Chapter 13

CHAPTER 13

Giza

I was…almost happy.

November was more than half over, and life was busy. In the two weeks since the election, Sakkara had accepted his new role and was preparing to take his oath as mayor. My friends each had their assignments for the Kap'paral , and we'd received word that Tanis and his Mate Olivia would return to Eastshore in time for the celebration.

And I couldn't deny I was delighted, every day, by Harper's presence in my home and my life.

It still amazed me that the goddess had found a Mate who so perfectly matched me. She was younger than I might have expected, but she valued the same things I did. We spent our evenings playing games or debating national politics—which could get quite heated and more than once ended up with us in the bedroom.

I even taught her to knit, and while I was making a scarf for her, I was fairly certain the lumpy gray thing she was making was a scarf for me .

Yes, in the fortnight since I'd confessed my past to her, and claimed her as my own, I could say life with Harper—and our unborn kit—was good.

But…

Not perfect.

"You're frowning again."

My head jerked up from where I'd been staring, unseeing, at the legal pad in front of me filled with my scratchy handwriting. Sakkara was watching from his place at the picnic table, looking vaguely amused, and Luxor—the youngest of our cohort, and by far the most outgoing—grinned hugely at my distraction. As usual.

"Geez always frowns," he quipped, his hands behind his head as he reclined on the chaise on Sakkara's back deck. "The constant frowning is part of his charm."

"No it's not," I immediately shot back.

"It's not a constant frown," Sakkara asked mildly, "or it's not charming."

Bah . "I don't always frown . "

Sakkara nodded to the paper in my hands. "I doubt you were thinking of the menu, though."

I was leaning against the railing of his deck, finalizing my shopping list, while Sakkara worked on his laptop and Luxor… well, honestly, his main goal in life seemed to be to bug us. Emmy was playing with one of her friends on the backyard play gym Sakkara had installed, and we were nominally supervising.

"I'll have you know I was considering if I could find a dressed bkarn in time, or if I should just buy venison on the mainland."

Most of the animals and plants I'd grown up with were native to this world as well, with a few exceptions we'd discovered had gone extinct because of human habitat encroachment. But the traditional methods of hunting and preparing meat had mostly been replaced with farming and herding.

Luxor snorted. "That wasn't what you were thinking about. You were thinking about your Mate, and you're not happy about it. But I think you should just go to the store, Geez, and grab the meat there. It'll taste the same once you smother it in all that challamak sauce."

He had a point. "Don't call me Geez," I muttered instinctively, making a note on my list. "And what makes you think you know what I am or am not happy about?"

"It's not Harper," he shot right back, lowering his arms to shake one finger at me. "Your Mating Heat isn't as bad as mine was, but you haven't claimed her yet, have you?"

I glanced toward the yard, to make certain the girls were far enough away that they couldn't hear. "I have."

Lux snorted as Sakkara blurted, "Really?"

I scowled at both of them. "Yes, of course. She's carrying my kit!"

Sakkara rolled his eyes. "There's more to claiming your Mate than just spilling inside her, Giza."

As if I didn't know that.

I could have continued to deny things, or jump around the truth, but why bother? Luxor, despite being two decades younger, had found his Mate a few months back, and Sakkara…well, I respected his opinion.

So I sighed. "Harper hasn't told me her decision."

"Ah." Sakkara slowly closed his laptop. "So there's a chance she'll leave Eastshore at the end of this month? Or the end of the year at the latest? Your shop and new life are here."

As if I didn't know. "Yeah, but her life is on the mainland. She worked hard to build that, D'malk , and she has everything she needs there."

My friend's slow nod was full of sadness, as if Harper's decision was foregone. "Then we will miss you."

Because he knew, as well as any of us, that if she decided to leave Eastshore, I would follow her.

"But she's happy here," blurted Lux. "Even I can see that!"

"Yes," I agreed softly, dropping my attention to my list and menu once more, although I didn't really see it. "But I can't tell her that. She hasn't even accepted…"

Fuck, I hadn't meant to admit that, but from the way Lux winced, he'd guessed.

"She hasn't accepted you're Mated? She's stubborn, huh?"

Immediately I jumped to defend my female. "She is stubborn because she has to be. She's brilliant and motivated too. Do you realize how tough it is to make partner in a law firm at her age? And she bought her own home and—"

"Easy, brother," Sakkara cautioned, patting the air in front of him, his expression calming, but a hint of laughter in his dark eyes. "We weren't disparaging her. It's clear you love her. But how does she feel about you?"

