"Oron we'd better head back to the palace as well. The queen will want our update personally," Darian said from behind them.
"Damn right. Izzy, come back here," Oron ordered.
"No way. I'm getting to know the Elder," she teased.
"Have fun! Don't kill the Elder, Oron," Kendrick called after them, as they walked away.
"No promises," Oron muttered darkly behind them.
*****
They had only made it one street over before Oron pulled her to his side and Darian wrapped an arm around Rex's shoulders in a friendly manner blocking him from reclaiming Izzy's hand.
Rex just shook his head and started going over some of the requests his father had fielded concerning lion-shifters wanting to return to Éire Danu.
When they got closer to the queen's chambers Oron pulled her to a stop, allowing Darian and Rex to enter first. He steered her to the nearest alcove.
"Why are we out here?" she asked.
"Were you serious about having a child a year from now?" he asked, trepidation in his eyes.
"Yes. Meryn said there's an amulet I can wear that will act as birth control. She helped me realize that most of the things that I was concerned about would resolve themselves in a year, like our living arrangements or finding my place in your world."
"Your place is at my side," he said, wrapping his arms around her, resting his cheek on the top of her head. "I will get you an amulet first thing tomorrow. It can come off whenever you're ready, I never want you to feel pressured, this will always be your choice."
"I think I just want more time of it being just us. I've never really been in a serious relationship before, so this is all new to me and throwing a kid in the mix scares the hell outta me," she admitted, then sighed. "But when Meryn said how long you've been waiting for a family, I felt like an asshole."
He stepped back and tucked his fingers under her chin, tilting her head back. "No baby, how you feel is never wrong." He kissed her forehead. "I'm new to this relationship thing too, I should have spoken to you first before I got upset." He looked in her eyes. "It was my own insecurity that made me lash out. Even though I'm a Vi'Eirlea now, it felt like the same type of rejection I've faced my whole life, like you didn't want to have an Eirson child."
Izzy squeezed her arms tight causing him to grunt. "Are you kidding? I'm relying on your fifty percent of the DNA in this kid to keep them alive. If they take after me we'll need a bomb squad." She looked up grinning. "You're the best part of me."
Before she could blink, he captured her lips. He kept them welded together until they were breathing in sync. Slowly he lifted his face. "If we didn't need to check in..."
She nipped his chin, causing him to laugh. "Later," she promised.
He nodded. "Later."
Smiling they headed back toward the queen's chambers.
Once they joined the others, Izzy remembered why she had left and flushed with embarrassment.
"Thank the gods; she is safe!" Izzy was nearly knocked over when the queen plowed into her for a hug.
"I'm fine," she managed to get out.
"Aleks, dear, let her breathe," Brennus chided gently, pulling her back.
Aleksandra dashed away her tears. "I felt like I couldn't breathe myself when the alarms started going off. Before I knew it, Oron and Aiden had run from the room and I had no idea what was happening. I had to wait for little Meryn to return to update me." She spun around to face her niece. "Meryn, is there something you can do with that computer of yours so I don't have to wait for runners with news?"
Meryn shrugged. "I could get you walkie-talkies and cameras like I did in Noctem Falls."
The queen nodded slowly. "It's a start. I never again want to be trapped here while the fate of my loved ones is unknown."
"Queen Aleksandra, I can personally attest to the brilliance of this young lady," Rex said as he walked over and dropped a kiss on the top of Meryn's head.
Meryn beamed and peaked around him to look at her. "Did you see his arms?"
Izzy wagged her eyebrows. "He was very charming."