Unexpected Mates (Sons of Heaven) (29 page)

Jo practiced it twice more and then decided to take a break. Her mind was on dozens of other things, not the least of which was what she was going to name her daughter.

Why she’d chosen to wait until she knew if the baby had wings or not to name her was a mystery to her, but she had. Jo had looked up baby names and made a full list of names, separated by babies with no wings and those with wings.

She went to the bedroom and pulled the tablet she’d made notes in from her backpack. Jo ripped out the page of baby names for babies with no wings, crumpled it, and tossed it at the trash can. She poured a glass of frozen lemonade, took it to the bed, and curled onto the mattress with the second page of baby names written on it.

The first few names held no appeal for her at all.
I honestly thought those were good? Why?
Jo scratched off one after another, whittling the list down to five names in a single pass.

Working it down from there was more difficult. In the end, one name stood out from the rest.
Daya Arianne.
She smiled and circled it, then set the tablet aside.

Jo took a drink of her lemonade and settled back into the pillows, content that she’d accomplished something important.
I’ve named my daughter.

Speaking of the little angel, she started kicking. Jo set her lemonade on the bedside table and started rubbing the sides of her womb.

She actively tried to avoid rubbing the front, but—as per usual—she managed to hit the sensitive line that ran from just beneath her breasts to the top of her pubic curls. Jo winced at the sharp influx of sensation. It wasn’t that it was painful, but it put her nerves on edge.

How many times had she considered asking Dravil about it and chickened out? Too many to count. If it was something to worry about, she wasn’t sure she was ready to hear it. If it was nothing to worry about, she wasn’t comfortable wasting the master healer’s time with it.

Maybe I should ask Amy.
Why hadn’t she considered that before?
It was too simple an answer.
Her cousin could tell her if this was something related to Sakk pregnancy Jo didn’t know about. At the very least, she could ask Sakkra, without raising alarm. God forbid it was something to worry about, Amy could get Dravil involved before whatever it was got worse.

She levered herself up off the bed and made her way to the comm board. They’d arranged a direct line to Amy and Sakkra for her, and Sakkra responded promptly.

“Good evening, Jo. Do you need any assistance?”

“Is Amy around?”

“She’s napping. Is it something I can help with?”

The words stuck in her throat. “Just a question for Amy. It can wait.”

“Are you certain? You sound distressed. Can I summon Dravil for you?”

“There’s no need to bother him.”
I hope.

“Still, you sound as if you should have someone check on you. I’ll send Rietin.”

“That’s not—”

“Dravil or Rietin.” His voice held a note of warning.

Jo debated that. Though she wasn’t sure she wanted to talk to Rietin about this, she
really
didn’t want to bother Dravil unless it proved to be an emergency. “Rietin.”

“He will be there promptly.”

The comm connection closed, and Jo sighed. Rietin had been inside her room many times, usually to deliver food and drinks to her or to help her move boxes, but she’d avoided talking to him about her plans for the baby so far.

That’s because I didn’t know what my plans were.
She conceded that she still didn’t.
Not entirely.
But she was closer than she’d ever been to a concrete plan.

Rietin knocked and was through the door before she got an entire word out in answer. He closed the door and made his way to her, scanning his gaze up and down as if searching for some injury she’d managed.

“I’m not hurt,” she informed him.

“Sakkra said you were in need of me.”

“Sakkra warned that he was either going to send you or Dravil here. It was my choice which.”

A smile flirted with the corners of his lips. “At least I am the lesser of the two evils.”

She sank into the closest chair. “I didn’t really
need
either of you, but there was no reason to bother Dravil for nothing.”

His smile widened.

Jo re-ran her comment, coming up at a loss for what would amuse him. “What?”

“I don’t mind you calling me for no reason. If it means I get to spend time with you, call anytime.”

Her heart raced, and her cheeks flooded with heat.

Rietin didn’t comment on it. He ambled to the closer of the two chairs left and sat. His gaze strayed to the winged doll, and he lifted it gently from the table, cradling it like an expert.

