Chapter Twenty-One

Iris

I couldn’t believe I had asked them to take a bath with me. Who does that? They were not my lovers, not yet, and I wasn’t asking them to be at this point. I was just so shaken by the attempted break-in. It was Killian or at the very least, one of his minions. Having not seen the person, I couldn’t say which for sure. But if it wasn’t him, he couldn’t be far behind.

Nix and Keir went in to run the bath for me while I undressed in the bedroom and put on a robe. They were giving me privacy, although I’d be naked in the water in a minute. But everything they did was so kind and helpful. It made Killian look worse every time. The scent of lavender and vanilla floated out to me as I tied the robe with its belt and went into the bathroom.

The tub was really huge and filled to the brim with water and mountains of bubbles. Keir eased my robe off my shoulders, and Nix took my hand to help me step into the warm water. I settled, the bubbles rising to cover me up to my shoulders. I slid even lower, loving the silky warmth. The dragons sat on the floor beside the tub and chatted with me while I let the heat suck all the tension out of my painfully tight muscles. Their presence was just as good at helping me relax as the tub, though, and if I’d had to pick either the bath or the guys, the luxurious tub would have lost for sure.

After I soaked for a while, they helped me to wash, moving a soapy sponge over my skin with care and kindness, never making me feel like a sex object or anything but a person they cared about. Then they both took my hands to help me out and wrapped me in a big, fluffy towel. They guided me back into the bedroom and turned away while I dressed in comfortable pajama shorts and the matching top.

Then we went downstairs together to make dinner. As we all chopped vegetables at the counter, Nix said, “We don’t want to let you out of our sight, as long as you are in danger, but it’s very important that you don’t feel confined or that we are stalking you or anything else like that. After your previous relationship, it would not be at all surprising if you didn’t believe anything we said. But we are not in any kind of hurry. You are worth waiting for.”

“Do you like spaghetti?” Keir asked. “We can do a quick sauce and I think we have lots of salad greens, too.”

“That sounds great, but isn’t it a lot of trouble?” Spaghetti was one of my favorite meals, but I remembered my mom taking hours to make the sauce.

“It’s a pleasure to have someone to cook for.” Nix opened the fridge and started taking things out. “Ground meat, onion, herbs. Keir, want to find the canned tomatoes? We can have this sauce simmering in ten minutes and then eat half an hour later. It won’t have the depth of flavor of an all-day sauce, but it’s pretty good.”

“Then just tell me what to do to help.”

They piled dark-green romaine, a head of pale, tender butter lettuce, a fat red tomato, and a few scallions in front of me. “You can be the salad chef.” Nix turned back toward the stove.

I’ll need a knife and cutting board, a bowl, and the ingredients for my secret salad dressing. Do you mind if I make myself at home and find everything? I did pretty well when I was making breakfast.”

“This is your home. Go for it, Iris.” Keir was busy opening cans of San Marzano tomatoes. “Would you mind chopping some garlic for the sauce while you’re at it?”

Of course I didn’t mind. It was so pleasant cooking together, another thing that had never happened in my prior life. I had worked then come home to do all the cooking. With the skimpy budget Killian allowed, I struggled to make edible meals, and if you’d asked me if I liked cooking at the time, I’d have said no. It was just one more miserable thing to do. And generally he hated my food, even threw it against the wall once because he wanted steak but had only given me a hot-dog budget.

My dressing was my mother’s recipe, something I’d never made for Killian but wanted to for these guys. It was only a simple vinaigrette, but I hoped they would like it. When it was all done, we took seats and dug in.

“Is it weird that since I have been pregnant my appetite is so much larger? I mean, I know the eating-for-two thing, but I think I’ve tripled my former portions. I’m going to be as big as a house!”

Keir set down his fork and fixed me with a stern stare. “You are beautiful no matter what size, but consider that it’s not just a human baby you are carrying, but one of the largest varieties of shifter. That cub already has an appetite, and you are feeding your baby just as you should. I don’t see any signs of you being unhealthily overweight. But the healer will be able to give you all that information to set your mind at ease.”

“Also, we don’t like anyone disparaging our female,” Nix added.

I giggled. “Okay, okay. More spaghetti please. I can’t have a hungry cub growling in there.”

After we finished eating, the guys took me around and showed me how to operate the security system with all its defensive features. Next week, they were having a gate installed that would drop from the ceiling at the top of the stairs. I started to ask if it was necessary but then laid a hand on my belly and recognized that it was. With Killian around, there were no measures too strong.