“I shall be attending,” Evangeline said.
“As will I,” Fallyn added with a look that dared Broderick to deny her.
“That ale is soundin’ mighty good aboot now,” Rory said, escaping from the dais with Aidan.
Before Lachlan could follow them, Evangeline took hold of his hand. “We will be discussing this when we get home.”
“Aye, we will.” He leaned in and added on a heated whisper, “But no’ until ye’ve given me my day of birth gift.” Tipping her chin, he kissed any thought of protest from her head.
With the women’s talk centered on the latest development, Evangeline hadn’t noticed Aurora kneeling beside her chair until she felt the light pressure of the child’s hand on her belly. The little girl bent her head as though she listened to something inside Evangeline. At the child’s giggle, Evangeline asked, “What’s so funny?”
“Your baby.”
“My what?” The question exploded from her lips, drawing the attention of the men on the other side of the hall.
Aurora tilted her head, a glimmer of amusement in her blue eyes. “Your baby. He’s playing inside you.”
“I’m having a ... baby?” she croaked.
Syrena, Aileanna, Fallyn, and Fallyn’s sisters loudly expressed their delight. Evangeline shushed them, having a difficult time believing the news. “Aurora, are you ...” Her voice trailed off when the little girl lifted her swirling eyes. No, Evangeline groaned inwardly.
“The child within you is destined for greatness. Both Mortal and Fae will look to him to lead on the day of reckoning. But beware, even now evil seeks to destroy him. His enemy is close at hand. Guard him well.”
Evangeline stifled a shocked gasp behind her hand. Syrena rushed to her side. Taking the chair next to her, she reached for Evangeline’s hand and squeezed. “Don’t worry. No one will harm your child. We won’t let them.”
“Syrena’s right, Evangeline, your son will have all of us looking out for him. No one who seeks to harm him will get near him,” Fallyn promised.
As the other women added their support, Aurora lifted her gaze and Evangeline started. There was a maturity in the little girl’s bright blue eyes she hadn’t noticed before. Although, if she thought about it, over the last months there’d been other changes. Aurora had become more serious about her studies, not given to bouts of mischievousness or playing with the other children.
“I have been sent to protect your son. His destiny is intertwined with mine. I shall guard him with my life.” Coming from any other child, the promise would be nothing more than a sweet gesture, but Evangeline knew instinctively that one day Aurora would prove to be her son’s closest ally.
“Thank you, all of you. I just wish I knew from whom we protected him,” Evangeline said.
“Aurora, dear, why don’t you go outside to play?” Syrena suggested.
Once the child had left the dais, Syrena said, “No one knows as well as we do, Evangeline, that Aurora’s prophecies can be misinterpreted.”
“I would say the gist of that one was pretty clear,” Evangeline said dryly.
“I’m just saying now is not the time to dwell on it. Enjoy your good news. You are happy about the baby, aren’t you?”
Evangeline couldn’t help but notice that Fallyn and Aileanna were having a difficult time containing their laughter. She supposed she couldn’t blame them. After all, she had never done a very good job of hiding her intolerance of whiny children, especially Ava and Olivia. But she had no need to worry where her child was concerned. He would be perfect in comparison to the little hoydens.
Syrena nudged her. “Here comes the father-to-be. Will you tell him of Aurora’s vision?”
“Yes,” Evangeline said. Watching her husband stride across the hall, she wondered what his reaction would be to the news. “Not now, but later this eve.”
“Why don’t you let Kamden spend the night? Aileanna and Rory are staying, so he’ll have all his cousins to play with.”
“You don’t mind?”
“Not at all.”
Concern furrowed Lachlan’s brow as he came toward her. “What’s wrong, Evie?”
“Nothing, nothing at all.” She reached for his hand. “Aurora has just given me the most wonderful news. I now have a birthday present for you. We’re having a baby. You’re going to be a father ... again.”
Lachlan laughed so hard, Evangeline was tempted to hit him. “What’s so amusing? I thought you’d be overjoyed with the news.”
“I am. I’ve never been happier. But ye, on the other hand, look as though ye’re aboot to be ill.” He drew her from her chair and into his arms.
She leaned back, her hand resting protectively on her flat belly. “I’m delighted.” And she realized beneath her apprehension she truly was happy to be carrying Lachlan’s baby. A child that was part of them both—a child conceived in love, an extension of their love for one another.
He nuzzled her cheek. “Mayhap we should go home and I’ll show ye how happy I am.”
Enveloped in her husband’s embrace, knowing her friends would protect her son as fiercely as she did, her fear eased and her confidence returned.
As they said their good-byes, Evangeline decided the more women who stood with her to protect her son, the better. “Lachlan,” she said as they stepped through the standing stones, “I think it’s time for Fallyn and her sisters to open their school for women warriors.”
Lachlan stumbled into the Fae realm. “That’s no’ goin’ to happen. Fallyn and Broderick will soon wed and she’ll be openin’ her school in his kingdom.”
“Hmm, that’s true,” Evangeline said as they flashed to the palace. Lachlan held the gilded doors open for her. “But, you know, I think I shall speak to Riana and Shayla. Perhaps they would like to open a school in our kingdom.”
Following her up the stairs, she heard him mutter something about God granting him the patience to deal with his expectant wife. Walking down the corridor to their chambers, he said, “I think ’tis time we had ourselves a wee chat.”
No, Evangeline thought, shutting the door to their chambers with a smile. She would be giving him the day-of-birth gift he’d requested earlier, and then they’d have their wee chat. In her experience, her husband was much more malleable after making love.
About the Author
Debbie Mazzuca thinks she has the best job in the world. She spends her days cavorting through the wilds of seventeenth-century Scotland with her sexy highland heroes and her equally fabulous heroines. Back in the twenty-first century you can find her living in Ottawa, Ontario, with her very own hero, one of their three wonderful children, and a yappy Yorkie. You can visit Debbie on the web at www.debbiemazzuca.com.
ZEBRA BOOKS are published by
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Copyright © 2012 by Debbie Mazzuca
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without the prior written consent of the Publisher, excepting brief quotes used in reviews.
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ISBN: 978-1-4201-2780-5
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