Having finally wrapped their minds around the words "you're having twins," Darius and Cassandra leave the appointment dazed but glowing...more in love, more unprepared, and definitely more in denial about how chaotic their future is about to become.
Though the doctor couldn't yet determine the gender...despite Darius's hopeful stares and not-so-subtle questions about moon-shaped shadows and "warrior-shaped silhouettes"...the news still wraps around them like warm light.
Two heartbeats. Two lives. Twice the magic. Twice the mischief.
Darius is practically vibrating with emotion as they step outside the medical wing. Without a word, he sweeps Cassandra up into his arms like she weighs nothing, striding down the hall with fierce determination.
Cassandra blinks. "You do realize I can still walk, right?"
"Nope," he replies flatly.
Her brow lifts. "That a refusal or a medical diagnosis?"
"Both," he grumbles, holding her closer. "You're carrying our pups. You're not touching the floor unless I say so."
Grace passes them in the corridor, raising an eyebrow. "She's pregnant, Darius. Not cursed."
"She's mine," he growls back like that answers everything.
Which, to him, it does.
And with just one glare from the Alpha, no one dares question or interrupt as he carries his very amused, very smug mate through the halls and straight into their private quarters like a wolf on a mission.
Their room is warm, lit by soft enchantments that hover in the air...golden orbs flickering like captive fireflies, casting gentle glows against the stone walls and wooden beams. A protective charm hums faintly in the background, responding to Darius's emotions. It pulses with heat. Urgency.
The door clicks shut behind them.
And suddenly, everything else melts away.
Darius lowers her gently to the floor, only to begin undressing her with reverence. His fingers trail along the curves of her hips, catching fabric and peeling it away inch by inch. His lips follow. Kissing. Worshiping. Reverent.
"You are..." he murmurs, his voice husky, the words getting lost somewhere between awe and desire, "the most beautiful thing I've ever seen."
Cassandra, now standing bare before him, raises a brow. "I swear you said that exact thing yesterday. Twice."
He smirks, stepping back only long enough to yank off his own clothes like they personally offended him. "And I'll say it again tomorrow. And the day after. And when you're waddling around and yelling at me for eating the last muffin."
He doesn't give her a chance to reply. Instead, he scoops her up again and lays her across the bed like she's precious cargo. Hovering above her, he dives into a kiss...deep, claiming, hungry. But it's not rushed. It's slow, savouring. As if he wants to memorize the way she tastes before time whisks them into chaos.
His lips trail lower, down the curve of her throat, between her breasts. He pauses there, giving particular attention to her newly sensitive peaks, tongue curling around her engorged nipple before suckling with an intensity that has her gasping.
"Oh, moonlight...Darius!"
He chuckles against her skin, dark and delighted. "I love how you say my name when you're unravelling."
Her hands tangle in his hair, hips arching into his touch, her body already slick with anticipation and magic. When he reaches her belly, he slows...pressing a soft kiss to the gentle curve that barely shows but holds their entire world inside it.
"Thank you," he whispers.
"For what?" she asks breathlessly.
"For carrying our future."
Then he moves lower, settling between her thighs like a man worshipping at the altar of the goddess herself. His tongue slides against her folds, licking relentlessly until she's shuddering, gasping, the world dissolving into stars behind her eyes.
Before she can recover, he's there again...his lips on hers, devouring her sounds, his length nudging at her entrance.
She wraps her legs around him. "I need you."
"You have all of me," he growls, pushing into her slowly, carefully. Stretching her. Filling her.
The world narrows.
Then expands.
He stills, letting her adjust, before beginning to move...slow at first, then faster, harder, deeper. Each thrust is a promise. Each groan, a vow. She clings to him, nails scraping down his back until he captures her wrists and pins them above her head.
"You're mine," he breathes, pounding into her, rough and raw and reverent. "Mine, Cassandra."
"Yours," she gasps, lifting into him, meeting every thrust with a cry of pleasure.
Their bodies slap together, damp with sweat, tangled in sheets and shadow and love. Just when she feels the edge coming, he lowers his mouth to the crook of her neck and bites her mark...sending her flying over the edge with a scream of his name.
He follows seconds later, growling low in his throat, filling her in hot, thick pulses, his body jerking against hers.
They collapse into each other, breathing hard, skin hot and sticky and sated.
"I will always need you," Darius whispers against her lips, his voice like gravel and honey.
He doesn't even give her a chance to respond before he kisses her again...deep, possessive and begins to move once more. The rhythm builds again, faster this time, fuelled by everything they feel and everything they still haven't said.
They reach the peak together again, louder, messier, and even more desperate.
This time, when they finally fall into silence, they don't speak for several long moments. Just breath. Just heartbeats.
Cassandra is the first to break the silence, her voice drowsy. "If you keep doing that...we really won't leave the bedroom until the twins are born."
Darius groans, lying beside her and pulling her into his arms like she's the moon itself. "Don't tempt me. I'll cancel all my meetings."
Cassandra stretches lazily against him, arm curling around his waist. "You say that now. Just wait until I cry because we're out of strawberry jam."
"I'll fight the jam gods themselves," he mumbles, eyes already fluttering shut.
She chuckles, warm and slow, heart full. "Give your pregnant mate a break. I'm growing two tiny versions of your grumpy self."
He snorts, kissing the top of her head. "I still can't believe it. Twins."
"Believe it," she whispers, yawning. "And let's enjoy this while we can. We both know peace and sleep will soon become mythical creatures of the past."
Darius frowns, ever the brooder. "We'll make time. For you. For us. Even if I have to command the moon itself."
But she doesn't answer.
Because Cassandra is already fast asleep, her breathing soft and steady, her hand curled protectively around the bump where their future grows.
He gazes down at her, heart thudding with something ancient and soft.
He reaches for the blanket, pulls it over them, and wraps himself around her protectively. With a satisfied sigh, he lets sleep take him too...content in the knowledge that his mate and pups are safe.
For now.