Page 57 of Sapphire Seas

“I came in here for a reason,” Mattias said. “Come on, the nursery is done.”

Shifting and flying would’ve been far more comfortable than waddling down the twisting horde passageway, but we were both out of the able to shift stages of our pregnancies. This was mine and Kes’ favorite place to be, but the bigger we get, the harder it’ll be to maneuver around.

Mattias glanced back at us. “Are you sure you want the nest in the horde?”

Too late to turn back now since it’s done.

“This place calls to me,” Kes replied and I felt the same way. “It just feels right. We might need a big, strong dragon to rush us up here when we go into labor. Know of any?”

Mattias dragon huffed while Mattias rolled his eyes. “You’re lucky you’re both adorable. But yeah, I’ve got that covered. Now, would my smartass mates like to see the nursery or what?”

Out popped Odem, scaring the literal crap out of us as soon as we reached the door. “Are you trying to send us into early labor?” I hadn’t meant to yell but my heart was racing like mad.

“Sorry, wanted to surprise you,” Odem apologized and I felt horrible for yelling at him.

“It’s okay, maybe just more low key until we’ve had the dragonets,” Kes suggested. “Can we go inside now?” The door was open, but Odem’s body blocked our view. Finally, he stepped aside and waved us in.

“O.M.G.” another fun, I think they called this an acronym. No idea what that really was, but it was fun to say. “That mural is amazing. Who painted it?”

“I did,” Mattias blushed. “My heart lays on these walls for all to see.”

Speechless. He’d left me completely speechless. The room told a story. From the entrance all the way around there were dragons in flight, some in human form on the ground playing with one another. The sea bordered the lands. Waters so blue they matched our mates’ glorious scales. He even had Hurley’s lighthouse included.

“Look at the moon, Caspian.” He pointed to the highest point where two walls met, and there I was with Kes staring up at me from the sandy beach, the moon illuminating my silhouette as I flew before it. Stars shone brightly in the night sky capturing me exactly as Kes’s memory depicted the near meet.

“I can’t believe you did all of this.” Tears streamed down my face as I realized everything Mattias painted was about family. Our family. Night turned into day as you followed the scene to the opposite wall where our little ones played in the sunlight.

Earthly tones in shades of greens and orange. Children playing hide and seek amongst the neighboring forest. I’d never seen anything as beautiful as this before. “Mattias,” was all I could get out. He wrapped me in his arms, his hands cradling the swell of my belly.

“My sweet dragonets, Papa can’t wait for you to see your room and see how much love he has for you. You’ll never go a day without hearing me say those words to you.” Tiny bubbles flittered through my belly as the girls giggled and wiggled about.

“I can hear them too,” Kes said as Mattias drew him into our embrace. Each of his large hands held a belly full of his babies.

“My love, my life, my world. Everything that matters most to me is in this room right now. I love you both more than words can say, and you too, little ones.” The dragonets moved around, pressing forward where their Papa’s hand was. “I can feel them moving.”

“They crave your touch, Papa,” Kes said. “They hear your voice and it makes them feel safe and loved.”

Luff, came through the bond.

“Did one of them just?”

Luff, luff, luff, luff, luff, rang out in the sweetest, melodic tiny voices as all six shared it through our connection. Dragonets were truly amazing and brilliant. I now understood Luna better as well. Just because they were young, their abilities shouldn’t be discounted. They were here for a reason, and the Goddess blessed them with gifts as she saw fit. I for one couldn’t wait to see what she’d blessed our dragonets with.

Mattias moved and knelt before Kes and me, a hand on our bellies as he spoke to the dragonets. “I love you all so much and I can’t wait to meet you,” then he kissed our tummies. When he glanced up, his tear-filled eyes hit me hard. Kes and I were no better off, both blubbering fools ourselves. Between hormones, the beauty and magic of this room and the love of our mate—none of what Mattias had created in here went without precision and care.

“You had their names carved into the oversized cribs,” Kes said, drawing our attention back to the room.

“Aye,” Mattias said as he stood. “Leif and Leim’s crib is between both girls’ cribs. Autumn and Summer share one and Trinity and Sapphire are in the other.” The three cribs lined the longest wall. Across the room were two changing tables and three dressers. “When they are in their own rooms they’ll each have dresser and bed, of course. Let me show you the playroom.”

An archway had been cut between the two rooms of the nursery. “Three rocking chairs?”

“Aye. Daddy’s rocking two babes each while Papa has two. Raising our dragonets will be a family event. I can’t promise to be here for everything but when I am here I will be involved in all of it. Diaper changes included.” I giggled, the vision of one of the boys baptizing their Papa the first time he changed them hit me. “I have a feeling I don’t want to know what that was for.” I couldn’t help but share through our dragons who were now laughing equally as hard as Kes and I were. “Ugh, I suppose it’s inevitable. Everything is washable, including ancient dragons.”

The floor in the playroom side was covered in a rubber mat with ABC’s, numbers and cute animals printed on them.

“Look at this,” Mattias turned off the lights and switched the projector on. Night stars filled the room along with the sounds of marine life and waves breaking along a shoreline. “Calming for when we’re rocking them to sleep.”

He’d literally thought of everything. The walls in this side weren’t adorned with a mural, but each had been painted a soft, calming color that reminded me of the sea.