Chapter Thirty-Five
Rykaur rolled over in bed, propping his head on his hand. “You are insatiable.”
“Me?” Mary touched her chest, feigning innocence. “You’re the one who woke me up every half hour with an erection. I was simply obliging my husband.”
“You keep telling yourself that.”
“Rykaur?” Vaulcron called from the hall.
Mary grinned. “Are we always going to get interrupted?”
“Most likely,” Rykaur retorted, blowing out a frustrated breath. It seemed every time he tried to be alone with his Mary, someone invaded their space.
He snatched the covers up over Mary’s body. “You may enter!”
Vaulcron entered the foyer, trailed through the kitchen, and stopped at the bedroom doorway. “Naura is in labor. I would like for you to be there in case there is trouble with Zyen. I do not trust that one.”
Rykaur threw back the covers on his side of the bed and rolled to his feet. “Perhaps you should wake Thrasher. He seems to be able to handle the entire lot of them.”
Vaulcron grinned. “He is a force to be reckoned with, that is for certain. The name sure fits him. Since I am next in line to become king, I have decided to blood bond with Thrasher. I feel that he should bond with all the Bracadyte warriors. If he is to be a part of Aukrabah, it is best that he be able to communicate with us.”
Rykaur paused in getting dressed. “Have you spoken with him about this?”
“Not as of yet. But I will speak with him when I return to Tony and Naura’s room. I cannot imagine that he would refuse.”
“Do not be too sure,” Rykaur sarcastically muttered. "It is not always a good thing to feel the emotions of all that surround you.”
Vaulcron tilted his head to the side. “Is something the matter, my friend?”
“Not at all. But Melvin is human. He might not handle the mental intrusion as well as a Bracadyte.”
“Thrasher is no mere human, Rykaur. Other than Vaughn, I have never known anyone quite like him.”
Rykaur pulled on his boots. “And what of Vaughn? Have you discussed this with him also? Perhaps he would participate.”
Vaulcron nodded. “Tony thinks it wise, and he will be a part of the bonding ritual too.”
Mary touched Rykaur on the arm. “What is this ritual?”
Rykaur leaned over the bed and kissed his mate on the lips. “It involves blood and vows. Nothing you would be interested in watching.”
“You’re wrong,” Mary quietly responded. “But I understand it’s a male-bonding thing. May I come with you for the birth?”
Rykaur wanted nothing more than to crawl back beneath the covers with her and make love to her until she carried his child. But that would have to wait. “Of course you may come.”
Vaulcron gave a quick smile and spun on his heel. “I will see you down there.”
Mary slid from beneath the covers and stood next to the bed, wearing nothing but her red hair and soft gray eyes.
Rykaur’s shaft stirred to life. “You are the most beautiful creature ever born.”
“Hardly.” Mary laughed, snatching up her clothes.
She pulled on her shorts. “Do you really want a baby with me?”
“You are getting rather proficient at reading my thoughts,” Rykaur answered with a grin. “And yes, more than anything.”
Mary returned his smile. “But we have four children to take care of as it is.”
“So, what is one more?”
Her tinkering laughter filled his heart with such emotion he thought the beating organ would burst from his chest.
“We’ll talk about that later,” Mary conceded. “Much later.”
Once she finished dressing, Rykaur rounded the bed and took hold of her hand. “We will wait until you are ready to be a mother. I realize that you are young and have many years of fertility left. There is no rush.”
Mary brought their joined hands to her face and kissed his fingers. “You’re right. I would like to spend a couple of years with my husband before thinking of having kids. I want you all to myself for a while.”
“I am good with that. We will wait for as long as you want.”
“I suppose I need to visit the clinic and have Abbie put me on some kind of birth control, or it’ll happen sooner than expected.”
Rykaur lifted his free hand and cupped her cheek. “I will support whatever decision you make.”
Pulling her in close, Rykaur wrapped her in a hug and then led her toward the kitchen.
They walked to Tony and Naura’s apartment in silence, both sifting through each other’s thoughts and emotions.
Rykaur glanced down at the top of Mary’s beautiful red head, and a smile touched his lips. She was his mate, his confidant, his heart.
“I love you too,” she whispered through their connection.