Chapter Thirteen

Nelson

Practice makes perfect, a saying from the outer-world. And we did practice. A lot. But no amount of practice made me one hundred percent ready to go through with the mating ceremony, to commit to the Enchanted Forest, and allow my body to change in order to carry a baby or babies.

After some pleading from me, Holden convinced Ahmed to appoint a second security officer so they could trade off in rotation. I didn't want to have a baby with Holden if he was on call all the time. With the new arrangement, when Holden was on duty, I went to Walter's to help him with his new son and with the other two children. When I finally decided I wanted to commit my body to the Enchanted Forest, the experience would be good practice for raising my own children. In the meantime, Holden and I got to know each other better. He liked sex shortly after waking up, while I preferred it right before going to sleep. He yearned for the quietness of our home or the pond, but I would suck him off in the village if we had a tree to hide behind. He liked a lot of kissing while I rode his cock, and while I enjoyed that, too, I liked to use my mouth in many other ways. I praised him for being a principled lover, never leaving me to finish on my own as past lovers had in the outer-world.

I knew I wanted to be his mate. I had no doubt. It was becoming a parent that terrified me. Raising a child proved terrifying enough as part of a community, let alone being the person with the most responsibility in rearing one. I hadn't grown up even entertaining the idea, simply impossible for a man to get pregnant in my world. I became more and more comfortable with the concept, until one day, as I held Walter's baby, Joseph, in my arms, I decided I was ready.

When Holden met me that evening after his shift, I stopped him before we took the route to our home. "Let's go to the village. I want to see Banir."

His eyebrows quickly knit together as if angry and confused until they lifted into his forehead when he finally understood my meaning. "You're ready?"

I nodded. "Yep, I want to officially be your mate and have your children."