Charity Received (26 page)

Bringing Charity’s hand to his lips, Kash then placed a light kiss on her palm before folding her smaller hand within his larger one. His thumb brushed back and forth across her wrist, and he felt her body relax into his side as her eyelids slowly lowered.

When he glanced back at Arak, the other male’s eyes were open, studying him. “The child rests safely within. I have also determined the sex. Would you care to know?”

Charity’s eyes popped open. “No!”

Arak’s brow furrowed at the urgency in her voice, and he cast a questioning glance at Kash. “We would prefer that one final surprise.”

“Oh. Okay.”

Arak seemed curious by his response, so Kash connected with his brother’s mind.

“Charity has told me that for a shifter, to bear a daughter is rare. And she desires a
 
girl, so I would like her to keep that hope as long as possible.”

Arak smiled as he peered down at both of them. 
“Okay. Then I won’t mention it
 
again. But there is something, Kash. Something odd.”

Kash tensed. 
“What?”

“Her cells are not fully that of a shifter.”

At Arak’s pronouncement, the tension drained away immediately. 
“You are correct.

Charity’s father was fae, and it seems that even though she shifts, she has inherited a
 
fae’s life span.”

“Yes. I sensed that also.”
 Kash watched Arak pull his hand back. “Well, that was all I needed, sugar. Everything seems to be all right. The baby is healthy, though I would like to keep monitoring your progression just to be sure.”

“That would be fine.” Then Charity sent Kash a disgruntled look. “And I would prefer you not talk over my head like that.”

Kash chuckled. It didn’t surprise him that Charity was so in tune with him, she’d sensed the change in energy as he and Arak mind-spoke. “All right, chérie.”

Zeke grunted in disgust. “Christ, and I thought Bale was sickening.” Then he winked at Charity and disappeared.

“He’s jealous.” The look that Charity gave after her statement was so serious, Kash almost believed her. Almost. Then he and Arak burst into laughter.

“I will have to tell him you said so. The look on his face…” Arak shook his head in amusement. “Anyway, I’d better go. Remy is chomping at the bit.”

Arak followed Zeke, teleporting from the room.

Charity curled up on her side, facing him. “Do you feel better now?”

“Better about what?” he asked as he absently brushed her hair away from her face.

Charity seemed much more relaxed now that Arak had examined her, and he didn’t feel as if she might flee again.

“Your mind-speaky thing with Arak.”

He smiled, trailing his thumb across her bottom lip. “My mind-speaky thing,” he teased, leaning down and kissing her softly.

“Yes. So how does it work?”

Kash considered her question for a moment, then shrugged. “I guess I don’t know.

From the time I remember first opening my eyes, I have been able to communicate with my brethren. It is part of who we are.”

Kash could almost see the wheels turning in Charity’s mind as she studied him.

“Why speak at all, then?” she asked, surprising him. “If you can converse without words whenever you like, why bother ever vocalizing anything?”

He traced a finger along her cheek, then slid a hand behind her head to cup her neck. “We do not ever just invade another’s mind. That would be highly intrusive, not to mention rude. Unless it is an emergency, we ask for an invitation first. And given the varied gifts we as a race possess, we must have strict rules concerning such things.”

Kash worried about how Charity would respond. They’d had enough hurt feelings and miscommunications between them, so he never considered lying to her, but he was apprehensive about how she would take this revelation.

Charity’s response was rather bland. “Oh,” was all she said. “Then you’re satisfied with what Arak revealed to you?”

“Just what do you think Arak and I spoke about?”

With a roll of her eyes, Charity did nothing to hide her exasperation. “That you are the baby’s father. Wasn’t that the whole point?”

Kash searched her face and tried to discern her tone. His mate was nothing if not resigned. And relieved. She expected Arak’s pronouncement to be the end of it.

“Charity, Arak needed confirmation to convince the others. I didn’t need verification of what I already know.” Glancing down at her stomach, Kash caressed the gentle swell. “This child is mine.” He captured her lips in a gentle exploration.

She pulled back with a soft sigh and rested her head on his shoulder. “Then what were you talking about?”

“Arak was able to determine the fae part of your heritage. Nothing of vital importance, I promise.”

