Page 56 of Blood of the Damned: Thorn
Thorn
“I’m perfectly capable of shaking my cock and standing up!”
Ledger’s scowl got Thorn staying exactly where he was. He watched helplessly as Ledger struggled to get to his feet, feeling his husband’s conflict.
Over the last month, it was like Thorn had gotten stuck on a broken roller coaster, sitting on shifting sands with his husband's emotions all over the place. Before this he could be snappy, yes. Now, one minute Thorn felt he was on solid ground, only for the next to tumble in the wrong direction, barely hanging on to his seat.
Big, honey eyes glazed with tears gave Thorn a solid thump to his heart. A proper knock that made it difficult for the rational side of him to figure out what he should do to help. Maybe he should have stayed in the office and out of Ledger’s way until he’d calmed down? But then, he was never calm of late, which Thorn would never point out. He liked his balls exactly where they were.
He’d spent his entire life with the ability to rationalize every decision he made—until Ledger. The challenge the small blond omega had given him all those months ago resulted in no talking—explaining what could happen when in his true form. That hadn’t come even after he’d claimed him. This was all his dick’s fault.
Seriously you’re blaming an appendage?
He ignored the sarcastic comment.
During the last year, everything had changed, except for the hold Ledger had on his soul. If anything, it became enriched with the pregnancy. The hard-headed business executive that many thought cold and incapable of yielding to any pressure was a melting pot of goo at one teary eyed look from his husband. His brothers didn’t know the half of it and Dacian would have a field day if he ever found out how he fussed over Ledger in private. When he allowed it. Today was clearly not one of those days.
Ledger waddled naked to the shower stall. Thorn clasped his hands behind his back to resist reaching out to help Ledger when his belly impeded him stepping directly into the shower to turn on the tap, resulting in him cursing, sniffing, and waddling sideways into the shower cubicle.
“Stop looking at me,” Ledger grumbled before switching on the tap.
The loud scream at the cold water hitting his belly, which stuck out too far to avoid it, made Thorn’s ears ring. In his haste to get back out, Ledger became wedged in the opening. Tears pouring down his cheeks, a gaze of death fired at Thorn, and he had to resist cowering.
He grabbed a towel from the heated towel rail and wrapped it around Ledger. Loud sniffing competed with the water hitting tiles as Thorn carefully maneuvered him out of the cold spray, before turning off the tap. Giving in to the need to take care of Ledger, Thorn lifted him effortlessly to carry him back into the bedroom.
Thorn sat on the edge of the bed with Ledger easily in his lap, despite how big his belly got with their girls. He was still tiny compared to Thorn.
Ledger buried his face in Thorn’s chest and cried in earnest, his tears soaking Thorn’s shirt within seconds.
“I’m sorry,” Thorn murmured repeatedly. His conflict was very real when he hated seeing Ledger like this but also loved him pregnant with their children.
“No, you’re not,” Ledger hiccupped, sorrowful eyes pinning him when he looked at him through red-rimmed eyes. “You love our girls as much as you love me. How could anyone love me when I’m so horrible?”
It came out as more of an accusation somehow, and Thorn locked down his thoughts, seeing he should have done thatearlier. The depth of their mating meant it was as easy to share his thoughts and feelings with Ledger as his brothers.
“I love you.” He opened himself, allowing Ledger to feel his love. “You are the most beautiful creature to me. A living dream created to fit only me,” he murmured possessively, getting a full body shudder and a dose of pheromones his husband wouldn’t let him act on.
Ledger whimpered and clung a little tighter, a hand creeping up into Thorn’s hair in a move that always played to his possessive side.
“A creature from the black lagoon, more like,” Ledger replied, sounding less upset and more like his sassy self.
“Then it’s a lagoon I want to live in,” Thorn answered truthfully, kissing Ledger lovingly. He brushed their mouths together repeatedly, murmuring softly about how beautiful he was until the tears dried up, and a sense of calm was emanating from him and the girls. “Do you want some breakfast? I’ve got a selection of fresh fruits you like.”
“Can I have chocolate mousse over my fruit?” Ledger fluttered his damp eyelashes, a pleading look appeared that was impossible to resist.
“Of course, Sweetling.”
Thorn rose effortlessly, not once thinking about putting Ledger down, and carried him through the suite. He had spoken with his brothers about the house they shared. They had never considered building other homes for themselves on the vineyard, and Ledger joining the family hadn’t altered that. Thorn had asked Ledger, but with how the house was divided, Ledger was happy enough when they could live separately and maintain their privacy. It worked. Whether it would when his daughters arrived, he wasn’t sure. Babies were noisy. Would the sound proofing materials they’d used to prevent having to listen to Calvert’s sexual antics decades ago be enough? It was just onemore question he couldn’t answer, which added to the enormous pile he worked to ignore most of the time.
Thorn returned his attention to Ledger. “Couch or the stool in the kitchen?” Something else he’d learned over the last month; always ask, never assume.
“The couch. My lower back is really achy today.”
The casual comment set off Thorn’s inner tuned senses as he carefully placed Ledger down on the heap of pillows he had invested in from the many searches to find anything to help make Ledger happy. Had he gone overboard looking at the mountain of gaily colored pillows in all different sizes and shapes… possibly?
Stepping back, his hands trembling somewhat, he eyed Ledger’s belly, barely concealed in the huge bath towel. Was this it? Was he about to… burst?
“Why are you looking at me like that?” Back was the teary voice.
