“I can live with that.” Laurent hugged Beast, but his gaze drifted to the egg resting on the cushion. “Do you think he’s comfortable there? I wouldn’t wish for his prenatal experience to imprint on his future.”
Beast grunted and rested his cheek on the side of Laurent’s head. “It’s still an egg. I doubt he can feel anything through the shell.”
“I’ll just check for any changes,” Laurent said and slipped out of his beloved Beast’s embrace. They should prepare a tiny bed in the bedroom, so they could have an eye on their baby at all times. The decision to ask Magpie about a child had been so sudden he was still too stunned to think clearly about all the preparatory measures they now needed to undertake.
He cleaned himself and pulled his pants up.
Beast rolled to his back and lay there, one foot on the sofa, the other resting on the floor, his cock and balls out. He looked obscenely delicious.
“Changes? We’ve got it twenty minutes ago.”
“But who knows how fast it will grow? I have to ask Maureen. It doesn’t have to work the same way as when a child grows inside a woman.”
Beast’s lips pressed together, and he glanced at the ceiling.
Laurent walked up to the egg and picked it up. He would be passing on the family name, and prolonging his bloodline, as was any man’s dream. Then it struck him. “Our son will be Elliot’s great-great-great grand uncle.”
“Really,” Beast said without much emotion. Was he tired?
To be fair, he’d experienced a lot more action in the last couple of days than Laurent. “Are you not excited?” Laurent carried the egg to the coffee table and sat next to Beast, who this time very clearly avoided his gaze. What could possibly be the matter after the delicious lovemaking they’d just enjoyed?
“I’m just wondering if we haven’t rushed with this too much. What kind of world are we bringing this baby into?”
Laurent frowned. “What do you mean? This was an opportunity that might never appear again. We might not be able to have any more children.”
Beast pushed his cock back into his pants, as if sensing that the theme of this discussion warranted more propriety. The pale hair he was growing at the top of his head hung in disarray. “But we’re up against something we don’t understand. We should have talked this through instead of making a decision on the spot.”
Laurent sat there, dumbfounded and unsure what to say. “Are you… afraid the child will be possessed?”
Beast cleared his throat. “I don’t know. Maybe. Or maybe it’ll die before it can be born. For all we know, it might have goat legs when it hatches.”
Laurent reached for Beast’s hand, but his husband got up, avoiding the touch. “Maureen’s baby was fine, he just had no navel. The situation with Baal is under control.” He couldn’t help his mood plummeting at Beast’s words. Why would he be so negative on a night of such happiness?
Beast shifted, as if he were standing on Lego pieces, but before he could have spoken, the buzzer to their door rang with unusual insistence.
Chapter 5 - Beast
Beast looked at his wristwatch and exhaled, his face twisting with impatience. It was late, but that meant the unexpected visit couldn’t be about anything trivial. He shook his head and opened the door. Gray stood at the threshold in just his sweatpants, his face flushed, hair hanging to his shoulders in damp streaks.
“Now’s not a good time,” Beast said, but Gray took a step forward, as if he wanted to prevent him from shutting the door.
“You’re up. Look, this will only take a minute, okay?”
“Let him in,” Laurent said. Beast was right. This was definitely not a good time, but Gray never bothered anyone without good reason.
Beast moved out of Gray’s way and invited him inside with a sparse gesture. “Did something happen?”
Gray’s eyes passed over the egg, and Laurent was shocked by the heat suddenly rising to his head. He knew Gray was a friend and wouldn’t be a danger to their child, but his body did not and tensed in preparation to protect the egg from even a shadow of threat. Gray, however, inhaled a large gulp of air and focused on Beast.
“I—ah… you know Magpie wasn’t entirely honest with me about that ruby from the abandoned house. It’s tiny.”.
Beast shifted with a groan. “I know. Sorry to hear that. But he already left. so you’d have to talk to him on the phone.”
Gray glanced Laurent’s way before once again meeting Beast’s gaze. “I need your help. Magpie already said he won’t offer me anything from his stash, and Shadow only has so many days left.”
The silence went on for several moments, so dense it made Laurent’s ears ring, but somebody had to say something, so he opened his mouth. “What can we do for you?” His heart broke for Gray. He couldn’t imagine himself in his shoes, constantly battling with a threat to the man he loved. He didn’t want to even think of a life without Beast’s companionship and care, without his touch and love, yet Gray had to deal with this every single day. How cruel was fate to have dealt him such cards after the death of his twin brother?