The P.J. Stone Gates Trilogy (#1-3) (92 page)

I leaned down and brought my face closer to my son’s. “What do you think? Is your name Liam?” He smiled up at me to which I took as a yes. Either that or the name Liam gave him gas. I was hoping it was the former.

“Well Liam.” Jenna cooed. “Thank you for being born now so your mom doesn’t have to look like a stuffed pig in her Maid of Honor dress.”

Oh my God—I was a mom. I was actually a mom. What if I sucked at being one? What if I ruined this perfect little guy’s life? Who was I to be a mom? I haven’t even figured my own life out yet. “Khol?” I swiveled my head up so he could see the panicked look in my eyes.

He bent down and kissed my forehead. “You’re going to be an amazing mother to our son. And I’ll be right here with you the entire time. We’ll raise him together.”

Just like usual, Khol knew the perfect thing to say to me to calm me down. He was right, he’d be there for me—for us. And even if I was the worst mom ever, well I had complete confidence in Khol’s parenting skills. After all he somehow managed to deal with both me and Jenna. “I love you.” I said as I continued to gaze into Khol’s eyes.

“Okay … so … is now a good time to talk about your Maid of Honor dress?” Jenna asked, interrupting the moment Khol and I were having. “Because I have the perfect idea for what we can dress wittle Liam in.” She baby talked the last part of her sentence.

“Seriously … Jenna … I just had my baby. It hasn’t even been like an hour yet. Can you please just back off for a little bit?”

Jenna pouted. “Yeah, I guess. I’m just excited, is all.”

“I know and I’m excited for you, too.” I said trying to placate her. “But you need to give me a few hours at least. Why don’t you come back later with Jeremy? He can visit with Khol and Liam while we talk wedding stuff.”

Jenna perked up again and smiled. “I’m gonna go check out lime green hair dye online in the meantime.” She got up and hurried towards the door. “See you all in a bit!”

“Hurricane Jenna has left the building.” I murmured in a singsong voice at Liam.

“You already are an amazing mother … to Jenna.” Khol chuckled. “See how wonderfully you handled her?”

Huh. Maybe Khol was right. “I’d never thought of it that way.” Just then my bracelet snagged on little Liam’s blanket that Khol had swaddled him in and I reached over to pull it off.

Khol beat me to it. “You still don’t remember where you got this bracelet?” He frowned as he studied it for the umpteenth time.

“No, so stop asking. Just leave it alone.” I had a sudden compulsion to cup my hand over the bracelet so Khol wouldn’t touch it.
Weird
. “Let’s go take little Liam around the castle—you know—give him a tour since I feel perfectly fine thanks to you.” I got up carefully from bed and handed Liam to Khol. “Let me just put some more clothes on.”

Khol accepted Liam with a smile. He gazed down at him with awe. “My son.” He whispered with reverence, and I couldn’t help the fresh smile that his reaction brought to my face. Every little boy should be so lucky to have a father who loved him as much as Khol. I stood there for a moment admiring the picture Khol and Liam created. Khol a huge muscular dragon in human form, his one hand alone almost enough to hold Liam’s whole body, his long auburn hair pulled back away from his face to expose his ruggedly carved features, his dragon green eyes casting a soft glow onto the tiny face of our son Liam … his fire red hair and pale face appearing angelic like in Khol’s arms. Father and son … both a contrast in similarities. There was no doubt of whose genetics combined with mine made Liam. I briefly wondered if he had gotten any part of my physical traits at all? His ears maybe? Oh well, I did love the way Khol looked so it wasn’t really a bad thing for my son to take after him.

Khol looked up at me and a small smile turned up the corners of his full succulent lips. He had to know what I was thinking. “I thought you were getting dressed?”

“I am … or I’m about to be.” I turned on my heel and practically bounced over to the closet. I glanced down at my toes. “So that’s what you look like, I almost forgot.” I chuckled to myself. I felt light, buoyant … happy. And then I remembered the dream or vision from just before I regained full consciousness and I frowned.

“Choose. But quickly, my magic will only hold you here for so long.” A strange voice said.

“You would still choose him over me?” Khol growled.

“No—you don’t understand!” I heard myself croak with desperation. “I still love him but
—”

“What’s wrong, my little Queen. What’s upset you?” Khol asked from directly behind me. He had Liam tucked inside his one arm and he reached out to caress my face with his empty hand.

“I’m suddenly tired is all.”
Lie! My mind shouted, just tell him
! But why hadn’t he seen or heard my vision like he usually did? Although I suppose he had been a little preoccupied … delivering Liam and using his magic to keep everything painless and perfect for me. I could tell he’d healed me too. I wasn’t even the tiniest bit sore and I’d just given birth.

“You should rest.” Khol suggested. “The tour can wait. You may be physically fine but you’ve been through a lot emotionally. And Jenna—”

“Yeah she won’t be put off about her wedding for long.” I sighed. I loved Jenna, really I did but she really was a force of nature to be reckoned with sometimes … okay most of the time … all of the time.

“Come.” Khol said as he carried Liam towards our bed. “We’ll all take a nap together.” He settled himself in the middle of our massive bed, Liam in his arms but slightly more to the side so that there was room for me to lie against his side.

I crawled back into bed and pressed my cheek into Khol’s chest while gazing at the wonder he held in his arms … Liam. “We made him.” I’d always thought new parents said the most ridiculous things but I had a new appreciation for why now.

