by Cara E Holt
I cough as I gulp back some daiquiri the wrong way, my wide eyes turning to Kol. I tried to do the maths in my head. So if Lothar was nine hundred and he was the third the eldest that must make Kol at least well... not knowing how long demonic pregnancies last I would guess him to be at least eleven hundred years old!
“He’s thirteen hundred years old sweetie.” Lothar whispers into my ear, obviously seeing my mind working overtime to figure it out.
“Wow.” I state looking at Kol in shock. “Shit me. You are old. You bring a whole new meaning to the word cradle-snatcher.”
Lothar belly laughs. “I like you. You have a way with words that is refreshing.”
“It’s called being English and northern.” I advise.
Lothar grabs me by the hand and pulls me up to my feet. “You and I are dancing. Feel free to grind on me all you want.”
I look back to Kol to rescue me but he just grins and raises his glass to me. Asshole, he was throwing me to the wolf. Lothar pulls me into an area to the right of the pool where people are dancing. He places a hand around my waist and pulls me against him and we start to move.
“So you and my brother haven’t fucked yet?”I look at him slightly taken aback by his bluntness. “What? I thought you northerners were straight talking?”
“That was definitely to the point.” I give him a pointed look. “Anyway, how do you know we haven’t?”
He grins as he dips me. “Ah that’s easy you see, if my dear brother over there had done the deed, you would have his brands on your skin. You don’t, so...”
“So you would be correct. Look your brother is a great guy, sexy, caring and everything a girl could want in a demon mate but it doesn’t change the fact that I belong to someone already.”
Lothar nods, his face having turned serious, which is a strange look on him. “I hear you sweetie but you know Kol has been buying time with our father? Eventually Lucifer will force the issue.”
I sigh as we move to the beat of the music. “Yeah I know we are on borrowed time.”
We stay silent for the rest of the dance, just dancing and laughing when Lothar dips me or spins me. When the song has finished he takes my hand and leads us over to the DJ box. My eyes widen when I realise who the DJ is - Kol’s demonic brother and Prince of envy Nyle.
“Hello again beautiful.” He offers me a wink as he uses the controls on his laptop. Lothar grabs a mike off him. “It’s champagne pong time. Team Lothar against team Kol. Oh and this ones on my team.” He points to me, telling Kol who just offers a lazy and handsome smile.
Champagne pong is a raucous and I am feeling a little tipsy. Turns out since being awoken my aim has improved and I manage to get two ping-pong balls into glasses. Kol leads me to a barbeque area, insisting I need to eat. The food smells divine and my tummy rumbles in response. He fills me a plate of chicken legs, chicken skewers and veg and some salad and coleslaw. I doubt I’ll manage even half of what he has piled on my plate, but I humour him.
The rest of the day is spent with more drinking games and party games. These demonic princes really do know how to have a good time. I am thoroughly enjoying myself and for a few hours I don’t feel the weight of everything that is on my shoulders. At least I am until the point my stomach turns against me and I have to puke into a plant. Not my finest moment. Kol then comes over all over-protective and insists on us heading home.
CHAPTER TWELVE.
Lorcen
“She okay?” I ask, as I stand in the doorway whilst a poor Alana vomits yet again. Blaine is knelt down rubbing her back as she throws up and he shakes his head at me.
“She is immortal. She shouldn’t be sick.” The worry is clear on his face. He runs a hand through his short blonde hair. “Something is wrong.”
“I am here you know, so stop talking about me like I’m not.” Alana warns us in-between wretching.
“You know there might be an answer to why she’s sick?” Blaine looks at me and gestures for me to expand on my explanation. “She could be pregnant.”
Blaine’s eyes go wide and his hand ceases rubbing her back. He looks frozen in fear. “Pregnant?”
Alana turns from where she is leaning over the toilet bowl. “I probably just ate something that doesn’t agree with me.”
I give her a look that conveys I think she is kidding herself. “Think about it. You have been tired all the time. Plus the sickness at all hours of the day.”