“You’ve been around babies before,” she guessed.

“Only the ones surrendered at the consulate. There haven’t been many. After the initial influx, there have only been four.”

The next question fought emerging and finally escaped as a comment instead of a question. “You like babies.”

He met her eyes. “Yes. I always have. I considered being a teacher once.”

“Why didn’t you?”

His smile faded a notch, and he didn’t answer it.

She worked her way to one possibility. “Because you thought you couldn’t have children?”

Rietin nodded. “I thought it might kill me to care for the children of others as a profession, so I chose the other skills I possessed instead.”

“Tracking.”

“Tracking. Fighting. Using my wingless state to liaise for the Sakk.” He lifted one shoulder in a shrug.

“I think you would make a good teacher.” Something about the way he held the doll told her he possessed a gentleness that some children required. The way he handled problems told her he had the grit to keep order in a classroom.

His smile returned. “Perhaps I should. Perhaps we could teach together.”

She hadn’t considered that. “Maybe. It’s possible. Amy is arranging for a master teacher to work with me on Sakk and return with us to Earth. We’ll need more than one teacher on Earth, even when we have only a few children to teach.”

He shot her a look of disbelief, then returned to his examination of the doll. “I suppose so. I wasn’t aware that Sakku Amy had arranged that.”

“We decided it today.”

Rietin unwrapped the doll and rewrapped the
cazta
one-handed. The wrap was smooth and even.

Inspiration struck. “That’s one thing you can teach me.”

He shook his head slowly. “What is?”

“How to wrap one of those things.” Jo motioned to the doll.

“It’s not as hard as it seems at first.” Rietin moved his chair closer to hers and demonstrated how to wrap the clothing. He offered the doll to Jo.

She took it and tried to do it. The results surpassed previous attempts, but it wasn’t even.

“Try again,” he suggested.

Jo unwrapped the doll and started wrapping the cloth.

“Looser there.” He pointed out the left shoulder.

She did as he’d suggested and moved on to the next step.

“A little more to the right.”

The instructions went on. In the end, her wrap was nearly as perfect as his.

“Do you want to learn the other wraps?” he offered.

She set the doll aside. “Maybe another time. I should practice that one first.”

His smile widened.

“What?”

“If I’m going to teach you—”

“That means I’m inviting you back to teach me.” She stared at him for a moment. “I guess I am.” That wasn’t such a hardship.

****

Rietin bit back a wider smile. He was making progress.

Jo started to rise, and he waved her back.

“What do you need?”

“I left my lemonade in the bedroom.”

He nodded and made his way to it, plucking the glass from the table. The open tablet on the bed caught his attention, and Rietin stopped to look at it.

His heart stuttered at the contents.
Names.
One was circled.
Daya Arianne. Our daughter has a name.

His fears that she was shying from the idea of a winged child faded away.

“Rietin?”

“On my way.” He pushed through the drape and handed her the glass. It had warmed and was nearly melted. “Would you like me to refresh it?”

“No. It’s good.” Jo drank down half the glass and set it on the table next to the training doll.

He examined her, noting Jo’s preoccupation. Sakkra had said she seemed distressed. Rietin still had no clue what caused her upset.

“Why did you call for Sakku Amy?”

Her cheeks darkened in a blush. “It’s nothing. Really.”

Rietin squatted to her level, trying to meet her gaze. “If it’s nothing, share it with me.” It seemed she didn’t want to share important things with him. Maybe she would share something unimportant.

Jo hesitated, looked at him directly, and cleared her throat. “I have a...sensitive spot.”

“Painful?”

She shook her head in a negative response.

“Show me?”

Her hand traced a line from between her breasts to the lower curve of her womb.

Rietin realized his mouth was hanging open and snapped it shut.
Dame’s down. She has dame’s down.
According to the medical reports on Amy, even the princess hadn’t displayed that pregnancy sign.

“It’s dangerous. Isn’t it?” Her tone made it clear she was on the verge of tears.