Khol’s arm wrapped around me and he held me snug against him as he kissed the top of my head. “I never thought I could be so happy.” He sighed with contentment. “I have the two most important things in this entire world right here in my arms.”

As Khol’s breathing evened out letting me know that he was sleeping my own eyes stayed wide open from a niggling feeling of unease. I wished I could go back to being happy … I’d felt whole and complete for about all of five minutes. But I knew I wasn’t being paranoid or suffering from some kind of postpartum depression. No … there was something wrong in our world, or soon to be and I needed to figure out exactly what it was before it was too late.
If it’s not already
. Now why would I think that?

“Awe … you guys look so friggin’ adorable!” Jenna’s voice pierced into my subconscious.

“Jenna—I’m sleeping.” I mumbled with my eyes still closed. I snuggled closer to Khol whose arm tightened around me and I inhaled his intoxicating scent. What I really wanted was for Jenna to watch little Liam for a while so that Khol could get reacquainted with my post pregnancy body.

Khol stirred beneath me. “I’ll take care of Liam while you visit with Jenna.” His voice rumbled under my ear. “I’ll bathe and change him.”

I opened my eyes and rolled to the side so Khol could get out of bed with Liam. I watched with longing as the two most important men in my life made their way towards the bathroom. “But I don’t wanna miss his first bath!” I whined.

Khol glanced over his shoulder at me without breaking stride. “There’ll be plenty more.” With that he closed the door softly behind them.

“Liam doesn’t cry much.” Jenna observed. “And you’re so lucky to have a guy or dragon or whatever like Khol who wants to help take care of his child. Where can I get me one of those?”

I sat up and rubbed my sleep ladened eyes. “First of all—you had one of those—Macon. You were the one who threw him away. And secondly … aren’t you here to plan your wedding to Jeremy?”

Jenna grinned at me. “I was just sayin’.”

It was then that I noticed that she was carrying a bag that looked stuffed to the brim. Magazine corners and other unidentifiable things poked out of the top and pushed against the sides. “Sooo … what cha got in the bag?” I won’t lie, I was a tad worried.

Jenna walked over to the bed and unceremoniously dumped all of the bag’s contents out. Magazines, bottles of hair dye, color swatches, and other various things to help plan her wedding spewed onto the comforter.

I groaned. “How long is this going to take?”

Jenna’s face pinched with its intensity and she narrowed her brown eyes at me. “As long as it needs to.”

A little while later Khol shifted into the room with little Liam happily warbling in his arms. I was utterly exhausted from doing the whole wedding planning thing with Jenna, but at least she seemed satisfied with everything we’d picked out.

I reached out my arms so that Khol would give me Liam. Khol placed him within my embrace and pulled me into his as I leaned back into him. “Where’d my guys go?” I looked down at Liam whose eyes had fluttered shut almost as soon as he was in my arms. He snuggled against me and made a little baby noise … a coo or a garble …  I don’t know but it was cute.

“I was showing him our lands.” Khol said with pride. “I was showing him what one day would be his.”

“Hey!” I frowned. “The tour was my idea and you didn’t wait for me?”

Khol stroked his hand through my hair and down my back. “I was merely trying to help.”

I exhaled and let my annoyance drift away. “Yeah I know. I guess I’m really just annoyed that I had to spend the last couple of hours doing wedding stuff when all I really wanted to be with you guys.”

“Knock, knock!” Morag appeared out of thin air with a crib placed right in the center of our room. A gold encrusted totally ostentatious crib.
Damn dragons
and their thing for bling
. “I’m here to visit with the newest and definitely cutest little Red Dragon to have been born in a very long time.”

“I asked Morag to watch him for a bit while we have some alone time.” Khol whispered against my ear.

“But I’ve hardly gotten to spend any time with him myself.” I complained.

“I need some alone time with you.” Khol murmured and his hot breath caused tingles to run through my body. Okay maybe some alone time with Khol wasn’t such a bad idea. Having sensed my change in attitude, thanks to him, he got up, took sleeping Liam from my arms and handed him to Morag. She was beaming like the Cheshire cat at my son.

“Don’t worry, I’ve had plenty experience taking care of baby dragons.”

“I wasn’t really worried until you told me not to be worried.” I grumbled. Khol swept me up in his arms and I laughed. “Okay … eager much?”

“There’s something I want to do with you.” Khol said as he shifted us out of our room.

When Khol had said that there was something he wanted to do with me, my first thoughts had obviously been sex related. I mean the man without fail made my blood boil with desire, but when I noticed that our new scenery was a large open field I became confused. Unless Khol wanted to get busy outside or something? I was game if he was. Khol had opened me up to a world of sexual exploration that I never could have imagined myself. Of course we had been somewhat limited while I was pregnant but now—

“My little Queen,” Khol growled against my temple. “I didn’t bring you here for that but I can be persuaded to change my mind with ease.” He set me on my feet and I leaned into him, my hands curled into his shirt.

I raised an eyebrow at him. “Then why are we here?”

“You asked me some time ago about my other form—my dragon form. It’s time you saw it.”

My heart sped up and my muscles tensed with anxiety. Was I really ready for this? “Khol—” I started.

He brought his index finger up to quiet me. “It’s who I am—who you are—who our son is. You need to embrace this part of you. Why are you so afraid?”

I hung my head. “I don’t know—I guess it kind of feels like if I embrace that part of me then I’ll truly lose all of my humanity. I mean I know I’m a dragon, but I still mostly think of myself as human. I’m afraid of what it will mean if I don’t have that anymore.”