“Shit.” Blaine states, looking pale. “He could be right you know. Fae do have really bad morning sickness during the first half of the pregnancy.”
Alana wipes her mouth with some tissue and looks in apprehension at Blaine. “You mean Fae have morning sickness for nine months?”
“No. Fae do not carry for nine months, they carry for seven and the sickness normally last for the first three to four months.”
“Jeez.” Alana exclaims clearly not thrilled by this news. “I’m not pregnant. I can’t be.” She seems to be trying to convince herself. She looks to Blaine, looking for reassurance that this is not a possibility.
Blaine grimaces. “We have been doing it, a lot.”
Alana goes bright red in the face and glares at him. “Do you have to share that with Lorcen??”
Blaine holds his hands up in defence. “What, we have and Lorcen gets it. It’s the same for all couples when they find their mate.” Blaine rests his head on his hands. “My mum will not be happy. We aren’t soul bound yet.”
I laugh and they both look at me as if to say there is nothing about this situation that is funny. “You won’t be the first Fae couple in royal history to be with child before being bound and you won’t be the last.”
Blaine nods and turns his gaze back on his mate who is now brushing her teeth. “We should get it checked out.”
Alana nods and spits out the toothpaste. “We’ll sift to a drug store now.”
Blaine looks confused. “A drug store?”
“Yes. That is where they sell pregnancy tests in the human world.”
“Okay fine. The sooner we know the better.” He agrees and offers her his hand. “We’ll see you later. Will you be here?”
I nod my head. “Yes, until lunch, then I’m heading home for the rest of the day. I need to see if Drustan has found anything.”
“Good luck.” Alana tells me with a weak smile. She really does look terrible.
“Same for you two.” I offer before I leave them and open the portal to take me home.
Alana
“So what do we do now?” Blaine asks, taking the packet out of the bag and passing it to me.
“We don’t do anything. I go pee on this thing and we see how many lines appear.”
Blaine wrinkles his nose. “You pee on it?”
I can’t help but giggle at his disgusted face. “Yes that’s how all pregnancy tests work in this realm. I take it that’s not how it’s done in the Fae realm.”
“God no! The female Fae attends the temple and she enters the pool of enlightenment. If the water glows with light then she is with child.”
“So they don’t pee in the pool?” I ask and I am met with his horrified face.
“No. You can’t pee in a sacred pool. There would be uproar from the priestess. The female Fae lies in the pool.”
“Yeah that does sound nicer than peeing on a stick.” I blow out a big breath. “Okay I’ll go get this over with.”
A minute later I come out of the bathroom and sit beside Blaine on the landing floor. I take his hand and squeeze it tightly. “Now we wait for a few minutes.” I look at my watch and anxiously chew on my bottom lip. I couldn’t be pregnant. We hadn’t been together five minutes. I mean sure I knew I was meant to spend the rest of my immortal life with this guy by my side, but babies! We sit there in silence counting down the time that seems to be suddenly going painfully slow. My fitbit beeps and tells me time is up. “You go look.” I nudge him.
“Me? How do I know?”
“One line for not preg
nant, two lines for pregnant. Go on, you do it. I’m too anxious. I feel sick again.”
Blaine stands and walks into the bathroom and picks the stick up from where I left it on the basin. He studies it in his hand for what seems like an endless amount of time.
“Well?”
He turns and smiles. “Not pregnant.”
I let out the breath I had been holding in. “Thank god for that.”
Lorcen comes out of his room and looks at us both expectantly. “Do we need to start planning a nursery?”
Blaine holds out the pregnancy test to him. “Not according to this, although I’m not sure I trust something that you pee on.”
“You pee’d on it?” Lorcen looks at me in disgust. Let’s hope one of them never gets stung by a jelly fish. “You two do realise this is a human test, so therefore it may not work on you. You are not human. You are Tuatha Fae and demon.”
