by Lia Davis
“Pfff – you’re always stunning. I don’t believe a word of that.” Anna snorted and waddled toward them.
“Well, if I buckle and get pregnant you will have front row seats to dark circles and puffy eyes. I’m not even going to talk about the mood swings and multitude of crying jags.”
“Did you have a bad case of postpartum?”
“It was more like I set the record for postpartum.”
“Then I think you’re smart to take your time deciding.” El was in total support of Emma. “Postpartum should never be taken lightly.”
Emily returned from the front desk and asked. “Are all of you ready to move to the nail station?”
“Yes!” El and Rose cheered as they quickly put their shoes on.
Cade paid for the nursery set while Thomas pulled the SUV around to the loading dock to pick up the large items.
The shopping had gone better and quicker than Cade had expected. As the cashier totaled his purchase, he wondered what Anna was doing down the street in the spa. It hadn’t escaped his notice that both Simon and Stefan had been casting glances out the large storefront windows, too.
As Stefan, Simon, and Cade got into the SUV, Cade looked at each of them and asked, “Would anyone like to check on our beautiful mates before we head back to my house to assemble these?”
Needless to say, the drive of a shifter’s wolf to ensure his mate’s safety and well-being was pushing all of them hard.
“We’d better make it a quick stop or the women will accuse us of spying on them,” Simon pointed out.
“You know - those pedicures are awesome. I wouldn’t mind getting one while we’re there, and it only takes ten or fifteen minutes,” Stefan hinted.
“No way!” Thomas laughed. “You actually like girly toe shit?”
“Don’t knock it until you try it. Besides, the brownie points I earn with my mate are so worth it.” Stefan waggled his eyebrows.
“Well, I don’t have a mate to spy on,” Thomas pointed out. “So, while you guys get your feminine side on, I’d like to check out a security system for Cade’s house.”
“A security system?” Cade frowned. “What for?”
“I’ve done some research on the video baby monitors that are available and found they are very easy to hack. The last thing I want is an enemy of the crown hacking my little sister’s monitor and spying on her. I figure a high-tech, closed circuit system of cameras and monitors would supply the same ability to check on her but also keep her safe from abduction. The next generation’s queen will be a prime target for whoever has been after the family, and we can’t take needless chances with her safety.”
Cade thought about it for a moment. “Good idea. You can drop us off at the spa and head to the electronic store on the other side of town. Will you be able to make it back in about twenty minutes to pick us up?”
“Yeah. I can purchase what I need and be back here in that amount of time, no problem.”
A doorbell chimed softly when Cade opened the door and led Stefan and Simon into the spa. The two stylists chatting behind the counter went silent, mouths gaping, eyes wide. Apparently, three gorgeous men walking through their door was unusual.
The men gathered at the counter, and when the women continued to stare, Cade raised an eyebrow and asked, “Are we able to get pedicures without an appointment?”
The brunette seemed to register that he had spoken, but just barely. She cleared her throat and asked, “How may I help you, gentlemen?”
Simon chuckled, and Stefan snorted as Cade answered the befuddled woman. “As I asked before, are we able to get pedicures without an appointment?”
“Oh, yes,” the woman said as she turned beet red and tapped keys on the keyboard as fast as she could. “I’m sure we can squeeze you in.”
The ladies were getting their nails done when the men walked by headed to the pedicure station.
“What the heck are you doing here?” Rose asked Simon.
“We were in town, and Stefan mentioned how much he liked the pedicure he got with El a few days go. Believe it or not, he talked us into getting one.” Simon shrugged innocently, purposely avoiding the subject of why they were in town in the first place.
“No, way!” Anna exclaimed as she stared at Cade.
He bowed slightly. “Way. Stefan insisted we try it.”
“Right,” she scowled. “You just want to make sure we behave around the masseurs.”
“Huh.” Never in her life had Emma expected to see her macho boys in a beauty salon.
