Daughter Trilogy Bundle (121 page)

“
I’ll help you with the baby stuff,” Gemma offers, and then Theia flashes in and out of the bedroom with her purse on her shoulder.

“
We’re really having a baby,” Devin murmurs into my ear with breathless elation, but I’m not quite past the shock of it all.

“
Where are you going to get baby stuff at this hour?” I murmur to the giddy group about to walk out the door.

“
I have a way of swaying people to do as I wish,” Persia smugly answers, and her eyes flash green to emphasize her point.

Duh.

Camara runs over and hugs me before joining the baby-fever party.  Devin scoops me into his arms and shakes his head while his eyes offer me nothing but adoration.

“
I don’t care if you’re still mad at me or not.  I’m not letting you out of my arms for a while,” he murmurs softly.

“
I think my anger has been replaced by fear,” I whimper.

“
I’m here, baby.  I won’t let anything happen to you or her,” he softly murmurs while carrying me back into the bedroom.

He gently places me on the bed as if he
’s worried I’m fragile now, and then he lifts my shirt to kiss my stomach in true, excited father fashion.

I grin slightly when I see his smile, and then he trickles his fingers across my normal sized belly.

This is all too surreal to deal with right now.  The overwhelming hour has drained me, and his relaxing touch is pushing me into a drifting sleep.

I sigh once more before my eyes shut completely, and I try to think of anything but being a mother.

“
What are you doing?” I
ask to the pile of boys congregated in the floor.

There are five open crib boxes, and there is a mess scattered all over the den.  Thousands of tiny pieces are assorted in piles, and they
’re all working tediously.

“
Building a crib,” Jace murmurs distractedly while studying the instructions.

“
For quintuplets?” I muse.

“
You’re having more?” Kry gasps.

“
Really?  I didn’t know I was having this one,” I huff, and then I point to the five boxes lounging around.  “Five cribs,” I explain.

“
Oh.  We needed extra parts,” he casually replies.

“
Extra parts?” I question.

Then a piece snaps in Hale
’s hand when he’s trying to attach it.  Right behind that snap is another one when Ther tries to assemble a different piece.

“
Yeah,” Jace grumbles.  “As you can see, we might not have bought enough.”

“
You guys are not holding my baby,” I assert as I take notice of the various other broken pieces.

“
Why?” Kry whimpers.

“
Because you can’t buy extra parts for her.”

“
Oh.  We’ll be careful with her.  This damn crib is just kicking our ass, and when we get frustrated, well, you know.”

“
I’ve been around long enough to see the world go from the dark ages to the computer ages.  Why are these damn instructions so hard to understand?” Hale growls while wadding up an instruction pamphlet and throwing it across the room.

I giggle a little at their struggle, and then I sigh as I touch my belly.  It doesn
’t feel like a child is in there.  I feel normal - weak, but normal. 

“
Where’s Devin?” I ask softly.

Then I feel his warm breath brushing the back of my neck just before his soft lips find it.  His hands rub the sides of my arms, and I slowly turn to face his glorious self. 

Damn.  He looks sexier than usual.

“
I made you some lunch.  I was going to bring it to you.  You slept for five hours, and I wanted to have it ready when you woke up.”

I blush a little under his enamored gaze, and then his lips fall on mine to bring me into his sexy web.  His body begs to be touched, and my hands burn against his shirt as they try to reach his skin.

“I’ve got fish,” he snickers.

“
You too?” I grumble.

“
Me too?”

“
Baby fever,” I harp.

“
Oh.  Adisia, it’s sooner than we planned, but I’m excited about us having a child together.”

I smile a little, and then I feel something stirring inside me. 

“What’s wrong?” Devin worries.

“
I just need to go lie down,” I murmur, and I feel my feet leaving the ground as he scoops me up.

I scream out, and then Devin stops moving. 

“Go get Persia and Mom now.  Something is wrong,” he demands.

“
What is it?” Jace panics, and then I feel something soaking through me - as though I’ve just had a jug of water thrown at my lower half.

“
The timeline,” Devin responds, and then I feel his flashing steps carrying me back to the bed before quickly and gently laying me down.

“
The timeline?” Jace inquires with worried bemusement.

“
Yeah.  The baby is coming early,” he declares, and I scream again.

“
Adisia, look at me, baby.  Stay with me,” he urges.

“
It hurts,” I cry out, and his hand grips onto mine.

“
I know, baby.”

“
No you fucking don’t know.  She’s in me, not you,” I squeal, and I swear that smug bastard husband of mine is stifling a laugh right now.

