Page 26 of Peacock Me Like a Hurricane (Rise of the Resistance #2)

DELILAH

S itting on the comforter in our bedroom, I wiggle my toes as I wait for him. I put this conversation off as long as I could because I expect him to laugh his ass off. Who wouldn’t? It’s ridiculous, even if you ask me.

Why am I telling him now?

Taurus is the only person I’ve been spending time with since we mated, and it’s unlikely that we’ll keep our hands off one another tonight. The drama the other night made me forget, but before we get frisky again, I need to tell him. Unfortunately, that means that we face an embarrassing problem that no one else in the Rift has to worry about: birth control.

The Universe is laughing at me.

Biting my thumbnail nervously, I give up on watching the clock and jump off the bed. I head to the bar and pour myself a hefty draught of his Macallan. Once I’m sitting on the bed again, I sip at it slowly. I’m not sure why my nerves are so jangled. He’s not going to drop off the face of the Earth; he’s my mate and he’d never leave me—even Talia said that.

W hy am I shaking like a leaf?

That’s a good question, but I don’t have a chance to ponder it as he walks in. He grins broadly as he dives onto the bed headfirst to bury his face between my breasts. This is not conducive to a serious conversation. I run my fingers through his platinum locks fondly. Smiling down at him, I sigh when the contact calms me considerably. “Is that your face in my rack or are you happy to see me?”

He chuckles and undoes the few buttons I fastened, growling softly as he nuzzles the warm skin. “I can think of a few things I’d be happy to see.” He mumbles the sentence as his mouth drifts over me, sending a wave of warmth through my veins. The attention kick starts the rollercoaster of lust, making my skin heat and veins pulse with fire.

Tugging him upwards, I kiss him hungrily. Our bodies press together and I rumble in pleasure. He melts over me like a mink stole, making my brain misfire as the Beast takes over with a quick ferocity. All thoughts of serious conversation are completely erased because all I can feel, see, taste, touch, and smell is him. The drive to mate and to mark and rip into what’s mine is thrumming in every cell in my body. His clothes disappear and before long, I’m lapping tiny droplets from the scrape I’ve opened on his shoulder.

He lifts my thighs to drape over his hips and something clicks. I fight through the fog of desire and rasp, “Fuck.” Trying desperately to clear it enough to have a discussion, I clamp my thighs on his hips. It’s a struggle, but I work to maintain enough control that I can stop.

“That’s the plan,” he replies, his fangs grazing the scars on my neck.

That makes a hard shiver race down my spine and for a second, I’m lost again. Teeth send me off the deep end even without the biological imperative I’m presently operating under. His hips swivel against mine, and he realigns. Groaning, I suck in a deep breath and give him a shove, rolling us over so I can settle on his thighs. He gives me a puzzled look as I rest my forearms on his chest.

“Is something wrong, love?” he asks. He shakes off the ridges as his golden eyes blink up at me in confusion.

“Not wrong, per se,” I reply, suddenly uncomfortable again.

“Per se?” He arches a brow. “Isn’t that a way of saying something is wrong depending on how you look at it?”

“It’s not necessarily wrong.” I wrinkle my nose and bury my face in his chest as the flush creeps up my neck.

“Bollocks. The minx doesn’t burrow like a bunny if nothing is wrong,” he snorts, tipping my chin up.

I stick my tongue out at him. “Okay, fine. There might be this small thing. It was kind of unexpected…”

“Small? Unexpected? What in the bloody hell is going on, Sandwich?” His brows crease as he gives me a worried look.

Sighing, I mumble, “I got a call from the lab today.”

He pushes up on his elbows, staring at me. “And?”

“It’s—I’m…” I wrinkle my nose again, suddenly unable to vocalize anything. “Um, well, you see…”

“Spit it out, minx,” he growls, the edge in his voice softened by his hand stroking over my hair.

“I’m trying.” I pout, brow crinkling up. “This is embarrassing.”

“Kitty, I highly doubt there’s anything left to be embarrassed between us.”

My eyes narrow and I huff, “You’re going to laugh.”

