Hera mumbled to Helena, “You know we haven’t done this in over a decade.”
They circled each other as the strains of the song began. Helena smiled. “Just like falling off a log.”
“Oh, that takes me back.”
They grinned, joined hands, and gave a performance for the royal family to a pop song from Aksalla. The tempo changed, and they went from gentle ballet into gymnastic contemporary.
* * * *
Misker watched his mate and her sister come together and whirl. His jaw dropped when Heraina did backflips across the performance area in time to the music. Her sister followed along with spins and twirls. They joined hands, and the room gasped when Heraina flipped her sister and held her over her head.
After that display, it gentled, and the omegas moved slowly in a languorous path until they put their heads together and froze in the pattern of balance. Dark and light, grinning and whispering to each other.
* * * *
Helena giggled, “You used to have better timing.”
“You used to be able to do backflips.”
“Time and three babies.”
Hera laughed and then stilled. “Damn. I am going to need a personal trainer.”
“Yeah, just to keep your boobs going in the right direction while breastfeeding,” Helena smirked. “I can offer you some tips.”
“Oh. Fun. We are going to start video calling if you don’t mind.”
“Of course. Oh, Hera. I am so freaking happy right now. I think I am going to send the kids to his mom’s place and then pounce.”
“Well, if you hugged Ylara, expect baby number four in a while.”
“Wait. The princess got me pregnant?”
“No, but she kind of starts the engines in omegas.”
“Did she start you?” Helena had her eyes wide.
“Oh, no. I was started because all my birth control was removed until I was ready to go off, and I did.”
“And Misker was right there.” Helena laughed.
“A few times. Very convenient.”
They giggled together, and Hera felt her mate approach while her sister’s head came up as well.
Helena’s mate paused. “I look forward to getting to know you, little sister.”
“Oh. Right. Yeah, I guess so. You as well, brother.”
Misker extended his hand. “Good to finally meet you, Argate.”
“Misker. You look smaller and less terrifying in person.”
“You can’t believe everything you hear.” Misker smiled.
Hera smiled. “I wrote it on the men’s room wall.”
Helena snorted and giggled.
Misker chuckled. “When were you in the men’s room?”
“I am very fast.” She chuckled.
He lifted her like a child, which was odd, but the kiss he gave her had her feet kicking. “Not fast enough.”
He shifted her and licked her mark. She sighed and went limp. Her brother-in-law chuckled. “Oh, she’s one of those who goes tonic.”
She sluggishly flipped him off.
Misker continued to clean the wounds, and she started to get hot.
Argate blinked. “Oh, wow. Helena, let’s go. I am sure you two can catch up later.”
Helena laughed. “Oh, my goodness. I have never seen her like that before.”
Hera moved her lips against Misker’s neck. “Oh, I am going to make you pay for that. Show off.”
He laughed and grazed his teeth along her skin, and she shivered and twisted.
“Well, it is always nice to see a couple getting together for a stronger Sethir.”
She turned her head, and the king was standing in front of her. “We didn’t do it for you; we did it for us. If the offspring end up being alphas, that is their business. We will make sure they are educated. If the young boys are omegas, then it is going to be awkward, and if they are just average kids, they are going to university.”
“They belong to the Sethir,” the king warned.
“They belong to no one. I belonged to the Sethir, and it afforded no protections when an aggressive active intervened,” she pointed out. “It left me vulnerable to aggressive alphas and unfair judgment. It separated me from my sister. My children were conceived in Aksalla, and they will be citizens there. Anything else is their own choice. All of my children will have that choice.”
He blinked. “I see. That is a very impassioned speech.”
“I am willing to back it up with a lightning ball, but that is going to get me spanked.”
Misker chuckled. “Fast and smart.”
She booped his nose, and the king stared at them. She cocked her head. “Something wrong?”
He shook his head. “No, I just have never seen Misker smile. He has either looked terrified or furious.”
“Oh, yeah. I saw furious earlier.” She smiled. “It was a bit of work, but he calmed down.”
