Ashes

  She paused with the bottle close to her mouth. “Aren’t those the stages of demonic possession?”

  Smiling, he shrugged. “Pregnancy is pretty much the same thing.”

  “No, it’s really not.” She cocked her head. “Anyone ever told you that you have the oddest sense of humor?”

  “Once or twice.” He pushed some of the buttons on his portable ultrasound machine. “Lay back. Let’s get a look at this baby.”

  Knox kissed her temple and then rose from the sofa, but she tightened her grip on his hand. “I’m not leaving you,” he told her, perching himself on the arm.

  Mollified, Harper lay on the sofa and pulled up her T-shirt. Rodgers squirted cold gel on her stomach and then moved a handheld probe around her lower abdomen, which put pressure on her bladder and made her really need to pee. But the sound of a heart beating strong and fast pushed her discomfort into the background.

  Knox leaned forward as they watched the screen. He could make out the head and the outline of the baby’s body clearly, and his chest tightened. She really was pregnant. Even as he looked at their baby, the whole situation still felt surreal.

  Rodgers tilted his head. “Huh.”

  Knox’s muscles went rigid. “What does ‘huh’ mean?”

  “It means I was wrong. You’re sixteen weeks pregnant, Harper. Congratulations.”

  Harper gaped. She was nearing the end of the second stage of her pregnancy? Her demon blinked, shocked for the second time that day. “How is that even possible?”

  Rodgers turned to her. “Well, there’s such a thing called ‘sperm’. During sexual intercourse —”

  Knox sighed. “Do you have to be an idiot right now?”

  “Sorry.”

  “You’re sure she’s that far along? She doesn’t look pregnant. Her stomach doesn’t even have a slight pouch. If anything, she’s lost weight.”

  “It’s not unusual for a she-demon to lose weight at first, especially if their appetite has been suffering. It’s usually at around the eighteenth week that the mother begins to actually look pregnant. Then things go pretty fast from there.” He turned to Harper. “You’re approaching the end of stage two, so the tiredness will start to wear off and you’ll get your appetite back. But you’ll have to deal with backache, joint pain, an increase in sex drive, and of course weight gain. Oh, and your demonic abilities might play up a little. The latter doesn’t always happen, though, especially if the she-demon is powerful like yourself.”

  “Sounds grand,” she said dryly. Most of her attention was still on the monitor. She suspected that the image would just look weird to anyone who wasn’t emotionally invested in the situation. For Harper, the little bundle on the screen was a marvel. Her throat felt tight and she had to cough to clear it.

  “Does everything look okay?” Knox asked the doctor, keeping his fingers linked with hers.

  Rodgers turned back to the monitor and moved the probe a little. “It all looks good. Although…”

  Tension gripped Knox. “Although what?” he prodded when the doctor fell silent.

  “The fetus is smaller than it should be, though that can change. It could have a growth spurt at some point.” Rodgers’ mouth curled as the baby started wriggling around, looking like it was trying to do the breast stroke or something. “Quite the little mover, isn’t it? It’s small, but it’s feisty. Ever feel a little fluttering in your stomach, Harper?”

  Now that she came to think of it… “Yeah. The fluttering has gotten more… pronounced. Sometimes it feels like bubbles popping.” She’d just thought it was, well, gas. And she was paranoid that she’d let it all go in public.

  “That’s the fetus moving around. In the next couple of weeks, there’ll be a noticeable difference in the strength of the movements.”

  Rodgers removed the probe – thank God – and turned off the ultrasound machine. He then gave her a paper towel to wipe off the gel. Knox helped her clean it up, and then Harper righted her T-shirt and sat up. “Is there anything I can do to make sure that the baby grows as it should?”

  “Just ensure that you take care of yourself,” said Rodgers. “If you take care of your body, your body will take care of the fetus. We’ll have regular scans so we can monitor how things are going and make sure it’s developing just fine.”

  Knox nodded. “What will happen if the baby doesn’t grow like it should?”

  “That depends on a few things. Harper may have to be induced and have the baby early, but I don’t think it will come to that.” The machine whirred as it printed out a small picture of the screen. Rodgers handed it to her.

  Glancing at the smooth black and white picture, Harper swallowed hard again. That was her baby. Hers and Knox’s baby. It was growing inside her. She was… it was just… wow. Until a few hours ago, she hadn’t even suspected that she could be pregnant. It was honestly hard to wrap her head around it.

  She gave the picture to Knox, who looked down at it with such an intensity of emotion that she sucked in a breath. If she’d have had any doubts at all that he was happy about the pregnancy, that one look would have eradicated them.

  Rodgers grinned. “Feeling manly now, Thorne? This is the ultimate proof that you’re a virile man.”

  Knox shot him an impatient look that made the doctor’s grin deepen.

  Gathering his things together, Rodgers pointed at Harper. “No alcohol, no raw fish, ease up on the caffeine, and don’t overexert yourself.” At her nod, he said, “Call me if you have any questions or concerns and… well, congratulations once again. Don’t worry. This matter will be confidential and there will be no records.”