My smile drops. “Looks like I need to go and lie in this sacred pool then.”
Blaine swears under his breath. “Which means my parents will be told. Great.”
“Okay my dear. You may enter the water now. Just lie back and float and relax.”
The ancient Fae tells me. I want to laugh and tell her there is no way I can relax in this situation. I step carefully into the water which is surprisingly warm and wade into the centre. Once there I lay back and float. My gaze rests on the ornate ceiling which depicts the four seasons.
The ancient Fae with her long white hair plaited down her back, raises her hands into the air and closes her eyes. “Danu, our mother, our creator, whose magic has blessed these waters. Tells us if this maiden has been blessed with a child.”
I sit there eyes closed now and pray with every bone in my body that these waters do not glow. I am so not ready to be a mum.
“You can come out now dear. Danu has answered. You are not blessed with child.”
“Holy crap. That is a relief.”
The priestess looks at me in shock and I offer her an apologetic smile. “Sorry. I meant to say that to myself in my head.” I step out of the water and with a smile she offers me a towel. Blaine pulls me to him and rubs the towel up and down my arms.
“Priestess Rose, you are wise. Can immortals get sick?”
Rose frowns as she thinks over her answer. “You are a triple goddess, yes?” I nod in reply. “The three of you are intricately linked to each other. Stronger together, three parts that make a whole. It is likely one of your sisters has been blessed by Danu with a child and you are experiencing their symptoms.”
“That would make sense.” I look to Blaine. “I have often felt Ebony’s pain and fear.”
Blaine nods, looking deep in thought. “Ebony could be the one who is pregnant. We need to get to Lorcen and tell him.”
I nod in agreement. “Blaine, what will this mean for Ebony if she is? Will Lucifer likely let her go if she is carrying Lorcen’s child?”
Blaine shrugs. “Who knows how Lucifer would react. I imagine he would be furious.”
Lorcen.
I look up from the books laid out before Drustan and I at the sound of the doors opening. I am surprised to find Alana and Blaine before us. This must mean that the news was not what they had both hoped for.
“Well?”
“You might want to sit down for this.” Blaine warns me with a half smile.
“Okay.” I take a seat in the armchair behind me. “Go on.”
“Okay so according to the weird magical pool I am definitely not pregnant. However the priestess did offer a suggestion as to why I may be being sick a lot.” Alana pauses and looks to Blaine who nods his head. “As you know as triple goddesses, my sisters and I are linked in a way like no others. We are three pieces of one puzzle if you like. So we feel each other’s pain, anxiety and physical symptoms.”
I nod, not sure where they are going with this.
“Ebony could be the one who is pregnant.” Blaine blurts out. Alana looks at him and frowns. “I was trying to get to that part gently.”
I shake my head. “Hold up. So you think you might be mirroring Ebony’s sickness because she is the one who is carrying a child?” They both nod and look at me in uncertainty. “Okay, but it could be Leora?”
Alana shrugs her shoulders. “It’s possible, but we don’t even know if Leora is with your brother in that way, whereas you two are mated and have had quite a bit of time to you know, do the deed.”
I sigh. Shit. Could it be Ebony? Could she be carrying my child in her belly? “I need to see her. I need to know.” I look to Drustan. “I need you to do everything you can to find a way out of this blood oath.”
Drustan places a hand on my shoulder and squeezes it. “We’ll find a way. Sooner or later I will stumble upon the answer.”
CHAPTER THIRTEEN.
Ebony.
“Are you ready flower?” He enters the lounge dressed smartly in a black shirt and grey trousers. This demon looks good in a shirt. I wolf whistle and this earns me a cute grin from him.
“Hot date tonight?”
He ignores my question and smoothes his hair down. “After my father’s done with us, I am taking you out for dinner.”
“Okay.” I say surprised. “You know this could be waste of your money right? I may puke it all back up afterwards.”
He laughs. “I’m aware and that is why after dinner, I am taking you to see someone who might be able to tell us why you are sick.”