“Your efforts were appreciated.” Misker kissed her cheek with a loud smack.
“He didn’t frighten you?”
“Of course not. I have picked scarier stuff out from under my fridge.” She caressed Misker’s cheek with the back of her hand.
The king cleared his throat. “After your dance with your sister, I was wondering if you would reprise it for the winter holidays. There haven’t been a set of omega twins like you two in history.”
“Depends on morning sickness, and no back flips.” She chuckled. “And how far along Helena will be at that time.”
“She’s carrying? She didn’t go into heat yet. The entire stronghold knows when she does. She’s loud.” He grinned.
“Thanks to your daughter-in-law, it will start today and last as long as it lasts.”
The king smiled. “Ah. Well, then perhaps next winter.”
She nodded. “For now, I will say yes, but when I am away from Misker and feeling less happy-dopey, I might change my mind.”
The king grinned. “So, Misker. Hang onto your mate at all times.”
“Of course, Your Majesty.”
“Or let Alejandro take over.”
Misker chuckled. “Occasionally, but it is my turn to be out and about. He can do the shopping with Meemer.”
“Leaving me alone? Wow. You do trust me.”
“You will be in no shape to get away.” He chuckled. “My rut is due next week. I expect you to be tired.”
She blushed furiously, but the king had wandered away, chortling.
“He probably counts alphas as he goes to sleep,” she muttered.
He laughed. “Ready to go home?”
“Oh, yeah. If they want to meet me, they can come to Aksalla for the introduction. Your mom already knows the way.”
He snickered. “She is still dealing with knowing that she has been poisoned against you before she even met you. My father as well. It is hard to come back from that.”
She sighed. “I just want to go home. My home. Sleep in my own bed. Get some of my own clothing.”
“I like everything but sleeping in your bed. I think it might be too small for me and just barely big enough for Alejandro.”
She gripped his shoulder and looked down. “Okay, I see your point. I still want my own stuff.”
“Then we shall get your stuff, and I shall pretend that I guessed where we are going and not that I looked into you in my creepy stalker phase.”
She snorted. “You never acted on it, so I never had to smack you down. If you had, the Sethir would have been down one alpha, and I would have been missing a patron and not known why, and I would never have had the chance to watch my grandmother hauled off sobbing. Damn, that was satisfying.”
He turned his head and kissed her. She looped her arms around his neck, and they pressed their heads together as they grinned at each other.
* * * *
Helena looked at her twin in her mate’s arms and leaned into her own mate. “Finally. She’s finally safe.”
“He’s a deadly warrior. His aggressive form is the stuff of legend.”
Helena chuckled and looked up at her mate. “So is she. Her darkness is tempered by his optimism, and his fascination with her shows her that she is wanted. They are each what the other has needed. It’s so sweet. She finally has someone to love, who loves her in return.”
“It is good that she finally has it, and he has needed someone the same way. So, my omega, now you can stop worrying and focus on me and our children.”
She laughed at his expression and said, “She is my soul and my foundation. She is where I began. You have everything else, present and future.”
“I will take it.”
She laughed, and he swept her into his arms. When they finished their kiss, she looked around for her children out of reflex, and Cassandra was missing.
“Cassie?” She looked around, and her husband set her down.
The press of bodies made it hard to see someone so small, but there was a flash of her little pink dress heading for Heraina.
* * * *
Hera felt Helena’s panic, and she said, “Put me down. I need to find Cassie.”
A sharp tug at her skirt, and there was her niece. She grabbed her up and held her. “Sweetie. You shouldn’t have come this way. Your mama is worried. There are a lot of big adults here, and you are teeny.”
Cassie took a handful of her skirt and sucked on it. “You are small, too. I thought you were big, but you are small like Momma. How did you do that?”
“Magic.”
“Grandma wasn’t nice. She made Castor sad.”
“I know, sweetie. She was punished, and now she isn’t going to hurt anyone anymore. We took her power away.” She smiled as Helena rushed up to them. “So, why did you come over here, little Cassie?”
