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She climaxes within minutes, and I feel her weight concentrated around my dick. It’s enough pressure to get me off, and I groan against her, cursing in every language I know. She tries to get up, but I ask her to stay, enjoying her against me. It’s unlike anything I’ve ever experienced in my life.
CHAPTERTWENTY
Iopen my eyes to see Graveyard staring over me. It must be the same day, I think, but it’s dark outside. It’s not morning anymore.
“Where’s Nicholas?” I whisper hoarsely.
“Seer has been in and out all day,” Graveyard tells me. “I had to sneak a few things out of the hospital to help you, but I think you’ll be okay. You were severely dehydrated, Tory. That isn’t good for the baby.”
I nod weakly under his gaze. He’s disappointed I didn’t call him the moment I knew I was pregnant, but I wasn’t ready to tell my husband. I certainly wasn’t going to tell his doctor friend first.
“What time is it?” I look toward the window, but the blackness there tells me nothing.
“It’s nearly eight,” he tells me. “You’ve been out of it all day. Seer’s been very worried about you.”
I try to move my head, but it hurts. There’s a stabbing pain in my temple, so I stay still and look at him. The rest of my body feels heavy and numb.
“The baby?” I ask.
“Perfectly healthy,” he tells me with a smile. “You’re about eight weeks, so there isn’t much to see, but it’s forming normally. It has a strong heartbeat.”
My hands move over my stomach, and I rest them there, as if I’ll be able to feel the baby. I feel it in my spirit, though. A joy in my chest that I haven’t been able to fully process amidst all the terror and confusion of the last few weeks.
“You can’t do any more rituals,” he tells me. “Not until the baby is born, at the very least. The last one took a real toll on your body.”
This news cuts deep. I have to be able to help the club. If I can’t do my rituals to protect them, the spirit will come for them when they aren’t prepared. Their defenses will be low. I open my mouth to protest, but Nicholas comes in at that moment. When he sees my eyes open, tears fill his.
“Oh, my God. Oh, my God. Oh, my God,” he repeats, coming to me and laying his head on my chest.
I run my fingers through his hair as he cries softly against me.
“I thought I’d lost you,” he tells me feebly. “You scared the shit out of me, mon coeur.”
He looks as bad as I feel, which compounds my guilt. His eyes are filled with concern and his whole body is heavy with fear.
“I had to help,” I whisper. “I have to keep you safe.”
He sits up and shakes his head, grabbing my hands and pulling them to his lips to cover them in kisses. Graveyard excuses himself as we have a private moment. I realize an IV is in my arm, and I gingerly turn my head to see the bag of fluids hanging over my head.
“You have to keep yourself safe,” Nicholas says in a strangled voice. “You wouldn’t wake up this morning. And you have more than yourself to think of right now.”
He looks down at my stomach with admiration, and my hand moves back to it, feeling for the little child growing inside. His hand covers mine, and we sit there for a moment, taking in the fact our family is growing.
He exhales, and his warm breath covers my face. In this moment, there is only us, no other crises, or fires to put out. But the awareness is at the edge of my brain. Whatever evil is after us still looms. I have to protect my husband and my friends.
“I know what you’re thinking,” he whispers. “You’re already worrying about us, but I swear to God, Victoria. If you die trying to take care of everyone else, I’ll never forgive you.”
I kiss his forehead and hold him. He’s right, of course, but who am I if I can’t help? Is that the kind of mother I want to be? The kind of wife? If I help, I could sacrifice my life for my family. If I don’t help, I’m sacrificing my principles. I can’t win.
* * *
The next morning, when Nicholas is gone, Hex comes to see me. He looks burdened but happy somehow. I can’t put my finger on it.
“So I hear Seer knocked you up,” he jokes, sitting on the corner of the bed by my feet.
I smile brightly and pat my stomach again, a habit that’s quickly becoming my favorite. It’s the closest thing I can get to holding my little one right now.
“You heard right,” I tell him, my smile so wide I think my face might split in two.