Charity swiftly lifted her head, bumping into his chin. “Sorry,” she said with a little laugh then kissed the spot she’d hit. “Arak was able to tell that from just touching my stomach?”

Kash grinned. “Arak’s gift can be rather useful.”

“Oh, I don’t know. Yours gives one hell of a massage. And it keeps me warm. I like that.”

“Glad I can be of service, chérie.” Kash slid his arms around her back and held her close. He let his hands heat up, then settled them at the small of her back and massaged gently.

“That feels so good,” she mumbled against his chest with a groan.

“And I’ll do this every night to ease the pain as you grow heavy with our daughter,”

he whispered in her ear.

Charity moaned, a sound of utter contentment, and Kash smiled into her hair. “I am so glad you came back.”

“Me too. I felt so lost. Alone,” she said into his neck.

Kash kissed her forehead. “You sound tired. You should go to sleep.”

Charity shook her head. “What about your brothers? Is it over?”

“In relation to the baby?” At her nod, Kash frowned. “I don’t expect even Arak’s word will appease some of them.” As she stiffened in his arms, he did his best to soothe her. “Don’t let that concern you, Charity. You and I are the only ones who matter.

And if the curse has truly been broken, you will not be the only one to conceive. Arak will need to be a little more careful where he spreads his seed.”

Charity snorted. “That should seriously put a crimp in his fun.”

Kash chuckled, tightening his grip around her. For a few moments, he just held her, relishing the feel of her against him, but there was something Hope had said that he couldn’t forget.

“Charity, earlier Hope said there was only one reason you would refuse to shift. It involved the pregnancy. What did she mean by that?”

Charity lifted her head and stared at him, her face solemn. “Shifting causes a miscarriage. Normally I could not go a couple of days without letting my wolf run.

She would be climbing the walls. But the pregnancy calms her.” Charity gave a slight shrug.

Kash drew her head back to his shoulder. “So shifting is something you must obviously avoid at all costs. But that should be easy to accomplish. You will be protected at all times, and when I cannot be with you, one of my brethren will be.

Remy will make it top priority. Not that you will have much cause to come into danger here at the abbey.”

“And I will cut back my hours at work. I didn’t get much done last night, as I spent most of it in the bathroom, anyway.”

The implication of her words sent a chill through Kash. Apparently she didn’t understand. “Chérie, you can’t possibly expect to work any longer. You just aren’t safe at Club Dominus, and we don’t have the numbers it would take to guard you plus do our patrols.”

A funny noise escaped her throat as Charity lifted her head. “The wolf will sacrifice our child if she feels threatened or overly stressed. Caging me, even here at the abbey, could cause her to take control.”

“Then what are we to do?” he asked with a sense of dismay. Her explanation warred with his need to keep her from harm. And it wasn’t just Raym he had to worry about. She was a target for any demon looking to make a name for himself. And then there was Beelzebub. He had wanted Faith, for some unknown reason. What if he set his sights on Charity?

“Finding ways to work off excessive energy will help.”

Kash’s thoughts immediately turned carnal, and his fingers wandered under her shirt. “Oh, I can think of several ways I can help with that,” he growled softly.

With a roll of her eyes, Charity batted away his exploring hands. “I’m sure you can.

But that will hardly contain the wanderlust. Staying behind these walls for the next six months will drive me crazy.”

“Six? I thought it was nine.”

With a quiet yawn, she replied, “Seven for a shifter, and I’m already three weeks along.”

“So your illness last night, that was morning sickness.” Kash returned his massaging fingers to her lower back, and on a sigh, she laid her head on his shoulder.

“Or in my case, middle-of-the-night sickness. Hopefully it shouldn’t last very long.”

“Yes, hopefully. I don’t deal well when you’re ill.” His arms reflexively tightened around Charity as he pressed his lips into her hair, dropping little kisses.

“No. You were wonderful,” she whispered.

Kash gave a soft laugh. “Talk like that will definitely get you flat on your back.”

Charity burrowed her face in his neck and rubbed her cheek against his skin. He could feel that the events of the past several hours had taken their toll, and she was fading fast. Using his power, he sent heat pulsing into her flesh, pushing her closer to sleep until Charity succumbed. Kash, on the other hand, lay there for hours, trying to determine ways to keep her safe.

