34. A glance at the past

Emmalyn couldn’t help but smile brightly at the way Farrel was acting. She took the cloth in her hand and moved to sit up, then moved a few of the pillows around behind her so they propped her up a bit.

“I think chicken broth would be best. I still feel a little queasy,” she said to him.

She couldn’t wait to see her other mates again. She knew she looked like a mess and wanted to be presentable when they returned.

“Can you help me bathe in a little before they return?”

Down below, Farrel chuckled at her self-conscious thoughts. She always wanted to look her best for them regardless of the fact she always looked best to them. He didn’t dwell on it. Nothing any of them could say would change that, and he didn’t really care to. When she requested chicken broth, he dug it from the cold case and lit the woodstove so he could heat it.

“They only just left when you woke. There will be plenty of time to clean up, Emmalyn,” he assured her. While he was busy tending to the heating broth and finding a large mug for her, he continued mentally speaking to her. “You should see your mark now. Mikael’s venom left a gold tinge in your flesh.”

She reached up and touched the mark. She ran her fingers over the interlocking circles left by their bites. Her hands then traveled down to her stomach and she let her fingers move over the still flat expanse. She smiled again and thought of all the things she couldn’t wait to do with the baby.

“I wish I could have seen all of your faces when you found out. Can you tell me what your reactions were?”

Farrel was back upstairs with a steaming mug of broth and a waterskin. Agile as ever, he stepped right up onto the bed, moving to her side, then settled down cross-legged. He passed her the water skin first and blew on the broth to cool it down while she drank.

Emmalyn was already looking better and better since she woke up. She wasn’t as pale as she was before. She took a drink from the waterskin when he handed it to her. And then she drank some more.

“I can do better than tell you,” he murmured.

Waiting until she was not attempting to swallow anything, he closed his eyes and concentrated on the moment that they had all found out about the little one. All three of her mates had been hovering at her bedside. It had been after her convulsions had subsided. After she had gotten sick. Caleb was busy changing the sheets while Farrel washed her with a cloth. Mikael had been supporting her upper body and caught the scent first.

Farrel remembered the look of joy and concern on the Elder’s face as he leaned down to sniff around her belly. Farrel had given him a strange look, then leaned in to sniff as well, though his own expression was blind from his thoughts. Caleb, upon hearing Mikael’s announcement of the fact, dropped everything on the floor to rush over and inhale as well.

The looks on Mikael’s and Caleb’s faces brought a big smile to her face and tears to her eyes. She put her hand over her mouth as she laughed softly. She wished so much she could share in the joy they felt at that moment. When the vision faded, she opened her eyes and looked over at Farrel. Careful of the waterskin and broth, she moved to him and wrapped her arms around him as much as she could. She hugged him as she would never let him go.

“I’m so happy I’m going to be a mother.” She said, tears falling down her face as she whispered softly, her voice still husky from being sick.

Farrel’s free arm slid around Emmalyn’s shoulders and he held her tightly as he softly stroked his fingers through her tangled locks to work a few knots loose. He softly kissed her cheek and neck and shoulder as he nuzzled her. He breathed in her scent, that was now sweetened more by the scent of the baby. When she drew back, he tenderly kissed her tears away, then pressed the mug into her hands.

“We all are and we’re eager to be fathers,” he whispered, then cupped her cheek so she would look at him. “I love you, Emmalyn. I love you how I can... even if I don’t fully understand the human in you.”

She looked deep into his eyes when he spoke of his love for her. She couldn’t hide the look of surprise in her eyes when he confessed his love for her. It was the first time he had told her. She knew, of course, that he loved her in his own way, and that had been enough for her. But now, to hear him say it as he did made her heart swell even more.

“I love you too, Farrel, even though I don’t understand you all the time, but I don’t have to. I trust you.” She gave him a tender kiss on his lips before taking a sip of the broth.

There was another shifting in her mind as Mikael spoke up.

“I love you as well, my mate. Caleb says his love is included. We are returning now. Ten minutes before we reach the village.”

Emmalyn closed her eyes when she heard Mikael. She smiled a bit, telling him she loved him too. She didn’t know how she could love him so soon, but she knew she did. He was still mostly a stranger to her, but she loved him. She sent thoughts of her love to Caleb, telling them both to be safe as they came home.

Her eyes opened wide when she realized how soon they would be back. She looked down at herself and then up at Farrel in almost a panic.

“I don’t have time, do I?” she asked him with her mind.

“No, we wouldn’t. Feed, then bathe,” Mikael told her firmly, and a low growl came directly after his words.

Beside her Farrel, shook his head and kissed her temple. Even while Emmalyn was the axle of their wheel, Mikael was in the lead. His word held the power of that station.

Farrel gently stroked her arm, urging her to drink the broth yet not rush it either. It would do her and the child no good if she made herself sick in her rush to look good for them. Her health outweighed every other need. He watched over her to make sure that she finished as much as she could before he helped her from the bed. She wrapped her arms around him as he picked her up and cradled her in his arms. He carried her with gentle arms as he made his way back to the private patio and pool.

The tub was fed through with water from a river and hot spring and emptied over the cliff in a small waterfall. He lowered her into the water, quickly stripping away his trousers, and slid in with her. The water was perfect for her, not too hot and not too cold. She leaned her head back, dipping her long hair into the water before tilting her head back up to look at him.

“How many children do you want? Should this first birth.. go well?”

She gave him another smile before answering.

“As many as I can have.” She answered him honestly. “How many would you like?” She asked before she moved closer to him to cuddle in his lap again.

As Emmalyn settled, Farrel reached for the small bar of soap resting on a dish on the edge of the bath. He went for her hair first once she had wet it and scrubbed the soap into her tangled hair. He worked out every little knot with his fingers while he cleansed her locks.

“As many as you can have,” he mimicked.

Once he was finished with her hair, he angled her back to rinse the soap away and ran his fingers through it slowly to be sure it was once more smooth as silk.

Farrel opened his mouth to speak again, but the flood of emotions from two others now entering Emmalyn’s mind stopped him. Mikael was quite subdued, but happy. Caleb was less so. He was downright frantic and excited to see her again, and those emotions mirrored the hurried footsteps padding through the communal hut and out to the patio.

Those steps didn’t slow either until he slid, splashed right into the tub, hurried over to wrap his arms tight around his mate, and peppered her face in kisses. Apparently heedless of the water, he tossed his head under as he nuzzled her belly in his greeting to the little one growing there.