Not too early, I hope…
I leave the kids’ room and decide to run a bath. I’m exhausted, but I know this is the last night I will be, so I decide to skip sleep to have a moment of peace. And do a little pampering, of course. I haven’t needed to attend to my body in two weeks, not that I would have had time even if I wanted to.
Besides, this is probably the last time I’ll be able to reach some of the places I need to take care of before Dagger takes over. Every pregnancy, he takes care of my body as soon as I get too big to. He looks forward to it every time and refuses to let any of his brothers do it either.
But I’m kinda glad, ‘cause it’s our thing. And we all have something, because as much as we’re all in this relationship together, we’ve learned that we also need one-on-one time, too. It was never discussed or planned, but somehow, that’s just how it’s worked out.
And it’s something else I’ve missed like crazy.
I swear, I can’t wait for them to wake up.
It’s just after three AM, but I can’t sleep.
Again.
But this time, it's from excitement.
I’ve left the bed to sit on the couch by the window, eagerly hoping that by some miracle, they’ll wake early. Their scents have changed—they’re not so deathly sweet anymore—they’re more masculine, complex, and I can feel how much stronger they are. I know they’re almost ready, like fine wines. I won’t even have to run bloods on them, because I already know this has worked and they’re like us.
I don’t know what that means for me changing humans now; whether they’ll still be ‘budget’ versions of us, as Axe would say, or if they’d be like Gia and the others again. I guess only time will tell, but for my babies’ sake, I hope I can, so if they find love one day, their partners can be like them.
My attention is pulled to Dagger as he breathes deeper than usual, but he doesn’t wake, and it takes a moment for my heart to calm down from the spike of excitement it felt.
I pretty much feel like a kid again, waiting for morning to come so I can open my birthday or Christmas presents. That’s how excited I am. I keep closing my eyes in an attempt to give my body the rest it craves, but even the babies in my belly are more active, as if they know that their dad’s will be waking soon.
I rub my bump and feel the little flutterings inside. I’m carrying two boys and a girl this time. I found out this morning with Jaden, Theo, and Raeni. The boys were playing with their trucks with the middle babies and suddenly started discussing the fact they’ll have two more brothers to play trucks with soon.
I didn’t clock what they meant at first, I thought they were talking about Dris and Emerson getting bigger and understanding more. It wasn’t until Jaden told Raeni that there were more boys now, that I realised what they were going on about, and then I suddenly knew the sexes myself.
The three of them are always close to my bumps. When I carried Treasure, Africa, and Prince, they’d fall asleep on my belly, as if they were bonding with them inside me. And this time, I’ve noticed the others doing the same. It’s pretty damn special.
They don’t single out their blood siblings either, ever. I had worried how they’d cope with having so many daddies and how they’d differentiate between them when they called for them, but I needn’t have. They know who their biological dads are, a lot I think, by scent. The brothers always seem to know who’s being called when they hear daddy, too, and the kids don’t seem to have a problem getting the attention of the dad they want, whether by tagging on their names or using their minds.
We definitely made the right choice when it came to that decision.
I close my eyes again and try harder to sleep. If they don’t wake up soon, I’ll be regretting this. I already know how excited the kids will be in the morning, which means they’ll run me ragged.
I subconsciously pay close attention to Dagger. He should be the first one to wake, since I bit him first. They fought hard over who would be the first to go down, but eventually, rock, paper, scissors had to decide the order. A few of them were pissed, but there isn't much time between them.
Well, between most of them…
“Are you ready?” I asked them all after coming back into the bedroom and seeing them standing beside the bed.
The brothers nodded, but I wasn’t ready at all. My heart was being so tightly squeezed in my chest from the thought of not having them with me for the next two weeks, and I was badly trying to hold it together.
I’d been dreading it for days, ever since we decided we were definitely going to do it, and I was guilty of using my enhanced abilities to hide just how anxious I was about it from them.
But they still knew.