“
Adisia,” Persia murmurs softly.  “I’m here.  This won’t take long, so I need you to give me all you’ve got.”

Hell no!

“Here?” I squeak.  “Take me to a damn hospital!”

“
You hate hospitals,” Kry reminds.

“
That was before.  I changed my mind.  Take me there now,” I scream, and now I see more grinning faces.

Assholes.

“Just breathe, baby,” Devin murmurs softly, and I feel his lips on my forehead.

“
I am breathing,” I bark.  “Get her out of me now!”

“
Get the men out of the room,” Theia orders, but Devin’s hand still holds clingingly to mine.

He knows she didn
’t mean him, and I wouldn’t let him go even if she did.  The shuffle of footsteps scurry out, and Persia moves to be below me.

“
Okay, Adisia.  It’s time to push,” my too calm mother instructs, and I struggle to do as she says while pronouncing my excruciating pain in a bloodcurdling scream.

“
Good, sweetie.  Now do it again,” she coaches.

“
No.  It hurts too much,” I whine as sweat beads and pours from my brow.

“
You can do this, baby,” Devin encourages, and I just want to slap him for being so frigging calm.

“
One more will do it, Adisia.  Just give it one more try,” Persia continues.

I scream again as I give it all my force, and then I feel the relief flooding me as a crying sound emerges.  Tears whelp up in Devin
’s eyes, and I see a new form of love drizzling from them.

“
It’s a girl,” Theia jokes while sobbing with joy, but I can’t see anything.

Theia has her bundled up at the end of the bed with the sheet still draped over my knees.  I
’m thankful for that damn sheet.  I sure as hell didn’t want to watch any of that.

“
She’s a beautiful girl,” Devin says with adorations dripping from his tone, and then Theia disappears with my unseen baby into the bathroom.

“
Where is she taking her?” I ask breathlessly.

“
To clean her up,” Devin murmurs smoothly while returning to the bed beside me. 

His gentle lips comfort me in my exhausted state, and I lean against him while I eagerly await their return.

“Why was it so painful?  I’m supposed to be immortal,” I whine.

“
Your interior isn’t quite as tough as your exterior,” Persia answers while her tear streaked face stares down at the clean, blanket-wrapped baby Theia brings back into the room.

Tears now streak my face more when she places her in my arms, and Devin sinks down in the bed to drape his arm over my shoulders as we stare down at the blue-eyed child together.

“What do you want to name her?” he coos.

“
Asterius Kaylana Cole,” I murmur with very little premeditation.  “I’d like to call her Aster for short,” and more tears flow as her tiny fingers extend and curl around one of mine.

“
That’s beautiful,” Theia gasps.

“
It’s perfect,” Devin adds.

“
It’s a way for me to pay tribute to my blocked pieces,” I mutter in explanation, although no one requested such.

Devin
’s lips grace her head just barely, and she rustles lightly while scrunching her tiny brow.  His smile grows, and mine mimics the one on his face.

She
’s beautiful, perfect, and ours.  She’s just here too soon.

Chapter 12

Timing

Aster starts crying, and I almost leap out of the bed to be by her side.  Devin chuckles a little at my hasty motion motivated by my overly alert motherly instincts. 

“I’m glad we’re not mortal,” he chuckles.  “I don’t think she knows how to sleep.”

“
I know, and I’m so exhausted.  It’s been three weeks since she was born.  You’d think I’d have my strength back by now,” I grumble.

“
Let me take her,” he murmurs softly, and then he motions for me to get back in bed.  “You rest for a while.”

The alarm beeps loudly, and I shut it off with an almost too forceful touch.

“No.  It’s time to feed her, and we should probably see where the others are with Pyrrha.  Kry and Ther thought they had a lead before we went to bed- or tried to go to bed rather,” I gripe, and then I tuck her into my chest before walking out to the living room where everyone has already assembled.

Persia walks up with too much giddiness while shaking a bottle.

“I went ahead and got it ready when the timer went off,” she says, and then I laugh a little at all the small alarms set up throughout the house.

“
We’re pitiful, you know?” I chuckle out as I hand Aster to her very eager grandmother.

“
Indeed, but we have to make sure we keep her fed.  You know how easy it is to lose track of time,” Devin sighs, and then he pulls me into his arms before delivering a too passionate kiss.

“
She’s starting to smell like too much heaven,” Hale grumbles while flipping through a magazine.

“
It sounds like parenthood is having a poor effect on the otherwise salacious couple,” Deacon adds humorously while staring at a magazine of his own.

