by Honor James
“He’s fine, or rather as well as he can be given what we’ve discovered,” he said softly. Staring down at her he sighed. “Your brother is the leader of a large group of Rogues who are bound and determined to kill the King and usurp the Throne,” he said in a flat tone.
Lina was sure that she didn’t hear him right. Shaking her head, she pulled back from him slightly, tears forming in her eyes and falling. “No. No. Nathaniel had a good life, a wonderful childhood. Isn’t that what we found out? He can’t be doing this.” She sobbed. “No, he can’t be doing this.” She hadn’t met him, but it broke her heart all the same that he would be doing this.
Pulling her tight, his arms wrapped around her. “I’m sorry, love, but it’s the truth. You know I would never tell you anything but the truth,” he murmured. Stroking her hair gently, he rocked her in his arms. “He wants your father dead and we’re betting he’s planning to kidnap you and the twins.”
“No.” She shook her head. “No, not the babies.” She refused to believe that someone would want her babies dead. “What can we do? How can we keep the babies safe?” They were her priorities. The babies would always come first.
“We’re going to utilize more of the guards,” he told her softly. “Patryk and Rayne will be sticking like glue to the twins. They are on full duty with us now. I’ll grab a few others I fully trust and we’ll use them to keep us safe as well as provide backup for the boys. You do not go anywhere without two of the guards, even if it’s to another room. We don’t know what his plans are, love. Trey and the others are working on getting info out of those we captured, but so far we’re flying blind.”
“I won’t.” She knew that he wasn’t doing this to stifle her. He wasn’t trying to clip her wings, just keep her and the babies safe. “We’re all expendable except for you maybe, but only as long as you are useful to him,” he said softly, honestly.
“Oh God.” She felt sick. Just the thought that their babies might be in trouble had her living in fear. “Jesus, even I wouldn’t be of use to him except for those that are faithful to Daddy,” she murmured. “Gods.” She breathed. “All right. We will ensure that our babies are protected, that you are protected, and I promise I won’t go anywhere without a guard.”
“Good.” He let out a breath and kissed her gently. “I love you, Talina. I just want you safe, and I hope you know that, baby.”
“I know. I will stay safe. Just make sure that you do as well, honey, because there isn’t a force on this planet that would ever keep me from coming to you if you were ever hurt,” she told him softly. “I need you, honey, I will always and forever need you, too. You are mine and I’m never, ever letting you go.”
“Good,” he whispered, kissing her lightly. “Because if you get hurt, even the smallest of dings, there will be an unholy hell to be paid by whoever did it.” Wrapping his arms around, her Aiden hugged her close. “I’m not letting you go, angel, not ever. You are and forever will be mine.”
“Exactly.” Lina rubbed her cheek to his shoulder and breathed him in. “I love you, too, Aiden. You are my world, honey,” she whispered softly to him. “For now and always.” She sighed. “How about we go and check on the babies, make sure that their guards have enough Red Bull to keep them awake, and crawl into bed?”
“We’re staying here for the time being, so it’s going to be either my office and the roll-out or we use one of the containment room beds.” Rubbing his hand up and down her back, he let out a breath. “I’m not sure if it’s a good idea to stay put, but I’d rather be close in case they dig something up.”
“Damn,” Lina muttered. “All right, so thoughts of making love to you in order to forget everything are out the window. Not something we will do with Daddy just down the hall. Okay, let’s just go and check on our babies then?”
Nodding, he let her step back before pushing up off the desk to follow her. Back in the main room, he headed for his babies and scooped up Anthony, giving him a snuggle and kiss before handing him over to his mother. Smiling, Lina watched as Aiden practically chased one of the guards, a Cat Changer, who had Amelia in his arms around the room. Holding Anthony close, Lina moved to one of the chairs and looked down at him. “Hello, my little Dragon. I’m surprised you let your sister out of your sight, my little man.” She teased him and took one of the blankets off the back of the chair and covered him and herself at the same time. Baring her breast, she leaned back and began to hum. Smiling when Tony latched on and began to feed, she knew why he had let his sister out of his sight. It was because he was hungry.
