Aileen relaxed her body, sinking further into her pillow and curling back up against him. She wasn’t sure what to make of this. Nothing was ever as it seemed with Yakov. This felt like affection, but it could be nothing more than his reaction to having someone to hold onto while he slept. If she’d learned anything, it was not to try to figure out what he was thinking at any given time. Instead, she just enjoyed being curled up with him and drifted back off to sleep herself.
When she awoke the second time, he was gone.
Aileen sighed and got up from the bed to shower again before dressing and making her way back downstairs. She found Yakov in the kitchen, eating a late breakfast. It was morning, so Ruby wasn’t at work yet. Instead, Hannah was hovering nearby, cleaning the counters from where she had prepared his meal. She smiled as Aileen came in.
“What can I get you for breakfast?”
“Just something simple. My stomach is still just a bit out of whack. Some dry toast and fruit would be great.”
“That’s no way to feed hungry dragons,” Yakov chastised.
“The dragons aren’t going to be very happy if it doesn’t stay down. Trust me, I’ll eat more if this sticks. I’ve been eating like a horse lately.”
“Nothing wrong with that. We want big, healthy babies.”
Aileen was guessing, from Hannah’s complete lack of surprise, that she had either already heard or been told the news. Either that, or she was someone that Aileen never wanted to play poker against.
“Juice?” she asked.
“Yes, please. Apple would be good. I think the orange might be too rough right now.”
“Apple it is,” Hannah replied, retrieving two glasses.
Aileen watched as she poured one full of apple juice and another filled with ice water. It wasn’t something she usually did for her. She decided the water was maybe something Yakov had asked for instead. She was surprised when both were set down in front of her.
“You’ll want to hydrate with as much water as you can handle. It helps with cramps and stretch marks.”
“Oh. I’m not having an issue with that, not yet. I’ve not gotten to the part where I expand like a mylar balloon.”
“Trust me. It’s never too soon to start, especially for us Omegas.”
“Thanks, Hannah,” Aileen replied.
“You’re welcome. Let me get your food.”
Yakov had been preoccupied with something on the tablet in front of him since she’d arrived. Past his comments regarding her choice of breakfast foods, he had said nothing. Looking over now, she could see it was some sort of schematic for a building.
“New project?”
“House renovations.”
“What? That doesn’t even look like this house.”
“It isn’t. With my duties as the new clan leader, I’ll be required to move into the leader’s home once he vacates.”
“I didn’t realize he was required to do that.”
“He isn’t. What I mean to say is that when he passes, which will be soon, unfortunately – I, we, will be expected to move into his home as the new leader. It’s sort of the White House of our clan.”
“Ah, okay. I get that.”
“It’s old, built in the 1700’s by my ancestors who had settled here more than two centuries before that. Wait. In the 1500’s...”
“Before, really, but we were well hidden. My ancestors came over from Scotland well before Columbus discovered this place. They lived in caves and small villages just like the natives. Our abilities were no secret to the local tribes. They left our people alone after seeing what we could become, but that became just another bit of lore after a while - a fantasy created for fancy fireside tales.”
“I wonder how it ties in with my former clan. We weren’t given much of the history from our leaders when I was younger. They weren’t a great bunch of people.”
It probably ties pretty closely. It is speculated that Omegas came into existence from unnatural mating habits. Your clan probably started along the same lines.”
“Unnatural mating habits?” she said, feeling like she should be offended.
“Outside the clan, perhaps with the natives or settlers that came later. No one is sure when Omegas came into existence, but it wasn’t until recent history, in the broad sense of time. You or I wouldn’t consider a human partner unnatural. Many people these days marry outside their clans, though it has its own pitfalls when having children.”
“I see.”
“Anyway, I’ve gone off on a tangent. The house is very old and needs improvements that are long overdue. The good thing about it is that it is enormous, with more than enough rooms to accommodate a large family. I intend to revamp the common rooms, main bedrooms and a large nursery first. Once that is done, I will begin on the children’s future rooms. I don’t want my children feeling like they are living in some medieval castle or estate house.”