“You were pretty when you and Momma danced. Can you show me? I want to pick Momma up and twirl her. She looked happy.”
“She was happy. We used to dance like that when we were small. You need a little sister to pick up.” She grinned at her sister. “Ask your Momma.”
Helena blinked. “A sister?”
Hera laughed. “She wants to dance like we did. I can show her some moves the next time I see her, but I think it would be best if you got started on a sibling for her.”
Cassie blinked. “Can I be there when you make a sister?”
Helena sighed. “No. Daddy and I have to concentrate really hard to get a baby started. A lot. It takes days and days.”
Cassie’s eyes were wide. “Oh.”
Heraina chuckled. “And sometimes they try, and it doesn’t happen, so they have to wait until they feel stronger, and then they try again. Don’t worry. They won’t give up, and if they make a brother by mistake, they will just try again.”
Helena’s eyes were bugging out as she tried to stop herself from laughing.
Cassie put her arms around Heraina’s neck. “Can you stay with me while Momma and Daddy try?”
“Ask your Uncle Misker. I think we have to go home.”
Cassie’s lower lip wobbled, and she looked at Heraina, “But I don’t want you to go. I like you. You are soft, like me.”
“Yes, but you can’t keep all the people near you forever,” Misker murmured softly. Cassie turned and lifted her arms to him. He caught her and lifted her, so they were face to face. She looked like a doll.
She held his face and tilted her head. “You are pretty. Not as pretty as a lady but still pretty.”
“He also has another face.” Heraina smiled. “It is called Uncle Alejandro.”
He shrank into Alejandro, and Cassie’s eyes went wide. “Daddy can’t do that.”
Helena chuckled. “Misker and Alejandro are the only Sethir that can do that. They are special.”
Cassie looked from left to right around Alejandro. “How do you do that? Where is the other one?”
“He is inside me, just like I was inside him.”
“How does he fit?”
Alejandro smirked, “Oh, he can get into some tight spaces. Very tight.”
Hera blushed at the look he was giving her. Helena was laughing at her now. “Aren’t kids great?”
Cassie continued to pelt Alejandro with questions as he slowly walked her back to her father. The questioning chatterbox was handed back to her dad, where she explained everything she had just learned. Her father stared at her seriously and nodded at appropriate intervals, only slightly smirking when he learned about Misker’s ability to fit into very tight spaces.
Hera looked around the room and saw the number of people focused on them, but there was no hostility, just wistful envy. That was new.
Riithan came over and got Alejandro to step aside. There was a transformation into Misker and a rapid discussion.
Misker glanced at her and nodded. He returned to her and said, “We are leaving now.”
She only had enough time to hug Helena, then was lifted into his arms, with her limbs tucked against him. “Something has happened.”
“The hospital decoy has been attacked.”
“The what?”
“Zera put a decoy in your hospital bed.” He started to walk to the exit. “They spread the news that you had been attacked and your body found near the hospital. Then, it was just a matter of time. You weren’t at work, and your status as an escort wasn’t disclosed, so the rumour was that you had been injured in the explosion and were in a coma. Breathe out.”
Alejandro took over and whisked them to their home.
She was shivering, and he rubbed her arms. He carried her inside and up to his room.
He set her on his bed and stepped back, shifting into Misker again. He crouched in front of her. “They put a mech into your bed, and it remained on life support until last night. Someone carved it up. The nanites couldn’t gain a foothold, but they were still there. So, he knows you aren’t dead.”
“Good. I want him hunting me directly.”
He growled. “I do not. Especially not now.”
It took her a bit to remember what he was referring to. “Oh. Right. He won’t get to me. Not now.”
“Why not?”
She smiled. “I am done hiding what I am. Anytime I am not with you, I will be wearing my energy under my skin. If he touches me, he pulls back a stump. Then I turn around and cut him to ribbons. Small, bloody ribbons.” She chortled and rubbed her hands together.