“What masseurs?” Simon and Stefan growled in stereo.
“The pedicure station is this way. If you will follow me,” the brunette interrupted before Simon and Stefan got an answer. Both men glared at Cade as they followed the annoying woman. They acted like it was his fault their mates were around other men unchaperoned.
“Hey, I didn’t plan their spa trip. Simon’s mate did, so don’t blame me.”
That earned Simon a snarl from Stefan.
Five minutes later, all ill will was forgotten, and Stefan was moaning in ecstasy. “Oh, wow. This is amazing, isn’t it, guys?”
“I never would have dreamt a foot massage could feel so good. Now I understand why Anna wants them all the time,” Cade agreed with his head lulled back.
“The women seem to be having a good time, and I overheard the blonde from the front counter say they were getting the works. It sounds like they will be here until dinnertime,” Simon said between moans of his own.
Their twenty minutes passed way too quickly, and now the three of them were on the sidewalk outside the spa waiting for Thomas with goofy smiles on their faces.
“You guys want to do that again sometime?” Stefan whispered out of the corner of his mouth.
“Hell, yeah!” they both said enthusiastically.
Thomas noticeably slowed the SUV as he neared them and opened the passenger window a crack. “What the heck is wrong with all of you?” he asked suspiciously.
“Quit being such a baby and unlock the doors.” Cade laughed.
“You missed out on the best foot rub ever in the history of history,” Stefan grinned and glanced at Thomas’s pants. “Maybe next time you’ll have the balls to come with us.”
“I wouldn’t bet on it.” Thomas scowled. “Get your happy asses in the car. We have work to do.”
“I think grumpy boy could really use a massage, don’t you?” Simon whispered to Cade.
“You got that right.” Cade nodded.
“At least one man in this vehicle is still wearing pants,” Thomas boasted and floored the SUV onto the main street headed for home with all three men laughing hysterically.
In no time, they were home, and the instant Thomas put the SUV in park, Cade jumped out and pulled open the back doors to haul boxes into the house. “Come on, guys, we need to get these put together before Anna gets home.”
Simon, Stefan, and Thomas piled out behind him. After two quick trips, all the boxes were in the house and the cardboard packaging was tossed aside. The parts, hardware, and instructions for all three pieces of furniture lay in piles on the floor of the nursery waiting to be assembled.
“Hey, Thomas. While we work in here, could you start installing the security system?”
“Sure, Cade. I can get it laid out. However, after that, I’ll need a second pair of hands.”
Cade didn’t raise his head as he studied the gazillion tiny pieces of hardware for the crib. “Okay, shout when you’re ready, and one of us will help you.”
Stefan was across the room with the diaper-changing table, wearing the same confounded look on his face that Cade had.
Simon was in the center scratching his head. “Have either of you ever put one of these kits together before?”
Cade and Stefan looked at Simon and shook their heads, a frisson of fear skittering across their expressions.
“We are so screwed,” Stefan mumbled.
“Come on. We’re all extremely intelligent
. If the saleslady can put these together, we sure as heck can, too.”
“I don’t know, Cade. Spreadsheets and investment graphs are a far cry from these instructions. Are they even in English?” Stefan squinted at the step-by-step directions for the changing table for the fourth time. He wasn’t even sure he had the paper turned the right way, but he wasn’t going to tell his brothers that.
“Don’t tell me you’re quitting already?”
“No. But didn’t she say the store offered assembly? Maybe we should take them up on that?”
“Putting it together ourselves is part of the point. You know. Hands on daddy and uncles. Or are you giving up the favorite uncle crown already?”
“Hell, no!”
“Then quit bellyaching and start putting it together,” Simon goaded. “No, wait. I’ll do yours and mine and claim that crown right now.”
“You wish, little brother. You’ll never wear the favorite uncle crown. It’s mine, all mine,” he growled and squinted harder at the ridiculous instructions.
