The last one was Snow. As Ever looked at her, she found it odd that all the women seemed to have physical features that corresponded with their names. Her wavy auburn hair was streaked with gray, or, more aptly, snow white. The woman appeared to be the oldest of the bunch, maybe in her mid fifties. She was on the shorter side and struck Ever as being kind of butch. Were there lesbian weres? She would have to ask later. “I guess that leaves you, Snow.”
“I had a falling out with my mate two years ago. He took my three children and went down to Georgia with them. It would be death for me to invade their clan to try and get them back.”
That was horrible. Obviously weres didn’t believe in visitation rights. Why had the man taken the children away? Was she an unfit mother?
Kris slid his fingers up into her hair, wrapping the strands around his fingers. It was another worried gesture, and she had to wonder what he was worried about.
“Snow, please tell Ever what happened between the two of you.”
Snow nodded. “My father and my mate’s father had a business venture together. They got into an argument over money and Erin, he was my mate, his father decided to go back to his clan. He took his son with him. We had no say in the matter. If Erin tries to leave, his father is such a strict man that he will hunt Erin down and take the children away from him. Within a few years it won’t matter, but for now, it is better that they grow up with one parent, rather than Erin’s father.”
She obviously was younger than Ever thought. Maybe she just looked haggard because she was so unhappy. “That sounds terrible.”
“It is, but I make do. Once in a while, Erin is able to sneak pictures to me in the mail. At least I get to see that. When Kris came to me with this opportunity, I was thrilled. It is such an honor to be a part of the alpha’s life.”
Liam gazed at her and smiled. “Any other questions, Ever?”
“Are there any that haven’t already been asked?”
“Probably not. It is time for your drink and your snack. Then you could probably benefit from a nap. It’s going to be a long night.”
Ever sighed. It seemed impossible that the night had arrived so quickly. Maybe it was the fresh air, or simply her overwhelmed body, but she was tired. At least she wasn’t feeling as argumentative. “That’s a very good thought.”
Liam got up and lifted her to her feet. He put his arm around her back and Kris stood, giving her a soft kiss. “I will be in later.”
“Okay.”
As Liam walked her from the room, she heard Kris say, “I guess we should get you all settled in the house out back. Are you coming to the ceremony tonight?”
Liam shut the bedroom door. He removed her robe with a gentle brush of his hands. The action wasn’t meant to be sexual, but his touch made her skin tingle as he got her settled into the bed. “Why are they moving in now? It will be months before the babies are born.”
Liam frowned and sat down. “Probably not, Ever. We will be surprised if you make it until the end of the week.”
The end of the week? That was impossible. “What? It is too soon.”
Liam thrust his hands into his hair, pushing it back. Their haircuts were slightly punk, with one side shaved almost to their skin. Ever had to wonder if it was some kind of were style. Or was it just their style? With such thick hair, she imagined that having part of it shaved was probably cooler in the summer. It wasn’t an issue, because she really liked it. The long part felt wonderful in her fingers, and the fuzzy, shaved part felt fantastic on her thighs.
The thought was horribly arousing and she tried to get her mind on something else. They had been talking about her having the babies in the next week, hadn’t they? How had that transformed into thoughts of sex?
Liam waved his hand in front of her face. “Are you with me?”
She blinked. She hadn’t been.
“I said that we have been over this with you, Ever. Most were pregnancies only go about seven months. You are so large that you will probably have them sooner than that. It’s not unusual for multiples.”
Now he had her complete attention. “I thought you meant sooner, like just before nine months. They are just over six months. They will be too tiny. We don’t have incubators and shit here and I can’t go to the hospital.”
“They will be fine, Ever. You have complained to no end about how big you are. They are big enough.”
She sighed. This was completely out of her range of knowledge. She would not be in a safe hospital with a doctor present. She would be giving birth in their bed, and if there was a problem, she was fucked. “Okay. I hope you’re right.”
Liam got up and headed out of the room. He was back a few minutes later with her herbal drink that Mick had mixed up, and with a chicken sandwich. He sat down on the bed and held the tray for her. Ever took a few bites of the sandwich and drank the mixture. She really wasn’t all that hungry. “Did you two purposely choose older women?”
“Of course. We wanted them to have experience. Do you like them?”
“I guess. It’s not like I really got a chance to get to know them. Is it me or do they all have an appearance that matches their name?”
“I don’t know what you mean.”
Ever shrugged and suddenly felt silly for asking. “I don’t know. Pippin has sort of a childish look and is kind of bubby, like her name. Daisy has daisy-flower-colored hair, with dark eyes like the center of the flower.”
Liam chuckled. “Sweetie, daisies are white with yellow centers.”
Yeah…huh? “I was thinking of black-eyed Susans, aren’t they a kind of daisy?”
“I suppose. I will have to take more note of what the women look like. I really wasn’t that focused on their appearance. I was paying more attention to their qualifications. Do you have any deeper first instincts?”
She took another bite, chewing slowly so she could think. Liam was right. Their appearances really shouldn’t matter to her. She had never judged people by what they looked like and suddenly wondered why she was doing so now. Was it simply that she didn’t want competition in her house at a time when she was feeling so inadequate? She needed to refocus her mind on what was important. “Exactly what role will they play?”
“They will care for the house, cook the meals, and help with the children. Pippin and Daisy are excellent cooks. They cooked for us a few times while we were up here working. They all have experience with were children.”
The women had been hanging around the building site? That was slightly unnerving. “What if I want to cook, or take care of my own children?”
“They aren’t going to take those things away from you. They will just be here to assist you when you need it or desire it.”
“And what am I supposed to do, sit around all day eating bonbons?”