He sighed. “You don’t shy away from the wet work, do you?”
“You don’t. Why should I?”
He leaned toward her and kissed her. “Speaking of wet.”
She met his lips and tongue, and the kiss was headed into savage territory in a matter of heartbeats. Hera grabbed his ears and pulled him close as he growled in approval. She heard fabric tearing and felt cool air. “Come on. Do you know how much those court dresses cost?”
“I get the feeling I am about to. Don’t care. You naked is my favourite thing. Alejandro’s too.”
She shivered and looked at his earnest expression. “Are you sure? He never said. And I feel like I have rejected his body by wanting to be with you.”
He smiled. “I am not going to shift for him now. He had six months with you, three nights per week. I need to catch up. He wants it, too. After that, we can fight for the body unless we have a rhythm by then.”
“In six months, we are going to have to try different positions. I am going to start getting really round, so the rhythm will have to change.”
He smiled. “It will.”
She was plaintive when she muttered, “Can I see you with your suit off?”
He hesitated. “I have been in quite a few fights.”
“That’s fine. You wear the marks, and I will kiss them all better.”
His eyes glittered. “Deal.”
He leaned back and unclasped his suit at the shoulder. He peeled it off and stood up to take it off.
“Whoa. There sure is a lot of you.”
“You can manage.”
She chuckled and watched the grand unveiling. Muscles, scars, cuts, burns, jagged edges, and smooth ones. She hadn’t noticed them before, but they were in stark relief with the afternoon light caressing him.
She slithered out of the shredded dress and stood on the bed. She leaned forward and kissed the small scar on his neck, the scorch on his shoulder, and the gouge along his collarbone. She lifted her head. “Why didn’t they heal you?”
“I heal too fast. By the time the healers get to me, my skin is sealed and healed. It leaves a mess.”
“Wait. Do you and Alejandro flicker when you get hurt?”
“Yeah. Why?”
She sighed and continued to kiss and run her tongue over his marks and scars. When he gripped her around her waist and set her back, she scowled.
He smiled. “It will be better if you attack me while I am lying down. Certainly more fun for me as you slide around on me.”
“Well, I am a fan of fun.”
He settled on the bed and draped her over him. He smiled. “You may proceed.”
She squirmed around on him and avidly kissed and licked at his skin. When she got to his navel, she paused and looked around.
Misker frowned. “What are you looking for?”
She grinned. “Your mother.”
He snorted and threaded a hand through her hair. “If she interrupts us again, she’s going to be banished from seeing the babies for a year.”
“Send her that message. Please.”
He snorted and typed in his com.
She cocked her head and heard the footsteps coming up the steps pause and recede down the stairs.
He looked at her in horror. “You were right.”
“I heard your father land. There is a distinctive whoosh sound. Your mom can’t help herself. Now that she has seen dark energy, she wants to record it.” She licked at his navel and worked her way down to the dripping mess of his cock. No wonder he went in so easily.
She ran her fingers up and down him, glancing up through her lashes. “Have you ever been injured here?”
“No, the teammates don’t like it when you charge into battle naked. Aksalla has a lot of enemies, especially now.”
She frowned and continued her slow stroking with both hands. “You are in danger?”
“Usually. That is the entire point. We go into danger, so others don’t.”
She blinked at that summation. “I swear, if you get hurt and can’t hold our boys, you will need Alejandro’s dick because this one is coming off.”
He stared at her. “You are not joking.”
“When I get mad, I stay that way, and I will only be persuaded to lose the mood with specific inducement.”
“You would really castrate me for an injury?”
“If it interferes with family time, absolutely. My dad was a little cold but always showed up for family. Well, he showed up for Helena. We know why he didn’t show up for me, and I am not going to let that happen to any of my kids.” She looked up at him and met his gaze. “You are going to be under a lot of pressure.”
He looked at her. “I will be up for the challenge.”
“Good because there is no going back, and I have enough power to enforce my temper, and I have a wicked temper.”
