“I had the third bedroom done up so that you can use it. I know you need space and time, but when you’re ready, I thought you could move in here with me. So I can take care of you both. I don’t want to assume you want to be together. Yet. But I am hoping that one day, you’ll share the master bedroom with me.”
Corinne bit down on her cheek, and more tears flowed down her face.
Did he read her mind? Had he known what she was thinking? Was that a mate thing? Or was it just because Paris was the most considerate man to ever live?
He wasn’t a man, though. He was a dragon shifter, and that probably meant he was a cut above the rest.
He was so damn sweet and considerate. She licked her lips, tasting him there. She wanted to kiss him again. Maybe throw her arms around his neck and never let go.
“Yeah, maybe. I could live here,” she answered because she couldn’t say anything else like let’s move me in right now.
“Come on,” he held out his hand for her to take. “We’ll be late for Dr. Hu.”
Corinne didn’t even think about it.
She took his hand and thought that she should never let go.
Chapter Fourteen
Paris
Corinne was nervous. Paris could tell. It was coming off of her in waves of anxiety. On the way over to the doctor’s office, she had told him that she was scared the doctor would see that the baby was a shifter.
That there would be a baby dragon inside of her.
No matter how many times he assured her that wasn’t possible, Corinne shook her head and tried to breathe. She was as nervous as any new mom could be. He understood. He was just as panicked.
Not because he didn’t want his mate or his child, he just wanted to make sure they could be a family. That Corinne would let him take care of them.
Decorating the nursery had been a stroke of genius, and he had seen what it meant to Corinne. He had meant what he said to her. He would also be there for her, for Peanut.
The nursery was the very least he could do for his little family.
Corinne was lying on the examination table, and the good doctor was there, watching the small black and white screen. Because of Corinne’s Hyperemesis Gravidarum, they were doing an internal ultrasound to make sure everything was all right. Dr. Hu was very quiet, and he couldn’t read her face. Paris didn’t know if the doctor was always quiet during an examination, or if something was wrong.
He didn’t know who was squeezing harder on their joined hands, him or Corinne. They both just wanted to know their little one was all right.
After another few minutes of silence, the doctor turned toward them. “Well, I would like to announce some good news,” Dr. Hu said with a smile. “It’s twins.”
Paris felt his heart stop in his chest, but more importantly, Corinne tightened her grasp on his hand.
“What?” she squeaked. “No. You’re wrong.”
Dr. Hu smirked. “It’s okay to panic. No one ever expects twins, but I can assure you that there are two babies.” She pointed to the screen. “That’s Baby One, and that’s Baby Two. Both are healthy. Though this explains the severity of your symptoms, Corinne. Congrats on the twins.”
Paris brushed Corinne’s hair off her forehead and kissed her softly, leaving his lips there to inhale her scent. “Twins, Cor. We’re having two wonderful babies.”
She swore, a burst of nervous laughter bubbling out of her. “How are you not freaking out right now?” she asked, all but shaking. “I was feeling overwhelmed with one, but two? How can I change two diapers at once? How can I feed two babies at once? This is too much. I can’t. I’ll mess it up. I …”
“Hey,” Paris soothed, interrupting her. He squeezed her hand in his before kissing her forehead again. “You won’t ever be alone. There are two babies, but there are two of us. We’re a team, Corinne. We’ve got this.”
“But the nursery only has one crib.”
Paris chuckled softly. “Then we’ll add another. Hell, the kids are sharing a womb, maybe they’ll be more comfortable sleeping in the same crib. This is going to be fine.”
“I’ll leave you two to alone for a bit.” Dr. Hu got to her feet and headed toward the door. “It’s going to be all right, Corinne. A lot of first-time moms panic at the idea of doing something new two times over, but this is going to be fine. I can tell you have a good partner.” She gave Paris a nod before closing the door behind her.
“I blame your sperm,” Corinne grumbled. “Not one, but two!”
“It could have been three,” Paris joked. He had meant for the words to lighten the mood, but he immediately regretted saying them. Corinne blanched and whimpered. He nudged her to the side of the bed and sat beside her, gathering her up in his arms to rub her back soothingly.
“That was a bad joke, Cor. I’m sorry.” He traced her cheekbone with his fingers. “It’s going to be all right, just like Dr. Hu said.”
“How can you sit there so calmly and not be terrified out of your fucking mind like me?”
He shook his head. “Corinne, I am just as terrified as you. I am. I didn’t want to find my mate, and then you come along and blow my mind. I walk away from you, and then we somehow find each other. And you’re pregnant with my twins.” One of his hands went to her abdomen, where their children were busy growing into little living creatures. “I didn’t want to have anything to lose.” He swallowed hard. “Now, I have everything to lose. You, Peanut, and Nugget.”
“Nugget?” she whispered.
“Well, now that there are two, they each need a nickname. They can’t both be Peanut, so Nugget it is.” He inhaled and gave her a smile. “I know this is hardly the greatest beginning to a relationship. It’s a lot, especially with the shifter stuff. But I want you to know that the fear I feel? It’s not because I don’t want this. It’s because I’m scared I’ll wake up one morning, and it’ll all be gone. I was always terrified of letting a mate into my life, of doing the family thing. I see now that it was silly of me to be so afraid. This is what was missing from my life. I’ve been chasing the perfect creation my whole life. I had no idea that being with you would bring me that. Two little ones that are ours to raise.”
“What if I’m a bad mother?” she whispered.
“Not possible, Corinne. I see how you are already taking care of them. You’re keeping them safe until they’re ready for the world.”
Paris’s heart was just about ready to burst with love for his mate, for his unborn children. Their children.
“Those are some really nice words, Paris. But, I’m still absolutely terrified.”
“I think that’s normal. And hey, at least now we have some explanation as to why your Hyperemesis Gravidarum is so bad. This is all fine, Corinne. We will be all right. We’re in this together.”
“Yeah,” she murmured. “Twins.”
“Maybe a boy and a girl,” he said hopefully.
“Oh, this means two dragon babies.” She paled, but Paris leaned over and kissed her forehead.
“Flying is always more fun when you have company. They’ll be so lucky to have each other.”