I studied each of them in turn, struggling to conceal my scattering emotions. We'd just spent the entire night making love, attempting but failing to quell our thirst for each other one last time before they slept.
Again, and again, and again…
But I still wanted them, and them me.
And they were still raging hard.
I tore my eyes away from their rippled dicks, lifting them back to their gorgeous faces. “I'm going to miss you all so much,” I whispered.
They surrounded me before a few stray tears escaped, but the moment their arms enveloped me, I forgot my sadness and savoured their love instead.
“We'll miss you too,” Axe said for all of them.
I knew it was only two weeks, but I couldn’t help becoming emotional. I think I would’ve preferred if I’d not known it was coming. Like them with me.
They stepped back, and I tried to gauge how each of the were feeling. They were just as wary leaving me alone, especially with all our babies.
I used my mind to rest a hand on all their chests. “I'll be fine. I won't let anything happen to us. I swear it on my life.”
“We know, Angel.”
I knew, as concerned as they were, they trusted me. I’ve never doubted that, but I also felt, in that moment, exactly how much me and the babies meant to them.
And I felt the same.
I wiped my eyes. “Right. Let's get this over with. The quicker you're asleep, the quicker you can come back to me...”
I can still remember how their scars stroked my thighs, taste the unique flavour of each of their blood on my tongue and the way they all made my body tremble in ways I’d never known. It was explosive, and a relief. And as soon as they were asleep, the weight that lifted off my stomach and out of my mind was indescribable.
And now, here we are, two weeks later, and my kings will be returning. But as excited as I am to feel their bodies alive as ever, to lose myself beneath their touches, and to hear their thoughts in mine again, it's more them and their presence that I miss most.
Yeah, the kids have kept me busy, but I've missed my kings’ company, how they always make me feel safe and secure, and most of all, I’ve missed feeling…whole.
I’ve missed them so much.
And for all the other things I’ve missed, well, let’s just say, I’m hoping they wake up before the kids do.
Three
Mikka
I jump up from the couch when I hear footsteps on the stairs and a tiny voice calling out for me. My eyes dart to the bed, but the kings are still sleeping. I knew it was wishful thinking to hope they’d wake early, but I’m still disappointed.
Long day it is...
I rush out of the bedroom to find Prince on the stairs. He’s hungry; I can feel it before he even says the word.
“Eat?”
I scoop him up into my arms. “Porridge?”
Please say yes.
Something easy.
He nods before resting his head on my shoulder.
I take him downstairs and sit him in his highchair. Prince has stormy grey eyes like Dagger, with barely there flecks of charcoal. He might be Axe’s son, but he could be Dris’ twin from how similar they look. His hair is lighter than all of ours, though, and more wavy than curly. I think it’s a th
rowback from my German roots.
I decide to make a Dutch pot of cornmeal porridge so I can decant it into the slow cooker to keep it warm for the others. Prince and Dris both have Jaden’s appetite. He was always a hungry baby, too.
He still is.
I yawn as I stir the condensed milk into the pot. I really wish I’d slept better last night. I feel shattered, and not because the babies inside me are changing me either. That only happened the first time, thank God. This tiredness is from mothering. Plain and simple. It’s times like these when I wish my mum wasn’t thousands of miles away.
I grate in some nutmeg and then sit at the island with Prince to help feed him. I have to let him feed himself halfway through because he kicks off, but I just let him. I literally have no strength to fight a determined one-and-a-half-year-old right now.
I’ll just have to bathe him after.
It’s not long before the others wake, and then after three trips up to the top floor to bring them all down, I’m surrounded by nine highchairs, ten bowls of porridge, and lots and lots of mess.
So much mess.
Between me feeding the little ones, the oldest three help me feed them as best they can again, too, which is a good thing because I’m barely managing to keep my eyes open, or keep my face out of my own breakfast. I don’t think I’m even praying for the brothers to wake up by the time I’ve finished cleaning the island.