He rolled her to her back and sighed. “So do I, and you calmly handle me.”
“You are going to have to learn to handle me. I am complicated.” She smiled and let her energy crackle over her from head to toe.
“You are, and you are ours.”
She smiled as he went for her neck. “Hey!”
“It needed tending.” He chuckled. “It was looking angry.”
“Yeah, that tracks.” She moaned as he continued to feast on her, his teeth scraping her skin.
Her thighs slipped and slid together. He held her down and let out snuffling noises that made her giggle. He grinned, and his cock pressed against her entrance.
She muttered, “No foreplay?”
“I can smell your heat, Heraina.” He slid forward, and she arched and groaned. He went deep, and there was an ache but no pain.
She wrapped her legs around him as he drove deep with deliberate care.
He rocked into her, she moved with him, and when he locked in and growled, she held on. She held him as he collapsed and stroked his sweaty shoulders.
She kissed his neck and held him while he came back to himself. He slowly lifted his head and cursed.
“Wow. That is not a response I have ever had from any patron.” Hera smirked. “I must be losing my touch.”
“It wasn’t you; it was me.”
She pushed two fingers against his temple. “That is what the foreplay is for, dumbass.”
He grinned. “You really aren’t intimidated by me, are you?”
She smiled softly. “I can slice you to pieces in seconds, but if you reject me, I have been rejected before by those who claim to love me. I survived it. I can walk away and start over. I am not scared of you. The only thing you can do is not want to be a family; even that, I will survive.”
He frowned. “I think I understand. My family pacified me like I was an out-of-control monster. They loved me but didn’t trust me. You trust me, but do you love me?”
“Give me until I can see the babies on the scans. The love should be firmly in place by then.”
“You have a timeline?”
“Yeah, that is the outside timing. We can work things out as time goes on. Oh, after my sister has finished ravaging her partner, they are going to Daycross for an actual wedding. I think we might be invited.”
He went up on his arms and frowned. “Invited? To Daycross? To a wedding?”
“Yeah. It will only be for a day and a half.” She looked up at him. “If you can’t make it, I can go alone.” She shrugged. “Riithan and Ylara have set a weird precedent.”
He smiled. “Do you want to get married aside from just being registered?”
“No. I don’t need it. It will just be fun to see Helena happy. I wasn’t able to be with her when any of her kids were born. I have missed all the fun moments.” She smiled. “At least the kids weren’t scared of me. She didn’t have time to poison them completely.”
He rocked against her gently. “They are a very handsome group of children.”
“Yeah. My sister does good work.”
“Ours will be cuter.”
She snorted. “All babies are cute unless they are all weird and gangly. Then, they are just adorable and need feeding up.”
He rocked slowly and reached between them to stroke her clit.
She squeaked as flickers of heat curled through her to match the motion of his hips.
His knot was still firmly swollen and holding her fast. The rocking and tugging at her added to the tension of his slow strokes on her clit.
She whined, and her head thrashed as she tried to get away from the building tension. She bit his shoulder and felt the heat spill into her again while she moaned against his skin.
She gasped and released his shoulder, dropping back to the bed. Misker nuzzled at her neck again and murmured, “And now we wait again. Those little sounds you make are intoxicating.”
She caught her breath, and while her body tried to clench around him, it only managed to outline the fact that he was still hard, the knot still pressing outward.
Hera focused on relaxing and met his gaze, surprised to see the soft affection in his eyes. She blushed at the intent look. If Alejandro had ever looked at her that way, she had no clue.
She cupped his jaw and stroked the curve of his lips. “I am actually so hungry right now that I am thinking about which parts of you can be most easily fried and which are better with ketchup.”
He laughed and started to slip out of her. “Well, then, I shall get your lips wrapped around something you can bite down on.”
She giggled and was about to get up when he leaned down and kissed a few inches below her navel. “I am going to keep you boys nice and warm.”
She teared up at the sweet gesture, then he lightly slapped her flank and went to get her a shirt to wear.