*EXCERPT* Baby Me by Aidy Award

NEW ~ FR*EE in KU

Dark forces don’t want these dragon babies to be born…the dark forces of hell, but also univited mermaids, a whole crew of wedding planning friends, and a bizarre prophecy.

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~ EXCERPT ~ 

It didn’t occur to Cage until he was somewhere over Egypt that he could have probably called Azy on his cell phone. He opted instead to ask the winds for an extra boost to get him home as soon as he could.

He got to Spain just after sunrise and followed the sweet and salty scent of his mate to find her in the secluded treehouse he’d had built for them instead of the palatial estate overlooking the ocean.

He landed quietly and shifted into his human form. For a moment he simply stood there, staring at her, thanking the First Dragon she was safe.

Azy slept, with her long black hair spread across the pillows, her dark skin glowing, her lush pregnant body covered in a light blanket. Wind and sky above, she was beautiful.

She was his.

He slipped out of his clothes and into bed with her, curling his body around hers. His hands wandered over every inch of her, softly, slowly. He should let her sleep, but he needed to feel her, assure himself she was okay.

Azy had been pregnant with his babies for approximately three months and he knew nothing about pregnancy, but loved how her body had filled out, her breasts had swelled. She had grown more lush in all the right places.

He’d been gone from her side for almost a month, hunting for the demons who’d attacked his Wyr, killed and kidnapped his people. In that short time her belly had gotten bigger with his babies inside.

Cage ran his palms over her body and swore he felt his little ones moving. Wasn’t it too early for that? In fact, her stomach seemed about twice as big as it had before.

Azy stirred and rolled to her side. “If you rub my back, I’ll love you forever.”

He chuckled and started in on her shoulders. “You’ll love me forever anyway.”

“True, but if you get that spot in my lower back that’s been killing me, I’ll show you exactly how much I love you.”

His fingers found all of the hard knots in her muscles and her groans of pleasure had him growing harder with each one. Rubbing her back wasn’t the only way to relax her.

“Spread your legs for me, Azynsa. Let me eat that pretty pussy of yours. Then I’ll fuck you nice and slow, making you come on my cock over and over.  We’ve got a lot of time to make up for and I’ve been missing you fiercely.”

Azy rolled in his arms and gave him a nice deep kiss. Although it wasn’t nearly long enough. “You are a dirty dragon and I’d love nothing more than to let you do exactly that, but if I don’t get up and pee, for the eleventeenth time since I went to bed, I’m going to float away.”

Cage reluctantly let her go and Azy groaned as she scooted to the side of the bed. She sat there for a moment before pushing herself up and crossing the small room.

His lover moved like she was exhausted. A sucking hollow formed in his chest at the thought of his mate suffering. Cage got up and waited outside the door of the little water closet and the second she stepped out he lifted her up into his arms.

She didn’t even fight him, only curled her head into his shoulder and let him carry her all two meters back to their bed.

“Is this why you called me back, my love? Are you ill, is there something wrong with the babies?”

He hadn’t noticed any aroma of disease on her, only the distinct scents of the two small lives growing inside of her.

The wall of leaves that surrounded the treehouse opened and a soft white glow pushed through. A beautiful woman in the flowing white robes of a nun and a dozen or so necklaces hanging around her neck that faintly glowed red, blue, gold, and green walked in and stood at the end of the bed. “Azynsa is fine. It’s hard work growing dragon babies, and these two are in a hurry to get born.”

A thousand conflicting thoughts shot through Cage’s mind.

He and Azy were both naked.

Who was this woman?

Was she a threat?

Didn’t he know her from somewhere?

He’d meant to growl the questions, but they stopped in his throat. The fear and anger rolling around inside calmed as if it were nothing more than a warm summer breeze.

Azy touched his cheek drawing his attention back to her. “Cage, meet Senora Boh. She’s a midwife…for magical beings.”

 Huh. “I didn’t even know that was a thing.”

“Let’s see how you’re doing today, mamacita.” She motioned for Azy to lie on the bed. Then a gentle wind lifted the sheets and pillows, arranging them so Azy was covered and somehow Cage’s pants ended up in his hand, so he put them on.

“You’re a wind witch?” He should have guessed that a magic midwife would have some powers over the elements herself.

