Chapter 9
Finn strode into Victoria’s room, though he hadn’t been invited. He’d held off as long as he could, accepting updates from Rhea and Conall downstairs in the living room the last five hours. He and Lyra had been in Montana the last couple days, visiting with their daughter, showing off their own new son, and spending time with Victoria until she’d been relegated to bed rest two days ago.
He was done waiting. Victoria was like a daughter to him.
Conall and Dragos Sr. were both inside, leaning against one of the walls. They didn’t make a move to stop him, simply nodded once.
As Finn stepped into the quiet room with the soft beep, beep, beep from the EKG machine, his gaze locked on Victoria, who was lying far too still in the bed. His heart ached to see her like this, but he shut the thought down and approached Drake, who was sitting by her side, head bent forward in defeat. The male had been here for five hours straight, not moving from her side.
“Drake.”
“Go away.” The big dragon didn’t even look up.
“You have a child who needs you right now. He needs to be held by his father. What’s going to happen when Victoria wakes up—and she will wake up, no doubt about it—and she finds out you couldn’t even hold your child?”
Drake’s head snapped up, his dragon in his gaze. Wild, ferocious, angry. Then he blinked and the man was looking back at Finn. “I don’t need advice right now.”
“Too bad. You’re getting it. You helped save my daughter once and I’ll always be in your debt. So, take it from someone who missed out on the first years of his firstborn’s life—you will regret this later.”
Drake blinked once, looking almost confused. “Where is he?”
“In the other room with your clanmates. He’s safe, but he needs you.”
As if to solidify that point, the angry cry of a newborn cut through the air. It was the first time the little guy had truly cried. Something about the sound seemed to jump-start Drake.
Swallowing hard, without a word, Drake strode from the room. Moments later, he returned, his baby curled up against his chest, quiet now as he cuddled against the huge male.
Finn grabbed a chair from by the window and set it next to Victoria’s bedside. “Let your mate hear you and the baby. Have you picked a name yet?”
“No.” Drake shook his head, his expression miserable. “Victoria wanted to wait until we saw his face. She said she’d know then what his name was supposed to be… He’s so tiny,” Drake whispered.
Dragos snorted as he shoved up from the wall he’d been leaning against, a ghost of a smile playing across his mouth. “My grandson is perfect. And he looks just like you did when you were born.”
Conall moved closer to the bed now too, squeezed his brother’s shoulder once. “She’ll wake up,” he murmured, conviction in his words.
“She has to,” Drake said, a wealth of emotions in his voice as he started gently rocking his baby.
Finn wondered if he should leave and give them privacy, but Victoria was one of his own. He’d basically raised her as his daughter. And their relationship hadn’t changed even though she’d moved in with a bunch of dragons. So he sat on the other side of the bed and took her hand in his, willing her to wake up. Greer had said that her vitals and life force were fine, and that she would wake up in her own time. So Finn was going to believe that the healer knew what she was talking about.
“Keep talking,” Drake said quietly. “She needs to hear happy voices and I don’t trust myself right now.”
Finn nodded once and squeezed her hand. It was probably his imagination but he swore her fingers moved. He started talking about the first time she’d gotten into trouble as a teenager. “Of all my wolves, you never gave me any trouble. Except when you were determined to do something you knew you shouldn’t…”
* * *
Victoria opened her eyes, feeling as if she was fighting her way through cobwebs. Turning slightly, she shifted against the soft bed and struggled to sit up fully. Her stomach muscles felt slightly sore, but not too bad considering she’d just given birth.
When her gaze landed on her sleeping mate cuddling their tiny baby, her heart expanded about ten sizes. Her baby. Their baby. She couldn’t believe it. And she desperately wanted to hold him.
She must have fallen asleep or something after giving birth. Though… She frowned at the little pads attached to her chest and the machine next to the bed. None of that mattered now as she looked at Drake cradling their baby in his huge arms. Drake had dark circles under his eyes. She couldn’t believe their son actually had hair. A thick, dark mop of it. His eyes were closed and his little nose was scrunched up, as if he was about to sneeze. He was quite literally the cutest thing in the world. Well, they both were.
She swiped at wetness on her cheeks and realized she was crying.
