I had no idea what color her eyes were, as she’d mostly slept since arriving, but I hoped she had her mother’s eyes. She already had her beauty.
Ellery looked up at me and smiled again. It lit her eyes and bathed her face in pure joy.
We were both surprised to discover she was pregnant. It shouldn’t have been a shock, given we’d both had a lapse in our birth control, but we remedied that soon after our first night back together.
By then, it was too late. Lillian had already taken form, and for that I was so incredibly grateful.
With my hand against Ellery’s belly, I’d delighted in Lillian’s kicks and hiccups. I fell in love with her months before she made her way into this world.
When I took Lillian’s tiny hand, she wrapped her delicate fingers around mine. Her eyes fluttered behind her lids but didn’t open.
“She’s perfect,” I said.
“She is,” Ellery agreed.
We sat together for a while, simply basking in our daughter, before I rose to let the others in. Scarlet and Ruby were here for the birth, but they left soon after to give us time with the baby.
Now they returned with Luna, Callan, Ianto, and Tucker. Trailing behind them was Mouse, who’d grown at least six inches during Ellery’s pregnancy and now carried a bouquet of yellow wild flowers.
Ellery grinned when Mouse handed them to her. She clasped the flowers and drew Mouse close to kiss his forehead. When she released him, she offered Lillian to him.
“I know you’ll watch out for her and be a good big brother,” Ellery said.
Mouse’s mouth parted as he gazed at Ellery in surprise. Then he nodded enthusiastically and placed his fist over his heart.
Mouse had taken Ellery’s words to heart. I hoped that meant we’d see him more often. He stopped by at least twice a week, but it would be better if he visited more.
When Ellery transferred Lillian into Mouse’s arms, his face lit up with awe. Mouse carefully rocked Lillian back and forth while cooing over her.
Eventually, the boy handed the baby over to Ianto, who looked incredibly awkward with the tiny bundle in his arms. While he was great with kids, there were no newborns at the orphanage, and it was clear the giant was afraid he’d drop her.
He twitched every time she moved. I grinned at the oaf, but didn’t see how he could drop her, given that Lillian was the same size as his hand. He carefully passed the baby on to Luna.
When the baby started fussing, Luna handed her back to Ellery. They all came to kiss Ellery goodbye before leaving the room so Ellery could feed her.
Once she finished, Ellery’s head fell back against the pillow and she slept. I didn’t know how she’d stayed awake for as long as she had, given everything she endured.
I gently lifted Lillian from Ellery’s arms and held her against my chest while I walked around the room, singing to her. Faded memories of my mother singing the same song to me drifted across my mind as I whispered the words to her.
“You’re going to know nothing but love from both of us,” I promised before I kissed her forehead. “You’ll get in trouble, of course, especially if you’re anything like your mother, but you’ll never know my hand in punishment. I’ll protect and love you every day of my life, little Lillian Rose, and you have so many who already love you and will protect you too.”
As I talked, I counted all her fingers again and basked in her wonderful innocence. She’d never know the kind of life I’d lived or a war.
CHAPTER NINETY
Ryker
I didn’t know how long we walked together before a shadow fell across the window. I looked up as Indon hovered before the glass. He leisurely flapped his wings to remain aloft.
Smiling, I walked over to the window, unlocked it, and pushed it open. Indon lowered himself to get a better look inside.
“Your child,” he said. “It’s a girl.”
“Lillian Rose.”
Indon tilted his head back and forth as he surveyed her.
“Would you like to hold her?” I asked.
