I took a deep breath and lifted my head up, meeting Freya’s gaze. She looked just as satisfied as I felt, prompting me to kiss her fully on the lips for a few long seconds before sliding off.
“Right,” I agreed, trying to process what just happened as I focused on Lily. “I think I’ve just been a little stressed, and having sex in the shower helped a ton, but then something about Freya, just now, screamed ‘stress relief’ so I got a second dose of the much-needed prescription.”
Lily nodded, seeming a little disappointed.
“It probably would have been the same if the roles were reversed,” I added, afraid she was worried that sex with her hadn’t been enough. “If I had done Freya in the shower, I probably would have still wanted to do you too afterwards.”
“I guess,” she agreed, still sounding a little somber.
“Hey,” I said gently. “I was pretty passionate in the shower, wasn’t I?”
She sighed. “Yeah, you were.”
I scooted closer and reached out to grab her hand. “You know what I think the problem is?” I commented.
“What’s that?” she wondered.
“We had great sex, but I didn’t take the time to get you there. And I should have. Freya and I are both thoroughly satisfied now, so I think it’s your turn.” I turned my head to look at Freya, who was oddly quiet. “What do you think?” I wondered.
She cleared her throat, giving Lily a mischievous glance. “I agree. And since she was naughty by not getting there before, I think she needs to spend a little time with the vibrator.”
“Guys,” Lily whined. “We have company.”
I scoffed. “We might as well be in a separate house right now. You can’t hear anything through these walls.”
Freya nodded in agreement. “Sam, can you grab the vibrator? I’m pretty worn out after that orgasm…” She paused. “But I want the remote,” she added.
I grinned, getting up to grab it from the closet in the bathroom.
“Okay,” Lily whined again. “But, Freya, just don’t make me scream.”
“We’ll see,” she replied playfully, though I knew she wouldn’t. Even as soundproof as the house was, a scream could probably still be heard in the hallway through the door.
By the time I returned with the vibrator, Lily had already begun taking off her latex pants, ready for us to play with her for a little while. However, she must have gotten turned on from watching us go at it, because we were back in the kitchen eating breakfast like nothing happened only ten minutes later.
15: Suspicious Cravings
Freya Rosetti
March 17, 2735 – 1 Week Later – Early Morning
Freya drooled as she followed the floating cheeseburger through the gated walkway, leading her to the party happening in the hotel across the street.
An older man dressed in a fine suit, his white hair and beard neatly trimmed, greeted her at the door and held it open.
“Welcome, Miss Rosetti. We’ve been expecting you.”
She gave him a warm smile and walked in without hesitation, shocked to find herself in a fancy restaurant with a buffet full of every food imaginable. One section had lobster, crab legs, and sushi, while another had pizza, fries, and burgers. And yet there was another section with Chinese food, with a massive buffet full of Mexican meals already prepared right next to it.
She was early though – the party hadn’t started yet, with her being the first to arrive.
A young man dressed in a tux, his hair as black as hers, his face cleanly shaven, walked up and held out his arm for her to grab.
“Greetings, Miss Rosetti. I’ll be your escort tonight. Allow me to show you around.”
She grinned again, wrapping her arm in his, allowing him to lead her through the empty tables. As she passed an Italian section full of breadsticks, pasta, and salad, she reached out to grab a garlicy slice of bread, her mouth watering in anticipation of how it might taste.
Unexpectedly, the man she was holding onto tugged at her, preventing her from reaching. She looked over at him in shock.
“Miss Rosetti,” he exclaimed. “You forgot your fork, and you can’t eat without silverware.”
Her brow furrowed. “It’s just a breadstick, I don’t need a fork for–”
The man cut her off. “And Miss Rosetti, I thought you were a woman of elegance. What were you thinking showing up to a party in your bathrobe?”
Panic gripped her chest as she looked down at her small hands, finding that a brilliant crimson bathrobe was all she had on, it overflowing onto the floor, being far too long for her unexpectedly short legs. She looked up at the man, finding that he was suddenly twice as tall as she was – in fact, the whole room was massive now.
“I’m sorry Miss Rosetti,” he said, patting her small hand. “But we don’t allow children here. We’ll have to ask you to leave.”
“But I’m so hungry!” she complained in Rose’s voice.
He gave her a somber look, before grabbing her firmly by the wrist and escorting her back out the way they had come. Her short legs could barely keep up with his speed, and she kept tripping on the robe.
Just as he shoved her out of the door, that cheeseburger floated in front of her face again, this time topped with vanilla ice cream, tantalizing her before darting away into the night.
Without hesitation, she desperately chased after it as fast as she could, finding her body growing smaller and smaller with each step until she fell down, unable to walk anymore.
A small baby cried out in the night, hungry and alone.
❖ ❖ ❖
Sam Archer
March 17, 2735 – Current Day – Early Morning
I sighed as I stared at my tablet screen blankly.
I really wasn’t in the mood to do anything right now.
