baby."

The words slowly register in his head, and when they do he knocks the test out of my hand and pulls me into a fierce embrace. "We did it?" He says incredulously. "We made a baby?"

I pull away just enough to look him in the eyes. His golden lips fall open, his ever-serious eyes laced with tears. I cup his cheek and he covers my hand with his own, pressing a kiss to the back of my wrist. "We did it, Soren. Together." Hope and excitement and love, love, love pours out of me and fills the room. "You're going to be a father."

He lets out a loud, hearty laugh before peppering me with kisses all over my face, neck and shoulders. "This is amazing!" He touches and caresses anywhere he can reach but lingers on my belly. "You're amazing, Lara."

"Hey," I say with a wink. "Couldn't have done it without you."

Pressed up against him like this, I can feel his cock throb at my words. To think that I can carry a child for a man like him...it still seems like a dream. These last few weeks have been nothing but sheer delight, and now that I'm with child, I'm sure he'll only get more doting and protective.

Which, to my secret shame, I find kinda hot.

Still glowing from the praise, I point to the paperwork discarded on the floor next to the test. "They said we need to call them as soon as we know, so they can get everything checked out --"

"Well then what are we waiting for?" Soren scoops me up in his arms like he did that first day, heading for the door. "Let's go right now."

"Now?" I'm still in my pajamas, but he kisses me and tells me I look beautiful anyway. All I can do is laugh, because he's not taking no for an answer. Instead I curl into his protective embrace and daydream about the future.

A future with Soren. Myself. And our child.

COMMS PANEL

LARA

TWO MONTHS LATER

"I'm not crippled. Just pregnant!"

Ever since I threw up that first night, Soren's protective instincts are on overdrive. Not that they weren't before, but the addition of a new life on the way has turned him into a possessive father-to-be.

It's a bit stifling in some ways to have him fussing over me, but I would be lying if I said I didn't kinda like it. For nineteen years I put others first and remained in the background. After my parents died, I spent so much time trying to figure out how to get Janie and Iris what they needed. Now, having Soren treat me like the only woman on the planet is a nice change of pace.

Two months pass in a blur of doctor's appointments, cravings, and morning sickness. Thankfully that part seems to be dying down. I realized why Soren was so upset about it the first time -- his race doesn't get morning sickness. Their constitution is also a lot stronger than ours, so if one of them started puking, it was very severe indeed.

No wonder he panicked.

As our baby develops, I can tell that Soren's getting more and more excited. So am I, to be honest. He's always gone out of his way to make me feel comfortable and safe, and he's gone above and beyond even that these days. I don't want for anything, I get to eat whatever I want, the lands surrounding our cottage are filled with natural beauty, and Soren brings me to climax after climax in bed. This is practically paradise...

But today, when Soren presents me with my first pair of maternity clothes, I feel a pang of guilt. And not only that. Of homesickness.

Blame it on the hormones, but when Soren gifts me the clothes and I end up bursting into ugly tears in the bedroom, he takes it personally. "Darling, why are you crying? Are the clothes not to your liking? I can have them exchanged--"

"No," I sniff. "They're beautiful. It's just." I hug my knees to my chest and let out a sigh. "I miss my sister. She never had an opportunity like this. She got pregnant as a teen and then my parents died and we barely had enough to keep our heads above water. Then the food shortage hit, and..." I can't bring myself to finish the sentence.

Soren doesn't say anything at first. He watches me with careful, intent eyes, then joins me on the bed. Strong, warm arms wrap me in his soothing embrace. It doesn't solve everything, but his presence makes me feel a little lighter. I bury my face into his shirt. It's one of his nicer uniforms and here I am getting tears and snot on it, but he doesn't seem to mind.

When I catch my breath, I look up at him with wide, teary eyes. "Is there any way I can talk to her? Do the...signals work that far away? Can I call her?"

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