The King (Black Dagger Brotherhood #12) - J.R. Ward Page 0,217

going to get that shit twenty-fold now.

“And I think I need to feed again,” his Beth said as he started up the stairs, George leading him by subtle pressure on his leg.

“I gotchu.” He frowned. “What did the doc say about the nausea?”

“She really does think I have the flu. But then, she doesn’t know about the whole needing thing and maybe that’s why?”

“I’ll talk to Havers—you don’t have to go see him.”

“That would be great, actually. I’m really nervous.”

“Don’t you worry. I got this.”

And he absolutely, positively did. He felt in control of the universe, an old, familiar part of him waking up once again.

George guided him to the door that opened up to the stairs to the third floor, and when they got to the top, Wrath went to the left.

As the vault was unlocked, he walked inside, taking her immediately to the bed. “You want me to run a bath? A shower? The sink?”

She laughed. “I just want to lie here. I feel like I’ve been on a roller-coaster ride that’s been going too fast.”

Sitting down beside her, he found her lower belly with his hand. “I love this.”

“Love what?”

“This bump thing you got going on.” He smiled. “That’s our young.”

“It sure is.”

“I wish I could see it. That picture.”

“Me, too.”

“But this is good.” He rubbed in circles, trying to imagine what his son would look like. “And he’s strong.”

“Yes. Just like his father.”

“Here, take my vein.” He extended his wrist to her mouth. “Please.”

“Oh, thank you.”

As her fangs sank into his skin, he wanted her at his throat but didn’t trust himself. He was juiced up, and that kind of shit tended to like a particular outlet—and that was not happening while she was pregnant. Nope. Not with his son in there—

His wife’s hand landed on his hard cock—and he nearly jumped out of his skin. “Fuck!”

She broke the seal on his vein. “We can have sex, you know.”

“Ah, no. Nope.”

“Wrath, I’m not sick—and it’s not like we have to worry about whether or not I’m going to get pregnant.” The smile on her face was all over her tone. “You got that job done just fine.”

“I did, didn’t I.”

“I am so happy about this,” she said, as he felt her touch his face. “About your response most of all.”

Guess he’d surprised them both with his reaction.

Stroking her belly, he thought about what was growing inside of her. “You want to know what the best part of this is?”

“Tell me,” she whispered.

“You have given me something … I didn’t even know I needed. It’s the greatest gift I will ever receive—it’s, like, completing me already in places I wasn’t aware were empty. And yet … in spite of all that? I don’t love you one bit more. You are as important to me as you’ve always been.” He curled down and pressed a kiss to the loose shirt she was wearing—it was one of his, actually, and wasn’t that great. “I was wholly bonded to you before this, and will be after this—and forevermore.”

“You’re going to make me cry again.”

“So cry. And let me take care of you. I got this.”

“I love you so much.”

He moved up to her mouth and kissed her once, twice, three times. “Right. Back. Atchu. Now finish feeding and rest—and I’ll have food brought up.”

“No food, please. Not right now. Your strength is all I need.”

Amen to that, he thought.

Wrath stayed on the edge of that bed forever as she nursed against his wrist. Then he helped her to the shower, got her dried off, and put her between the sheets.

“I’m just going to rest a little,” she said, already drifting off as the shutters started to rise for the night.

“However long you want.”

A son. A son.

“I’m going to go hit the desk,” he said—before stopping himself.

Funny, that was what he’d told her every night after First Meal, their joking way of acknowledging he was gonna go put his crown on and deal with shit.

“I’m so glad,” she said in a sleepy voice.

Funny … right now? All that King stuff didn’t seem like a burden anymore.

In fact, as he grabbed onto George’s halter, it felt shockingly easy to go down the stairs and head for his study. And as he went into the room, he found the desk, walked around its carved corners … and paused before sitting in his father’s chair.

It was with a sense of awe that he slowly lowered his weight. The throne creaked as it always did—and