Page 23 of Pregnant With Their Babes

A bright smile spread across Llyr’s face as he popped up from his seat. “Gladly.”

Llyr beat him back to the table and stole his seat next to Dagr. With a grunt, Oz took the seat opposite.

“Whatdo we owe for the pleasure of Llyr’s company?” Dagr asked Oz through clenched teeth.

“He never got his meal. He’s hungry. And so am I. Might as well have a meal for three versus two. Less work for Myra.”

Dagr only eyed him, one brow raised.

Later, he’d blame the ale for that decision. Mayhap that was why he had drained several pints thus far that eve—deniability. Ignoring Dagr’s glare, he waved Myra over and cancelled the dinner upstairs. “Just bring us enough for three, please. And our guest needs ale.”

Myra judiciously eyed the third man at the table before nodding and heading toward the kitchen. They sat in an uncomfortable silence until she returned a moment later with a pint for Llyr. “Here ye are, sir.”

Once she was gone, Llyr lifted the pint to his nose and inhaled. “What is this?”

“Ale?” Oz asked.

Llyr eyed him a moment before taking a sip from his pint. A frown furrowed his brow before a smile blossomed on his face. “Oh… that’sverygood. Very good, indeed.”

Oz grinned down at the man. “The food and spirits here are some of the best I’ve ever had… and I’ve quite literally been around the world.”

“It’s splendid,” Llyr remarked before draining the rest of his pint. “What’s it called again?”

Oz frowned. “Ale.”

“Ale,” Llyr repeated. “I like this ale very much.” He took another, longer sip. “Almost as good as wine.”

“You’ve had wine but not ale?” Dagr asked.

“Yes… my father has many casks he had pulled off some of your shipwrecks. A whole room filled with them, in fact. He says humans got a whole lot wrong, but wine they did not.”

Oz chuckled to himself. “Your father doesn’t care for humans, hmm?”

“No. He says you’re a dangerous lot and have an innate desire to destroy one another. If you ever learned of us, you’d add us to your list.”

“Then why were you so eager to tell us what you were?” Dagr asked.

Oz regarded Llyr, seeing the man’s mild surprise at Dagr’s question—one he would’ve thought himself had he not been muddied by drink.

“I… I don’t kn—I had a feeling. In my gut. That you two were trustworthy.” He took another sip from his mug. “That you would… protect me.” His face went red, and he looked down. “This must sound ridiculous to you both. It sounds ridiculous to me when I say it. You’re both strangers to me…” He lifted his stare slightly. “Yet… I feel… ”

“As if you already know me,” Oz said to fill in the blanks. It was exactly what he felt. His soul had met its match. But that was at war with the love he had for Dagr, too. He turned and eyed his lover and saw sorrow in the man’s eyes. “As if you already knowus.”

“I suppose that’s what you could call it,” Llyr murmured. “I’ve always trusted my gut. It tells me you’re safe.” He spun, placing a hand on top of Dagr’s hand. “Bothof you.”

Dagr gazed at Llyr’s hand on his, hunger in his eyes. “I wish we could trust in you as much as you trust in us.”

Llyr’s smile faded. “I’ve done nothing to cause you to think you can’t. Or have I?”

Dagr tugged his hand away and lifted his stare to Llyr. “I’ve been in love with the man across this table for as long as I can remember. And I’veneverexperienced as powerful a pull toward anyone as I do you. That, in and of itself, seems like an affront to that love I have for him. You, I’ve just met. Him, I’ve known more than twenty years. How should I feel about this?”

* * *

Llyr was unsure how to reply to Dagr’s question. His plan had been to have one or the each of them in his bed. Now, that could prove dangerous. Not to him. Tothem. He refused to come between two lovers… yet he, too, felt the magnetic pull driving them on a collision course.

Dagr continued. “The attraction seems natural… yet unnatural in its potency. Why would I feel these things for a stranger? It makes no sense… unless it’s a spell of some kind. And if that’s the case—you’re more dangerous than any man I’ve ever known.”

Llyr searched both their faces in silence. “Ididuse magic. To get here. To get my legs.” He lifted a hand and clasped it around the pendant he wore around his neck. “And this… it wards off the monsters.” He glanced down at it before tightening his hand again. “I can’t take it off… not until I return home. Else, they could find me and bring me back before my time here is over. I’m not ready to go home yet.”

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