Chapter 24

Chapter Twenty-Four

N athan woke up nearly two weeks later and was hit by Hayley's scent intertwined with his.

His dragon said sleepily, Yes, she carries our young.

Joy rushed through him. After all these years, after thinking for so long that he wouldn't ever have a family of his own, he was going to have a child.

Seeing that Hayley was still asleep against his side, he gently placed a hand over her lower belly. Right where their baby would grow.

"Nathan? Is it time to go again?"

She sounded exhausted, which twisted his heart.

Nathan kissed her nose. "No, love. It's done."

For a second, she blinked the sleep from her eyes. Then they widened as she took in his hand over her abdomen. "I'm pregnant?"

"Yes, love. The frenzy is over."

She laid her hand over his. For a few beats, they remained that way in silence, and Nathan's throat closed with emotion. The two of them would become three in roughly nine months' time.

But then he also remembered all the risks for a human carrying a dragon-shifter's child. He said, "Later this morning, we need to go see Dr. Sid. The sooner you get the shot of dragon's blood, the better."

She looked up at him and must've noticed the panic in his gaze. She laid her other hand on his cheek. "I know, Nathan. Dr. Sid promised you she'd do whatever it took to keep me and any children of ours healthy. It'll be all right."

Rationally, he knew that. Sid had broken all kinds of barriers with her research, allowing human females to have more half-dragon children than ever before.

And yet, there would always be a chance something could go wrong. One he hated, especially since he'd only just found Hayley.

She hugged him and then kissed him softly. "I suppose the big question is will we have one or more babies?"

Her non sequitur made him blink. "What?"

"Well, sometimes it's more than one, right? Look at Melanie."

And Melanie had barely survived the birth of her twins.

His dragon spoke up. That was before Dr. Sid's treatments. Have faith in her.

I know, dragon. I'm still bloody scared.

"Nathan, how about we shower, eat, and go straight to the surgery? I don't like to see you so worried."

"It's part of being a dragon's mate, love. At times, I'm going to be bloody overprotective."

She raised her eyebrows. "As long as it's not all the time."

"No. Both my dragon and I know there are limits with you, and we both want to make you happy. Still, like anyone else, I'll slip up sometimes."

"I'm sure I will too. It's called being human. Or dragon-shifter, I suppose. Is there a word to encompass both?"

He smiled and kissed her nose. "You have the most random and interesting thoughts at times, Hayley. For that alone, I don't know how any male has resisted you for so long."

"Apparently, my quirks only charm dragons. One in particular, so far."

He cupped her cheek. "Well, you've charmed this dragon, and that's all that matters. It might've been at the first sight of your chocolate-smudged jeans and tea-stained cardigan."

"Now you're just being ridiculous."

"No. You were unapologetically you. There's something to be said about that."

"You're making me out to be far more confident than I am, but I'll take it."

"And what about me? Have I charmed you?"

"Hmm."

As she tapped her chin, he growled and kissed her. Hayley laughed before melting into the kiss.

His cock was hard again and he was tempted to claim his female, but then her stomach growled. After breaking the kiss, he moved down to kiss her soft belly. "This is charming, too."

She snorted. "Now you're just buttering me up. But I'm already a sure thing when it comes to you."

He blew a raspberry on her belly, and Hayley laughed.

Then Nathan couldn't resist claiming her mouth again. He licked and nibbled and all around reveled in her taste and heat.

When her legs wrapped around his waist, he broke the kiss to ask, "Are you sure?"

"I want one last time, nice and slow, before we get ready for the world again."

He slipped inside her and stilled. "You feel so fucking good, Hayley. How am I ever supposed to leave this cottage again?"

She hooked her hands around his neck. "Maybe I'll have to invest in a modern-day chastity belt, or neither of us will ever get anything done."

"Don't you fucking dare."

With a chuckle, Hayley rolled her hips. "I won't. Now, make love to me, Nathan. Simply because we want to, not because of instinct or mates or dragon-shifter magic."

"Well, I hate to break it to you, but you'll forever come when I do, love. That's here to stay."

"I'm not complaining. Now, claim me, dragonman."

And so he moved his hips as he kissed Hayley, taking time to merely enjoy his female, his future, his mate.