While the brothers bickered in the nursery, Thomas drew a schematic for the security system. He learned the hard way, a long time ago, to plan out the installation and wiring before drilling a single hole. He still had nightmares of filling hundreds of poorly placed holes. Any electrician will tell you it only takes one major screw-up to learn the lesson of thorough preparation.
Thomas and Cade had decided on both a main security room for the bulk of the monitors in the house and a single portable monitor for watching the baby in the crib. The portable display would actually be a feed of the nursery camera displayed on either Cade’s or Anna’s tablets. The rest of the cameras would be monitored in the main security office, away from the house.
Cade wanted his family protected, but he also wanted his privacy. Thomas could respect that. “Hey, Cade. I could use some help now,” he yelled toward the nursery.
Chapter 4
Rose giggled and did a happy dance in her chair. “That’s the perfect color of red!” She turned her outstretch fingers this way and that, admiring the results of her manicure. “When I do my nails at home they never turn out this awesome. Simon is going to be putty in my hands when I rake these nails down his back.”
“Newsflash, Rose,” El stage whispered. “You just said that out loud, and your mother-in-law is sitting in the next chair over.”
Rose instantly turned such a bright shade of red she almost matched her fingernail polish.
Emma laughed hardily. “Don’t mind me. I’m thrilled my sons are happily mated. And I’m sure every single one of you knows I adore all my daughters-in-law.”
“What is it about a man’s libido and long red fingernails? Cade’s the same way. I swear,” Anna shook her head, “it’s like bees to honey.”
“Not Stefan,” El chimed in. “He doesn’t require any fingernail polish to act like that.” She scowled. “He’s just a natural horn dog. He has a track record to prove it.”
“If you think that’s part of the honeymoon phase, think again.” Emma grinned. “A shifter male’s libido never decreases. Ever.”
“I can testify to that, and pregnancy actually revs them up even more, at least it does in Cade’s case,” Anna said, rolling her eyes and rubbing her belly. “It escapes me what he saw in my puffed up, water-retaining body with this monster belly.”
“All men, human or shifter, love their women pregnant,” Emma laughed. “A long time ago, when I was pregnant with Cade, I did a little research. I was bored out of my skull with everyone pampering and hovering, so I decided to ask every woman, human or other, how their man reacted to them when they were pregnant. I got the same response across the board. ‘He couldn’t keep his hands off me.’” She winked.
“Hey, Anna, maybe you should do your own version of the research and take a poll from the men,” Rose suggested. “You could ask them why their wife is so sexy when she’s as big as a house?”
“That would be interesting, but I don’t think I have enough time to take a poll before this little cherub greets the world.”
“Yeah, maybe not,” Rose agreed with a look of disappointment on her face. “Still, it would be interesting to know what makes them act the way they do.”
All the women nodded in agreement.
El frowned in thought. “Do any of your guys watch you eat and ask you repeatedly if you want more? Stefan does that to me constantly.”
“Oh my goodness! Cade hovers like a worried mother, analyzing my food intake. You can’t repeat this to anyone.” She looked each of the women in the eye until they agreed. “He actually keeps a journal of what I eat. It’s driving me crazy. When I went to my first doctor’s appointment, I told them I couldn’t take the prenatal vitamins, and they suggested I keep a food diary to make sure I was eating a well-rounded diet. I should have known better than to repeat that to him. Cade took it literally.” She groaned shaking her head.
“Simon tracks my meals in a journal, too. He must have gotten the idea from Cade. He’s determined to make sure I keep my ‘soft yummy curves,’ as he calls them. He’s terrified I’ll get skinny.” Rose rolled her eyes and busted out laughing. “My body doesn’t have a clue what skinny looks like. I keep telling him he has nothing to worry about, but when I lost a size or two during the conversion, he really freaked out. Now, he’s obsessed with my diet. I never thought I would see the day when I had more chocolate than I knew what to do with.”
