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dragonlady7via http://ift.tt/2g9ZU9M:
I posted chapter 2 of Temporary Haven, which is the latest Lost Kings thing– it’s Kes and Shara’s courtship, and this is the chapter where they announce their engagement, which of course it being Kes’s family, is no simple thing.
This chapter is most notable, though, because Poe makes his first appearance as a creature with volition and actions of his own, tiny though they are. Excerpt behind the cut bc spoilers and nsfw text.
“I’m yours, baby,” she murmured, and shivered on an aftershock, clenching down around him where he was still deep in her.
“Shara,” he panted.
“Say it,” she said. “I’m yours.”
“I’m yours,” he echoed blurrily.
“No,” she said. That was what it was, that was what was bugging her. He didn’t believe her; she’d overheard jokes that she’d only agreed to stay with him for the baby, and while it was true, it wasn’t true like that. “I’m yours .”
He took a slower breath, and nuzzled at her neck, near her ear. “You’re mine,” he said.
“Yes,” she said, and laughed a little, tension going out of her chest that she hadn’t known was there. She wriggled a little; she was going to keep him inside her until he went soft, because despite the stickiness she was enjoying the closeness. “Mm. I’m yours, Kes, I said it and meant it.”
“Okay,” he whispered, sounding a little overwhelmed.
Her pulse was slowing down but she could feel it weirdly echoing kind of off-rhythm in her abdomen, it must be one of the big arteries that went down to her legs maybe, she needed to review some anatomy holos because she didn’t know it as well as she ought to and she kept being curious about–
That wasn’t a heartbeat, and the realization cut through her absent ruminations.
“Kes,” she said, lifting her head a little.
He blinked at her, sleepy and tipsy and beautiful, and now a little alarmed. “What?”
“The baby’s kicking,” she said.
He blinked again, puzzled. “What?”
She found one of her hands and slid it between their bodies, pressing her fingers against the spot where the pulse that wasn’t a heartbeat had been fluttering. It fluttered again, clear as anything, against her fingers, and she gasped. “He’s kicking!” she said. “Give me your hand.”
Carefully, without moving either of their bodies, she managed to get Kes’s hand pressed just where hers had been. “I don’t,” he said, and she shushed him as she felt it move again. He went still, staring at nothing.
It fluttered again, and she watched his eyes widen as he felt it. “Oh!” he said, lighting up slowly from the inside.
“That’s him,” she said, and it was one of those moments, she couldn’t think of any other ones but surely there had been; she’d hang onto this for her whole life, this perfect beautiful moment, awash in endorphins and still tingling from orgasm and with her man– her husband, for all intents and purposes– pressed against her and still inside her, and his beautiful face so delighted, and her baby kicking, really an alive thing now, palpably a real thing, not just a constellation of symptoms.
Kes had tears in his eyes as he beamed up at her. “There he is,” he said.
“That’s our baby,” Shara said, dazed with it, and kissed him.
I posted chapter 2 of Temporary Haven, which is the latest Lost Kings thing– it’s Kes and Shara’s courtship, and this is the chapter where they announce their engagement, which of course it being Kes’s family, is no simple thing.
This chapter is most notable, though, because Poe makes his first appearance as a creature with volition and actions of his own, tiny though they are. Excerpt behind the cut bc spoilers and nsfw text.
“I’m yours, baby,” she murmured, and shivered on an aftershock, clenching down around him where he was still deep in her.
“Shara,” he panted.
“Say it,” she said. “I’m yours.”
“I’m yours,” he echoed blurrily.
“No,” she said. That was what it was, that was what was bugging her. He didn’t believe her; she’d overheard jokes that she’d only agreed to stay with him for the baby, and while it was true, it wasn’t true like that. “I’m yours .”
He took a slower breath, and nuzzled at her neck, near her ear. “You’re mine,” he said.
“Yes,” she said, and laughed a little, tension going out of her chest that she hadn’t known was there. She wriggled a little; she was going to keep him inside her until he went soft, because despite the stickiness she was enjoying the closeness. “Mm. I’m yours, Kes, I said it and meant it.”
“Okay,” he whispered, sounding a little overwhelmed.
Her pulse was slowing down but she could feel it weirdly echoing kind of off-rhythm in her abdomen, it must be one of the big arteries that went down to her legs maybe, she needed to review some anatomy holos because she didn’t know it as well as she ought to and she kept being curious about–
That wasn’t a heartbeat, and the realization cut through her absent ruminations.
“Kes,” she said, lifting her head a little.
He blinked at her, sleepy and tipsy and beautiful, and now a little alarmed. “What?”
“The baby’s kicking,” she said.
He blinked again, puzzled. “What?”
She found one of her hands and slid it between their bodies, pressing her fingers against the spot where the pulse that wasn’t a heartbeat had been fluttering. It fluttered again, clear as anything, against her fingers, and she gasped. “He’s kicking!” she said. “Give me your hand.”
Carefully, without moving either of their bodies, she managed to get Kes’s hand pressed just where hers had been. “I don’t,” he said, and she shushed him as she felt it move again. He went still, staring at nothing.
It fluttered again, and she watched his eyes widen as he felt it. “Oh!” he said, lighting up slowly from the inside.
“That’s him,” she said, and it was one of those moments, she couldn’t think of any other ones but surely there had been; she’d hang onto this for her whole life, this perfect beautiful moment, awash in endorphins and still tingling from orgasm and with her man– her husband, for all intents and purposes– pressed against her and still inside her, and his beautiful face so delighted, and her baby kicking, really an alive thing now, palpably a real thing, not just a constellation of symptoms.
Kes had tears in his eyes as he beamed up at her. “There he is,” he said.
“That’s our baby,” Shara said, dazed with it, and kissed him.
