Page 16 of Entwined

Chapter Six

Darby stretched, smiling as he remembered how he and Bram had fallen asleep in each other’s arms, exhausted from a magnificent night of lovemaking. His eyes flew open.

Bram.

He whipped his head to the side, and as he’d suspected, his fairy tale lover was gone. Darby propped himself up on one elbow and stared at the spot where Bram had lain only a few hours earlier. The entire bed was covered in the colorful glittering dust that matched the colors of Bram’s wings and the little strip of cloth he always wore. But more significant to him was the impression Bram had left in the pillow.

Darby placed his palm in the barely perceptible concave. The fabric was cold. He glanced at the digital clock on his microwave. Six fifteen. It might still be early, but the break of dawn had been almost an hour earlier.

He would’ve left well before then.

Darby sat up then dropped his head in his hands. Why hadn’t he stayed awake? Spent as much time with Bram as possible? Sure, he had to leave for work in an hour, but it wasn’t as if the little hooligans he taught ever paid attention to what he was teaching anyway. He spent more time taking cell phones away than he did discussing Macbeth.

Beyond the veil.

What did that mean exactly? Since Bram only came to him at night, they’d have to figure out a way to be together. And because he couldn’t go to the other side, maybe it would work if he got a different kind of job. Perhaps he could teach night school then sleep during the day. Hell, if it meant keeping Bram in his life, he’d forget teaching and become a bartender, or maybe work a graveyard shift doing…something. There had to be a career he could do and still pay the rent.

Darby chuckled. Clearly, Bram wouldn’t be able to contribute to the household income. A disquieting thought came to him. All of Bram’s talk of carrying a child had to be untrue, didn’t it? Darby scratched his head.

That part couldn’t be real. Ridiculous.

On the other hand, if he believed Bram was real, then why wouldn’t anything he said also be for real? As for Bram himself, he didn’t view him as a liar. His sweetheart had a heart of gold, was so open and caring. Bram wouldn’t tell him something unless he believed it to be true.

His stomach clenched. What if the whole thing was an elaborate hoax? Was it possible? Darby considered the copious amount of fairy dust that was like a fine sheen of glitter over the bed, covers and pillow. He swiped he fingers through it and, as it had before, it burst into little sparkling pops.

No, Bram was real. Everything he’d told him was real.

Which means…

Darby swallowed hard. If Bram was going to have his baby, they’d have to really figure that part out.

For now, though, he had his job to get ready for. There wasn’t a thing he could do about their future together until Bram came back to visit him that night. Then they could discuss the next step. If he had to provide for a child, he might have to keep his teaching job and find a second one.

Darby rose from the bed and padded his way to the coffeemaker so he could officially begin his day. Even if he had to work extra hours, it would be worth it to have Bram and their child in his life.

How will I ever explain this to Becca?

He sighed. Another thing to add to the ‘think about it later’ list—a list that was getting longer and longer all the time.

* * * *

Bram rolled in the moss by the waterfalls, stretching his limbs and grinning as if he’d drank all the lily stamen water at a feast. The moss next to the crystalline, churning water was as luxuriant and deep green as the soft bed he enjoyed the most in the forest. However, it wasn’t as thick or as abundant.

But moss was the last thing on his mind.

Darby.

His handsome alpha had loved him so well, had knotted him for such a long time, he had to be pregnant. Once he’d taken a nap, the first place he’d fly to would be the mystic of their glen. She knew all and could detect a new life forming at the first spark of creation. Bram sighed and lay a hand across his abdomen.

One more time. That’s all I’ll have.

He refused to be melancholy or worried after just experiencing such an enchanted time with his alpha. Darby had told him over and over how much he cared about him, that he was perfect in Darby’s eyes and that he couldn’t wait to see him again. Soon, he could begin planning his entwinement ceremony.

Bram chewed on his lip as a thread of fear crept through him. He didn’t say forever, though. Even though Bram knew their bond meant for all eternity, Darby was a human and humans had lost their magic ages ago. They barely believed in love, let alone anything fantastical.

But Darby’s different. He’s mine and I’m his. It’s been sealed by fate.

Bram curled into a ball on his side. Suddenly, taking a nap didn’t seem very appealing. He could barely sleep as it was when everything was normal. Only when his maturity had arrived had he been so tired.