Hells. "I don't know," I sighed.

"Stubborn," muttered Lux cheerfully.

Harper wasn't stubborn, she was perfect . Perfect for me, perfect for Eastshore. She loved the island, and there was a job waiting for her…but it meant giving up everything she'd worked for, and I couldn't ask that.

So this harvest festival would be Eastshore Isle's first—and last—traditional Kap'paral . Because next year I'd be camped out on her condo's porch, waiting for her to let me be part of the life she would share with my son .

As if thinking had conjured her, I heard Harper's voice. "Hello? Anyone home?"

Sakkara's brow twitched, then he bellowed, "We're around back!" and a moment later, Harper let herself through the gate, beaming happily and holding a thick folder.

"Hi, Emmy!" She waved to the two little girls on the swings. "Getting your sunshine in, huh? And this is..." She tapped her finger against her chin as she considered the second girl. "Wait, don't tell me. Your friend's name is Phillipa? Megan? Jazantapus?"

Both little ones dissolved into laughter at the silly guess, and the other girl shook her head. "I'm Tova!"

Harper nodded happily. "Hi Tova, I'm Harper."

Emmy didn't speak, but it was good to see her playing and communicating so readily. Eastshore was a good home for her. A good home for all of us.

"Hi guys," Harper greeted as she stepped up onto the deck. "Sakkara, I brought those files you asked me to look at." She plopped them down on the picnic table near him. "I made notations, and it should be pretty obvious, but text me if something doesn't make sense."

"Thank you, Harper." Sakkara looked relieved as he pulled the folder closer. "You have no idea how much I appreciate you looking over these contracts for me."

"No problem, happy to help!" She was beaming when she turned to me, and gods below, her smile made my heart light. "What are you working on, hot stuff?"

I opened my arms to her, and she rested against my side, her cheek on my shoulder.

She fit here, fit perfectly. Her stomach had grown—it felt as if she'd almost doubled in two weeks!—and when she pressed against me like this, I could feel my son inside her .

"The shopping list for the Kap'paral ," I told her. "If you want to add your ingredients for the sides we're making for your sister's Thanksgiving, we can get them at the same time."

We'd decided to host Kap'paral in the nature preserve the weekend before Thanksgiving, to correspond with the full moon, and the timing of the shopping trips was a little inconvenient.

But her attention was on my list, and she didn't look happy.

"Where are the onion straws? And the mushroom soup? You're going to need at least six cans for that many green beans. And probably just as many onion straws."

Onion straws? "Six?"

"Six cans, " she clarified. "It's okay, Meli already said she wasn't doing a casserole for Thanksgiving."

I had no idea what she was talking about, and peered closer at the list, as if that would make it clearer. "For what?"

She tapped the paper. "For the green bean casserole. You're going to cook them in the oven, right?"

"Uh… I think you and I might have a different definition of roasted green beans."

"And you forgot the potatoes." She tapped the paper again, then lifted her gaze to mine. "We're doing mashed for Thanksgiving, so you should go with au gratin."

I was staring at her, my mind racing…and then it clicked.

Harper was speaking about her way of cooking the foods I had planned for the Kap'paral menu. Picking my words carefully, I slowly hazarded, "You prefer your green beans with onions and mushroom soup?"

Her eyes widened.

"Oh holy shit, Giza, I'm sorry. Is this an orc thing? You cook them differently?" She winced then shook her head. "What am I saying? Of course you cook your food differently. And you don't have potatoes on the menu because they don't grow around here, so of course you wouldn't have them. This isn't Thanksgiving, this is Kap'paral , and you're making traditional recipes—"

"No!" I interrupted. I caught her hand. "I mean, yes, dkaar . This is a traditional meal, the same as Thanksgiving is for your people. But we're not in our world any longer, and many of us here on Eastshore Isle have been lucky enough to find human Mates. That's what we're celebrating this year."

"And humans like potatoes," Luxor called out unhelpfully.

But my Mate was shaking her head. "I shouldn't have said anything. This is your meal—"

"Don't be silly." I gently squeezed her hand. "My Mate is human, and I trust her. There will be more humans than orcs at this festival, and I want them to be comfortable. Will you help me choose some dishes that will go well with the traditional menu and will make them feel at ease?"

I could see her mind working behind those lovely hazel eyes, but finally she nodded. "If you're certain that's okay."

"It's more than okay; I am ashamed I didn't think of it earlier," I confessed. "Thank you for bringing it to my attention."

