“Or more likely he’s jealous, and not a fan of you having any fun or a life of your own.” Kissing the top of Ra’s head, Arvyn added quickly, “I know he’s a staunch protector of you babe, but you’ve got us now – me and Kirill – and he’s just going to have to accept that.”
“Are you sure I’ve got Kirill too?” The sharp green eyes that met Arvyn’s were filled with doubt. “He seemed so angry when he left the room.”
“He’s not throwing things, so that’s a point in his favor. I think, with Kirill…” Arvyn thought about what he wanted to say about his prickly mate. “He’s walked the earth a long time and there’s a good chance if he ever thought about having a mate, he probably never thought about kids as a possibility. Vampire children are very rare. And then, him giving up his coven the way he did… there have been a few moments when he’s been quiet, and I thought he seemed a bit lost.”
“Are we not enough for him, do you think?” Ra’s nervousness was humming through their bond. “I mean, I can get him his coven back, I’m sure the Fates wouldn’t mind if I did that seeing as he’s a mate, but I thought he was happy…”
“Babe, he is happy with us, with both of us.” Arvyn was going with his wolfy instincts and they’d never let him down before. “He just got a shock this morning, and the vibe I was getting from him when Seth was talking was already shit, before the whole having kids became an issue. Kirill didn’t seem happy with Seth’s tone and the way he was talking to you. Has he always been that disrespectful to you?”
“Seth?” Ra shrugged. “Not in the beginning, of course, but as time went on and so many of my people have moved down to create lives for themselves on earth, he’s the one who has stuck with me the longest. He hates being down here for some reason he won’t explain, and he’s made the point a million times that my place is on my realm where he can protect me the way he’s always done.”
Personally, Arvyn thought that the unseen Seth had a real problem with change, but he wasn’t going to let it bother him. “I’m sure Seth will get used to our new situation soon enough,” he said with a bright smile. “Now, I’m more worried about you. I know Kirill can be a bit of a hard ass at times, but he won’t leave us, won’t stray and if he does turn out pregnant, he’ll be the best damn pregnant male he can be, don’t you agree?”
“I just hate upsetting him, upsetting either of you. I didn’t forget on purpose.”
“Nope, you didn’t and it’s okay. We know now and we’ll just wait and see what happens. I love the idea of a half a dozen rug rats running around, don’t you?”
“I haven’t had a lot to do with children, but Egan seems really cool.” Ra seemed a little brighter now and Arvyn took pride in that.
“You’ll be excellent with kids, you just wait and see. And with three of us, looking after them will be a breeze. Now, should we get up do you think, put clothes on? If that Seth of yours doesn’t pay attention to time spans…”
“No, he doesn’t much.” Ra made to get up, but Arvyn wanted another kiss, so he took one, pleased when the tension had completely gone from Ra’s sweet body once he was done.
“And don’t you go worrying about Kirill,” he said as he and Ra climbed out of bed. “That man might be as stubborn as a mule on some things, but he does care about us, just the way we care about him, yes?”
“I try to show I care.” Ra clicked his fingers and was immediately dressed in jeans and a warm soft jumper that hugged his torso so beautifully it made Arvyn want to strip it right off again. “I’m not sure I’m very good at it.”
Arvyn chuckled as he appeared dressed the same way with another click of Ra’s magic fingers. “I can feel your caring for us through our bond from the moment we claimed you. And don’t think I didn’t notice how you made sure Kirill had that long warm coat on when he left the house. He’ll be thankful for that too, the moment he gets outside.”
“It’s my fault he’s out there.”
“No,” Arvyn had to put a stop to that. It wasn’t Ra’s fault at all. “Kirill is clearly someone who needs time to adapt to new things. That’s not your fault, or mine. It’s just the way he is. He just needs space to process new information and that’s not a bad thing. I suggest we make brunch because you know he won’t be far away. He’ll be too worried about Seth being here and him not around to protect us.”
“You really think so?”
“I know so, babe.” Arvyn knew his wolf’s instincts never lied. “So, put a smile on that gorgeous face of yours and then maybe click me up some basic ingredients and I can show off my cooking skills. That will bring Kirill home, I promise.”
“Can I help? I don’t think I’ve ever cooked before.”
Oh, babe, you’ve missed out on so much living. “I insist on it.” Arvyn laughed as he wrapped Ra up in another hug. “So, when do you think we’ll know if any of us are pregnant?”
“If anyone’s going to know first it will be you,” Ra snuggled for a second longer. “You’re the one with the amazing nose and sharp ears. If anyone’s going to pick up on extra heartbeats it will be you or Kirill.”
“Awesome.” Arvyn made a mental note to have a good listen to his mates’ bellies, later when they didn’t have to worry about another god coming to visit. Imagine having children… his wolf’s tail was wagging at the idea.
Chapter Twenty
PREGNANT! Nope. There was no way, no matter how Kirill tried to come to terms with the possibility, that he could ever see himself happy about the idea. Sure, he knew what a blessing a vampire child was. Because they were such a long-lived species, children were rare and considered a real gift to a coven.
But males do not get pregnant. Stamping across the barren landscape, grateful for his jacket, Kirill mentally cursed everything and everybody, except his mates. His whole life – all six hundred plus years of it – there’d been core elements of life that didn’t change. The sun came up in the morning and went down in the evening. The tides came in and out as governed by the moon. He was a prince of his kind because of his age, wealth and power levels and if there were any children being born, they came from amazing women who had the fortitude and strength to go through childbirth. A male’s job, in that side of things was to pace the floors and give out overpriced cigars to his friends when the child took it’s first yell.
Fuck, it’s cold. Kirill dug his hands deeper into his coat pockets. He didn’t have a shirt. No, that was still lying in bits on the bedroom floor. Torn off at the sight of my two beautiful men… Thankfully, his boots were still in the living room where he’d left them. But his torn pants didn’t offer much protection against the chilly air, so the coat was something to be thankful for. Ra looking out for me again.
Standing on the cliff edge, the house behind him, Kirill looked out over the water. The day was overcast, the clouds a deep gray that promised rain later that afternoon. White caps contrasted with the deep blue water below and across the harbor, Kirill could make out small houses that already had their lights on even though it was close to midday. He sighed; the sound picked up by the wind that was whistling around his ears.