Then she scented something familiar and glanced around their bedroom. “Arya?” she whispered, scenting the ancient female nearby. She also scented a lot of others, wolves and dragons alike. As if they’d recently been in her room.
The French doors to their balcony opened up and Arya stepped inside, a hesitant smile on her face. “I know I’m overstepping those privacy bounds,” Arya whispered, “but with you in a coma—”
Uh, come again? “Coma?”
She nodded and moved so quietly Victoria couldn’t hear her at all before she sat on the edge of the bed. “You’ve been out for over twenty-four hours. Your heart flatlined and you lost a lot of blood while giving birth.”
Her chest constricted as she digested all the information. “Is my baby okay?” she asked, looking over at him. He was sleeping so that had to be good.
“Yes. Drake hasn’t left your side.”
“Were you just waiting out on the balcony?”
“More or less. We haven’t left either of your sides. Drake didn’t handle you flatlining well. I think my baby just tired himself out worrying about you.” Her expression softened as she looked at her son.
Before she could respond, Dragos stepped in from the balcony and nodded once at her. “Is it okay if I come in?”
“Of course, please come in. I know what I said before about boundaries—”
“You were one hundred percent correct,” Arya said. “I push the boundaries and I’m definitely going to work on that in the future.”
“Well you don’t have to work on it now.” She looked over at Drake who was starting to stir slightly. “Has he eaten anything?” she asked, even as her arms ached to hold her baby and to hug Drake. But if he hadn’t gotten any sleep—and she figured he hadn’t if he’d managed to sleep through them talking—she didn’t want to wake him.
“No.” Arya frowned, looking at her oldest with motherly concern. “He’s been a wreck. We all have.”
Victoria reached out and took Arya’s hands in her own. “Will you get him some food?”
“I’ve got it,” Dragos said. “And I’m going to get Greer to look at you.”
Victoria nodded and glanced over at her mate again. She was torn with wanting to wake him up and not wanting to disturb him. He took the choice out of her hands when his eyes popped open, and when he pinned her with his silvery-gray eyes, her heart skipped a beat.
“My mate,” he rasped out, moving toward her with a preternatural speed, but not disturbing the little bundle in his arms.
Arya quickly took their baby from him and a moment later Drake was next to her in bed, pulling her into his arms. He buried his face against her neck, and she definitely felt wetness as he crushed her to him.
Just as suddenly he pulled back, “Are you okay? Did I hurt you?”
“I’m fine. I think.” She felt fine, anyway. Her midsection was sore, but thanks to her shifter metabolism and healing speed, she was all right. “Your mom told me I was in a coma.”
“More or less.”
“I want to hold our baby.” Before she got the words out, Arya was next to them, holding her son out.
Victoria’s throat was so tight with emotions that she couldn’t speak as she took hold of her little guy. Much later she was going to digest that she’d been in a coma, that her heart had stopped beating, but for now, she was going to hold her baby.
When he opened his eyes, she smiled to see those same silvery-gray eyes as Drake’s looking up at her. She knew babies were too young to smile, but she swore that hers smiled right at her. Yep, these last thirteen months had been totally worth it. Then he started nuzzling against her and she realized what he wanted. Laughing, she lifted her shirt up and let him go to town. He seemed to know exactly what he was doing too. And it felt like the most natural thing in the world to let him start breastfeeding.
“You can never leave me again,” Drake murmured, leaning his forehead against the side of her head as he inhaled deeply. “I can’t live without you.”
Technically, if she had died, he would have died too, so he wouldn’t have lived without her. And in that moment, she felt what humans must feel: completely aware of her own mortality. If something happened to one of them, they both died, and their son would be all alone. Oh, God…how the hell did humans deal with being so mortal?
As another wave of emotions threatened to sweep her under, she shoved those thoughts aside and simply basked in her family. “I know what I want to name him,” she murmured, staring down at their son’s dark hair. “Phoenix.”
“It’s perfect,” Drake murmured, kissing her forehead.
She was aware of Arya and Dragos leaving—and telling Greer to come back in a little bit. And she was so grateful to have this time with her boys.
She might have complained about her long pregnancy, but this was the greatest gift she could have ever received.