“Do I get a say in this?”
He shakes his head. “No. I’ll drag you there kicking and screaming if I have to. You aren’t getting better and no offence but you look awful.”
I wince. “Say it like it is, why don’t you?” Although really he isn’t telling me anything I do not already know.
“After that I have some business I need to take care of. Will you be okay here on your own?”
I roll me eyes. “Yes. I am perfectly capable of being on my own. What business is it? Is it to do with that vampire guy?”
Kol taps the side of his nose. “Could be.” He walks over and offers me his hand. “Let us go and get this over and done with.”
With a sigh I take his hand. I was really not in the mood for Lucifer tonight. I was dog tired. Like ground hog day we enter the hall to a packed out crowd of higher demons. All ready for some punishment to be dished out to some poor demon. Me, I’m the court jester in this circus act. There for Lucifer’s entertainment. Lucifer tonight is wearing a burgundy red suit with a black shirt. Even though it pains me to say it, he looks incredibly handsome.
“Still not mated I see.” He states as he walks over to us and looks me over.
“There’s no rush.” Kol tells him. “We have plenty of time.”
“YOU may have.” He snaps back and then storms away to take his place beside Lilith.
I look at Kol in confusion. “What was that about?”
He shrugs. “I have no idea and frankly I don’t care.”
I frown as I watch Lucifer sitting before his people and looking vexed. “There’s more to this than he is telling us. I know it.”
Lucifer claps loudly and the room falls silent as the double doors open. A female demon is brought in and my, is she beautiful. Imagine Jessica Simpson. Blonde locks with that lose wave in the bottom, plump lips and a perfect hourglass figure.
“Deloras.” Kol says in surprise. The female beauty lifts her gaze at the sound of his voice. She offers him a sexy smile and a wink. I inwardly groan. Not another one of Kol’s old bed mates.
“Ah Deloras, Deloras. I am so disappointed to find you here. One of my brightest protégés and a potential mate for one of my sons.” He sighs as he flicks some lint off his jacket. “Then you go and betray me. You attempt to break Azael out of Tartarus.”
My interest sparks at the mention of my father. Lucifer slowly walks down to where she is stood shackled. He lifts her face with his hand. “Why?”
She looks him right in the eye. “You know why. I love him. I have always
loved him and I will do anything to free him.”
Lucifer drops her face like she is contagious and steps back. “How touching, undying love for a demon that has never returned it. There is only one being that can free him and she is standing over there.” He points at me and the blonde beauties eye land on me and she winces as she takes me in. Lucifer grins. “She looks so like her mother, don’t you think? So like the woman he gave his heart to. Beautiful just like her mother.”
He’s toying with her, trying to make her angry and it is working. She looks at me with hate in her eyes. I represent the woman Azael gave his heart to. He shakes his head. “He’ll never love you, you know. It has always been her mother. She was his world. He risked everything for her.”
So this demon was in love my father but had also slept with the demon beside me. I felt like I was on the demonic version of Jeremy Kyle.
“It is quite apt that his daughter will be the one to deliver your punishment. Don’t you think?” He frowns at her. “This crime really is very serious. Normally I feed those who try to enter Tartarus without my permission to Campe.”
“What is Campe?” I whisper to Kol.
“She is the dragon that guards the doors to Tartarus.”
“No way!? A real fucking dragon!?” I cover my mouth when I realise I have said that a lot louder than I intended. “Sorry. My bad.”
Lucifer looks at me like he wants to roast me on a spit. “What would be a fitting punishment?” He taps his chin. He loves the drama of all this. “This one has been practicing memory extraction. How about we see how good she is?” He grins delighted with himself. “Yes, it’s perfect. Ebony here is going to remove every precious memory you have of Azael. You will know in your heart you love someone but you will have no memories of who it is.”
“No.” Deloras shouts, desperation in her tone. “Anything but that.”
Lucifer grins and turns his gaze on me. “Time to step up and put on a show my dear.”