"She?" Alexandre asked curiously. "Hmm...yes, I could see that. A cute little curly headed brunette to call me papa that I can spoil mercilessly with your fiery spirit and your eyes, that we can raise to be a queen among women."
"Well, if it's a boy, I expect him to be gentle and kind like his father, and infinitely loving, and whatever path either one takes, I just hope..." I clenched a hand in the blankets over my stomach. I wasn't sure how to express what I meant. Would our child be mortal? Would we, could we, infect them if the time came? Alexandre found my hand and kissed my temple.
"Carys, are you getting all motherly on me all of a sudden?" He teased.
"It's these damn hormones." I griped, wiping tears from my eyes. In all honesty, as time went on, Alexandre's enthusiasm was hard to resist, and the more he talked about 'our baby' the more it seemed like a harmless child, and less like a monstrosity that nature never intended.
"Mmm." He commented, pressing his lips to my temple. He settled back with his book in the hand draped over my shoulder, and I leaned against him with my book in my lap. I sighed contentedly and started to read. The heat from the stove, and the heat from Alexandre surrounded me.
"Hmmm, it says here that in a few more weeks, our baby will develop it's sex. I wonder..." My eyes glazed over as my mind raced with possibilities.
"Wonder what love?" Alexandre suddenly spoke, breaking me from my reverie.
"Oh, it's probably silly." I waved a hand. Alexandre tilted my head back to make me look at him, eyes smoldering.
"Wonder what?" He murmured. I licked my lips.
"I was just wondering if our senses would be able to pick up a hormone change, or if it would be too subtle. If we might be able to tell the baby's sex before it's born." I looked at my midriff, and Alexandre inhaled excitedly.
"That is an intriguing idea Carys." He responded thoughtfully and I blushed. I settled back in to read, though it took Alexandre several more minutes before he picked his book back up. Eventually the warmth combined with the soft crackle of the wood fire, Alexandre's gentle heartbeat behind me, and if I listened very carefully the soft rapid beat of the baby's heart, lulled me into a stupor. I found my head drooping and Alexandre caught my book as it slid off my lap, barely dislodging me, then cradling me back against him and continuing to read as if nothing had happened.
"Hmm, next time, I should make you read to me." I murmured sleepily.
"I thought you were asleep." Alexandre chuckled.
"I am." I sighed and he laughed lightly. "This is the most beautiful dream." And for a moment I let all my worries go. Alexandre kissed my hair gently.
Fresh snow clung to my lashes and covered the blanket when I woke up. Something was terribly wrong. The fire had gone out, Alexandre was gone, and I smelled blood. A lot of it. I stood up quickly.
"Alexandre! Where are you?" I yelled, and then noticed I was standing in a trail of blood. It smelled of floral tea. "Alexandre no!"
I raced down the bloodied path, rounding the corner of the walkway. There was way, way too much blood. It ran off the stone path and into a frozen flower field. I stepped off the path and crunched through the broken flower stalks. A shoe and pant leg came into view.
"No, no!" I screamed, racing forward. Alexandre was on the ground, torn open from neck to pelvis, like something had tried to crawl inside him.
"No, no, no!" I sobbed, pulling his head into my lap. Where was his heart? Could he come back from this? What about our baby? How was I going to go through all this alone? My hand fell to my stomach. My strangely flat and bare stomach.
I looked down and saw my clothing hanging in bloody tatters around my midsection. And then I heard a viscous snarl coming from the frozen flower stalks.
I gasped and sat up, clutching at my stomach, nearly knocking my head into Alexandre's face.
"Oh God, Carys!" He cried. "I heard your heart start racing and then you started smelling of adrenaline and breathing hard and I tried to wake you, but.." I grabbed his face and kissed him, then held a hand on my heart and the other on my stomach.
"Nightmare?" He asked cautiously.
"Nightmare." I agreed.
"Want to talk about it?" He questioned me.
"Monster baby, dead husband, run of the mill anxiety dream for me these days." I responded lightly, but Alexandre frowned and tilted my head to face him.
"That does not sound normal, nor healthy." He responded. I kissed his lips gently.
"From what I understand, pregnant women tend to have a lot of wild and vivid dreams." I softly replied. Alexandre's expression turned doubtful but he let my chin go. I sighed and relaxed my position, leaning more comfortably against him, running an absent finger along the small bump at my waist while I chewed my lip.
"You're bleeding Carys." Alexandre's voice interrupted my worries.
"Hmm?" I replied as he turned my head to the side to face him once more.
"You're bleeding." He said, extending a finger towards my lip. Then, with a sudden hungry look, he covered my mouth with his own and I could feel him teasing at my lower lip. His tongue ran along my lip and he captured it between his teeth gently for a moment. I groaned and pressed into him. He released me suddenly and was standing beside me a few steps away before I could blink, eyes wild with hunger and fear. I nearly toppled over, but managed to right myself in time.
"I...I don't think I should..." He mumbled, avoiding my gaze. I licked my lip, angered he had drawn away.
"Why." I demanded.
"The baby, you...you need as much strength and what if I take too much or hurt you or cause damage to the baby..." His voice was anguished. I stood, tossing the blanket on the bench in frustration.
"A woman can have sex while pregnant, Alexandre." I snapped and his expression cleared a bit.
"Not that...well a bit that, but no, I meant...drinking from you. I'm afraid of harming you both... I couldn't live with myself if you..we..lost the baby...because of me..." Alexandre had tears standing in his eyes and I blinked.
"Alexandre Rivers you intimately ridiculous fool. You scarcely take more from me than a blood draw at a clinic would, and they still do those to pregnant women. This body is more than capable of handling itself and is designed to keep itself and this baby alive, and if you're that worried about it..." I raced past him into the house, returning with two bags of blood, which I drained instantly in front of him. "Then I can always take precautions." I wiped my mouth and threw the bags down, knowing I'd probably pay for that later. Alexandre hesitated a moment longer, but I could see the lust burning in his eyes. The cut on my lip had long since healed, so I decided to take matters into my own hands again. Swiping my hair out of the way and moving the collar of my sweater down, I raised a hand to my neck. Alexandre watched me carefully. I slashed my nails along the place where my pulse beat strongest as I had seen Alexandre do before, and issued the same word he had to me.
"Drink." I commanded. Without hesitation he fell on me, scooping me into his arms, lips on the wound, hungrily drawing the blood into his mouth. He groaned and I felt his body tremble. I pressed closer to him and he lifted my full weight off the ground. I wrapped my legs around his waist and threw my arms around his shoulders and he moaned more urgently. He carried me up the stairs and into the house, never letting go, licking and nipping at the wound gently and slowly now, allowing it to trickle instead to prolong the experience. I couldn't hide the gasp that burst from my lips and Alexandre drew back to look at me to see if I was ok. I shook my head.
"I'm fine." I panted and my expression must have proven it, because he renewed his activities at my neck.