Page 32 of The Ruby Dragon’s Unconventional Mate (Oro Escondido #3)

Chapter

Thirty

“ I ’m bored.”

Lars looked at Arthur, who was staring at him, a slight smile on his lips.

“Do you want to go over and visit your brother? We can head over and see Lachlan.” Bryant had business to do, and he wouldn’t be back until this evening.

“Bryant promised he’d bring pizza or Thai or something; I don’t know, but I thought we could go pay a visit. ”

“Of course, I always want to go see my brother.” Arthur clapped his hands, then rubbed them together.

Lars nodded, smiled. “Excellent, because I want to get out of the house. It’s a beautiful day outside. I’ll go put on some clothes that are a little bit more decent. Do we have something we could take over as a gift? Some pastries or something?”

“There’s always something, Lars. I promise.”

Arthur gave him a fond look, and he toddled up the stairs to put on some clothes, calling his brother-in-law as he did.

“Hey, Lars, what’s up?”

“Are you busy?” He didn’t want to disturb the man if he was busy.

“I’m not. Would you like to come over? I know Bryant’s out of town.”

He chuckled. “I would love to see you. I was just telling Arthur I think it is time to make a visit. Do you mind? We could play Scrabble or something, just chill out.”

“Because I don’t love the idea of hanging out!” Lachlan chuckled. “We’ll make a day of it.”

He smiled and rubbed his belly. “You’re too good to me. I’m bored and restless and pregnant.”

“Do you need me to come and get you?”

“No, no. Arthur can drive me. We’ll be over in just a bit, okay?”

“Sure, see you here.”

“Cool, Arthur really wants to see his brother.”

“No problem at all. You know that I love having you here. Let me know if there’s anything you want me to make for snacks.”

“Oh, you know I always love snacks.” He laughed. He was still eating for two, though he felt like he was eating three or more as big as he was getting. Dakota assured him that he was not having twins, however, and so did the midwife.

“I do know that. Love you.”

That still gave him a thrill. All right, not the same kind of thrill that it did when Bryant said it, but he loved Lachlan, and he was so happy that his brother-in-law liked him. It was important and it just gave him this deep, warm wave of security deep inside. Like hugging a heated blanket.

“I love you too,” Lars told him. “Be right there.”

They hung up, and Lars put on some clothes so he could go back downstairs.

Arthur met him at the foot of the stairs carrying a cake carrier of some sort that had all manner of treats in it, he thought.

The lid was partially see-through, and he was pretty sure there were cookies and brownies and maybe those mini cheesecakes that he was addicted to.

The big cheesecakes were great, but the mini ones were perfect, just a bite or two, and softer, more tender.

“You all set?” Lars asked him.

Arthur nodded, holding up the cake carrier. “I am. I have gifts for Lachlan and nibbles for you. Let’s hit it.”

“That makes me feel a little like a toddler.” He headed out to the car, and he felt a little bit tired, but he thought this was a good thing to do. Sometimes, he could knock around the house and be a little depressed when Bryant wasn’t there.

Not that he was like totally Bryant dependent, because he wasn’t, but especially as he got closer to his due date, he was a little… Well, maybe a little clingy was a good word. He just didn’t know, but he loved spending time with Lachlan, and it would be healthy for Arthur to see his brother.

Arthur drove over, silent mostly, lost in thought, and Lars started to worry a little bit that something wrong.

Was it Alban? Had something happened? Surely not, because Arthur would tell him if that was the case, even if it was personal.

Doubts swirled in him, though. Not about Arthur, but about his own ability to see what was going on. He felt very caught up in his own crap.

“Arthur, is everything okay?”

“Hmmm? Oh, yes, I’m fine.” Arthur grinned at him. “Are you worried?”

“We’re just both being very quiet. There’s not another surprise party going on, is there? I’m not sure I could handle a ‘Boo! Surprise!’ without, I don’t know, my water breaking or something.”

Arthur hooted, the sound merry. “No, you’ve had your surprise shower.”

“Good. Right. And everything’s normal with Alban? I just wonder about things.”

“Are you worrying about Alban and me trying to kill Lachlan?” Arthur teased. “What would you do? You would be out your cheesecakes.”

Lars decided to go right back with teasing. “I know! See it would be a travesty. We can’t do that.”

“Don’t worry.” Now Arthur’s expression went serious. “I shouldn’t even joke about that. I’m just—To be perfectly honest, Lars, I’m getting vibes from you. You’re not feeling like you’re in labor, are you?”

“Gods no. I mean my back hurts all the time now, and I can’t see my feet, but I don’t feel like I’m particularly ick, or like my water’s fixing to break. There’s no pressure.”

“Well, it’s too early, so that’s a positive. I just wanted to make sure.”

“I appreciate the thought.” He really did, but he just felt pregnant.

Really, really pregnant and… Not lonely, because that wasn’t the case.

He and Bryant were doing great, and he had Slippy, and he had Arthur, and his friends had really put in the effort to see him regularly.

It just seemed as if he sat at the house a lot, and he guessed everybody felt that way when they were pregnant, especially when they were a dragon in Oro.

Everybody grounded him, but Lars just really wasn’t used to that.

He was the omega who was accustomed to being an alpha, after all.

Bryant’s voice came to his head. Love, are you well?

I am. We’re going to see Lachlan.

That’s awesome. Should I bring dinner there when I come home?

How about you holler at me, or I’ll holler at you if one of us is ready to go home before the other and let you know?

That sounds great. I was just getting this intuition from here that maybe you were unhappy.

No, no. I was worried about Arthur, and he was worried about me, so we were acting weird. But everything’s fine.

Bryant sort of laughed at him, and he felt it like a soft tickle of a feather. I’ll see you tonight.

Totally. I love you.

Love you too.

“ Better, Lars?” Arthur asked.

“Yeah. I was scaring myself. It’s weird, you know. I worry about things I didn’t before, but on the other hand? Some things I used to freak out about are easy.”

“I don’t think that’s weird. You’re transforming.”

“I am?” He had visions of a butterfly…

“Yep. You’re pregnant, so you’re about to become a parent. You’re mated. You’re transitioning from being a fake-alpha solo guardian to sharing those duties with your mate… Your whole vision of self is shifting.”

“I am. And it’s a good look on me, but brand-new.” He stroked his belly. “And exciting.”

“Yes. But it can be worrisome.” Arthur pulled in at Lachlan’s moments later. “I think you’re doing great, and Bryant is finally coming up to snuff.”

“I think Bryant is going to be an amazing dad.” But yes, he felt weird and unnerved, a little uncomfortable in his own body, which was a first.

“You’re going to do great, Lars.” Arthur handed him the cake carrier as they stepped out of the car.

“I am. I just need to get my head on straight, you know? I need?—”

The alarms from the wards went off, and Lars instinctively took to the air. The children were at the school, and it was up to him to protect them.

No matter what.