4. Patrick

Chapter 4

Patrick

I was mated. I had a One. And my One was the warlock of my dreams. The one I'd fantasized about as a teenager. The one I'd often thought about when things with my parents became intense. Arthur hadn't known it, but he'd been my safe space for far longer than I wanted to admit.

And now, we'd claimed one another. I had vague memories of the night after we'd claimed each other, but Arthur was wonderful at sharing those memories with me. We'd had our bath, and although Arthur had been insistent that I be the one to take him that time, I couldn't see myself doing that often. It wasn't that I didn't enjoy it, but something about it just felt off. After we finished getting clean in the bath, we had a small meal before turning in for the night.

Arthur's bed was not only large enough for the two of us but was incredibly comfortable. It was the complete opposite of the hard mat I'd slept on above the tavern that my parents had run. Arthur and I found our satisfaction once more before both fell asleep exhausted.

When I woke up a sweaty mess a few hours later, everything I'd been feeling since we'd claimed one another made sense. Being near Arthur had thrown me into a fertile period. That night and the following days and nights were a blur. My few memories were of Arthur, the bed, the bath, small sips of water and bites of food, and sex. Lots and lots of sex.

Through it all, the constant had been Arthur taking care of me. Arthur holding me. Arthur using a cool cloth to help me feel some sort of relief. I had never felt such love from anyone before. I hadn't known it was even possible, but Arthur had shown me what love was. What a true relationship and mating should be.

That had been three weeks ago, and Arthur's attentiveness toward me hadn't lessened. I had thought it was possible he was being overly caring toward me because of my fertile period, but that wasn't the case in the slightest. Every day since I woke after my fertile period broke, he'd seen to my every need. When he was able to fulfill my needs and desires before I could myself, it took me a moment to realize he was doing so because of our bond. He knew my every need and desire. And out of love for me, he happily got me the bites of bread that I wanted, the tea that I desired. And, of course, any and every sexual thought I had ended up being fulfilled completely. Every single one.

We'd explored each other completely and thoroughly. Arthur, I'd discovered, was possessive as well as attentive, but I had no complaints about either. Now I had a new issue though. I was pregnant. There was no way I wasn't with the way I kept throwing up everything I tried to put in my stomach. But the constant nausea I'd been experiencing was starting to make me irritable. I tried not to be, but when one was having difficulty sleeping as well as keeping anything in their stomach, irritability seemed to be the result. At least with me.

"You're lost in thought. How are you feeling? Any better?"

My eyes widened before I ducked my head. "No, Master Edison. My stomach still won't allow for anything. Not even water." And I was thirsty. I was sure that added to my irritation.

"I have a tea that will help. Sadly, it smells horrid, and I can't seem to figure out a way to change that. One of the roots in it is rancid-smelling when ground up and brewed."

"I'm willing to try anything at this point," I told my One's father. It was still sinking in that my One's father was the very first warlock.

"Good. You should be able to keep down some soda bread after. And if you're feeling better, later, I'd like for you to try some of the meat. It's important for—"

I looked at Master Edison when he didn't continue. He looked as if he was horrified for some reason.

"It's all right, Master Edison. I've already come to the conclusion that I'm with child. If the constant loss of anything I eat or drink wasn't enough, the fact that I can sense the aura of another inside me would be a big indicator."

"Patrick, please call me Edison. Or even better, Father? I'm more than just Master Edison to you. You're my son's One. The other half of his soul."

I nodded but wasn't sure it would be an easy request to fill. Master Edison was the created warlock. You didn't just call him Father.

"How is he?" Arthur asked as he rushed into our place. I smiled lovingly at him. He was so good to me. Always fretting about me, seeing to my needs. Every last one of them.

"I'm okay, Arthur. Please calm down. Father said he had a tea for me," I said and smiled at Edison. That had simply come out and wasn't quite as difficult as I'd thought it would be. The smile Master Edison gave me told me that he was thrilled that I'd taken what he'd suggested to heart. Now if I could think of him in that way all of the time.

"Tea? What does he need tea for? He's sick. What's—wait." Arthur walked over to me and knelt in front of where I was lying on our bed. I'd not been able to get up for long this morning before I threw up in the pot and tried to go back to sleep.

"Is that…I sense another being. Something that I sensed this morning but assumed was someone close outside the house."

Arthur looked to his father, and I reached out and squeezed his hand, drawing his attention back to me. "Listen, my love. Listen to our son's aura talk to yours," I told Arthur. I could feel our child, as young as he was, already reaching out to his sire.