He chuckled. “No. You have been helping Mick with the household finances. There is nothing stopping you from doing anything you want. You just have to realize that you will have more responsibility here as the high alpha female. You will be expected to be seen as our companion on a daily basis. No more hiding in the house to play on the computer or watch your shows.”
Ever groaned. Wasn’t it enough of a life change for her to have a baby, or babies? She had already completely changed her life by accepting three men into it. Granted, they had made the conversion very easy with their loving and helpful demeanors, but…“I like my shows.”
“I know you do. I watch them with you. I’m not saying that you won’t have time to yourself. I’m just saying that things will be different.”
Kris walked in and glared at the partially eaten sandwich. “You need to eat.”
“I know. We were talking.”
“Talk less, eat more.” She grinned at his stern expression. She was in a better mood, but Kris was always bitching that she didn’t eat enough.
“I drank that horrible shake.”
“I see that. Don’t even say that the chicken salad is horrible. I made it.”
Ever took another bite. It was actually quite good. “I love it, thank you.”
Kris strolled over and sat down. “The four women are going to move their things into the house. The
outside
house.”
His noticeable accent on the word outside was obviously for her benefit. Had Kris gotten jealous vibes from her, or was he just trying to reassure her that they were not interested in the women sexually?
“From now on, they will be here to help you. That is the understanding we have. One of them will always be here and once the babies are born, they will come and go as needed. I don’t want you to be alone if Liam or I can’t be here with you. Okay?”
“I guess. Is it okay if I’m alone with Mick here?” That was not on the list of things suddenly ticking through her mind, but it seemed the logical question. Was Mick really coming to live with them, or was he hiding out at her house as a casual way to break it off? Why was she suddenly questioning Mick? He obviously still loved her. Maybe it was the slight distance that had formed between them after he had discovered that she was pregnant.
“Of course. Now what’s wrong? You suddenly look thoughtful, if not concerned.”
Ever needed to talk to Mick about his feelings and it wasn’t something that she wanted to discuss with his brothers. She had other things in mind to ask aloud. “I feel unprepared. I have no idea how to birth or take care of were children. I haven’t really been around normal children that much. I’m going to have four women frequenting my house who I barely know. I guess I’m a bit overwhelmed.”
“The part of you that is were will give you the instincts needed to raise our babies. It is just like a wolf in the wild who has pups for the first time. They know what to do and they do it. It’s not like the babies will be birthed and the three of us are going to take off and leave you, Ever. We will be here.”
“I know that.”
“As far as the women, they will help you. I know that you don’t know them well enough to trust them, but they came highly recommended.” He slid closer to her, his eyes reflecting concern. “We know this is hard for you. We were very careful in our selection. The women were here helping with the details of the house and the construction of it. Liam and I did get to know them, but I promise that they offer you no competition. You are beautiful and perfect, and the only woman we desire is you. Please try to believe that.”
“I know. I guess that I don’t feel too desirable at the moment.”
“I have to say that my dick would disagree. I haven’t taken a hot shower in weeks.”
The comment was perfect and she started to laugh as relieved tears sprang into her eyes. “I can remedy that if you like.”
He enveloped her hand with both of his, rubbing it softly as he brought it to his lips and kissed each of her fingers. “That would be unfair. If you have to wait, then so do we. It won’t be all that much longer. Then we are going to ravish you. I promise, you will be glad to have someone here to watch the babies so you can concentrate on us.”
That was a point that she hadn’t thought of. That was a big complaint after a woman gave birth. They didn’t have the energy for sex. Of course, very few things about this pregnancy had gone according to the various baby books she had read.
Liam laid his head to her stomach, rubbing the lower skin with his hand. “I can hear them.”
“What do you hear?”
“I’m hearing heartbeats. As Mick said, there are three, or maybe even four of them. It is kind of hard to tell because the sound is overlapping. They are loud and really strong, Ever. Damn, it sounds amazing.”
Liam was so incredibly sweet, and Ever often thought that he was the most sensitive of the brothers. Of course, he was an artist and artists were often that way. Liam observed things in different ways than normal people. He often pointed out things that Ever would never have seen as he did. Liam had put a birdbath in her backyard. As time passed, she realized that it had been strategically placed so it could be observed at any time from the sink. Ever found her eyes wandering to it when she was doing dishes or washing vegetables. Liam would often stand behind her, rubbing her shoulders and watching the birds with her. He would mention variances in their coloration and if he didn’t know a particular bird, he would go to the computer and look it up.
She remembered a spring day after a very heavy rain when he had come hurrying out of the bathroom to grab his camera. Ever had wondered what the hell he was taking a photo of in the bathroom. When he had come back out a few moments later, Liam had shown her.
The viney growth outside the bathroom window had perfectly captured droplets of the rain. On the bare branches were red berries that had survived the winter, and from each one was hanging a perfect teardrop of liquid. The photo was amazing in its pure simplicity and beauty.
She would miss her house, but the birdbath could be brought up to the new house, and she wanted it outside the window in the kitchen. Of course, the new window was bigger and had been built with glass shelves for plants. Kris had said that she could plant her own herb garden.
Liam turned his head and kissed her stomach. “So many babies.”
She knew he was being humorous, but it worried her that there might be four. Mick had assured her that it was completely normal for weres to have multiples. Of course, there was nothing normal about her. She was not a full-bred were, and humans were not supposed to give birth to were children. Ever had wondered on more than one occasion if she was so large and uncontrollably cranky because she would probably die during the birth. She didn’t want to die, and the thought was terrifying. Of course, her men wouldn’t want to freak her out by telling her. She had been so moody she would completely fall apart. Of course, what woman wouldn’t, if she were told that she had a death sentence growing in her womb?