  Knox inclined his head. “Thank you.”

  “I appreciate you coming so soon,” said Harper.

  Equipment in hand, Rodgers gave her a gracious smile. “It was no problem at all.”

  Knox dropped a kiss on Harper’s head and then accompanied Rodgers to the front door. “Is there anything I should watch out for? Any complications I should expect?” He hadn’t wanted to ask in front of Harper.

  “All pregnancies can have complications, but they don’t always do so,” Rodgers told Knox. He patted his arm. “Don’t worry so much. Try to enjoy it. And smile. Your life is about to be turned upside down and be forever changed.” With that, he walked out the door and down the steps, where his black sedan waited.

  Knox closed the door and returned to the living room. He sat next to Harper and pulled her close, looking down at the scan picture she was staring at. Sweeping her hair away from her face, he asked, “You okay?”

  She met his eyes, puffing out a breath. “I didn’t think I’d be so far along. In fourteen weeks, we’ll be parents.” Panic rose sharp and fast as it truly sank in. “We’re so unprepared for this it’s not even funny. Babies need lots of stuff and we have literally nothing. We’ll need a cradle, a stroller, a —”

  “Ssh.” He massaged her nape and kissed her gently. “You’re getting yourself all worked up, and that’s not good for you. We’ll get everything we need. We’ll be as prepared as any set of parents can be. I know this has come as a shock to you – I can very much relate to that – but you don’t need to stress about anything.” He’d do enough of that for both of them anyway. “Just do what Rodgers said and concentrate on taking care of yourself. Now, why do you look guilty?”

  “You heard Rodgers. The baby’s too small. That’s my fault. I wasn’t eating well.”

  “I also heard him say that it’s not unusual for a she-demon’s appetite to suffer at first. That is not your fault.” He rubbed her back. “Everything will be fine. I won’t have it any other way.”

  She bit her lip. “Don’t hate me if I turn out to be a really shit mom, okay? It won’t be something I did on purpose.”

  He curled a hand around her chin. “You could never be a bad mother. Have we not already been over this?” If either of them were likely to make a bad parent, it would be Knox. But he had every faith in himself and Harper as a unit. “Like I’ve
pointed out once before, Lucian didn’t raise you; he relied on you because he isn’t able to meet his own needs. You were the parent in that relationship, so you already know a thing or two about parenting. You’re also as caring, responsible, and protective as any mother should be.”

  “Speaking of Lucian… I don’t even want to wonder how he’ll react.” Hearing she was pregnant would mean he’d have to accept that Knox was a permanent fixture in her life. She wasn’t like Lucian, she wouldn’t walk away from the father of her child unless she absolutely had to – Lucian would know that. “Jolene and the girls will be ecstatic. I have to say, though, that I’m thinking the person who’ll be most excited is Lou.”

  Knox exhaled heavily. “Yeah. He’s going to be a pain in the ass once he finds out.” Glancing once more at the ultrasound image in her hand, Knox stroked the baby with his thumb. It still wasn’t quite sinking into his brain that there was a little person inside Harper; that that little person was his child. Their child. Still, every protective instinct that he and his demon had was on high alert. “No one will ever harm the baby,” he swore.

  Harper squeezed his hand. “No, they won’t. And if anyone tries, we’ll string them up by their intestines. We’ll make an example of them to send a message of just how dumb it would be for anyone else to try.”

  Knox looked into her eyes, saw the promise of retribution right there, and nodded. It was a vow. “Come on, let’s go to bed.”

  “I really don’t think I could sleep right now.” She was too wired.

  His mouth set into a lopsided smile. “Who said anything about sleeping?”

  CHAPTER TEN

  Knox paused with the fork halfway to Harper’s mouth, his forehead wrinkling. “You’re going to work?”

  Harper arched a brow. “What, you thought I’d spend the rest of the pregnancy sitting around, twiddling my thumbs?”

  “A man can dream.”

  She rolled her eyes. “I took three days off, even though I didn’t need them.” She’d agreed to spend the time catching up on her sleep, but she’d really done it so that he had a little time to adjust to the idea that she was pregnant. Honestly, she’d also needed that time to adjust. Now that she had, the anxiety had been replaced by a scary anticipation. But it was a good kind of scary.

  It was amazing just how different her world now seemed. Everything other than Knox had taken an emotional backseat to the life inside her. And that was the way it should be, she thought. It hadn’t been that way for her own parents, but it would damn well be that way for her.

  “I will admit that having your undivided attention during my time off was quite enjoyable.” Obligingly, Harper ate the chunk of grapefruit that he offered her.

  Since discovering that Harper was pregnant, a delighted Meg had tried filling her with fruit, vegetables, and other healthy foods. Knox often insisted on feeding her, which Harper would have quickly lost her patience with if she hadn’t understood why exactly he was fussing. He was worried for her, and it got to him that he had no control over the matter. It made him feel helpless. She didn’t want that. If letting him fuss over her made him feel more involved and not quite so powerless, she’d deal with it.