Finally getting his daughter in hand, Aiden growled when a pair of hands reached for her. “Back off, it’s time for her to eat, and then we are going to get some sleep.” Carrying Amy over closer to his mate and his son, he sat down to cradle her to his chest.
“You took so much pleasure in that,” Lina teased him. “But it’s okay, darling, I totally don’t blame you.” She stroked her fingers over Tony’s little head and then lifted him and covered herself in one move. Putting him to her shoulder, she began to rub the bubbles from his belly and rocked him slightly as she did so. “They are both exhausted.”
“Too much excitement all at once and for too many hours,” he commented. Looking down, he chuckled. “Look at her.” Amy had one arm thrown out and was pretty much asleep, her mouth hanging open. “She’s pretty much in a coma over here,” he murmured with a grin.
Lina grinned. “She likely won’t eat anything, but this one, well we both know that he has to have a completely full belly in order to sleep.” And their little girl could sleep at the drop of a hat. It didn’t really matter to her.
“She’ll wake in the dead of the night with the demand to eat,” Aiden commented, shifting Amy to his shoulder. Rubbing her back lightly, he smiled over at Lina as Amelia made little sounds as she wiggled around for a moment.
“Exactly. That’s her alone time with her daddy.” Lina would ensure that there was milk ready for Aiden each night because that was their alone time. She had listened to him talking to their daughter when he first took up the duty and could only smile about it.
“Pretty much the only chance she and I have in a day,” he murmured, rolling his eyes. The twins were so popular that getting one of them alone for any time was nearly impossible. Of course Lina knew that Jackie and Allister had the same issue, too many babysitters, not enough kids.
“Well I think that it’s cute.” The one time he had an overnight mission, Amy had refused to eat for her, had screamed until Lina had to call him home. “She won’t eat for anyone but her daddy in the middle of the night. I think it’s adorable.”
“As I recall you were not nearly that understanding when I was away that one time,” he said with a grin at her. “As I recall you were using some seriously nasty language in front of our children as you ripped me a new one.”
“Oh yes, this is very true. I was very angry with you,” she easily admitted and smiled at Tony’s loud belch. “That’s a good boy.” She moved the blanket and grinned. “All right, who’s taking this little lad and changing him so that I can get the couch ready for my babies to sleep?” Okay, so she was being a little mean knowing that Tony was going to give someone one hell of a surprise diaper, but still, they had hogged her babies and wore them out.
Viktor got there first with a smug look and scooped him up to take him into the little change room they had set up. Shaking his head, Aiden looked at her as she covered herself up before folding the blanket. “Now who is being mean?” he murmured.
“Not me,” she said with a smile. “I just hope that Viktor remembers that Tony loves to shoot people with his pee. No poopy diapers, but he will likely be peed on.”
Snorting, Aiden shook his head. “Pretty sure he was unloading,” he told her. Stroking Amelia’s back when she moved to soothe her, he growled low in his chest. He knew his baby girl loved the vibrations and the sound, but he didn’t want anyone jumping out of their skin, so he kept it strictly to vibrations.
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“Oh well, initiate the poor guy right.” Lina then giggled when they both heard a gagging sound from the large Cat and then heard him calling out about the smell. “Should I go save him?”
Grinning, he shook his head. “Not yet,” he murmured softly, waiting for it. When he heard the indistinguishable yelp, he looked to his mate. “Now would be a good time to go and save him. I think he just got peed on.” If Anthony’s giggles were anything to go by.
Shaking her head, Lina stood up and stalked toward where her son and the large Cat were. Leaning against the side of the door, she looked to Viktor and asked, “Would you like for me to take over with the little squirt?”
Turning his dripping face to the little Dragon’s mother, Viktor gave her a blank look. “He can’t exactly do any more damage now, can he?” he asked.
“So glad we only ended up with one hoser,” Aiden whispered to his daughter. “I would never trade you in for anything, my wee little angel.”
