Page 28 of The Fall Before the Heat

“I don’t think it works like that,” I chuckled.

“It will and love, you were never less than. If I weren’t so tired, I’d get into London’s complex socio-economic standings and what’s really wrong with things, but I’m tired. So, please, just believe me – you were always more than enough. Your parents were more than enough. Your whole family and mine were.”

“I love you, Del,” I said and kissed his forehead as his eyes drifted shut.

“I love you too,” he yawned.

Chapter Twenty-One

Del

Rex and I spent the majority of the last days of my pregnancy in bed. If asked later on, I might lie about how my hormones made me unable not to have him, but that wasn’t true. Rex was sexy as ever, but I felt like a beached whale. My back ached and getting up to use the loo or stretch my legs took a mammoth effort.

Rex became my legs for everything he could during those days. He sprinted back and forth between the bedroom and the kitchen, bringing me snacks and drinks. He ran down to the corner store when I wanted a slushie and some mint chocolate chip ice cream.

Mostly, he cuddled me while we parsed out the details of our future. Our home in Heartville was ready for us. Everything we’d need besides our baby and our personal belongings were already inside the house waiting for us to arrive. I imagined the house holding its breath, nervous to meet us too. Had it heard about its future occupants? Was it excited that I’d exchanged secret emails with Liam Moonscale, the first mate of Heartville, about trying to find a puppy for Rex and the baby?

My mate dreamed about his dog some nights. The dreams always left me in a weird juxtaposition of being cold like a ghost was in the room and feeling all warm and fuzzy, because he was so happy with Apricot in his dreams. Sometimes he dreamt of a faceless toddler following the pooch around. Yep. We were going to need a dog. Liam Moonscale was more than happy to help. He wasn’t even surprised about my request.

As my time grew closer, I slept more in the day than I did at night. It was as if some ancient primal parental part of meremembered that danger dwelt under the dark skies. Even under the light of the full moon I lay awake wishing I could sleep on my back again. I imagined if I could lay flat and stretch my limbs until every bone in my body popped that the ache in my back might ease up.

It was technically two days after my due date that I ‘wet’ the bed during my lunchtime nap. We’d prepared with pregnancy sheets and a nearby bag of everything we might need for a homebirth if our little boy came out too quickly. First babies could take a long time, though, and ours did.

We had more than enough time to pile into Rex’s car – he carried me out of the building – and make it to the on-campus hospital. The pain and the rush of knowing our baby would arrive soon mingled in my mind. My contractions came closer and closer together even as everyone around me talked about centimeters and crushed ice chips.

After the ultrasound where we discovered our baby was a lion, I decided we had to carry on whatever tradition that Rex’s parents started by naming him, a wolf, Rex. Our son was to be Lupus. I thought Canis would be a nice name, but Rex said it was too close to cannabis.

Lupus. Lupus. Lupus.

I chanted the baby’s name inside my head in between contractions and pushes. It was the only thing that kept me going once my labor hit the six hour mark.

“We’ve got a head,” Lee finally said, wiping sweat from his brow.

“You’re doing so well, baby,” Rex whispered in my ear. “We’re almost there. He’s almost here.”

Lupus. Lupus. Lupus. Lupus. Lupus. Lupus. Lupus.

I lost myself to the pain and the instinct my body carried deep within its DNA. My body knew how to have a baby. It was just slow on getting started. Time stopped when Lupus’sfirst wail broke through the beeping sounds of the hospital. Rex howled, throwing his head back, and the baby cried louder.

“Brute!” I huffed, wanting to laugh, but too tired to. “You’re scaring him.”

“Meow? Is that better?” Rex laughed before kissing my forehead.

“You can learn to speak cat later. Get your furry tail down here and cut the cord before I take your job,” Lee teased him, as he looked the baby over.

Seconds later, I squeezed my eyes shut as Rex cut the now clamped cord severing my biological connection to Lupus.

“We did it!”My wolf cheered inside my thoughts.“We did it! We carried him all the way into the world!”

If he was upset that his ‘pup’ turned out to be a kitten, he didn’t show any signs of it. His tail wagged from inside his inner sanctum, shaking me up.

Lupus only rested on my chest for mere seconds before he was whisked away to be cleaned up and I was moved to a recovery room. My stomach growled, but my head buzzed with too much excitement to worry about eating just yet.

Clean and on clean sheets, Rex and I waited in the bed for Lee to bring back Baby Lupus. My fingers trembled, aching to hold him close and feed him his first meal. His wails preceded him down the hall. My eyes misted over and Rex kissed my cheek.

Lee tiptoed into the room carrying our baby wrapped in a soft yellow blanket. His wails stopped as soon as I slid my hands underneath him to take him from Lee. Baby Lupus’s mouth froze in a funny silent cry until his lips shut and he blinked up at me. I kissed his forehead and then I counted his fingers and toes. He was perfect even as he groped the air for the tail he held onto most of his time inside of my womb. He didn’t have it out and I wasn’t sure how to explain to a newborn how to bring his tail out.So I laughed instead, because he was the cutest thing and most beautiful person I ever laid eyes on.

Mage Street, Hemlock Mountain, London, Spain, or Heartville: It didn’t matter where we settled as long as the three of us stayed together forever.READ ON to discover who Del and Rex bring to Heartville with them. <3

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