Page 88 of The Ruby Dragon's Unconventional Mate

“Oh, you know I always love snacks.” He laughed. He was still eating for two, though he felt like he was eating three or more as big as he was getting. Dakota assured him that he was not having twins, however, and so did the midwife.

“I do know that. Love you.”

That still gave him a thrill. All right, not the same kind of thrill that it did when Bryant said it, but he loved Lachlan, and he was so happy that his brother-in-law liked him. It was important and it just gave him this deep, warm wave of security deep inside. Like hugging a heated blanket.

“I love you too,” Lars told him. “Be right there.”

They hung up, and Lars put on some clothes so he could go back downstairs. Arthur met him at the foot of the stairs carrying a cake carrier of some sort that had all manner of treats in it, he thought. The lid was partially see-through, and he was pretty sure there were cookies and brownies and maybe those mini cheesecakes that he was addicted to. The big cheesecakeswere great, but the mini ones were perfect, just a bite or two, and softer, more tender.

“You all set?” Lars asked him.

Arthur nodded, holding up the cake carrier. “I am. I have gifts for Lachlan and nibbles for you. Let’s hit it.”

“That makes me feel a little like a toddler.” He headed out to the car, and he felt a little bit tired, but he thought this was a good thing to do. Sometimes, he could knock around the house and be a little depressed when Bryant wasn’t there.

Not that he was like totally Bryant dependent, because he wasn’t, but especially as he got closer to his due date, he was a little… Well, maybe a little clingy was a good word. He just didn’t know, but he loved spending time with Lachlan, and it would be healthy for Arthur to see his brother.

Arthur drove over, silent mostly, lost in thought, and Lars started to worry a little bit that something wrong. Was it Alban? Had something happened? Surely not, because Arthur would tell him if that was the case, even if it was personal. Doubts swirled in him, though. Not about Arthur, but about his own ability to see what was going on. He felt very caught up in his own crap.

“Arthur, is everything okay?”

“Hmmm? Oh, yes, I’m fine.” Arthur grinned at him. “Are you worried?”

“We’re just both being very quiet. There’s not another surprise party going on, is there? I’m not sure I could handle a ‘Boo! Surprise!’ without, I don’t know, my water breaking or something.”

Arthur hooted, the sound merry. “No, you’ve had your surprise shower.”

“Good. Right. And everything’s normal with Alban? I just wonder about things.”

“Are you worrying about Alban and me trying to kill Lachlan?” Arthur teased. “What would you do? You would be out your cheesecakes.”

Lars decided to go right back with teasing. “I know! See it would be a travesty. We can’t do that.”

“Don’t worry.” Now Arthur’s expression went serious. “I shouldn’t even joke about that. I’m just—To be perfectly honest, Lars, I’m getting vibes from you. You’re not feeling like you’re in labor, are you?”

“Gods no. I mean my back hurts all the time now, and I can’t see my feet, but I don’t feel like I’m particularly ick, or like my water’s fixing to break. There’s no pressure.”

“Well, it’s too early, so that’s a positive. I just wanted to make sure.”

“I appreciate the thought.” He really did, but he just felt pregnant. Really, really pregnant and… Not lonely, because that wasn’t the case. He and Bryant were doing great, and he had Slippy, and he had Arthur, and his friends had really put in the effort to see him regularly. It just seemed as if he sat at the house a lot, and he guessed everybody felt that way when they were pregnant, especially when they were a dragon in Oro. Everybody grounded him, but Lars just really wasn’t used to that. He was the omega who was accustomed to being an alpha, after all.

Bryant’s voice came to his head.Love, are you well?

I am. We’re going to see Lachlan.

That’s awesome. Should I bring dinner there when I come home?

How about you holler at me, or I’ll holler at you if one of us is ready to go home before the other and let you know?

That sounds great. I was just getting this intuition from here that maybe you were unhappy.

No, no. I was worried about Arthur, and he was worried about me, so we were acting weird. But everything’s fine.

Bryant sort of laughed at him, and he felt it like a soft tickle of a feather.I’ll see you tonight.

Totally. I love you.

Love you too.

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