Page 279 of The Wild Prince's Favorite
“...My son loves you,” the man suddenly spoke again.
Alezya blushed, but she didn’t shy away from his gaze.
“I love him too,” she whispered.
He gave her a slow nod.
“...Thank you,” he finally said.
“For what?”
“For loving him,” he replied.
Alezya was slightly confused, but Lumie stole her attention with another tap on her arm. She smiled at her baby, cupping her cheek and caressing it with her thumb. That’s when she noticed that, in the darkness, Niiru was also curled up against her. The baby dragon was right behind Lumie, with her bum resting against it like a tiny seat of dark scales. Niiru’s head was on Alezya’s leg, its little eyes on her. Its tail was swishing left and right, tapping Lumie’s leg until she grabbed it and tugged it with a frown; Niiru didn’t complain.
“...You look a lot like him,” Alezya commented, glancing back at the man.
The man nodded with another of his faint smiles.
“I’m Kairen,” he said. “Kassein’s father.”
“I heard you,” she said just as she realized it, “while I was unconscious. Talking with Kassein.”
He nodded again.
“He refused to leave your side. Or Lumie’s.”
Recognizing her name, Lumie snapped her head back to him and immediately granted the man a bright, beaming smile that showed she was familiar with him already. Ignoring her mom, she crawled across the covers to him, extending her arms with a demanding gesture, and let herself be scooped up into his arms. The man immediately placed the baby girl on his knee, bouncing her into a tiny fit of excited giggles. He was obviously used to young children, and Lumie seemed entirely at ease with him. This was an unexpected sight that made Alezya incredibly happy. Lumie had never had the chance to enjoy having a loving grandparent before, but there she was, all smiles and giggles on this imposing man’s knee. Meanwhile, Niiru took this opportunity to crawl closer, putting its head on Alezya’s belly. That movement awakened a whole bunch of memories in her mind.
“Oh gods,” she gasped. “The war, how did it end? And the clans? And... my father. I fell with him. How am I-..? And is the baby...?”
“You’re fine,” Kairen said with that low, deep but gentle voice. “My wife examined you.”
He put one of his large hands on her leg, in a gesture to calm her down. Her head ached again. Everything seemed jumbled, and it was painfully hard to actually think, with her head throbbing non-stop. Alezya glanced down at her body and, for the first time, she noticed her arm, the other one, lying on top of the covers. It was partially bandaged, but... there were patches of white scales peeking through from underneath. She tried moving her hand, and while the effort was strenuous, everything moved almost as usual. Still, she stared at the patches of white scales, confused.
“Dragon skin,” Kairen said. “It will fade.”
“My baby?” she dared to ask.
“Your baby is fine too.”
Alezya let out a breath of relief. That was all she needed to know. With difficulty, she shifted her hand to her stomach and took a deep breath; Niiru put its head on her hand and let out a soft growl. Her memories were still a blur, but she knew her baby had saved her life. Those white scales all over her body were proof of it. She frowned, remembering why she’d fallen... No, why she had jumped in the first place.
“What about the clans?” she couldn’t help but ask. “...Darak?”
Those man’s dark eyes were intimidating, and yet, seeing him bounce her baby on his knee, knowing he’d spent time with Kassein watching her, had Alezya trust him instantly. Perhaps, for the first time in her life, she trusted a man she’d barely met because he looked so much like Kassein.
“That man is dead,” he said in a neutral tone. “The war is over.”
“...Kassein won the war,” Alezya muttered as realization sank in.
He had won the war for her, and then, he had let his father and sister deal with the aftermath while he watched over her. She smiled, and the man mimicked her grin.
“He’s my son,” he said, as if that explained it all.
They exchanged a complicit look, full of love for Kassein.
“...I’m Alezya,” she said, because it felt right to introduce herself, even out of order.