I roll my eyes at their remarks, but they
’re right.  It’s been several days, and I know my scent has been driving everyone crazy.

“
What are you looking at?” Gemma asks as she walks in the room and snuggles into Ther’s lap while he studies a brochure of some kind.

“
Cars,” Kry murmurs vaguely.

Devin
’s lips fold over mine as we try to tune out the conversations around us.  I know we need some alone time for everyone’s sake - especially ours.

“
What kind of cars?” Faith muses.

“
We just wanted some ideas for Aster’s first car,” Deacon chimes in.

Devin and I both burst out laughing when we can
’t help but overhear, and I turn to shake my head at them.

“
She can’t even hold her own head up yet, and you’re looking at cars?” I tease.

“
Yep,” Kry replies shortly while studying the page with tedious intent.

“
How about we wait until she’s at least teething before we start planning her first vehicle,” Devin snickers.

“
Nope,” Kry says with a smirk.

“
Apparently Ther is reading up on colleges,” Gemma giggles out.

Devin rolls his eyes, but he can
’t stifle his grin.  I just laugh at their far too advanced planning. 

“
I’m surprised you’re not feeling any stronger yet,” Devin murmurs into my ear while straying from the group conversation.

“
Do you?”

“
Very much so.  It worries me that you’re not,” he utters so warmly while stroking my hair.

“
It’s probably because she’s still so drained from the pregnancy and labor.  It’s a very intense process for an immortal,” Persia chirps from across the room.  “Maybe you should let Aster sleep with me tonight so you can rest.”

“
You could let all of us help out more to be honest,” Theia scolds.

I
’ve been a little possessive - possibly too clingy.  I can’t help it though.  I never dreamt of what it would be like to have a child, and now I have the daughter Devin and I made together.

I just wish I knew why someone drugged me to bring her about.

“Sorry,” I mumble a little sheepishly.

“
Where are we on that lead you guys were so sure would pan out?” Devin asks Kry and Ther to deter the conversation, relieving me from the fuming grandmothers in the room.

“
It was a bust.  A son of Hermes - being the vague man of riddles he is - told us we could find her close where the water ran dry, but the deserts were completely swept.  Camara is sleeping off her exhausting night.  She occupied over three hundred animals at once,” Ther answers.

“
Wow,” I murmur with a bit of shock.

“
Yeah.  There’s no stirring in the deserts around here, and she would have caught whiff of anything with that many eyes and ears,” Deacon yawns out before flipping another page.

“
Take your wife away,” Kry grumbles to Devin while shifting uncomfortably.

“
What?” I squeak.

“
Your scent is killing me, and I’m doing good to stay away from Ember as it is,” he gripes.

“
Great,” I mumble.

Devin smirks a little, and then he pulls me into his arms before whisking me away from the room.  The padded door to the bedroom closes, and I giggle a little at his eager and menacing eyes.

“Finally,” he murmurs while pulling my lips to his again.

I giggle a little louder, and then I feel the bed pressing against my back. 

“It’s only been a week,” I tease.

“
You have no idea how hard it is to be without you for a week, especially when I’m right beside you,” he exasperates.

“
Aster has just needed-”

“
I know.  I know.  It’s not bad to want a minute alone every so often though.  Then you can sleep,” he says with a menacing smirk.

“
Aw,” I tease.  “Is my husband feeling neglected?”

“
Yes,” he says with a playful pout that’s almost too hot for my body to handle.

The sheets sear beneath me, and he shakes his head to warn me of my overheating state.

“Maybe this will help you get your strength back.  After all, Aphrodite has probably felt neglected as well,” he jokes.

I feel the burning graze of his touch tempting my body as it slowly crawls upward, and it
’s all I can do to stay still.

My hands tangle in his hair as I pull his lips back down to mine, and the passion that never fizzles pours free.  His delicious body rubs against mine, and the wind caresses our bodies as he frees us from our weighted clothing.

I smile as I stare into the eyes that have held me even closer for so many reasons, and then there’s only the desire we have for each other left in the room as all the anxiety, worry, and dread flees.

I feel so complete in
so many ways as I stare at the enormous picture of us laughing.  I giggle a little when I think back to the weddings, and then I sigh before climbing out of the wonderful bed Devin forced me to stay in after our wondrous sexcursion.

I hope my strength returns soon, but at least not all of my skills have been forced to lie dormant.

A colorful paper flower lies across the pillow where Devin had been while holding me until I fell asleep.  I smirk as I pull away the singed sheets, and then I laugh at the fire resistant cover that lines the mattress.