I’m begging for them to.
“Mummy’s sleepy, like the sleepy lion,” I hear Theo say to Jaden in the living room, just as I’m rinsing out the last of the bowls.
“I know,” I hear Jaden reply before he goes in search of the book. It’s one of his favourites.
“Don't worry, Mummy,” Raeni says, suddenly at my legs. “Our daddies are finished sleeping now, so now you can.” She smiles up at me, as if she knows that will make me happy.
And she’s so right.
“Are they?” I ask, hoping she’s having another bout of intuition that I’m not privy to.
“Yep.” She nods, but then I suddenly shudder from a multitude of things happening to me at once.
Happiness from all the babies hits me first, even from the unborn ones inside me. Then the distance I can sense the dormant zombies away from the house extends, my sense of smell and hearing heightens, and my mind is tapped into by another, much more strongly than what I’m used to.
Dagger.
‘Princess?’
Relief, excitement, and desire rush through me in waves, fiercely, one after the other.
‘I'm just coming down.’
I smile up at the ceiling. “Okay.”
“Mummy's happy again!” Theo celebrates while running into the kitchen with Jaden.
I feel a spike of guilt. “Hey, Mummy’s always happy. I’m just tired, sweetheart.”
“You’re more happy now.”
Well, there’s no denying that, but still. I run my fingers over his hair. I cut all the boys’ hair again yesterday. “Are you happy, too?”
He doesn't answer. The three of them run to Dagger instead as he enters the kitchen and kneels to hug them. He's wearing black sweatpants but no shirt anymore, and my eyes immediately take in the sight of his perfect skin.
With not one single scar in sight.
I noticed they were finally beginning to fade last night, but they were still there this morning. I thought I'd miss them, but strangely, I don't. I do feel an intense urge to run my fingers, tongue, and myself all over his dark skin, though.
His eyes meet mine over the kids’ shoulders, and I see my desires reflected in his eyes.
I shudder. “I've missed you.”
“I know, Princess.”
He takes our eldest three kids into the living room and gives each of our other babies a kiss on the head before finally returning to me by the sink. He tames my hair back, reminding me that I must look a state right now, and then he presses his lips to mine.
‘You’re always beautiful to me.’
My heart thumps harder than ever and my belly twists in knots. I can taste the toothpaste on his tongue but also his new scent, too. It engulfs me and makes me shudder in so many places… My God… His kiss is urgent and so passionate. Thank God I have the counter behind me, because my legs feel weak.
Jaden, Raeni, and Theo laugh behind Dagger when his hands begin to wander to my shorts, so he quickly pulls away. I glance down to see how hard he is and have to stifle a moan when I see the waistband of his sweats pulling away from his V. I can feel his desire for me as strong as mine is for him, but he soon controls himself and drops a hand to my belly.
“Did you know? Before we went to sleep?”
“I had a feeling, but I wasn't sure.”
He slowly smiles. “I didn't think there’d be anything better than waking up to you and the kids, but to be waking up to this…” He rests a kiss on my forehead. “Axe is gonna lose it.”
That makes me laugh. “I know.” I rest a hand on his chest. “How do you feel?”
“Good. More than good.”
“You're like us now, Daddy,” Jaden says, but I can feel Raeni's relief more than anyone else's.
“I am.” He turns to wink at him. “Thanks to you, terrors.”
They protest while Dagger helps himself to a bowl of porridge. “You're tired, Princess.”
I nod at his back. “Yeah.”
“How have things been? Any trouble? The kids are bigger.” He’s sad about missing a few months of their lives. “I’m glad it’s done.”
“Me, too.” I bite my lip and think about his other questions. “Things have been busy, but good. And, um, no trouble, but—”
“Mummy made zombies die,” Jaden tells him excitedly. “Lots.”
“They’re in the garden,” Theo adds. “They smell stinky.”
Ugh… No tact, whatsoever…
Dagger spins to face us. “What?”
