Chapter 24: Charity

Chapter Twenty-Four

Charity

T he next several days are pure chaos. There’s much discussion about where we’ll live, along with many calls from The Den. They’ve been a little lost without me, but I do think I’ll go back at least part time once the baby is born.

With how much my mates have been hovering, a few hours at The Den might be just what the doctor ordered. The few hours in Faere seem to have had the effect of days passing in the human realm—at least on my baby bump. Then again, I only carried Veryn’s egg for a month, so a few days of growth was significant, from what I remember.

Not that I’m particularly complaining about being waited on hand and foot. It’s kind of a dream come true, considering how tired and run down I’ve been feeling.

Meena and Nadia stop by to check on me and the baby, but with how protective Bane and Eldritch are, I’m surprised they allow them into the house.

Luckily, Athos has kept his wits, because the other two have been a little over the top with their instincts to protect me and the nest.

Nadia moves back to sit on her feet as she kneels at my side, shaking out her hands. “Everything feels good to me.” She shrugs, and her dark hair falls around her shoulders. “Would you like to know the gender?”

Meena chuckles. “I can hear the angry dragon stomping our way. If you intend to find out, you should do it quickly.”

My eyes widen, but I nod before I can stop myself. I love Bane to pieces, and if he wants to be surprised, I will do everything in my power to ensure he doesn’t accidentally find out. But I know from experience that, once I’m holding my egg, my brain will obsess and wonder until it hatches.

Nadia snorts, getting very close to my ear. “This one is a girl.”

My heart races.

Holy shit.

A baby girl.

I’ll be able to put her in dresses and little bows in her hair. Even paint her nails once she’s old enough.

I bite my lip to keep from squealing.

The door to the room the nest is housed in flies open, and Bane barrels inside. “Woman, tell me you didn’t.”

My head shakes as I try to hold back the laugh. “I won’t tell you. Does that work?”

Bane’s head tilts, and his eyes darken. “Is the baby healthy?”

“Perfectly healthy,” Meena says.

He nods, swiping a hand over his face. “That’s all that matters.”

Athos sees Meena and Nadia out as Bane watches me carefully. His white T-shirt stretches to capacity over his strong chest as he prowls closer.

“Let me see the belly.” Bane smirks, crawling on the end of the nest mattress.

“It’s not any more pronounced than it was this morning.” I laugh, pulling my dress up, anyway. “Wait, what time is it?”

“Veryn has another forty-five minutes with Mrs. Segar,” my dragon growls, planting his palms on either side of my calves and crawling up. “He’s going to be the most educated dragon there ever was. In Faere, they barely taught us to read, but that old bat is incredibly thorough with her lessons. Which is good. It gives us a solid thirty minutes to spare.”

I chuckle, shaking my head. “She’ll throw a shoe at you if she ever hears you call her that.”

Bane rubs his hand over the slight swell in my lower stomach. “Hey, I like Mrs. Segar. She’s tough as nails, and she doesn’t take any shit. She’s basically me in five hundred years.”

My nose wrinkles, because I’m not sure I’m ready for my sexy dragon to turn into our slipper-and-robe-wearing neighbor, but Bane steals all the thoughts from my mind with a tender, but awe-inspiring, kiss.

His huge palm grazes over my bare belly as he growls against my lips. “You’ve got no idea what knowing that you’re carrying our child does to me.” His hard cock grinds against my leg, and I chuckle.

I absolutely do know.

All three of them are feral for the baby belly.

“I love you,” Bane murmurs, running his other hand over the top of my head.

“I love you too,” I assure him.

This entire experience is different from carrying Veryn. Back then, I didn’t want to leave the house, but I was still working in the human realm. Once I had the egg to take care of, I lost that job pretty fast, but it was truly a blessing in disguise, as it’s what led me to seek out other supernaturals.

One of the few things my mother told me before leaving was about sanctuary cities. And when Veryn was born with wings and a tail, I knew I needed to find one, stat.

“I’m really happy I found you,” I whisper, pulling my hands up to run through his beard.

Bane gives me a sly little smile. “Good. Remember that when you hate me while you’re pushing.”

I snort.

He really doesn’t have much of a filter, but for some reason, my screwed-up system finds that adorable.

“I know it’s quick, but thank you for accepting my egg,” Bane says with a tenderness to his tone that makes me melty inside.

“I’m excited too,” I admit.

“I feel like it might be a mistake to admit it now, but everything happened so quickly that I never had a chance to explain…” His head shakes, making his messy black hair fall over his forehead.

If the look on his face didn’t tell me how uncomfortable he is, then his misery radiating in the bond would. “It’s okay. Whatever it is?—”

He cuts me off, saying, “The night I planted the egg, I heard from my sources that there were scouts in the human realm. I had no idea they’d made it into Haven, but I knew they would make a move soon. There was also no way to anticipate how Norah would react.” His brow furrows as he studies my face. “By dragon law, she couldn’t call for your life if you were carrying a child. It gave you added protection, but thinking about it now, I can understand it might seem underhanded. There was also the fact we needed to find a way to bring your quickening to an end before it started. None of us could risk being hazy and out of it with what was coming. Conception halts the symptoms.”

I hum, running my fingers over the back of his neck. “I wondered about that. It really did end abruptly, but I attributed it to my fear. I’m not angry with you for making difficult decisions in the heat of the moment.”

“Really?” He eyes me suspiciously, and I laugh.

“Truly. Thank you for bringing my son home safely.”

“Veryn is mine,” Bane growls. “Just as much as the new baby will be. Both belong to all your mates equally.”

I smile like a total goofball. “It’s nice to hear you include Eldritch and Athos.”

“Yeah, well, they’re here to stay,” he grumbles, brushing his nose against mine. “We’re all one big happy family for as long as djinn live…”

My jaw falls as I realize matebonds tend to tie longevity to the longest living member.

Holy shit.

I’ve worried a lot about what would happen to Veryn once I was gone, but I’m immortal now too.

I’m going to kiss the hell out of my djinn just as soon as he pops up.