By the time I was finally full, I sprawled out on the couch in the living room, too stuffed to make it back upstairs. Alvie was the first one up in the morning, and he laughed when he found me half asleep on the expensive sofa, which probably cost more than all the beds I’d ever owned combined.
“What are you doing down here? Did you and lover boy have a tiff or something?” he asked in bemusement, tying the belt on his black silk kimono.
“I got hungry in the middle of the night, ate too much, and fell asleep. Don’t tell anyone. It’s embarrassing.”
Alvie chuckled, shaking his head as he went to the kitchen to make coffee. I sat up, and a strange feeling washed over me. I felt exhausted and full of energy all at once. Well, that was what I got for stuffing my face like such a pig last night. It was way too many carbs.
My stomach let out an audible gurgle and then queasiness took over. Oh no, I was going to vomit. I raced up the stairs to the bathroom and slammed the door shut. Seconds later, I was crouched over the toilet bowl, heaving every scrap of those grilled cheese sandwiches back up.
A few minutes later, my stomach finally calmed down, and I splashed water over my face to freshen up before brushing my teeth. I thought I might have a temperature. Or maybe I was just hungover? I mean, I did drink an awful lot at Ethan’s party, and it didn’t matter how expensive the alcohol was; it all felt the same the next morning.
There was a knock on the door followed by Ethan asking, “Tegan, are you alright in there? I heard you throwing up.”
“I’m fine. Just really hungover.”
There was a smile in his voice now. “Ah, well, I’ll make you up a good cure, shall I?”
“Depends on what it is.”
“Raw eggs and tomato juice,” he answered, and I groaned.
“Jesus, are you trying to make me sick again?”
The door opened and he scooped me up into his arms. “Come, my darling, get some rest and you’ll be right as rain.”
“What I don’t get is how your blood hasn’t healed up all my ailments. I think I might be developing a resistance,” I whined.
“One does not develop a resistance to vampire blood, especially not mine. Besides, you only had a drop.”
A minute after Ethan tucked me in bed, Delilah came strolling into the room without knocking.
“Brother, I was wondering if I could have a word with you …” she began but trailed off when her eyes locked on mine. Her posture went stiff as she gaped at me.
“Of course, what is it you want to speak about?” Ethan studied her curiously.
“What? Um, never mind,” she hurried to my side. “Oh, my God, Tegan! Oh, shit!” she swore as she ran her hand over my sweaty forehead before turning back to Ethan.
“How could you be so foolish?” she hissed.
“Delilah, don’t take that tone with me. What has you so riled up?”
“I thought your senses had been bettered, not dulled, brother. Are you so blind that you can’t see? Look at her, see how she sweats, see how her skin is tinted with a blush, how she practically glows all over?” Her hand moved from my face to my chest. “Hear how two hearts beat instead of one?” she whispered.
A headache came on. I had no idea what she was going on about, but Ethan seemingly did. He gazed at me and so many emotions passed over his face; shock, fear, anxiety. By contrast, those were followed by joy, wonderment and awe. Then so much love and tenderness filled his eyes as he smiled the biggest smile I’d ever seen.
“What’s going on?” I asked, my headache getting worse.
“You’re pregnant,” Ethan beamed.
Okay, it was a good thing I was already lying down because now I felt like I was going to faint.
13.
Finn
“Please tell me you’re joking,” I said, rubbing my tired eyes and staring at Delilah like she’d grown two heads.
She carefully spooned a lump of sugar into her teacup, Ira sitting beside her. Gabriel and Alvie were on my side of the table, both wearing identical expressions of shock.
“I know a dhampir pregnancy when I see one. The foetus develops fast, and Tegan’s showing all the signs. The two of them have been fucking like rabbits anyway, too in love to use the proper protection, so this is the obvious outcome. Although I had thought my brother would be a little more careful. He knows how dangerous it is for a human to become pregnant with a vampire’s child. He allowed himself to get lost in his connection to Tegan instead of keeping his wits about him.”
“But Tegan’s not entirely human,” Gabriel interjected. “She’s half-witch and she has incredibly powerful magical blood. Surely that will help give her a better chance of surviving the birth.”