She ignored him, which was fine since her focus was entirely on Azy and his babies. The witch measured Azy’s belly by moving her hands from finger to thumb and counted. “No wonder you’re exhausted, these babies are growing like weeds. Adorable little weeds. But it’s tiring them out too.”

She pressed her ear to a couple of spots and listened through the sheet. “Aw, there you are, little man. Now, move your bum off your mama’s bladder. She needs her rest.”

A visible bump moved under Azy’s skin and she sighed in relief. If she hadn’t, Cage would have been freaked the hell out by that sight.

“Good boy. You two take care of each other in there.” That same soft white light emanated from the witch’s hands and seeped under the sheet. “There. I’ve given them a touch of magic to help them sleep in a little while. It will give you two a chance to do some bonding.”

Bonding sounded good. He’d do whatever the midwife-witch told them too if it would help his new family.

She stood and summoned a large cupped leaf on a vine over to Azy and filled it with a stream of water out of thin air. “Make sure you’re staying well hydrated, mermaid. The water isn’t just for you, your babies like it too.”

As Azy drank the witch turned her attention to Cage. “They would also like to go flying.”

“They would?” Talking to unborn babies must be a midwife thing.

“Yes, and anything you can do to make them happy, healthy, and strong will help.” She waved him to the bed next to Azy and Cage sat as instructed.

“I’m not going to sugar this up for the two of you. It’s been several hundred years since we’ve had a dragon son born, and decades since a dragon and a mermaid have mated. Your two little ones have taken up the challenge and are growing at more than twice the rate they should be. That’s making for a difficult pregnancy, and it’s only going to get tougher.”

Azy took Cage’s hand. He swallowed, shoving his own fears down. She was the one bearing the stress for the last month, worrying and growing the babies. The least he could do was pretend he wasn’t scared shitless by the tone of the midwife’s speech. “What can I do to make it easier for her?”

Senora Boh tipped her head and smiled at him. “Anything and everything to make your bond stronger. I suggest starting with a lot of sex.”

Cage coughed and Azy had to pat him on the back. “Sex?”

The midwife had a definite twinkle of mirth in her eye. “Yep. Preferably in your elements. Good thing you moved your Wyr to the beach. Plenty of water, sun, and a lovely breeze here, don’t you think?”

Cage lifted Azy’s hand to his lips. It was no hardship on him to make love to his luscious mate, but he’d thought she wouldn’t be in the mood. He’d been prepared to sacrifice and have blue balls for the next several months.

Azy had said she wanted him earlier but had also put him off. He slid one hand into her long curls, loving the touch of her, wanting to touch more. But only if she was up for it. He didn’t want to hurt her. “Are you okay with this plan?”

Azy laughed and snuggled into him. “Dude. Why do you think I sent the message that you needed to come home ASAP? I had every intention of jumping your bones no matter what Senora Boh said after the appointment this morning.”

Fuck, yeah.

“That is my cue to leave. But, Azynsa, you need to be connected to more than just your mate. I know you haven’t always been able to make friends, but I want you to reach out to the other dragons’ mates. Your happiness and well-being are the best thing you can do for your children.”

 “Uh. Okay, will do.” The scent of untruth floated right out of Azy’s mouth.

Cage should have warned her you can’t lie to a dragon. Why would she not want to do as the witch instructed? He’d thought she was on friendly terms with… uh-oh. Cage couldn’t think of anyone Azy was friends with here in Spain.

The witch clucked her tongue. “Good try. But I’ve already sent for reinforcements. They’ll be here later today.”

What a douchcanoe he was. He should have thought to invite her Mami Wata sisters, or at least asked Ciara and Jakob to stay a while after they’d postponed the wedding.

No wonder she’d called him back from the hunt for Geshtianna.

His little mermaid lover wouldn’t be lonely anymore. He was here for her now.

Azy sat up straighter in the bed, any calm she’d been holding onto totally gone. “Wait. What? Who?”

The witch smiled and made her way to the break in the leaves she’d come in through. She split them open wider and stepped out, floating in the air. “I’ll be back in a few days to check on you. Oh, there’s one more thing that can help. It will protect both your life and the babies, even more than great sex.”

Cage shook his head. The witch was really stuck on the whole sex thing. She began drifting away, like a weird flying nun. “Find the ring.”