“Oh don’t say that, Viktor,” Lina warned him just a moment before Tony began to grunt. “Cover him with the diaper, trust me,” she called and walked toward the Cat. “He’s getting ready to really let loose another poop. Are you sure you don’t want me to take over?”
“Son of a—” He grabbed a diaper and flipped it over on the baby and backed off. “He should seriously come with a warning label,” he muttered, backing up more. “I need a shower,” Viktor muttered in disgust.
Lina grinned. “Go shower, Viktor. He was just initiating you,” she assured the Cat. “Go do what you need to. I will get him all changed up, and then if you want you can hold him again when he’s all clean and nice smelling and the two of you can make up.”
Growling softly, Viktor grabbed a towel to wipe his face and headed off.
Lina looked over to see a huge grin on Aiden’s face as he walked into the room behind her. She kept watch as he eased Amelia down on the second change table. He undressed her so he could change her wet diaper.
“Poor Viktor, I doubt that he will ever volunteer to change this guy’s diaper ever again.” Talina tickled her son’s tummy as she spoke to him. Looking to Aiden, she shook her head. “She’s still out cold. Even with you changing her she’s sound asleep. How did we get so lucky?” To have two babies that were as perfect as theirs were.
“Honestly I don’t know, darling, but I’m very grateful,” Aiden told her with a grin. “Given what a rotten brat I was as a kid I’ve always lived in absolute terror of what my kids would be like. I think they get all their amazingness from you, darling mine.”
Snorting in laughter, Lina shook her head and lifted a now clean Tony from the changing table and adjusted his jumper as well. Laying her son against her shoulder, she pulled out a clean blanket and wrapped it up and over him and walked slowly, talking low. “I think that they are perfect all on their own.”
“Because of your good and wonderful genetics,” he teased with a grin. Getting Amy back into the jumper, he lifted her up and against his shoulder once more. “Let’s go and find a bed, babe. We all need sleep I think.”
“I think that sounds like a very good idea.” Lina was ready for sleep, too, and they had learned to get it when their babies slept. “I hate that we have to stay here, but it makes sense. It’s the safest place for us, albeit not the most comfortable.” Rubbing Tony’s back, she smiled over at Aiden. “How about the warehouse that we used when we first came here? Have that bed and maybe have a crib rustled up for our babies?”
“Oh hey, yeah.” He nodded with a grin and looked at her. “Good idea, babe,” he said and headed into the other room ahead of her. “Randall, can you grab the travel crib from Allister’s office? We’re going to go and crash in the warehouse. Meet us there. Come on, darling, let’s grab our wayward guards and head on over.”
“Will they have places to rest there as well?” The warehouse was more than large enough for a near army, but there was only one bed. “Because we so aren’t sharing our bed.” With their children maybe, but with anyone else, no way in hell.
“There are extra mattresses and such in one of the closets. It made no sense to have to constantly drag that crap around, so Talon ordered some of those roll-out beds that fold up neat and can be set up in seconds,” he told her as they moved through the halls.
“Sounds like a plan.” It would be odd to sleep with others in there with them, but she would have Aiden holding her close, so that was all she needed. “It’s going to suck to have to sleep with clothes on, but we will manage it, won’t we?”
“Uh, yeah,” he said with a grin. “We’ll be putting up portable walls so we have a ‘bedroom’ of sorts,” he said, wiggling his fingers in quotes. “But you’ll need to dress if you want to go to the kitchen or to the bathroom. No padding around naked in there.”
“I think I will still sleep in your shirt, honey, because we both know that in the middle of the night I don’t think about anything like that, darling. I think it’s best if I sleep with something on, especially for when I need to get up to change a nappy or after your feeding time with Amy.” It would leave her legs bare from just above her knees but would cover all the necessary parts. Hell, she showed off more in her little short-shorts she wore around the house on “cleaning” day, otherwise known as the days to make Aiden move everything in sight.
