Authors: Serena Pettus
Elemental (18 page)
Gathering
his frayed nerves, he rose to his feet once more and headed off to gather the
blankets as ordered, glad to have something to do. He didn’t like feeling
helpless, and he absolutely loathed having to count on someone else—a woman at
that—to save someone he loved. He was a man, damn it, and an Elemental at that,
one of the more powerful immortals in the area, yet he and Mandy were at the
mercy of one of the most gentle of the Supernatural species.
If
Mandy died as a result of this, then Nicolas had no doubt he would likely
follow her. In such a short time, she had become an integral part of his life.
He lived to see her smiles, loved the joy she found in the most simple of
gestures, and the excitement in her eyes whenever she discovered something new.
But most of all, he treasured the tenderness in her eyes when she looked at
him.
She
was not a
woman
who hid her emotions well, and he was
well aware of her insecurities, yet she didn’t let them hold her back for long.
No, Mandy possessed an inner strength that rivaled his own, which only further
proved they were meant to be together, because the Fates knew that any woman
destined to be with him for eternity had better be able to put him in his place
when needed.
He
warmed the blankets and returned to the room to find Anna running a cloth over
Mandy’s forehead. “I thought we were trying to warm her, not cool her down,” he
said.
“We
are. She merely broke out in a sweat as I was setting her ankle and mending the
bone. It’s a very painful process and one that is very taxing as well, on both
parties.”
Nicolas
noted the tremors in Anna’s hands as she dabbed at Mandy’s brow. “You need to
rest, Anna. I appreciate all that you’ve done for her. That’s twice now you’ve
saved her life, and now you need to take care of yourself as well. Jonathan
would skin me if anything happened to you.”
“Oh,
I am fine. I was referring to the babe. It feels the stress on the body the
same as the mother.” Her hand settled over Mandy’s flat abdomen and Nicolas’
vision blurred.
“A
b-babe?”
He and Mandy were going to be parents?
“Yes.
I did not want to mention it in the forest because I was not sure whether the
pregnancy would survive the trauma, but I should have known better. It is very
hard to shake an immortal child from the womb, so I believe that he or she will
be fine.” Anna rose and made her way to the door, leaving Nicolas sitting next
to Mandy in a state of shock.
“Lay
with her, Nicolas. Be there for her when she wakes, but be aware that she has
no knowledge of the pregnancy as it is still quite new. She will need to be
informed of many things. The most important will be the shorter gestation of
Supernaturals
,” she explained. “Human pregnancies last for
forty weeks while a
Supernatural’s
pregnancy lasts
but twenty-five.” He gave her such a helpless male look that she couldn’t help
but laugh softly. “I will try and explain this all to her once she is feeling
up to it. Until then, watch her closely.”
Nicolas
lay next to Mandy for what felt like hours, just watching her sleep. She was
his miracle, his salvation, and his future, all wrapped up in a fragile human
shell that now carried his legacy as well.
Finally
feeling the effects of the day, Nicolas pulled Mandy into his arms, placed his
hand over the place where their child rested, and joined her in sleep.
Epilogue
Two
weeks had passed since the rescue, and even though they had been planning to
have the wedding on New Year’s Eve, they decided to postpone the date and
instead had a double ceremony, uniting both couples for eternity.
Mandy
had unfortunately come down with a very nasty cold after her little fiasco in
the forest and still needed some rest to recover completely. She was eternally
grateful for having woken up with a healed leg, but even more grateful that the
child resting in her womb had survived unharmed during the whole ordeal.
Her
child.
Their child.
The thought
had the power to bring happy tears to her eyes every time it crossed her mind…which
was often. She was going to be a mother, and she vowed to be the best mother in
the world. Mandy already knew that Nicolas would be an amazing father. He spoke
to their child often through her belly and every time he did she felt her heart
swell with love. Was it any wonder she wanted to spend the rest of her very
long life by his side?
When
she had awakened, Mandy had noticed the way Nicolas seemed to be so very gentle
with her, almost as if she would shatter with the lightest touch. She figured
he was still worried about her wellbeing after her encounter with the werewolf,
until he’d finally broken down and told her that they would be having a baby.
He’d
taken the time to allow her a few moments to process this news—roughly two
minutes to be exact—and then promptly dropped another bomb on her. Apparently,
Supernatural pregnancies were quite a bit shorter than human pregnancies, so
she would be experiencing all of the normal pregnancy woes at warp speed.
Though he seemed a good bit more worried over that than she did.
It
had been downright comical while she and Anna were planning the ceremony and
receptions. Jonathan hung around, usually chuckling, while Nicolas was like a
second shadow, following her everywhere, not allowing her to lift anything,
even insisting that she put her feet up every so often, until she and Anna
finally convinced him that she was fine and could do everything that she’d
always done, so he needn’t worry.
Not
that it helped.
Now,
with the after-party in full swing, Mandy looked around at all of the guests.
True there weren’t many, but the Royal Fey Court had come, the Fey King showing
off some surprisingly good dance moves, along with a few of Nicolas’ and
Jonathan’s friends.
It
didn’t really matter to Mandy that she had no family or friends of her own
present because she had everything that she needed right here. She had Nicolas,
the love of her life and father of her child—a thought that still awed her—and
his wonderful brother Jonathan, her best friend. Anna was already more than a
friend to Mandy, they had grown to become more like sisters, and everyone knew
that sisters were your very best friends.
“How
are you feeling?” Nicolas asked as he hugged her from behind, his hands coming
to rest low on her stomach.
“Amazing,”
she replied. “I never thought I could be this happy. It’s more than I could
ever have hoped for.”
“I
know what you mean,” he whispered, kissing her neck. “I’ve searched for you for
a long time, Mandy, but the Fates have a way of making sure that you receive
what you need when you need it most, and there you were. I was in a very dark
place when you came. I had begun to lose hope of ever finding my other half.”
“I’m
glad that I met Jonathan. If I hadn’t, then I never would have come here,”
Mandy turned and hugged Nicolas tightly, her cheek resting on his chest, his heart
beating strong and steady beneath her ear. “I don’t think that I would have
lasted for very much longer if I had remained alone. Perhaps the Fates sensed
that both of our needs were at a critical point. Whatever the case, I’m here
now and I don’t plan on leaving unless you are coming with me.”
“I’d
follow you anywhere, sweetheart, to the ends of the earth and back,” he vowed,
those clear blue eyes of his shining with love.
“I
love you, Nicolas Mondragon,” she’d loved him from the start, and would never
stop.
“And
I love you, Mandy Mondragon, forever.”
“And
ever,” Mandy replied, happy to finally have her own happily ever after.
*The End*
About the Author
I
am a wife and mother first, an author second and also hold a full-time
job.
. . because of something called "bills".
BLECH!! I’m also an avid reader and enjoy a wide variety of genres from
contemporary to historical and—of course—paranormal, though I tend to stick to
romance.
I
write for the joy of it, and love to hear from readers, so come join me on
Facebook or Twitter and let's chat!
Secret Cravings Publishing
www.secretcravingspublishing.com