I felt her relax. "Well okay then. We can discuss it in the car." One of her fingers dug into my side. "You didn't forget about this afternoon's appointment, did you?"

Smiling, I leaned down to brush a kiss over her brow. "You mean my first chance to hear my son's heartbeat? I was awake all night in anticipation."

She snorted and pulled away. "Yes, I know . You kept me awake too, remember?" Judging from the twinkle in her eye, and the way she'd screamed my name last night, she hadn't minded.

Behind us, Luxor started chuckling like the infant he was.

Sakkara, though, was smiling. "Have fun, you two. Let us know everything went well?"

I nodded. "Yes, D'malk . My son is healthy, he'll be well." I shot a glare at Lux. "Be good, T'mak ."

"I'm always good!"

Harper snaked her arm through mine. "Come on, I have the car out front. I'll drive to the ferry, you take notes?"

And off I went, happy to allow my Mate to lead me wherever she wanted.

Harper

I think Giza was more nervous than I was. This was his first visit to the OBGYN, after all.

Hmm. Maybe you ought to make him climb up there in the stirrups and tell him to scoot down, scoot down and then shove cold duck lips up his hoo-ha, to give him the full experience .

The idea had merit, if only to make me giggle-snort, even if I was very aware he didn't have a hoo-ha.

"Is it always this cold?" he muttered, glaring around the room.

He sat by my side, holding my hand tightly, and I nudged him playfully with my shoulder. "You're not the one wearing a paper gown."

His response was immediate. He lifted me into his lap and wrapped his arms around me. "Better? "

I'd stiffened at first but had to admit I was warm. He'd seen a problem and fixed it.

Maybe that's the problem .

Yeah, I suppose it was. I'd spent a lifetime solving my own problems, and it was weird as hell to have a big strong man around to take care of them all the time. Did I want that?

That was the question. And it was the reason I hadn't been able to make up my mind about Giza…No, that's not true. I'd made up my mind about Giza; I loved him and wanted to be with him. I wanted to raise this baby with him.

But I wasn't sure if I was happy about that. If I was happy about giving up the life I'd built on my own.

The doctor knocked on the door before entering, but I didn't bother sliding guiltily to my own chair. I was cold, after all.

"Hello, Ms. O'Donnell, glad to see you looking so cozy."

I refused to be embarrassed, and instead pushed myself to my feet. "Doctor Robertson, this is Giza. He's my…"

The older woman offered Giza—who had also stood—her hand. "Baby daddy, I hope." She winked at me. "Because if you're already cozy enough with another orc male, I'm going to be impressed."

Ah. Now I was embarrassed.

Giza, of course, could tell. He wrapped an arm around my waist and growled at the doctor, "She's my Mate."

The OB wasn't fazed and just nodded happily before bustling toward the ultrasound station. "And as soon as Harper became my patient, I studied the hell out of orcish culture, so I actually know what that means." She sent us both a grin over her shoulder. "And may I say how very happy I am for both of you? "

This seemed to placate Giza, because he relaxed, then nodded respectfully and grumbled, "Thank you."

"Yeah," I added weakly. "Thanks."

"Well, hop on up here, Harper, and let's check out this baby of yours. There's been a lot of growth." She was eyeing my stomach speculatively. "And my colleagues are anxious for more data." As she and Giza helped me up on the table, she reminded us, "Everything is being recorded, per the documents you shared, and the data will be vital in the future."

Giza stopped her with his hand out, his brows drawn in. "What do you mean? Her medical data—"

"It's okay, honey," I interrupted. "I approved it."

Doctor Robertson was nodding. "With the human-orc pairings happening around here, we're expecting there to be more mixed-species pregnancies in the future. Your Mate's willingness to allow herself to be monitored and measured and assessed means we'll be able to better serve those mothers."

He still didn't look convinced, so I reached over and took his hand. "I'm sorry I didn't ask you first if that was okay." I hadn't even told him about the pregnancy until long after my first OBGYN visit.

But he blinked, then shook his head and bent to give me a kiss. "It is your body, your decision, dkaar . I was just surprised."

I didn't release his hand as I settled back and allowed the doctor to examine me…complete, yep, with the scoot down, scoot down and the lubed-up rubber glove. She prodded and pushed and hmmmm'd a lot but seemed pleased.

"Okay, let's fire up the ultrasound and take some measurements. I'm going to call one of my colleagues to take notes, okay? "

The first time our child's heartbeat appeared on the screen, I heard Giza suck in a breath. He leaned closer, and Doctor Robertson seemed to understand, because she moved the gooey wand over the baby's heart again.

