I rub his arm gently, understanding some of the turmoil he must feel. “Is this attraction new? Did you know you liked guys before?” I ask.
His cheeks blush as he runs his hand through his hair nervously. “Yeah, the attraction is new,” he blows a large breath out. “The uhh, liking guys things is new too. I’ve never been attracted to a man before,” his voice was quiet and tense.
“I know paranormal beings seem to come off a bit strong, don’t they?”
He nods his head. “Yeah, it’s–” I could see him trying to think of the word. “I don’t want to say scary, but it’s a lot and overwhelming.” I nod my head in understanding. That fated mates’ business is definitely something else. I could imaginethis is very difficult for Heath with how reserved he is.
I’ve realized after being with Asmodeus that that was one of the issues I didn’t know was between Heath and me. He wasn’t very affectionate with me, or really in general with anyone, and I need that constant reassurance and touch. It’s no fault of his own. We weren’t compatible obviously in a romantic way. I hope this new man helps him come out of his shell a little.
I give him a warm smile. “I completely understand. Asmodeus was kind of the same way. From the moment he saw me, he knew that I was his. He spent every moment trying to control his desire and impulses for me to make sure he didn’t scare me off.” I chuckle to myself, remembering the first few weeks together.
“I haven’t been able to talk to anyone about this. Honestly, I’m glad I have you.”
“Of course! If you need anything or want to talk about anything, text or call me. I’m still new to the whole having a demon for a fated mate thing. It’s barely been two years, but I’m here for you and I’ll do my best.”
“Thanks. Now let’s go back to the party. Also, I want to say that Felicity is adorable. She looks a lot like you,” I hear the pride in his voice.
“Thanks,” I bump his shoulder as we go back to the living room with the others. Asmodeus looks at me quizzically, and I give him a small smile and mouth the wordlaterto him.
Soon we sing Happy birthday, and she gets a slice of chocolate cake with buttercream frosting. The frosting and cake go all over the place, including the floor, her high chair, her hands, and her mouth. I snap a ton of pictures of the munchkin and how adorable she is.
From the corner of my eye, I see Asmodeus with tears in his eyes, looking down at his daughter like she is the most precious thing in the world. I know this means a lot to him. I know for a while he felt lost and alone in the world. I’m thankful I could share this special moment with my mate and our friends.
After cake, we take her into the living room to open her presents. She doesn’t have the motor coordination yet to open the wrapping, so we help her get it started while she sits on the floor in front of one of us. The other takes pictures. Most of the presents include toys and new clothing for her, which are always useful gifts with how fast she grows. After presents, everyone starts to disperse and leave for the day.
When Heath leaves, I give him a hug. “It was nice seeing you again. Hopefully you can bring your new man next time. I would love to meet him.”
“I think he would like that. Good seeing you as well.” He hugs me back and walks away to his rental car. I close the door and lock it behind me, leaving Asmodeus in the foyer with a sleeping Felicity in his arms.
I walk over to them and run my hand on her head and through her curly hair. I look up at Asmodeus with a small smile on my face. “Guess we tuckered her out. A nap sounds good right now. Want to come join?” I ask him, knowing he would follow me anywhere.
He nods his head in agreement, holding my hand as we walk toward the bedroom. “What was that about earlier?” He asks, I knew he would bring it up.
I have a smile on my face. “You won’t believe it, but Heath has found himself a cat shifter.” His eyebrow goes up at my statement.
“Huh–” is all he says. I roll my eyes. I’m sure he wants to say more. We finally make it up the stairs and make sure the light is off when we remove Felicity’s shoes and take off our own pants. We pull down the blankets and lay Felicity down first, while I get behind her, and Asmodeus pulls up the rear as my big spoon. We snuggle close as a family.
“I bet you it’s his fated mate,” he whispers in my ear.
“I bet you’re right. It will be interesting to see where this leads.”
“Indeed. I love you, mate. Rest now,” he kisses my head and pulls the blankets over us.
“I love you too,” I hear myself murmur before my eyes close and I fall asleep, wrapped around the people I love most.
42
Chapter 42 - Blair
July 12th
Seeing him become a father has been beautiful, and it definitely has spiked my sex drive and instincts. Who knew that seeing the man you love being a good and attentive father would be such a turn-on? My love and attraction for him have grown tenfold in the past year. My body and mind were on the same page when it came to him impregnating me again.
Asmodeus let me know that it was pretty common for a post-pregnancy heat to happen once the baby stops breastfeeding and the woman no longer produces milk. He said that this was the body’s signal that the baby would be okay, and it was ready to reproduce again.
Felicity had just turned one and stopped breastfeeding; she wasn’t interested in the boob anymore. Asmodeus told me that it could take anywhere between one day and a month for my body to ramp up the hormones that would kickstart myheat. It had already been a couple of weeks, and today when I was outside playing with Felicity in the treehouse, a shot of pain rips through my abdomen. I can feel the slick running down my leg, and a bolt of need shooting through me.
It hit me out of nowhere, but I was about to go into heat. I needed to find Asmodeus and let him know. We had found him in the garage working on one of his project cars. I still couldn’t remember much about the cars, but it didn’t bother him, he understood that my ADHD made it really difficult for me to remember information if I wasn’t interested in it.