"Son? Your fertile period caught?" Arthur asked, and then he gathered me up in his arms and pulled me onto his lap as he sat on our bed. I looked for Edison but saw that he'd left, giving us some privacy.

"It did. I first sensed him this morning after I retched in the pot."

"I thought you'd eaten something that didn't agree with you. When I didn't sense anything last week, I'd assumed it didn't work. We're going to be parents?"

I smiled at Arthur. I'd just discovered that I could cause him great emotion, even for such a powerful warlock. "Why are you crying? This should be a happy time," I said as I reached out to wipe the wetness from his cheeks.

"Oh, my heart, I'm thrilled. Even without the baby, you've made me the happiest warlock. I love you, Patrick. So very much. I know it's quick, but I've loved you before you let me claim you."

I smiled. Arthur had said that every day since he'd claimed me. He didn't deny me his words, ever. That was something that I found endearing about him and made it so much easier to give myself to him so freely.

"I love you too. We're going to have a baby in the spring. Isn't that exciting? Do you think we'll have any issues with having another little one around here? You know, because there are so few females." That would always be a worry.

"Father will take care of it. He always does. He and Dad do so much to keep us all safe. And now that I have you and our little one on the way, we'll join him and Dad in helping to protect those with us."

My One was a good warlock. He had a huge heart that was always thinking of others. That might be at least part of the reason I'd been so drawn to him when I was younger. That and the fact that fate probably had something to do with it. He was my One, after all.

"Knock-knock. Is it safe to come in?" Edison said from the doorway.

"Yes," I called out. When Edison came in, followed closely by Wallace, I smiled. Until I got a whiff of the pot that was on the wooden tray. Arthur beat me to the thought that was going through my mind.

"What in fate's name is that stench?" Arthur asked.

"That is what your One is going to drink to calm his stomach, so remember that in a couple of months when he feels uncomfortable and asks for you to rub his back because it hurts. He's going to go through a lot of very uncomfortable things for your son." Edison walked over to us and held out a mug. I wrinkled my nose before I picked it up and looked up at him. "I've tried to alter the taste, and when I do, the effectiveness is lessened. Drink up. I've found that if I hold my breath and drink it really fast, it's not nearly as difficult to get down as it is when I sip it."

Determined to calm my stomach, I did exactly as instructed; I took a deep breath and guzzled the horrid brown liquid down—then immediately proceeded to throw it back up all over Edison, who couldn't get out of the way fast enough.

I would have felt bad about it, except I couldn't because my stomach was in such knots that I could think of nothing beyond the pain I was experiencing. Arthur quickly sat me on the bed, then produced a cool cloth that he used to wipe my face. He held out a cup of water, and although I wanted to shake my head, Arthur argued.

"Just rinse your mouth and spit it out," he told me. I nodded and did as instructed. Arthur took the mug away, and when it disappeared, I was thankful because even looking at it seemed to make my stomach knot even harder.

"Right, then. Perhaps you'll do better by sipping it," Edison said after Arthur had fussed over me and cleaned me up. I was once again lying in our bed, both pillows behind me, propping me slightly up but not enough that the room started spinning once more. That was another thing I was suddenly experiencing. The room was now spinning whenever I tried to stand too quickly. Edison said it was most likely due to lack of food and liquid.

"William will be here in just a few moments," Edison said.

"It's okay. How about some sips. And maybe some of the soda bread. A small piece," I suggested. I was thirsty and hungry, despite feeling as I did. And I knew that my baby I was carrying needed nourishment.

Edison looked like he wanted to argue, but a pleading look to Arthur had my One bringing over a fresh mug of the horrible-smelling liquid. "Just a small sip now," Arthur said as he held it out and helped me take a drink. I swallowed a little bit and immediately reached for the bread Arthur had in his other hand. I tore a small piece off, and it helped to change the flavor on my tongue. I sighed in relief when the taste of the tea was gone.

"Another?" I asked after I'd swallowed the bread and it seemed to be willing to stay where it was. At least for the time being, that was. Who knew what a few minutes from now would bring.

"Just a few now. I don't want what little progress we're making to be undone," Arthur said. I smiled at him. He was so thoughtful. I didn't enjoy losing the contents of my stomach, and if having only a few sips and bites at a time enabled me to keep things down, I'd go that way.

The system we set up—small sips of tea quickly followed by a bite of bread or something else that was dry or bland—worked. There was a knock on the door in the outer room, and then moments later, William was walking in beside Wallace. I wasn't unhappy to see the man, but I didn't know exactly what it was that he could do to help me.

