Usually, when she kicks, I feel like she is breaking something. Thaddeus watches my hand move, and I move it, lifting my shirt. Orion’s eyes watch my belly move as I feel her roll. His cold hand touches my tight skin as it stretches underneath his hand.
“Not hurting anymore?” Orion asks, and I shake my head.
I feel nothing; more like I am given a local anesthetic, yet I can feel my limbs. But at the same time they also feel numb; it is a weird feeling, foreign to me.
“Any baby names yet?” Ryland asks, and I shake my head, looking to them to see if they have any. They, too, shake their heads.
“Well, she will just be Baby until someone thinks of something,” I tell them, and they nod.
Orion’s eyes snap to the huge TV for a second. A picture of a gas station comes up. “Turn that up,” Orion says, and I look back at the TV.
Thaddeus sighs and gets up.
“Where are you going?” I ask as Ryland turns the volume up.
“I am not arguing over this again,” he says and walks upstairs.
I look at Orion, who has a foul look on his face. Then, I turn back to TV to listen to what the news reporter is saying. Video footage inside the store shows Thaddeus, standing next to a child just in the doorway, and another man has a gun pointed at him. We watch without sound as Thaddeus turns, looks down at the child and says something to her. The picture is a little grainy, but she is obviously crying. My heart skips a beat as fear consumes me. Did he kill the little girl? It flicks to the service attendant, being interviewed, and the vision cuts off.
“He just appeared out of nowhere; he saved us, saved us all, then asked me for some smokes and paid for the lady’s fuel,” he says excitedly, and I can tell he is excited about being on TV.
Orion looks at me, shocked, and then his eyes dart to the stairs where Thaddeus went. The video flicks on again and the news anchor’s voice starts playing in the background. “What you are about to see, some viewers may find distressing.”
We watch as a man points a gun at the woman and then points it at Thaddeus’ chest. He says something and the man shoots. Thaddeus pulls the bullet out and kills the man, letting the body fall on the floor. The woman appears to be screaming as the little girl rushes out from behind the shelf only for Thaddeus to step in her way and bend down to her level and grab her face. We don’t hear what he says, but he then stands, hands her chocolate, and turns to the mother, who grabs her daughter and rushes out.
Thaddeus steps over the body and walks to the counter, getting smokes, and handing the frightened man cash. Then, as if nothing happened, he just walks off. I keep staring at the screen, stunned.
“See, everyone? An unlikely hero. Does this mean the Dark One has changed? Only time will tell, I suppose. However, we have recently learned of a new landmark for-” As she moves on to the next report, the TV flicks off.
We all stare, stunned, until I am hit with Orion’s guilt. “I feel terrible,” Orion mutters.
“And so you should,” Ryland growls at him. I climb off Ryland’s lap, walking to the stairs. Orion watches me but soon he follows, his head hanging guiltily. I climb the stairs to our room easily without losing my breath.
Thaddeus looks up as I walk in. “Look, I didn’t mean to, okay? Can we not argue, please? We just got home,” Thaddeus says, shocking me. Does he think he has done something bad?
Evelyn
Orion clears his throat. Thaddeus looks up at him, and I can tell he is waiting for his wrath. Instead, Orion scratches the back of his neck, looking awkward and like it is causing him pain to apologize to him.
I step closer to Thaddeus, who is still waiting for Orion to yell at him. I grab his face and his eyes dart up to me. “You didn’t do anything wrong,” I tell him.
His brows furrow and he shakes his head. “I killed him. Aren’t you mad?” he asks.
“You didn’t do anything wrong, Thaddeus. Even the news anchor said you are a hero; you saved three people,” Orion says, finally finding his voice.
At first, Thaddeus stares at him, completely dumbfounded. But then, as Orion looks away, I see Thaddeus’ lips turn up. “You call that an apology?” he asks as Ryland steps into the room, leaning on the door frame.
Orion’s eyes snap toward Thaddeus and I watch Ryland pull out his phone, making me bunch up my eyebrows. My eyes turn back to Thaddeus and Orion.
“I’m sorry, okay? I should have heard you out before going off at you,” he says with a sigh, running his hand down his face. I think that is the first time Orion has had to apologize to Thaddeus by the look on his face.
“And I just got that on camera,” Ryland announces, a devious smile on his face, making me laugh.
“Give me that,” Orion snarls, trying to snatch the phone from him, but Ryland moves it away.
“Now we have proof that Orion isn’t always right,” Ryland taunts.
Thaddeus has a huge grin on his face, and I sit on Thaddeus’ lap as we watch Ryland and Orion fight over the phone Ryland now has in his pocket.
“You’re really not mad?” Thaddeus whispers, running his nose along my jaw.
I spin around on his lap and kiss him, biting down on his bottom lip. “Definitely not mad,” I tell him. He kisses me; his tongue runs along my lip and then ravages my mouth, making me sigh as I melt against him. I wrap my arms around his neck and kiss him forcefully. I push him back on the bed to straddle his waist. Leaning down, I kiss and suck on his neck. My belly is getting in the way and makes it slightly difficult. Thaddeus’ hands go to my hips as he rolls them against his hardening length beneath me.
“No, no, no, she is too far along now,” Orion says, noticing us, trying to pull me off, but Thaddeus’ grip tightens and I smack Orion’s hands away. “What if her water breaks?” Orion says as I pull Thaddeus’ shirt off, nipping at his neck, and suck on his hot skin.
“I will be gentle,” Thaddeus mutters.
“Yeah, right, you’re never gentle,” Orion growls, trying to grab me off, which is hard from the angle I am at because he would have to grab my belly.
He steps closer, wrapping his arms around my hips below my stomach, pulling me off Thaddeus. Thaddeus sits up, and I turn around in Orion’s arms to rip his face toward mine and kiss him.
He exhales deeply and pushes me away, holding me at arm’s length. “Don’t be using your vixen voodoo on me. Not happening; you are too far along now,” Orion says, and I pout.
My core is pulsating with need, and Thaddeus’ arousal isn’t helping at all.