Pulling a somber face, he shakes his head. “I promise that I won’t.”

I sigh heavily and look away as I mumble, “I’m kind of—I’m in heat.” He bursts out laughing, flopping onto the bed again as his eyes dance with mirth. I glare, thumping his chest with a fist, but it doesn’t deter his amusement. “Oh, fine. It gets worse, but I’m not going to tell you .”

Sobering instantly, he looks apologetic. “I’m sorry, love. You have to admit that it’s bloody funny. Tell me what else he said. Please?” He leans forward and gnaws on my neck.

My eyes roll back as the sensation shoots through me. “You. Are. A. Cheater.”

He grins wickedly. “Always, baby. Now, fill me in so we can get with the sweaty nakeds.”

“That’s the problem.”

His eyes blink rapidly, and he tilts his head, looking puzzled. “Nakeds are a problem?”

I nod, feeling humiliated. “The heat—it makes me…well…” I lose my courage as I flush bright red. ~Fertile, ~ I mumble the last word into his head as I bury my face in his shoulder.

~You’re what?~

~You heard me.~

The room is silent for long, ponderous moments and I fidget, squirming a little in my discomfort with the situation. His arms tighten around me to keep me from wriggling away. The bastard knows me too well for sure. Confinement only exacerbates my embarrassment and I growl in impatience.

~Quit your wriggling woman.~

~No.~ I reply stubbornly.

~Yes. I’m thinking.~

I huff, laying my head back down. ~There’s nothing to think about. I have to get shots. We’ll use other stuff until we’re certain those work on me.~

He snorts. ~Other stuff? Christ.~

~Yes, other stuff. ~ I snap, the tension in me finally breaking the surface. ~Condoms—you’re going to have to wear them.~

Lifting his head, he groans. ~Bloody hell.~

~It’s not like I did this on purpose. I didn’t ask for this stupid… whatever it is.~

He doesn’t reply, only smooths his hands down my back. The silence is unnerving, and I’d be rocking at this point if I thought he’d let me move. I hadn’t considered that he’d react like this—quiet and introspective—and it’s starting to freak me out. I scrape at the polish on my nails, a nervous habit that I never have been able to control.

~Stop that.~

~No. The quiet is making me nervous.~

He sits up, tugging me with him to settle me on his lap. His hand strokes over my face, and he smiles gently. “There’s nothing to be nervous about, love.”

“There is when you don’t talk after I made a big announcement.”

Eyes dancing, he tucks a hair behind my ear and chuckles softly. “You’re cute when you babble, kitty.”

I wrinkle my nose at him. What’s with this sudden change in behavior? Quiet and reserved to soft and teasing—what is he, manic? “Why were you so quiet then?”

“I’m thinking about how much I love you.”

I smile wryly and rub my nose on his. “I love you, too, baby, but I sincerely doubt it took that much thought.”

He gives me a sheepish look and shrugs, “I doubt you’d be interested in what I was pondering.”

Rolling my eyes at him, I give him a stern glance. “I’m interested. Why wouldn’t I be?”

“You probably aren’t so-”

“Just say it, you big bird!” I screech, crossing my arms over my chest and giving him an impatient expression.

He glares and growls, “I’m trying to ask you to marry me and have my bloody kid, so I was figuring out the right way to ask, thanks ever so.”

I gape at him. The only thing I can think of to say is, “Baby, you eat kids.”

“I wouldn’t eat the nipper. Probably,” he says, his eyes twinkling with amusement. I must look like someone hit me in the face with a brick because he chuckles. “I’d have its mum for that, wouldn’t I?”

Is he serious? He can’t be.

I shrug, unsure how to deal with this. “You sample from the dessert cart enough for that to be true.”

He flips us over and pins me, kissing my nose. “You are a pain in my nicely rounded and tight ass. I love you with everything I have inside me.”

“I love you, even if you are an ass,” I reply, pinching my favorite part off his anatomy.

“Marry me. Have my rug cat.” He laughs softly when my expression returns to gob smacked.

“Quit making fun of me.”

“I’m serious, but like I said—I knew you wouldn’t be interested, so don’t worry about it.”