"Patrick, I would like to first say congratulations," William said before he turned his gaze to Arthur. "And to you as well. It is always a joyous moment when one finds their forever love."

"Thank you, my friend," Arthur said. "It has truly been such a life-changing thing. For the better."

I felt a moment of pang for William. He'd still not found his own One, not that he'd been looking for him or her. I also knew that William had been married before he'd been turned by the goddess, but he'd lost his wife in childbirth. That had changed him, and although he had always been friendly, he'd not seemed open to finding love again.

I looked to Arthur and felt a new wave of sadness. Arthur must have felt it through our bond because immediately he reached for me where I was lying. "Are you all right? Is it your stomach?"

I shook my head. "I'm fine. Well, as much as can be expected." I didn't wish to voice out loud what had brought on the feeling.

Arthur looked at me, and although I'd only been mated to him for three weeks, I already knew that look. He wasn't going to let it drop. We would be revisiting the question again in due time. For now though, he was going to let it pass.

"How are you feeling?" William asked. He picked up the mug, and after bringing it partway toward his face, he winced. "Ah, I see. It truly isn't unexpected. The two of you have been mated for a few weeks now. This tends to happen when couples find one another." William was all smiles. "What is it that you need from me?" He glanced around. "More tea?"

I winced. I wasn't sure I was quite ready for more tea. Perhaps in a little while, but not just yet.

"That face says all I need to know. I myself haven't had to drink it, and I'm thankful for that. I cannot imagine how those of you that are carrying keep it down."

"It's a labor of love," Edison said. I smiled. He wasn't wrong. I was carrying Arthur's and my first child. I would do whatever I needed to in order to make sure I had a healthy and successful pregnancy.

"Since you are more of an expert on pregnancies, I was hoping you would be willing to look over Patrick. He's experiencing sickness, but that seems to be standard for pregnancies. But is the baby all right?" Edison asked.

William smiled at Edison before he refocused on me. "I will be happy to. If that is all right with the new couple?" William looked between me where I was lying and Arthur, who was sitting beside me, between me and William.

"Of course I have no problems with that," I said before looking at Arthur. "But I think Arthur might need to move slightly in order for that to happen."

"Oh, of course," Arthur said before he moved. He didn't go far—only to the foot of the bed. He sat there, his hand gently resting on my leg while William moved closer.

"This won't hurt," he told me. When his hand started to glow green, I couldn't help but flinch and cover my stomach with my hands. Up until now, anytime anyone had used magic on me, it had only ever involved a great deal of pain.

"It's all right," Arthur said, his hand rubbing up and down my leg. "William is only using magic to check on the baby."

When I'd flinched, William immediately pulled his hand away, and the green glow disappeared. "I would never hurt you," William said.

"I know that. I truly do. It was an involuntary reaction, and I'm sorry. You have to understand. It wasn't meant as a slight against you or your character."

"It's all right, love." Arthur moved closer after the room became blurry. It took a moment for me to realize I'd started crying. I heard the others talking, but they were so quiet I couldn't make out what was being said. As Arthur's arms wrapped around me, I melted into his embrace. There, in his arms, I'd known only love and tenderness.

I wasn't sure how long Arthur held me, but when I finally felt as if I was under control again, I lifted my head from his shoulder. I wasn't sure when he'd pulled me onto his lap or when he'd moved into my place on the bed, but I was grateful for the fact that he was so loving and understanding.

"I am sorry," I said quietly.

"I know that, and I am certain that William knows as well. Also that he doesn't hold anything against you. Father, I am certain, has filled him in on what you have gone through at the hands of Henry. As long as there is a breath in my body, you will never have to feel the pain inflicted on you by magic again."

I sighed. "I know you mean that, but you can't always be with me. What if you're gone somewhere for the coven? What if—"

Arthur's hand gently covered my mouth. "Not going to happen. Ever. You will go with me everywhere I go. If you can't, then I stay with you. I will protect you until there isn't a breath left in my body. Until my heart stops beating. You are my entire world, Patrick, and there isn't a thing I wouldn't do to protect you."

He'd said he loved me many times in the past three weeks, but if he hadn't, those words alone would speak volumes. In fact, they did.

"I love you," I whispered.

"And I you."

Arthur leaned down and kissed my forehead before he laid his cheek on the top of my head. We sat there like that for a long time, until I dozed off into sleep. In Arthur's arms, I always felt safe.