Page 35 of A Drink of Destiny
We started having weekly get together with Beal and Nic and Crilus and Pierce. Mori and his brother came most of the time too. Sometimes Morvan and Rho came too but only if Mori wasn’t going to be there. The wolf always had questions about how Rho had babies. He kept them to a minimum but always acted butthurt any time something came up and Rho was vague about it. He was curious but the whole world didn’t need to know how anyone’s pregnancy worked. No one needed to know anyone else’s private information. It was what Crilus and Preston argued with Mori about the most. He had a thirst for knowledge that often teetered on making him sound like a judgmental busybody.
“Mori means well,” Alvis said one evening while we were getting ready to go to sleep.
We were already in bed, and I was lotioning up his full moon of a belly.
“Does he?” I asked, mostly so that Alvis would give me his opinion on the matter.
“He wants to know everything and he wants to know Rho better. I think he’s searching for what he thought he had with Preston. Someone who confides everything in him.”
“Doesn’t he have that friend? That best friend? A little jaguar guy? Married to that big dragon dude?”
“Ni,” Alvis nodded. “I think they are best friends. They’re just in different stages of life.”
“So, you’re saying he’s going to feel like he’s missing something until he finds his mate?” I asked. “Because we tell each other everything, right?”
“Do we?” Alvis smiled.
“What secret would I have? I’ve even showed you where I keep the hidden stashes of snacks so that Mori or your sons don’t gobble them all up. I don’t mind running out in the middle of the night for you, but they aren’t pregnant. They can get their own snacks and leave yours alone.”
“Eh, you’ll see how kids are once ours grows up. It’s hard to tell them no. Sometimes I look at Arrick and the others and still see growing boys.”
“Okay, they can have them and I guess Mori too, but they need to understand you’re eating for two and I want you to have everything you want,” I said, massaging his belly softly.
“I do have everything I want, Raiel,” he said, and I paused waiting for the but.
“No but,” he shook his head, picking up on my thoughts over our mating link. “I have everything I want. My older kids are grown and happy for the most part. Sure, they’d like to make me a grandfather at some point, but they’ll get there. I have you and our baby. I have good friends here and, yes, Mori is counted in that. I’m happy, Raiel, and well taken care of. Maybe the best I’ve ever been taken care of but that’s because I’ve learned to let you take care of me. There’s this fine line between my ego and wanting to be spoiled.”
“I’m not spoiling you,” I chuckled and went back to massaging his belly.
My lion purred inside his inner sanctum as our hands drew lines on the lotion.
“Food and clean housing and baby stuff is not spoiling. Letting you rest because you are growing a whole person is going above and beyond. Not even all the massages I give you arespoiling you. You deserve good things – all the good things you want. If someone else’s mate is not giving them those things that is on them.”
“What about you? Are you happy too?” he asked.
I stretched out beside him and carefully pushed a stray lock of hair behind his ear.
“Every day that I wake up to you, I’m over the moon. I am happy. I’m happier than I knew anyone could ever be, mate. Soon our kitten will be here, and I’ll be even happier. Some days I think I might explode from how happy you make me.”
“Even when I’m sharing my snacks with Mori?” he teased.
“Even then. I just worry that you’ll run out of your favorites and have to be sad while I run out to the store,” I said.
“The fact that I have someone to run out to the store for me makes it impossible to be sad,” he grinned and entwined my fingers with his.
“Tell that to your hormones. I remember the ice cream incident last week. I nearly knocked over a truck running to the store,” I said.
“You could’ve driven,” he chuckled and squeezed my hand.
“I panicked. I’ll probably try to carry you to the hospital that way when it’s time for you to give birth.”
“Raiel, I hope not. I don’t think you understand how wet having a baby is and I don’t want to have to shave your back.”
“For you, I would,” I said and stole a kiss.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Alvis