* * *

After following the mental imprint Zeke had left, Arak found himself teleported into the library and surrounded by his brethren. Apparently Remy was not the only one anxious for word concerning Charity’s condition.

“Well?” Remy asked in the demanding tone that seemed to irk the crap out of Zeke and Bale. But for Arak, it only served to bring out his mischievous side.

“What?” was his nonchalant response. He thought he’d draw it out, let the others stew for a moment, so when Jet jumped to his feet, he looked inquisitively at Zeke.

“It’s time to end this.”

Arak didn’t like the threat he heard in Jet’s voice. While Kash had claimed not to need confirmation of the baby’s paternity, Arak was quite aware some of the others wouldn’t be so easily convinced.

“Sit down, Jetrel!” Remy ordered, casting a look Arak’s way that showed he wasn’t amused. “Now, Arak.”

Arak shoved his hands in the front pockets of his jeans, giving a slight shrug. “All right. Charity is with child. And I can say without an ounce of doubt that Kash is the father.”

Immediately the room erupted in chaos, but Arak noticed one remained in his seat.

Bale. His head had fallen into his shaking hands as if he mourned. It lasted only a moment before his brother bottled the emotion and was once again in complete control. But it was too late. Faith appeared in the doorway, and Arak could only assume she had felt Bale’s despair. With a nod to Remy, Bale got up and took her into his arms, and the pair disappeared from sight. Poor Bale. Arak did not envy him that conversation.

“Well, I’ll be damned,” Remy muttered. “So it is true.”

Arak nodded solemnly. “And that’s not all. She is not a full-blooded shifter. Charity is half fae.”

“What the hell does that mean?” Zeke seemed surprised by this, and Arak realized he had not known.

“She has retained the ability to turn into a wolf, obviously, but she will not have a shifter’s life span. She has inherited immortality from the fae.”

“Well, that is an interesting tidbit.” Arak could see Remy’s mind working on a way to use the connection to his advantage. “It just might prove useful.”

Zeke snorted derisively. “Yeah, right. The sons of bitches think they’re better than the Grigori. The only help they’re likely to give us is a one-way ticket to Hell.”

“There is that,” Remy said, his lips twitching with a suppressed smile. “But right now, our main concern is a certain present you two dumped at my feet.”

“What about your precious werewolf? Can’t our pregnant little shifter solve all our problems?”

Zeke narrowed his eyes at Jet, and Arak took a step back, waiting for the fireworks.

He was still surprised by Zeke’s friendship with Charity. Zeke tended to resist emotional ties and probably would have even tried to distance himself from Arak, Bale, and Remy if they’d allowed him to. But Arak could be a persistent pain in the ass when the occasion called.

Remy stepped between the two, his eyes focused on Jet. “That pregnant little shifter is Kash’s mate. Do not even for one moment forget that, Jetrel. She is under the protection of the Grigori. That includes you, last time I checked. And you are now responsible for her.”

Zeke was the first to react, his protest loud. “I should be in charge of Charity’s protection.”

“Zeke, you are far too personally involved with her and could not be impartial enough to make difficult decisions.”

Zeke fiercely shook his head. “And Jet is? The bastard would look the other way while demons used Charity for dart practice.”

“I’ll do my job,” Jet growled through clenched teeth. His face was drawn tight, awash with harsh lines. “But I request the right to decline the assignment.” This he directed to Remy, and Arak waited, breath held for Remy to respond. He’d rather see anyone but Jet given the task of keeping Charity free from harm. And he could only guess Kash would feel the same.

“Request denied.” At Jet’s angry snarl, Remy arched a brow. “You have been so concerned about Kash, here is your chance, Jet. Protect Charity, and you protect Kash. Keep his mate and their child alive.”

“Fine,” was Jet’s terse reply before he brushed past Remy and stalked from the room.

“What are you doing, Remy?” Arak finally asked quietly.

He watched Remy cast a glance at Levi before responding, and speculated about the silent message that seemed to pass between the two. Curiously Remy and Levi had gotten tight over the past couple of years, but Arak had never considered why until now. He wondered what Bale thought of it. Bale had never trusted Levi much, and it was no wonder. At one time, Levi had ranked number three in Hell.