“Good plan,” he told her with a grin. “It’s definitely big enough to ensure everything important is covered. Thankfully you don’t have your shorts here or we might be having some words, my little mate.” She grinned. “You love those days.” She knew that he loved them because he watched every single move she made in those too-short shorts and he loved it. “Besides, you always get to have a bit of me in each room, honey. Though I think that may just have to change. ” She had gotten to stripping while cleaning, a piece of clothing here and then a piece of clothing there until she was naked. “Never say that,” he hissed, shaking his head at her. “We will just lock the kids, all of them, in a room to play with cookies and milk and you can clean. I will then happily follow along after you to ensure you don’t miss any spots.”
“You love it, too, darling.” She teased him with a grin. “I love that you watch me when I clean like that, darling. I love that you are totally open for it, honey.” She also loved how he normally ended up naked before she was finished and how she usually ended up naked as well.
“Of course I love it, darling, I’ve never seen cleaning done that way before,” he told her honestly. “I’m going to support you in all your exploits, love, but you ever go out and do that at any other house I will be very upset, sugar.”
She snickered at that and shook her head. With a grin, Aiden guided her out into the yard. Moving toward the warehouse, he pointed back over his shoulder. “You know, we may not have enough beds,” he murmured quietly to her.
Looking back, she sighed. “There is no way in the world I will ever be able to sleep with all of them.” Turning and facing the near army that followed them, she said, “Five, no more than five sleeping in the warehouse with us. We will sleep with the babies between us so that will make it easier. That way there doesn’t have to be many split up.”
“You mean I grabbed this thing for no reason?” Randall asked, hefting the portable crib from somewhere in the middle of the pack.
“No, not for no reason,” Aiden said with a grin. “They’ll get there about the time they need their first diaper change. Five inside on rotating shifts, the rest on the outside, five to switch in every couple of hours for sleep and so forth. No more or I’m siccing the woman on you.”
Lina smiled. “And you really don’t want a sleepy, cranky momma getting after you, boys,” she teased. “Thank you for being here though, for protecting us. I really do appreciate all that you are doing,” she assured them, each and every one.
“She’s mean when she’s cranky,” Aiden muttered with a shudder, rubbing his hand up and down Amy’s back. “I really hope you don’t have that trait from your mother, baby
girl. Everything else is just fine,” he said with a grin to his mate. “All right, roving patrols, three on the roof at all times watching everything. Remember boys, we’re dealing with Dragons without any compunction about killing us. Keep that in mind and treat them the same.”
Lina looked to Aiden and grinned. “Yeah, but you love me, honey,” she whispered. “You love me and you love that I’m cranky from time to time as well, honey. We both know that, sweet.” Winking at him, she looked to him. “Now then, let’s get this done so that I can get some sleep.”
“After you, angel,” he said, waving Patryk and Rayne forward so they were actually the first through the warehouse doors. Once they were in the warehouse, she noted that there was already a small screened area for them and grinned. “You planned ahead, didn’t you, love?” She felt so very happy in that moment, was so glad that he had thought ahead. “It’s good that we have that space so that we can actually get ourselves some sleep, honey.”
“I plan on my feet,” he told her with a grin. “I signalled one of the Wolves to run over and set it up once you suggested the idea. I figured you’d have issue with too many eyes on us at any given time,” he commented with a smile.
“You know me too well.” She wouldn’t have been able to sleep very well at all with them in an open room, so she was very thankful for this. “I love you, honey. Now then, you settle our babies and I’m going to see who brought me some night clothes and take the bathroom. I will be out after a shower, love.”
“Yes, dear,” he chimed and grinned at the look she threw him. Taking Anthony from her, he carried their twins to the bed and settled them down in the middle. Putting the pillows on either side to keep them caged in, Aiden went to the kitchen after Patryk slipped around the walls to watch the babies.
Feeling far more relaxed after a nice hot shower, Lina walked out in one of Aiden’s shirts and someone’s Army shorts. Moving to Aiden, she accepted the bottle of water from the guard Rayne at Aiden’s side when he held it out and smiled. “Thank you.” Leaning against the counter, she smiled. “Patryk watching over the babies?”