I nod as I show him what happened last week, and what I did on my own.
He holds onto the counter. “Jesus…”
“I know.”
I can hear his thoughts in overdrive. “So... But...”
“We'll talk more once the others—” I gasp again as I feel Axe awaken, and just like before, everything heightens. For me and for Dagger.
Even the kids feel it this time.
Prince, Africa, and Treasure toddle into the kitchen, and after a quick run of the water in the bathroom upstairs, all the kids are rushing to Axe as he appears.
“Look at my little gremlins,” he says, kneeling to kiss them all on the head. “You've grown so much!”
“I thought the same,” Dagger agrees. “Jaden especially.”
“Uh-huh.” Axe shoots me a knowing look as he stands with the biggest smile I’ve seen on him yet. “And mummy's bigger, too.” He winks, and my stomach flutters wildly.
“She’s growing more brothers!” Jaden and Theo tell him.
“So I see.” He leaves the kitchen to kiss the youngest in the living room in their playpen, but then he’s quickly in front of me with his hand on my belly and his lips against my ear. “Fuck, babe, you smell like death again...” He pulls back just enough to kiss me, but his lips leave mine way too soon. “Decided to finally give me a princess, huh?”
“You know I don’t like to disappoint.”
His eyes ignite in knowing. “Now it's my brothers’ turn to be jealous when you're begging for my hands on you.”
I smirk, remembering what I was like when I carried twins for Thorn. “You’re bad.”
“I will be.” His smile deepens. “And Thorn thought he’d be the only one to hit the target twice on the same round.”
I shake my head and laugh while I run my fingers through his beard. They all need cuts. “Must’ve been all those late-night baking lessons.”
His eyes darken. ‘I’m gonna enjoy the fuck out of these next three weeks. But don’t worry, babe, I won’t make you beg for my dick like he did.’
I tighten, everywhere
. “I’m ready. You all have a few weeks to make up for.”
“Oh, babe. I’ll make up for every hour, and then some.” He turns his attention to his brother. “You good?”
“Better than ever. Congrats on the twins, bro.”
“Respect, Dag.” He eyes the bowl of porridge in his brother’s hand. “There any left?”
Dagger points to the slow cooker. “Mikka made nuff. Eat, then we can bathe the kids. Our queen needs a break. She’s tired.”
Axe looks back down at me and tucks some of my stray curls behind my ear. “I know, but we're back now, babe. We've got the kids today.” He pulls me over to the island to sit me down, then takes my porridge to replace it with a fresh bowl.
“How do you feel?” I ask him when he sits beside me with Dagger.
“Hella strong. These new abilities already feel next level.”
I swallow my mouthful. “They’ll get better yet. They’ve strengthened each time one of you’ve woken up. Even the kids’ abilities have increased.”
He groans when we all feel Blade wake.
“See.”
‘Sweetness,’ I hear Blade, and I know he’s felt his second son inside me.
‘Surprise.’
Axe shakes his head as he eats another spoonful of porridge. “I thought we were the shit before. Now I understand why you’ve been so eager to sink your teeth into us.”
“I told you.” I look above Axe to see Blade strolling in with Jaden and Raeni on his hips. I didn’t even notice them disappear to find him.
He squeezes them both tightly before lowering them to kneel so he can hug the others. He does the same thing as his brothers before him have done, then, and disappears into the living room to kiss the rest of our babies.
Strengthening the bonds…
He quickly returns to the kitchen. He’s wearing sweats, too, no t-shirt, and I’m loving the sight of all this silky melanin. “I wish we never waited so long. This shit is something else.”
“Right,” his brothers agree.
And so do I. Each time one then have woken, I’ve felt more alive than ever. They all feel so much stronger, both mentally and physically, and the way they smell… My God... I can’t wait to get them alone so I can drown myself in them.
The World For My Zombie Kings: A Reverse Harem Romance (Zombies Rule The World Book 3) Page 2