I toss the old sheets before pulling on some clothes, and then I pick up the handmade flower Devin left behind.

Each petal has a word, and together it reads:
For all eternity, Devin, Adisia, and Aster.
 

He
’s almost too amazing for me to believe, but the fact that he’s mine is even more surreal.

The door is barely cracked, and I can hear a few rustling whispers which lets me know Aster must finally be getting a little sleep as well. 

Just as I’m about to walk out, I feel queasy, dizzy, and severely faint.  The walls seem to be getting closer to me, and the bulbs in the room burst as my eyes roll back in my head.

I scream out as I feel the piercing pain of a vision not meant to be seen forcing its way to my mind.  I hear panicked footsteps and distant voices surrounding me as warm, familiar arms wrap around me protectively.

I scream once more when the vision finally finds a resting place in my mind for viewing.

The veiled face of a slender woman in white stands too far away for me to see clearly.  Smoky air clouds the view that much more, and the clothes worn seem so oddly fashioned.

I feel as though I’ve traveled back in time.

Her chimed voice echoes through a hollow tunnel as she addresses a bowing servant in need of guidance.  It
’s her words, though, that chill me the most, and I scream again as I struggle to hear better.

“
To restore life to that of which you seek, you’ll need to take a life both mortal and weak.  Aphrodite’s passion must dwell somewhere within, but you’ll need to find her before the bleeding rain begins.  By then your hope will have run dry, for there will no chance left - no time.  If eternity is the truth of your desire, then find the daughter born of water and fire.”

More images swirl through my mind as a warning of what
’s to come, and it’s hard to keep up with the changing pace.  The circle returns to the point where it started, and I’m staring at the original scene once more with more clarity.

This time, I notice something far more horrid, and the realization of what
’s to come knocks me into a spiraling fall.

I scream again as the vision flees, and the fading glimpse of the veiled woman isn
’t the figure I fear.  The humble servant bowing to her is the true source of my terror, for she is no humble servant at all.

It
’s the young Pyrrha, and it’s my daughter she wants.

I gasp for air as the light in the room slowly returns to a dim glow before my eyes, and then I hear the panicked voices in a muffled volume.

I’ve not fully left the inside of my mind, and this vision has been the worst I’ve received so far.

“
Adisia, please talk to me, baby,” Devin shrieks as if he’s been repeating the same phrase in mantra.

“
No,” I cry, and then the weeping howl deepens as I bury my face into his chest. 

“
What?  Tell us what you saw?” Hale urges.

“
She wants her,” I choke out in between my wails.

“
Who?” Devin softly prompts while stroking my hair.

“
Pyrrha.  She wants our baby,” I force out, and then my sobs take on a whole new deafening roar as silence chills the room for everyone else.

“
What the hell?” Deacon finally blurts out, but I can’t say anymore.

My sobbing has taken on a motored roar, and I can
’t catch a breath long enough to recompose myself.

Devin
’s eyes are trembling in terror, and he scoops me up from the floor to carry me into the living room. 

“
Where’s Theia?” Gemma inserts worriedly.  “She can view it and tell us what she saw.”

“
Theia and Phillip have gone with Persia and Kahl to buy more baby stuff.  I can do it,” Jace interjects, and I feel his hand taking mine.

My eyes are too blurred by tears to see, and my erratic breaths only work to heave out more cries.  I feel his grip tightening, and I know he
’s just seen it all as I have.

He stammers backwards shaking his head, and Faith comes over to help him steady himself.

“What did you see?” Devin says emergently.

“
She’s right.  Pyrrha wants your baby,” he murmurs as a ghostly shade infects his normally tan body.

“
Why?” Devin blares.

“
She needs the child of Aphrodite born from fire and water to restore the fountain of youth.  The time frame is limited, and she grew impatient.  That’s why she drugged you.  She’s not looking for the two of you; she’s just looking for Adisia.  She doesn’t know Adisia had her early, and that’s why she’s been so relentless in her search,” Jace explains.

“
What the fuck?” Kry gasps as he grips his head.  “Why does she think Aster is the key to restoring the fountain?”

“
An oracle prophesied it,” he murmurs while still gaping at me.

“
Where the hell did she find an oracle?  They’ve been extinct for centuries,” Camara rattles out.

“
The vision isn’t from recent past, it’s ancient - before the dawn of the immortal wars against Rhea and her armies.  Adisia saw an oracle’s prophecy.  That’s never been done before,” Jace murmurs in astonishment.

“
Damn it,” Deacon growls, and I see everyone shaking their heads in distress.