Total pages in book: 159
Estimated words: 144433 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 722(@200wpm)___ 578(@250wpm)___ 481(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 144433 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 722(@200wpm)___ 578(@250wpm)___ 481(@300wpm)
Talk...privately?
Him and I?
Oh god. We're having the baby conversation! Am I ready for this?
I take a long bath that afternoon after meeting with the ladies staying with us. We have four right now, not including Eunice, and two are interested in talking to Lord Purr. Two want to be out the door before he arrives. I compose a note to Milly va'Rin letting her know that I'm sending friends for a visit, and then luxuriate in my soak.
And I think about babies. I think about them a lot.
We've settled into our life here in exile. It's taken some time to get completely comfortable, but now that Rem realizes that Zhur genuinely has no interest in getting his throne back, things have relaxed between the brothers. While I'm not sure if they'll ever be close—I don't think anyone can be close to Rem, who acts as if he's made of ice—they're cordial and even friendly sometimes.
Neither Zhur nor I have brought up babies while in exile. We talked about it once when we first got together, but not since then. We knew it'd have to wait until Remrrrtel was a bit more established in his grip on his throne. Right now, though? He's popular, decisive, and no one misses Zhur in charge. Leah is very pregnant with their child and should give birth in a few months.
This means we can finally entertain the thought of starting a family of our own.
I'm not sure what to think about that. I know we'll need fertility help from a doctor—praxiians and humans aren't naturally compatible. The money isn't the issue. I don't know how my husband feels about being a potential father. We've sat on this for three years now. Is it possible that he's changed his mind about wanting children? He might not want them to grow up in forced exile with us. He might worry that life is too uncertain for us to bring children into the world.
Me, personally—I've been kidnapped from Earth, been rescued, and married a space prince. I've learned that you absolutely cannot predict life and there's no point in worrying about uncertainties. You'll never have any idea of what life will bring, so you might as well chase your dreams.
So I ask myself if it's what I want. Even though we're in “exile,” things are busy. There's always someone visiting, and I make it a point to be involved in the lives of the people that live with us. I make sure there's a cake for every birthday and that people are happy. I handle the visitors. I work with the women left here to make sure they get what they need. It might not sound like an official sort of job, but managing people can take a lot of time. A baby might cut into that. I'll definitely get less sleep. I'm probably getting to an age where my figure isn't going to snap back like magic. Our kid will probably be hairy. Our sex life will suffer for a bit.
I curl my toes against the edge of the tub, considering all this...and I think I want a baby anyhow. Despite all the potential issues or the timing or whatever, I want us to have a family. I want a little girl with whiskers who can help me people-manage or a son with his dad's ears and his curiosity.
Now I just need to find out what my husband wants. I don't know what I'm going to do if we're not on the same page.
Cry, I decide. Cry a lot. And then maybe come up with a scheme to convince him. It's just that...I don't want to scheme to get my husband to want a baby. I want him to want one as much as I do.
After I get out of the tub, I go and hunt down the packet of noli.
ZHUR
Hideous.
An outrage.
A hideous outrage. I growl under my breath as I stare at the vid and then storm to the house to find my wife, datapad in hand.
As I head inside, I pause in the doorway. My scent-mark is all over the entrance to the house, but most of the time I don't notice it. Today, for some reason, it fills me with pride and a sense of possessiveness. The woman that lives here is mine.
Then I remember the horrible vid and snarl again.
Here I'd been having such a good day. The weather is nice, I fixed a broken machine, and I had a long talk this morning with Mrrrkuss, whom I consider a good friend. He's been quietly romancing Sanassa, the praxiian housekeeper who came with us in our exile. She's a pleasant enough female, and Mrrrkuss and her are discussing going to the next stage of their relationship—having cubs. They'll need a place for it, and so he'd asked me about the possibility of building a cottage on the far end of the grounds. I have to run it past Maeve first, of course. She won't be happy at the location, as it's her favorite spot to feed the stretch birds, but I'll be happy if they scatter. Those things are annoying and they defecate everywhere.