That was a perfect answer. My heart surged with affection that fueled my massaging hands.
“Mylo really wanted their babies to be black-footed ferrets, like him,” I mused. “What about you?”
Rorik shrugged. “I don’t have a preference.”
“Really?” I said with a laugh. “You, the dragon assassin, don’t mind if you give birth to little dragonets?”
He blushed as he shot me a grumpy look. “That’s not who I am anymore.”
“That’s not who youeverwere,” I corrected.
His eyes widened, then softened as he smiled. “Yeah. You’re right.”
I smiled back at him. My poor bear had been through the wringer, but he was stronger now. Not physically more powerful, but stronger in his heart. In a way that mattered. The cruelty of his past teachers couldn’t touch him ever again.
Rorik’s hand gently touched mine. “That’s good, Saffron. You can stop now.”
“Are you saying that because you want me to stop, or because you feel bad I’ve been massaging you for so long? ‘Cause if it’s the latter, then nope. I’m your alpha, and you’re my pregnant omega. I’m gonna massage you until my fingers go numb.”
Rorik let out a bear-like chuff. “I want you to stop so we can watch the movie already.”
I stopped immediately and bolted upright.
Amused, Rorik sat up and resumed his cuddling position beside me. Lying in bed equalized our height difference. Rorik always scooted lower so he could rest his head on my shoulder. It always made me smile. He was such a big guy; he probably appreciated the opportunity to be smaller for once.
Rorik was closer to the bedside table, so he grabbed the laptop and balanced it on our touching legs. He’d never used a computer before, so I did all the work setting up the movie. My finger hovered over the play button.
“Ready?” I asked my mate.
He nodded, flashing an excited smile. “Ready.”
25
Rorik
One night,a week or so before I was due, I woke with a start.
I need to den.
The thought was a sudden thunder crack in my mind: loud and impossible to ignore.
I peered at Saffron, who was soundly asleep beside me. I didn’t want to bother him. As I neared my due date, all his attention was constantly focused on my needs. He must’ve been exhausted. I wanted him to rest.
As quietly as my huge body could move, I slipped out from the covers and sneaked into the hall. I was halfway to the stairs when I realized someone was following me. The hairs pricked on the back of my neck. The deeper I went into my pregnancy, the fiercer my parental bear instincts grew. I was on high alert.
But when I turned around, it was just Mylo. He yawned and rubbed his eyes.
“What’s up, Rorik?” he asked sleepily.
“Sorry. Did I wake you?”
He flashed a sheepish grin. “Oh, I wasn’t sleeping. I wanted to grind some EXP, so I was playing my handheld console on the couch.”
I didn’t understand half of his sentence, but I nodded anyway. Mylo’s presence calmed me, chasing away the random paranoia that somehow the tundra clan alphas had wormed their way into the castle.
“Heading to the kitchen for a midnight snack? I’ll join you,” Mylo offered.
I smirked. “For once, no.” My smile fell as I struggled to find the right words. “I have this… feeling.”