“No. Not at all.” Rietin placed a hand over the center of her womb, and she gasped in response. He rubbed lightly at the line, his cock coming up in excitement.

“What is it?”

“It’s called dame’s down. It is a Sakk pregnancy sign.”

“Why didn’t Amy warn me about it?” she huffed.

“I don’t believe she exhibits it.” He knew she didn’t, but it wouldn’t be proper to admit such intimate knowledge of another male’s mate.

Jo nodded solemnly, no doubt forgiving her cousin for the presumed oversight. “What does it do?”

Oh, this is flirting with impropriety.
He decided to simplify it for her. “Have you heard of
Kahdi
?”

“Yes. Amy warned me about that one. She said—” Her blush went crimson. “Well, she said you would be the best person to soothe it if it occurred, but I don’t believe it’s supposed to happen for another month or so?”

“Not typically, but it can occur anytime after the fourth month. Dame’s down, when it does appear, appears at about the same time as an early
Kahdi
.”

“So they’re connected?”

“Not...quite.”

Jo’s brow scrunched in confusion. “I don’t understand what you’re saying.”

Rietin tried to order his thoughts. “There are certain things that help minimize
Kahdi
.”

“Okay. I assume you mean avoiding it instead of treating it after it occurs?”

He nodded.

“Maybe I should know how to do that.”

His heart ached in the possibility that she wanted to avoid it just to avoid his touch to treat it.

“Rietin?”

I started this conversation. I should see it through.
“Sakk females and young are...most comfortable with a male’s touch.”

She sat back a bit, her eyes narrowing.

“A male she trusts,” he clarified for her.
If she doesn’t trust me, that’s her way out.

“You mean...?” She rolled her hand in the suggestion of more.

“In the correct circumstances, the dame’s down becomes quite stimulating.” He phrased it as gently as he could.

“An erogenous zone, you mean.” She didn’t question it.

“Yes. I’ve been told it’s quite potent.”

Jo looked at his hand, still cupped around her womb. Rietin withdrew his touch. After such a pronouncement, it was wrong to assume she would welcome his touch.

“I will not. Not unless you want me to,” he assured her.

“Trust,” she repeated back.

“Yes. Trust.”
Would that Sakkan would bless him with Jo in his bed once more.

A knock at the door brought his head around. “Yes?”

“Jo?”

Amy.
Rietin raised Jo’s hand and kissed her knuckles. “I will leave you to speak with your cousin. I fear I have given you more to think about, when I meant to ease your mind.”

She hesitated a moment, then leaned toward him and brushed her lips against his. “Thank you, Rietin. Maybe...Would you come again tomorrow for lunch? I’d like to learn how to wrap one of the other styles of
cazta
.”

He tipped his head, in shock that she’d kissed him. “Of course.”

“Jo?” Amy called out again.

Rietin went to the door and let her in. He tipped his head to Amy and made his way past her guards, his heart light.

Chapter Twenty-Four

Jo paced the floor of the sitting room, her nerves jumping.
I’m crazy. Why am I considering this?

It was a nonsensical question. She knew precisely why she was considering going to Rietin’s room.
Sex. My God, the man is the best lover I’ve had.

Rationally, she knew women often turned into well-rounded—
Damn the puns you could make about a pregnant woman!
—nymphomaniacs while they were pregnant, but she knew she’d want to have sex with Rietin, pregnant or not. He could turn her on with a look, and what he could do with the rest of his body was worthy of a sex god.

It wasn’t smart to jump into a sexual relationship with him again. If they mated, Jo wanted a relationship based on more than that.

Well, we do have common interests. Teaching, for certain.

Technically speaking, she wasn’t jumping into this blind. He’d been coming to her room to help her learn to wrap the
caztas
for three days, and she’d been arguing this, day and night, for nearly as long.

Should I do it? Shouldn’t I?

“Oh, damn this.”
A person could drive herself crazy arguing where she should go from here.

She made her way to Rietin’s door, shutting her own behind her. The eight steps between her door and his felt like eighty meters. Jo took a calming breath and knocked.