"Strong heartbeat," she murmured. "The baby looks healthy, all the vitals in the right spot. Just a lot bigger than what we expected."

"He is half orc," Giza muttered distractedly, wide gaze still on the screen showing the squirming little kitling inside me.

The doctor began to take her measurements, calling out different lengths and guesses, and inviting her colleague—a young man who kept shooting Giza appreciative glances—to confirm. The two of them seemed pleased with whatever they were talking about, and I sent Giza a secret smile.

He was still staring raptly at the ultrasound of our child.

I knew what this meant to him. Not just that he was going to be a father, but that he was helping to ensure the future of his race. In the last two weeks, we'd spoken more about our pasts. I told him all about Simon and my decision to spend my life on my own, and he'd told me much more about the world in which he'd grown up.

Orc females were rare, which meant the species was dying. By coming into our world, Giza and his friends had gained the chance at Mates. And now? Children.

I squeezed his hand, and he turned to grin down at me.

"Thank you, Harper," he whispered, lifting my hand to his lips. "Thank you for caring and nurturing our kit."

I blushed, not sure how to respond. No problem seemed flippant, and I couldn't have chosen a better male to accidentally knock me up seemed too personal. And I wasn't ready to admit I love you, Mate .

Not yet .

But the two doctors chose that moment to straighten, then smiled. "Yep," Doctor Robertson announced, moving the wand over my belly, "no doubt about it. She might be a little bigger than expected, but she's a healthy baby."

I felt my chest squeeze at the same moment Giza rasped, " She ?"

The older doctor's grin grew. "You're having a little girl."

Giza sat down, hard .

It's a good thing there was a chair behind him, because he went down as if his knees had gone out, and since he was still holding my hand, I almost rolled off the bed. His eyes were wide in shock, staring at nothing.

I squeezed his hand and shot the doctors an amused glance. "We were expecting a boy."

"Clearly," Doctor Robertson muttered dryly. "I hope this isn't bad news?"

"I don't think it is."

"A daughter," Giza rasped, his eyes filling with tears as he slowly lifted his gaze to mine. "By all the gods of the ancestors, you're carrying our daughter ?"

What was all that? About the continuation of the species? How much more incredible must it be to Giza to know his child would be female ?

"Well, I guess on that note, I ought to let you get dressed," the doctor announced too cheerfully. "We'll leave you be, and pop out when you're ready for the consult, okay?"

I barely saw the two of them bustle out because I was focused on Giza.

"Are you okay, honey?" I prompted when the door shut behind them.

"A daughter," he repeated.

Then, in a sudden movement, he stood and reached for me. Ignoring the goop all over my stomach, he pulled me from the bed and wrapped himself around me, pulling me into his arms as he stumbled toward the chair once more.

"I have a daughter," he whispered against my hair, and I heard the tears in his voice.

"You do." I pressed my cheek against his chest, my smile a little watery. "We do."

"Thank you, Harper. Thank you so much."

"Well…" It was difficult to shrug, but I did. "You helped a bit at the beginning."

He pulled away abruptly so he could press his forehead to mine. "No, I mean, thank you for carrying her. For allowing me to be a part of your—her—life, no matter how briefly. Just knowing she's out there in the world will make my life worthwhile."

Holy shit. He was talking as if…

As if I was going to take this baby— his baby—and leave.

Go back to my own life.

Well, why wouldn't he think that? You haven't told him that you're seriously considering the job offer from Sakkara on Eastshore, have you? Or that you've been second-guessing your decision not to rent out your condo. Or that you don't really want to go back to your lonely life where you had to do everything yourself .

It was so easy to imagine a future on Eastshore. Imagine us—the three of us—together. Now that I knew my baby was a girl, I could so easily picture her father pinning a bow in her hair or carrying her on his shoulders as she grew. I could picture Christmases and Kap'parals , the three of us together. I could picture school open houses and dance recitals.

It wasn't until my breath caught on a sob that I realized I was crying.

"What are you thinking about, dkaar ?" he murmured .

"I don't want…" to lose that . But I couldn't seem to make the words come. "To leave this."

"Then don't," he whispered, his breath caressing my cheeks. "Stay. Let me stay with you. Both of you. Let me be part of your lives. Please, Harper."

I buried my face in his chest and cried.

I wasn't sure why.

Stupid hormones.