Page 89 of The Warlock's Kiss

Adalynn stared at her palms. She closed her fingers and opened them again. Merrick could see her thoughts racing, could tell she had many questions—and he would answer them, as he was able. But that wasn’t what mattered now.

He caught her chin and turned her face back toward him. “We are bound, Adalynn. Forever.”

She covered his hand with hers. “Forever is a long time.”

Merrick smiled softly. “Adalynn, forever isn’t nearly long enough.”

Her lips turned up in a wide smile. “Don't men usually get cold feet when they think about forever? About being tied down? Beingboundsounds more permanent than the ole ball and chain.”

“There will be no cold feet here, save perhaps on winter mornings before we stoke the fire.”

Adalynn laughed; between that sound and her shining smile, he couldn’t resist releasing her arm and kissing her again. She returned the kiss just as fervently, wrapping her arms around him.

Danny would be upset, but he could wait a few minutes—the boy needed to eat and rest, anyway. But Merrick…he had found his forever, his soul song, and he was going to relish this new beginning without interruption.

Epilogue

Four Months Later

Adalynn layupon Merrick’s chest, listening to his rapid heartbeat and the swirling symphony of their mana songs as they came down from the heights of ecstasy. Their skin was coated in perspiration, their breath ragged, and her sex pulsed around his cock in the aftermath of her climax. She closed her eyes, smiling softly, as Merrick lightly trailed his fingertips up and down her spine.

Delightful heat radiated from the blazing fireplace across from the foot of the bed, chasing away the chill. The fireplace had seen frequent use over the last few months as summer had given way first to autumn and now winter.

During those months, Adalynn hadn’t suffered a single attack—but shehadsuffered from numerous bouts of random nausea. At first, it had frightened her, and she’d wondered if her illness had returned, but there’d been no other symptoms. It hadn’t been long before she’d begun to suspect something else—especially after she realized she hadn’t had her period since arriving at Merrick’s four months ago.

Opening her eyes, Adalynn inhaled deeply and lifted her hand away from him, settling it on the side of her neck. “Do you remember the first time we made love?”

“Yes, quite clearly. And every time afterward. Also quite clearly.”

Adalynn grinned. “Do you remember what I’d asked you?”

He rubbed his palm over his short beard. “You asked if I hadprotection.”

She raised her head and looked down at him, her hair falling over one shoulder. “And I recall you saying something in reply to that.”

Merrick smirked. “There was no chance of conceiving.Thattime.”

“Youknow?”

“I’m attuned enough to our mana songs to tell when there’s a change. There’s been another melody forming beneath ours—a more perfect blend of them. I’ve suspected what it meant for several weeks.”

Adalynn half-heartedly slapped his shoulder. She couldn’t be angry with him, not when she was so overjoyed by what they had created together. “That was cheap, Merrick. That’s something pretty major we should have discussedtogether.”

He rolled her onto her back and propped himself over her, hands braced on either side of her head and hips pinning her to the bed. His cock was still inside her. He dipped his head and pecked a quick kiss on her lips; most of her largely feigned anger slipped away. Merrick slowly worked his lips—and his body—lower, withdrawing his shaft from her sex as he kissed along her neck and between her breasts to finally stop at her stomach.

“All the times we’ve made love, I made sure my precautions were in place,” he said, looking up at her with his glowing teal eyes. He cradled her stomach—her slightlyroundedstomach. “I think it happened when I performed the binding. Seed, blood, and mana…those are the required components. My seed was already within you, and whatever protections I had woven must’ve been unraveled during the binding.”

Adalynn smiled and raised a hand, tracing the scar cutting across his eye before brushing the backs of her fingers over his cheek. “We’re going to have a baby.”

“We are,” he replied, his smile mirroring the joy in hers.

When she’d first come here, when she’d first met Merrick, she hadn’t even thought him capable of smiling, and never would’ve imagined how much a smile could transform his face.

Her smile faded slightly, the joy of sharing this moment overshadowed by thoughts of the future.

Merrick lifted his head, propping himself up on his elbows. “What is it, Adalynn?”

“Are you worried?” she asked. “About the future? About having a baby…inthisworld?”

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