Page 51 of Destined Paranormals: Volume One

I nodded, then closed my eyes as Aleric kissed my forehead. He went back to washing my hair, then helped me rinse it with clean water that had been sitting on top of the little wood stove. I spent a little more time in the tub before the day caught up with me, and I started to yawn while my eyes became heavy.

“Come, let’s get you out and ready for bed. You have had a full day, and tomorrow I will ask that you take it easy and allow Da to do the majority of the cooking. He and Wil are spending a lot of time together, and since neither of them are with child, I would think it easier for them.”

I snorted. “I’m sure. I promise I will stay put and relax. I need a day of not doing much.”

Aleric dried me, then helped me brush out my curls before he slid the shirt over my head for me. I let Aleric lead me to our room, where he helped me into our bed. After he covered me with the blanket, he once more kissed my forehead.

“I’ll be back in just a moment.”

I nodded. I knew he needed to turn out the lanterns and make sure the fireplace was secure. I lay there, staring into the darkness, until my mate returned to me just moments later. When he slid in behind me, his familiar warmth and scent surrounded me. After Aleric slid his arm around my waist and rested his hand on our son, I smiled and closed my eyes.

“I love you, Aleric,” I whispered before a calmness came over me.

I felt Aleric kiss my shoulder before he said those words back to me. “I love you, my precious treasure.”

Chapter 17

Aleric

April 1769

My dragon was on edge. We had been in our new cottage for only a week, but it felt as if it were longer. My dragon was pushing me to constantly be around Konrad, but my mate wasn’t having it. He’d kicked me out of the cottage after we’d shared our midday meal, telling me that he needed a bit of peace and solitude while he tried to rest for a bit.

My mate was absolutely amazing, and if we only ever had just the one child, I would have zero complaints.

But my dragon kept telling me to go back to our mate. I had to fight him because just as Da and Father had always told me to listen to my dragon, I also didn’t wish to irritate my mate. So I made a compromise with him, and I was outside, chopping firewood. Did I need to do such a thing? No. I looked at the long line of chopped and stacked firewood that was already waiting to be used. Claude continued to do small things such as that for us, and all any of us could do was thank him while accepting it as another way for him to feel as if he were repaying us for what we’d done for him. Specifically, what I had done when I rescued Konrad and the three others.

I gave up trying to argue with him that it was nothing and that I, too, had a mate come from there, but it was no use, so I stopped arguing and simply told him thank you.

A shadow flew over, and I looked up in time to see Father and Wilhelm flying over the area. Konrad had talked to me about his concern for Wilhelm and the things that were possibly plaguing him after having been rescued. I knew what he’d been referring to because many times I had woken up my own mate when he would suddenly start thrashing about in the bed beside me. When he woke, he told me he had been dreaming about his time in captivity. Konrad had me to help him through those moments. Elias had Claude, and although we didn’t know for sure that those same dreams were causing Lukas fits, he had his own mate, Tobias.

Sadly, Wilhelm had nobody to help him in the middle of the night. Which was why I had asked Father if he and Da could help us keep an eye on Wil. He assured me they would, and ever since, Da and Father had both gone out of their way to include Wil in many extra things, from cooking to flying about the mountain regularly.

I watched the pair fly overhead until they were but tiny specks in the sky. It had been several weeks since I had taken to the skies with Father, but my dragon hadn’t wanted to get that far away from our pregnant mate, and Father had said he understood completely.

I went back to chopping wood, not sure what else I could do to keep myself and my dragon occupied. I knew if I went inside, I would hover around Konrad and most likely keep him from getting the rest he needed. Yet my dragon wouldn’t allow me to shift and go flying with my father, nor was he in favor of going to my fathers’ cottage to visit with Da. I could really use his calming ways right about now, but my dragon wasn’t having it. There was no way I was leaving the immediate vicinity of the cottage I shared with Konrad.

I check in on my mate through our bond and found him to actually be sleeping. That was a good thing. He had tossed and turned the past few nights despite any attempts I’d tried to make him more comfortable. I would rub his aching back, and he would find a bit of relief, but it seemed to be short-lived because he woke again a short time later. I felt terrible for my mate. If I could take his pain away from him, I would, but sadly, I couldn’t. Instead, I did everything I could to help him be as comfortable as possible.

I stopped chopping long enough to look at the pile of split wood I’d made. It was smaller than some, but I realized my mind really wasn’t where it should be when chopping firewood, so I swung once more, gently set the blade of the axe in the chopping block, and started gathering up the wood I’d split. I carried it over to the already stacked wood and added to it.

That only took a few moments, and I was trying to decide what other mundane things I could do to keep me busy. I needed something though, so I decided to go for a short walk. I had just reached the tree line that was off to our left when a familiar head popped out.

“Claude, how are you doing?” I asked. I waved to him, and he returned the gesture.

“As well as can be. How about you? And Konrad? Any baby news you need to share?” Claude asked.

I shook my head. “I wish I did. Konrad hasn’t had him yet, and he’s not gone into labor that I know of.” I thought about that for a moment. “I would know, wouldn’t I?”

Claude gave me a sympathetic smile.

“Would you like to sit and talk a bit? Or maybe come in for a drink?” I was rambling and being a poor host at the same time. Neither was good. Claude chuckling helped calm me a bit.

“I will sit for a few. I have a feeling Elias will wake soon, and I plan on being there when he does. Is Konrad feeling well?” We walked over to a large bench that Claude had provided when he finished the house. It would be a perfect spot to sit with Konrad once the weather warmed up, but for now, I would gladly sit and talk with Claude.

I shrugged. “As well as can be expected. The day you arrived, you had mentioned how my son would be born soon, yet here we are, almost three weeks later, and still no baby.”

“All in time, Aleric. Babies come when they are ready. Yours will be here soon, and then all of the waiting will have been worth it.”