Nothing held any interest for me – not a show, or random funny videos, or anything at all. I wasn’t sure there was anything in the world I’d be okay with doing right now that would help pass the time – not even sex held any interest for me in this moment.
It had been over a year and a half since I had been this depressed, the kind of depression that hangs over you like a physical presence and steals away any joy there is in life.
The entire month of March was always a difficult one, even despite it being the month of Lily’s birthday, but I just couldn’t seem to keep myself distracted this time. Granted, I knew that I used to build up my pain tolerance during this part of the early morning, prior to dating Lily…
And last March, I had so much going on that I had gotten through the month mostly unscathed.
But now…
I mean, I still had a lot to stress about, and I also had a lot to be thankful for, so in many ways not a lot had changed. So then, why was it so hard again?
I sighed heavily, glancing at Freya and Lily’s sleeping forms, with Freya being against my side, her arms wrapped tightly around Lily.
Unexpectedly, Freya sucked in a sharp breath as her eyes popped open urgently. She quickly pulled her arms away from Lily and sat up, staring at the wall like a deer caught in headlights even though it was dark in the room.
“Freya,” I whispered. “What’s wrong?”
Did she have a bad dream?
She looked at me for a moment with a vacant expression, before she blinked a few times and responded. “I…umm, I need to check on Rose.”
Concerned, I glanced upstairs in my second-sight to find Rose sound asleep in her bed, breathing normally. While I was at it, I checked on Heidi and Lexi too, both of them in their own rooms since they regularly stayed over on the weekends.
Being that it was the Sunday before Lily’s birthday on Thursday, we were planning on all hanging out at the mall once everyone woke up. I was just trying to make it through the night until then.
“She’s okay,” I reassured her.
Freya was already halfway out of bed. “I’m sure,” she agreed. “But I just need to check on her…I’ll be right back.”
I figured she must still be partially asleep, but I didn’t see any harm in letting her do as she wanted, instead of trying to convince her that everything was fine. However, that didn’t stop me from keeping my second-sight trained on her as she closed the door and then headed down the hall urgently.
It wasn’t until she completely passed the stairs that I realized something else was up.
Then, I watched in complete shock as she bolted into the kitchen, only to open the fridge and grab out the pan of leftover chicken enchiladas that Heidi and I had made for dinner earlier. I was so stunned by her behavior, that I just sat their staring through the wall when she grabbed an enchilada in both hands and started wolfing it down like she hadn’t eaten in a month.
What the hell?
Freya didn’t eat food!
Like, not at all, unless she was pretending to be normal for Lily’s parents.
I dropped my tablet on the bed and crept out of the room, peeking around the corner as she began inhaling a second enchilada.
“Freya,” I whispered, a little surprised that she hadn’t reacted to me.
She froze in place, glancing over her shoulder for half a second.
Then, she took a deep breath and resumed shoving more enchilada down her throat like it was going out of style.
I walked up to her hesitantly, sincerely concerned by this development.
“Freya,” I whispered again.
She finished devouring her food and took a few deep breaths. “I wanted to wait to tell you,” she replied quietly.
Now I was really concerned. “Tell me what? That you sometimes eat normal food?”
She turned her head to look at me again, her crimson eyes hesitant.
“Sam…I’m pregnant.”
My jaw dropped.
“You’re…” My voice trailed off as I tried to wrap my mind around this new revelation. “You’re pregnant,” I repeated in disbelief. “H-How long?” I finally managed after a moment.
“Have I known?” she asked, as if trying to complete my question.
I nodded.
“I took a test yesterday. That’s why I ran to the store by myself – I used it in the bathroom there.” She paused. “You’re the father of course.”
I scoffed. I certainly had no doubt about that. Even if she didn’t have her bloodlust holding her back, Freya was above-average in the loyalty department.
“You aren’t mad, are you?” she wondered. “We haven’t really talked about something like this…”
My eyes widened, and I quickly moved closer to wrap an arm around her shoulders from the side. “No, of course not. Just really surprised. I mean, I thought you were on birth control, but of course I’m happy to have a child with you.”
She gave me a weak smile. “I sort of missed a few days,” she admitted. “And because of my regenerative abilities, I guess I was fertile within a week.”
“That sounds like more than a few days,” I replied hesitantly, suspecting she wasn’t being completely honest.
She sidestepped my comment. “I want to wait to tell Lily,” she pleaded. “At least until after her birthday. We had talked about me carrying her child, but never about me having my own with you.”
I really wanted to press for why she had decided to stop taking her birth control for over a week, but knew that if she was attempting to avoid the issue, then she probably wasn’t going to tell me – at least not now. I took a deep breath. “That’s fine,” I agreed. “Although, if you’re going to have pregnancy cravings for normal food, then you’ll have to hide that too.”
“I know,” she agreed, grabbing another enchilada – her third one!
Good thing we made more than enough, but I was probably going to have to claim to have had a midnight snack to explain to Heidi why she couldn’t have five enchiladas for breakfast.