I blink again, my brain frantically trying to process what I’m hearing. “You-you’re serious?”

“Okay, the married part might be redundant, all things considered. A ceremony might be nice, though.”

I soften and run my knuckle over his cheek. “Yeah, it might.” Warmth spreads through me and I feel everything in me go squish.

Shrugging self-consciously, he mumbles, “Having a little you running around now and again wouldn’t be so bad, I suppose. It takes a while to grow one of those, so it’s not like a decision has to get made right away.”

My finger traces around his lips. “You’d really want to donate baby batter to me, baby?”

His eyebrows arch and he grins wickedly. “Depends on the method of donation, baby.”

“The usual one, of course.”

“You sound like you don’t hate the idea.”

Shrugging a bit, I scrunch. “I don’t hate it.”

He nods. “But you’re not crazy about it—I understand.”

I wrinkle my nose and shake my head. “No, I didn’t say that.” Biting my lip, I shrug one shoulder up self-consciously, mumbling, “I kind of like it, but I was… making sure you wanted to before I said anything.”

His eyes are gentle and his smile is tender as he traces the lines of my face then leans down to kiss me. I feel him open up to me, his heart connecting to mine in a way that melts me.

~I’m sure, ~ he breathes.

It sinks in as everything clicks inside. Sucking in a deep breath, I smile crookedly. ~I guess I’m going to get really round.~

His face lights up, the smile just about breaking his face. ~Are you sure, baby? You’re not doing this because I’ve got a burr up my butt? ~

I nod slowly. ~I’m sure. Very sure. ~

He kisses me deeply and I sigh, feeling his heart soar as we connect. ~I love you, mate. ~

~I love you, too, baby. ~ I rub my nose along his jaw, unable to keep a huge grin from spreading across my face.

He laughs and rubs his hand over my tummy. “We’re going to have a finger Sandwich.”

I giggle, ruffling his hair affectionately. “Silly clone.”

“I promise I won’t eat it. Well, unless it irritates me.” His eyes twinkle and I swat him.

“I know you’ll be a wonderful dad. I’m going to be all roly poly and huge.”

Grinning wickedly, he whispers, “That should get interesting, what with the stompy.”

I stick my tongue out, glaring. “I’ll be all jiggly, too.”

“You’ll be beautiful,” he says, touching his heart to mine. His expression grows devilish as he puffs up. “I’ll be the manly man, handing out cigars while you sweat out the pain.”

Gaze narrowed, I send a picture of him with cigars stuffed in interesting places as he hobbles about on bloodied stumps. Snorting, he counters with a picture of him with me through it all, fingers cracking as I squeeze his hand during contractions.

“Better?”

Nodding, I lean up to kiss his chin. Suddenly, something occurs to me and I giggle. “Taurus is your daddy.”

He groans and rolls his eyes. Chuckling, he rubs his hand over my tummy absently. “I’m still reeling.”

I trace my fingers over his chest and nod. “Oh, yeah. It’s not a bad thing, though.”

“Other end of the spectrum, baby,” he sifts his fingers through my hair.

I kiss him gently. “Just big and wonderful.”

Taurus looks shy as he whispers, “I was afraid you’d not…” He shrugs self-consciously. “I didn’t want to say how much I liked the idea earlier.” I tilt my head, listening as he rubs my tummy idly. “When I thought of you with a little us inside...”

“Ditto, baby.”

He shrugs, covering the shyness with an evil grin. “Don’t worry; I’ll still shag you when you’re big and round.”

I smack his chest and huff. “Ass.”

“Mmm, but I’m your ass, baby.”

“Always,” I grin up at him.

He looks down at me, waggling his brows. “I guess we should get moving on that donation, hmm? Can’t make a mini-kitty without it.”

Eyes sparkling happily, I nod and lean up to nip at his scars with blunt teeth. “I think the phrase you were looking for was ‘now, where were we?’”

“Abso-bloody-lutely,” he murmurs, lowering his body onto mine and burying his face in my neck with a rumbling growl. “We can’t be wasting a second.”