Emma silently grinned as she listened to her daughters-in-law talking. They were all going through the same adjustments. Thankfully, they were enjoyable adjustments. She had experienced the same things with Isaac when they were first mated. The Le Beau men loved a woman’s curves and tended to be fanatical about them.
“Talking about hovering and watching over us, are your guys fixated on safety and security? Cade is about to drive me mad.”
“You have no idea,” El growled. “Stefan insists he come to the ranch every morning and evening. And if my ranch manager isn’t there to ‘watch out for me.’ He stays the entire time I’m training the horses. The babysitting routine is annoying as hell.”
“Simon was like that for a while, especially after I was kidnaped,” Rose said quietly, making sure the spa ladies didn’t overhear. “I try to cut him some slack because he was terribly traumatized by the experience of losing me, even for a short time.” She glanced at Emma and gave her a soft smile. “A very wise lady helped me understand the inconceivable terror a mate goes through when the other is threatened and the very real possibility they will lose their mate exists. She helped me understand his need to ensure it never happens again.”
Anna adjusted her position in the chair. There was just no comfortable way to sit or stand. Heck, lying down was an issue. “Cade was intense at first, but he’s gotten a lot better.” Then her lips twitched into a wide grin. “Actually, some of the things he does are extremely entertaining.”
“What does he do?” Emma’s eyes gleamed with mirth.
“The most recent thing happened after my doctor appointment where he saw the ultrasound. Seeing the baby triggered something in him and it suddenly became very real. When we got home, he immediately went online and bought every baby and pregnancy book he could get his hands on. And last night, he mapped out three routes to the hospital. When I asked why three, he said, he wanted to be prepared in case there was a roadblock or something.” Anna laughed as she shook her head. “He’s schedule a day off next week so he can practice driving all three routes several times.”
El, Rose, and Emma gaped wide-eyed at her.
“You’re joking, right?” El asked.
Anna chuckled. “Not even a tiny bit.”
“I’m never getting pregnant,” El insisted.
“Really? Simon and I are talking about babies, but we decided to wait a little longer. I definitely want to have at least four, though,” Rose admitted.
“Have you and Cade discussed how many children you want?” Emma asked nonchalantly.
>
“Before I got pregnant, we talked about it, and we both agreed we wanted at least two. After that, we are going to wing it.”
Emma nodded. “Sounds like a sound decision to me. You might find you’re done after two, especially since you already have Thomas and John.”
“That’s what we thought, too.”
Cade glanced at Stefan and Simon to see how their projects were coming.
I better not interrupt them.
“Can you two handle this while I help Thomas with the security cameras?”
Simon scrunched up his chin and nodded. “Yeah, I think we’re okay.”
“Sure, Cade, we’ll keep plugging along,” Stefan assured quickly before ducking his face. If Cade saw his expression, he might panic. They were in trouble. He had already given up on the instructions and was guessing as best he could to put the changing table together.
“I’ll be right there, Thomas,” Cade yelled back.
Cade left the mess of the crib he was working on where it lay and walked from the room.
“Do you understand your instructions?” Simon hissed at Stefan the instant Cade was out of earshot.
“Hell, no. I gave up on them after five minutes. I’m trying to figure it out as I go.”
Simon’s eyes brightened. “How’s that working for you?”
“Horribly.”
The hopeful gleam faded from Simon’s eyes. “We really are screwed, aren’t we?”
“Beyond all hope,” Stefan growled. “But I’m going to try anyway. Who knows, maybe we’ll get lucky.”
“I don’t know about you, but I started praying to the Goddess the minute we took these out of the boxes.”
Stefan growled as the changing table listed left. “Not a bad idea, I could use all the help she’s willing to give.”
Cade found Thomas on a ladder running wires in the living room. “What can I do to help?”
Thomas indicated the coffee table with his head. “There is a temporary monitor set up over there. Once I attach this wire, go to the laundry room and turn the breaker switch on, and then check the monitor to see if the camera is working.”