  “And I enjoyed being able to give you my undivided attention for the past three days,” said Knox. “Why not allow yourself to enjoy it a little longer?”

  “You can’t be with me all the time.” She took a sip of her orange juice. “We both have businesses to run.”

  “I know.” Knox sifted his fingers through her hair. “But my protective instincts are in a frenzy right now and it’s making me paranoid over your safety.”

  She gave him a reassuring kiss, humming because he tasted of coffee, porridge, and brown sugar. “I get that. My own protective instincts are a little hyper at the moment too, and my demon is on edge – seeing everything and everyone as a potential threat, which is going to get old fast. I need you to be the rational one. Besides, I have Tanner.”

  Knox wasn’t so sure he could give her “rational”. His demon snorted at the idea. “Keenan will now also be guarding you. One bodyguard for you, and one for the little person in there.” He gently rubbed her stomach. “Do it for me. I need that peace of mind, Harper.”

  “I do understand that we need to tighten the security. I’m not going to fight you on it.” Especially if it meant that her demon would relax just a little.

  He nodded in approval and fed her a piece of kiwi. “Invite Jolene and the girls to the mansion tonight. We’ll get them and the sentinels in the same room and give them the news all at once.”

  “You haven’t told Keenan why you’ve assigned him to me?”

  “Not the full truth, not yet. I didn’t want to tell him before I told Levi, Tanner, or Larkin – they’re immature enough to be jealous about it. And no, I’m not kidding.”

  Harper’s mouth quirked. “Okay, so we’ll tell everyone at the same time.”

  “Keenan thinks I’ve asked him to guard you because I’m a little paranoid about your safety, which is actually true. Both he and Tanner will remain inside the studio with you all day. When you leave, they’ll leave with you.”

  Despite knowing it was necessary, her instincts reflexively balked at that extent of the overprotectiveness – they were sentinels, they shouldn’t be lumbered with babysitting duty – but she didn’t argue. Common sense told her that it was better to be safe than sorry. The baby’s safety came before her pride and touchy independent streak.

  “Since the person who’s targeting me tried kidnapping Heidi, do you think they’ve accepted that it would be too difficult for them to get to me?” she asked. “If so, it’s possible that it will be the other people in my life that they might consider harming.”

  Knox thought on that for a moment. “Since their plan to get their hands on Heidi fell flat on its face, I doubt they’ll try touching your family or anyone in their lair again – that will include your co-workers.”

  Full to her stomach, Harper shook her head when he offered her a slice of apple. “I can’t eat anymore. I’m stuffed.”

  Knox didn’t lower the fork. “You’re eating for two now, remember.”

  “I ate a lot more than I usually do,” she pointed out. “And the last thing I want to do is vomit it all back up, which is exactly what will happen if I try forcing more food into my stomach.”

  “Valid point.” He put down the fork, which displeased his demon. Still, the entity could accept that she was right and, like Knox, knew there would have been no sense in pushing her. “I just worry about you.”

  “I know you do, and I love you for it. But I’m honestly stuffed.”

  He gestured to her orange juice. “Finish that, at least. For me.”

  With a huff, she picked up the glass and downed the juice like it was tequila. “There. Done. Happy now?”

  “I was already happy. Now I’m happier.” Knox kissed her, licking into her mouth, taking his time to gorge himself on her. She tasted like fruit and that sweet unique taste that was all Harper. Pulling back, he watched as her amber irises clouded and swirled before changing into a striking cobalt blue. “I wonder if the baby will have your eyes.”

  Just the possibility of that had the potential to put Harper in a bad mood. “I don’t want our child to have freaky eyes.”

  Knox shot her a mock glare and gave her lower lip a punishing bite. “Your eyes are not freaky.” He spoke against her mouth. “They’re beautiful. Unique. Fascinating. Just like you.”

  “It’s good that you think so, but I don’t.” According to Carla, Harper had inherited the weird trait from Carla’s sister. It was possible that it could be passed on to the baby, especially since it was guaranteed to be a sphinx. Archdemons weren’t born from a womb. “I’d like it to have your dark eyes.” They made her think of black velvet. Just because the baby could only be a sphinx didn’t mean it couldn’t share any physical resemblances to Knox. The baby in her dream had looked up at her through dark eyes, she remembered… right
before it blew up the cradle.

  “What’s making you frown? Tell me. I’ll make it better.”

  She smiled. “I was just remembering that odd dream I had about a baby, courtesy of the nightmare hunter.”

  “Ah.” Knox sipped the coffee he’d almost finished. “It’s possible that some subconscious part of you considered that you could be pregnant. That might have sparked the dream. Like I said, nightmares can only cause dreams, they can’t fabricate the content.”

  “That’s what I was thinking.”

  At that moment, Meg walked into the room. She looked at Harper’s plate and clucked in disapproval, settling her hands on her wide hips.