“Damn, this tastes so good,” she continued, her mouth half full. “I’ve never understood how people could like this shit, but I get it now. It’s amazing!”
“Shh,” I shushed, prompting her to pause to listen for a moment. Not that anyone would have heard her from inside their rooms.
She continued eating then, finally satisfied once she was halfway through her fourth one. “Ugh, I feel so bloated.”
I shrugged, grinning now that I had been allowed a moment to process this new development.
Freya and I were going to have a baby!
I leaned forward and kissed her on the temple. “I love you so much,” I whispered.
Her crimson eyes seemed uncertain for a moment as she evaluated my elated expression, before she finally allowed herself a smile too. Her hands were suddenly on my chest, her gaze becoming endearing. “We’re pregnant,” she said again, this time as if it was finally really registering for her too.
“We’re pregnant,” I agreed warmly, leaning down to kiss her on the lips this time.
I thought back to our recent sexy times, wondering when it could have happened. The spontaneous sex a week ago had certainly been amazing, but if she was just now finding out she was pregnant then it must have been at least two weeks ago that she conceived. Maybe even three, depending on how far along she was.
She and Lily bought the vibrator a month and a half ago, at the end of January, and all our sex had been amazing since then, with their orgasms being especially fun to watch, so I doubted it was possible to pinpoint the exact date.
Still, this was really happening!
Unexpectedly, a sudden flash of teal made tears spring to my eyes, before a hard determination settled into my heart, the viciousness of a lion hiding behind it.
I was going to protect this little baby with everything I had, and I wouldn’t hesitate to kill anyone endangering his or her life, or the life of their mother.
Freya’s eyes widened when she saw the abrupt change. “What’s wrong?” she whispered.
I wrapped my arms tightly around her and pulled her close, my body trembling slightly. “I won’t let anything happen to you,” I promised firmly. “Or our baby.”
She immediately tightened her embrace, holding me just as much as I was holding her.
We both stood there in silence for a long time.
Finally, she spoke again. “Will you hold me like this in bed?” she wondered. “I’m really tired.”
Without another thought, I scooped her up in my arms, using a couple of astral limbs to carefully store the leftovers back in the fridge while I carried both her, and our microscopic baby growing within, back to the bedroom.
There was something about the innocence and the helplessness of a child that had the potential to invoke an unforgiving instinct of protectiveness within a person, and even though Rose had stirred something in me I had long thought dead, the realization that I was going to be a father for the third time only intensified that reaction.
After climbing into bed, I protectively and possessively held Freya close against my chest while she slowly fell back asleep, a deep contentment in her expression as her consciousness faded.
Something changed in me during the next couple of hours.
A major shift in my perspective.
I had been on the fence about the superhero stuff for a multitude of reasons, including both the stunt the S-FBI pulled as well as the fact that I might have to be away from home for a couple days at a time. However, Freya had finally decided on a CEO, promoting a manager she had worked with for a few years on the job, which meant Freya would be around to protect our family if I was called away.
However, now I realized that I needed to be more proactive about hunting this shadow organization down. I couldn’t just live life and hope they would leave us alone, because while that might be true for several years, or even a full decade, eventually they would come back again.
I had no reason to believe they wouldn’t.
Which meant, I needed to chase them down with whatever resource I could, even if it just ended up leading me to a lot of dead ends for a long time.
At th
e very least, if I was actively searching, actively trying to find leads, then one day I might stumble onto something that I wouldn’t have found otherwise. A shot in the dark that was revealed only because I was looking incessantly for evidence of who was behind it.
Which meant, I did need to become a superhero, and use their desire to have me on their team as leverage to gain access to their intelligence gathering resources.
And who knows? Maybe they’ll be able to track them down a lot easier than I assumed.
By the time Lily was stirring, Freya still sound asleep in my arms, the decision had been made. And since Lexi was supposed to be my liaison, I figured I’d share with her my decision before we left for the mall, but not so I could get a contract signed now.
No.
I doubted such steep demands could be guaranteed by just anyone. Especially if I was going to request sovereignty too. Rather, I needed to speak with someone who had the power to authorize these requests, and I needed to have this conversation with them face-to-face, to make it clear I was ready to walk away if these demands weren’t met.
After all, what did they really have to offer me? I didn’t need their money, and I didn’t want the fame.
So I would tell Lexi what my demands were so she could let her supervisor know – that way they could be fully prepared when we met. No wasting time. No beating around the bush, and pretending like it would be a problem to meet my conditions.
I wasn’t going to take any shit, because I was a top super – one who defeated the almighty Blaze like he was nothing.
I could probably demand anything I wanted from them, and then some. And that was exactly what I was going to do.
16: Decisive Ultimatums
Lexi Stockton
March 17, 2735 – Current Day – Morning
Lexi took a few deep breaths as she stared at her phone in her hands, ready to connect the call to her boss, Jackie Hendricks. She was sitting on the spare bed in one of the two guest rooms Freya and Lily had set up for her and Heidi.
The Sacrificial Love of an Immortal Page 22