Page 47 of Arthur

It took effort to not roll my eyes. “I’m not an invalid. I simply want a morning nap. There was no issue at all with me getting Edric up and off to school. He was happy to see his friends after so much time apart.” I smiled, remembering the morning vividly. “Personally, I think he really wants to brag about all of the time he spent with the dragons. But that’s my opinion.”

“What can I get you?” Arthur asked. “Water? Snacks? Tea? Coffee?”

I smiled. “I’m fine. I think I’ll have a lazy day and spend it resting in bed or on the couch. The biggest help would be fetching Edric later.”

“Done. You know I will. Not that he truly needs fetching. He’s here on the grounds, just out back in the schoolhouse.”

I chuckled. That was true. When the coven started having a baby boom, Arthur had the school building built. Well, he’d used magic to build it, but he’d gone through all of the proper channels and had all of the permits and inspections. We always made sure to do things by the book in the human world when itcame to things of that nature. We needed to cover our tracks if it became absolutely necessary.

“Did you wish for me to rest with you?”

I wanted to say yes but shook my head. “No, I’ll get more rest if you’re doing your own thing. If you’re in bed with me, I’ll not be able to sleep, and we both know where things will go then.”

Arthur smirked. He knew exactly what I was implying and also that I wasn’t incorrect. If he joined me, I wouldn’t be able to rest, and then we’d end up naked and doing things that certainly wouldn’t involve sleeping.

“Very well. I’ll simply tidy up here at home, and if you need anything, you just call out.”

I tugged on the front of Arthur’s shirt. When he fell forward, bracing himself on either side of me with his hands on the bed, I grinned. “Of course I’ll do that.” I placed my hand on the side of his face. “You know that I truly do wish for you to join me in bed, right? But that I need rest at the moment.”

Arthur leaned down and kissed me gently. “I know. Which is why I’ll be out in the outer rooms. I love you, and yes, I do remember how you need time to recover from your fertile periods. I’m upset with myself for not remembering already. I should have stayed home this morning and taken care of you.”

I rubbed my thumb along Arthur’s jaw. “No, you have plenty to do.” A yawn overcame me, and I was too slow to try and cover it.

Arthur leaned down and kissed my nose. “Rest. I’ll bring you lunch in a bit, and then you will rest some more. Once Edric is home, he and I will both be here to take care of you. Classwork shall be accomplished, and then our evening meal. Your only task is to rest. Anything I need to do with the coven can wait another day or two.”

“Are you certain?” I’d already kept him away from the coven for a full week when I knew he’d only intended a few days when he arrived in Montana.

“Yes, now rest.” Arthur kissed me again, this time on the lips and lingering just a bit. “I’ll be a loud shout away, or reach out through our bond. I have some paperwork I can do here, and if anything is pressing and Costas can’t deal with it, I’ll run out, take care of things, and then come home to you once more.”

I yawned again. “Sorry. I can’t seem to stay awake.”

“Then don’t. Let your body relax and rest.” Arthur kissed me once more before he stood and stared down at me. “I’ll not be far, and I’ll check in on you periodically. Rest, my love.”

I nodded, already on my way to dozing off. I heard Arthur’s footsteps after they left the thick rug that was around our bed, and moments later, they disappeared completely as he walked out of the room. I had only been in Montana a couple of days before Arthur joined us. We’d spent the five days of my fertile period there together. Well, four and a half. We’d spent another day there simply because neither of us was very coherent and spent it sleeping. Then we’d spent the next day with me still resting and Arthur getting up and around. He’d, of course, taken care of me, but he’d also met with his parents. I know he had discussed a little about our new coven members, but Edison hadn’t had a whole lot of information to give us beyond what he’d already shared.

The next day, we’d come home—Arthur doing the magic. I’d been taking it easy since, and that had been three days ago. I was a bit surprised, really. I should have bounced back by now. My fertile period had ended six days ago. It had never taken me this long to recover before.

I was obviously becoming too old for fertile periods, and they were probably going to come to an end soon enough. Oh well. I’ddeal with that a bit later. The need to rest was too much to resist any longer, and I let my mind rest completely.

I woke feeling terrible, and if not for the fact that I had magic and could magically put myself in the bathroom in a blink, I would have gotten sick in our bed. It was as I was kneeling over the toilet, expelling the meager contents of my stomach into the commode, that I felt him. I didn’t have time to say hello though. I was too busy getting sick to think about what I’d just discovered.

I heard commotion behind me, and when a familiar aura surrounded me, I felt a sense of peace, which seemed to help.

“I’m here, my love.” Immediately, a cool cloth was on the back of my neck. Arthur moved it across my neck, then around the sides. When I reached up and pulled on the little lever, I sat up, and the lid of the toilet bowl was suddenly closed as everything swirled around and then away. I glanced at Arthur, seeing not only love but concern on his face. “Are you all right?”

I sighed when he wiped my forehead, then my cheeks. “I will be. Could you help me up so I can rinse my mouth?”

Arthur didn’t even answer; he simply jumped into action. I was lifted up off the floor and into my One’s arms. I was incredibly thankful for that because my body felt weaker than it ever had before. Arthur placed me on the counter between the two sinks and then turned one of the faucets on. He kept one hand on me while he reached toward the sink. When he brought his other back, in it was a cup filled with water.

I took the paper cup with a shaky hand while Arthur’s moved down my torso. When it came to rest on my lower abdomen, we both felt the pulse from our unborn son. That was all it took for me to burst into tears.

Arthur’s eyes went wide before he wrapped me in his arms. “Shh. I’m here, my love. This is what we’ve always wanted, no?”

I couldn’t answer, so I tried to nod in agreement. I was pregnant. I wasn’t sure it would ever happen again after Alistair. Then I’d become pregnant with Edric, and we’d both been elated. But since then, my fertile periods had become erratic again, and when I had one, I didn’t catch. Until now. We both had just sensed the little warlock that I was carrying. There was no denying the fact that we were going to become fathers again.

“Are you upset because you’re pregnant? Or are you emotional?”

I pulled back enough to look up at Arthur. “Emotional,” I managed to get out. I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself. It somewhat worked, but not well. I was able to finally rinse my mouth, and when I was finished, Arthur picked me up again and carried me from the bathroom. I expected him to take me back to our bed, but instead, he left the bedroom and carried me to our couch. He had a fire going, and when he sat with me on his lap, I snuggled in.