CHAPTER FOURTEEN | Present Time

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

Present Time

brIANNA PLACED THE bowl of popcorn under her nose, and Kate shook her head.

“Sofi?” Bri asked, passing it the other way.

“ Grazie ,” Sofia said, taking a handful of the salty snack.

The three of them were sitting on her bed, leaning up against the enormous headboard watching Netflix. Bridgerton , to be exact.

“You know, I’m kind of jealous you guys lived during this period. The dresses are gorgeous,” Bri sighed.

Kate snorted.

“They weren’t that bright and colorful in real life. Nor did we have the modern plumbing for regular bathing we have now. Trust me, toilets back then, and those dresses...just no.”

Sofia nodded knowingly while Brianna screwed her nose up.

Kate ran her hand over her belly. The baby was less active, a sign she’d been told meant labor was close. She knew it would be soon, but whether that was minutes, hours, or days, she wasn’t sure. She was hoping their little vamp would wait at least a few more hours.

“Didn’t you meet Vincent in the eighteen hundreds?” Bri asked.

“Yes. In England.” She nodded, remembering back to the most difficult and beautiful time in her life. “The king took his time realizing he was my mate, though, but we eventually got together. Obviously.”

“Did he woo you? Like all Sense and Sensibility? Mr. Darcy? It must have been sooooo romantic in those days,” Brianna gushed, all but swooning as she sat on the bed next to her.

“No.” Kate snorted. “Honestly, you females need to stop watching this romantic fiction nonsense. No male can live up to it.”

“You’re not wrong.” Sofia laughed. “Life was not as glamorous back then as the TV shows make them out to be. The men were definitely not gentlemen, even if they dressed the part.”

They shared a knowing glance.

“Nope. I love it,” Brianna said stubbornly. Kate wasn’t surprised. Bri was a terrible romantic, and Kate wondered for the millionth time how on earth Craig had won the female’s heart. Clearly, he was a big teddy bear behind closed door.

Kate grinned to herself. No damn way. He probably had a magic cock.

“Come on, you’re no pushover, Kate. How did Vincent win your heart?”

It was strange thinking back to that time. Most of the people in the royal household had been around when they had been courting, for want of a better word, and were reasonably familiar with what had taken place. It had been a painful time, losing her parents and waiting for Vincent to realize he loved her and finally accept she was his mate.

“He did it in his own way,” she answered. “And most definitely in his own time.”

And just in time.

Sofia turned and tucked her feet underneath her. “I heard he nearly lost you. Is that true?”

Kate nearly gave her automated answer. Vincent was the king, and their life was private, but these females were family. Even if Sofia was a new addition, they had grown close, and she valued their friendship. Plus, she was feeling very emotional and hormonal with this bundle of arms and legs inside her.

Vincent’s child.

Once upon a time, Kate had thought she would never see him again, let alone be carrying his child. The heir to the Moretti throne.

She shook her head.

“Yes, and I nearly lost him,” she said, traces of the sadness from long ago creeping into her voice. “It was a terrible time. Vincent had just taken the throne after losing his parents, and a male who fancied himself my mate showed up to tell me mine had been tragically killed.”

Brianna gasped. “Oh, God. I’m so sorry. I never wondered where your parents were. Is that bad?”

Kate smiled at the female and patted her leg.

“No. You’ve had a lot of changes and sadness in your own life, Brianna. This happened a long time ago. You are always caring about others.”

Brianna chewed on her lip, and Kate knew she’d be kicking herself for days over it. There was nothing anyone could do or say. People processed things in their own way. She smiled at her again, and Brianna nodded. “Okay. Still, I’m sorry.”

“So what happened?” Sofia asked. “Did Vincent beat the bad guy up and save the girl?”

“Huh! These movies are getting to you, too.” Brianna laughed.

Sofia giggled.

“No, I’m just mated to an alpha male and have seen them all in action. Namely your Craig. My God, that male is intimidating when another male comes near you.”

“I know. It’s so hot.” Brianna grinned.

Kate laughed. They were all familiar with Craig’s growls and snarls around his mate. He was very close to his inner predator, and it was why he was the commander of their army.

“Here.” Kate reached over and grabbed the framed photo from her bedside cabinet. It was small. A surprise gift from the king, as color photography was very new in the 1890s and a great luxury. She remembered the day. It had been her birthday, and her first without her parents. They were due to leave for America the next day. An emotional moment, but it was, looking back, the start of her new life. A happier life. One she had thought would never happen.

She handed Brianna the photograph.

“This was several months after we mated, in England. Your king did finally realize I was his mate, but just in the nick of time, as they say in your movies.”

“Holy shit. Vincent has teeth. Did you know he had teeth? He’s smiling,” Brianna teased. “But seriously, all jokes aside, he looks so happy.”

“Oh, girl, I know he has teeth, trust me.” Kate laughed.

“TMI, TMI,” Brianna said, holding out her palm. “God, it’s like hearing my parents talk about sex. Nope, nope, nope.”

Kate burst out laughing.

She took the photo back and looked at it again. While they all looked around the same age—because vampires—Brianna wasn’t wrong; Vincent did look happy. They had both found their happily ever after.

Eventually.

“Okay, ladies, you need to help me get this damn gown on. We need to glam up for this dinner.”

“Only if I can try on your crown,” Bri said, jumping off the bed.

Nope.

Nobody wore her crown. She had worked way too hard to win the heart of her king to share it for even a second.

Sofia sent her a knowing smile. Kate winked at her. There was something about the female. It was as if her suffering had made her incredibly intuitive. She just seemed to sense things without words needing to be spoken. Kate liked that about her very much.

As the two females helped her get off the bed, Kate focused back on the present time. God, she was looking forward to getting this baby vamp out of her.

And becoming a mother at last.