Page 74 of Under the Dragon's Spell
"No, she was not." Tyrel stepped around me to peek into the oven where I was baking some quick cookies to have something to serve our guests when they got here.
"They're almost done."
"Good. They should be here soon."
I nodded. Shortly after the birth, Tyrel had told me that his father had asked to see the babies. I'd urged him to invite the man, because I was curious to see what he was like, and also because I still had this notion that family should stick together. Which was also why I was secretly delighted to hear that Tyrel's brother was coming, too, although Tyrel had groaned at this particular piece of news. And because Kylan was in town, of course Tyrel's mother wanted to be present as well. We were getting a full house, and I loved it.
But I also wished I could catch up on some sleep now that the babies were down for the count. Tyrel had suggested hiring someone to help with the kids, but since we were both home mostof the time, I shot that idea down. I wasn't going to hand my babies over to someone else if I didn't have to.
The doorbell rang almost the exact moment I pulled my special homemade cookies out of the oven.
"I'll get it," Tyrel called out while I readied some tea for our visitors. His mother would insist—no doubt. When I was done, I carried the tea can into our small dining room where I'd already set out cups earlier. Tyrel led our guests there, too.
His mother greeted me shortly and immediately took a seat at the table where she always sat when she came over. The rest of the family stayed standing in the back. Tyrel introduced the two unknown men to me.
"This is my sire, Derek Vossman. Father, this is my mate, Adrian."
We shook hands. I could see the family resemblance. Tyrel had some of his features, like the shape of his nose and the color of his eyes, although his father's didn't seem as serious.
Tyrel spoke on. "And this is my younger brother, Kylan."
I shook hands with his brother, too.
"Nice to meet you, Adrian."
I nodded, intrigued by how much Kylan looked nothing like his brother. He was handsome too, yes, but without the rough edges that made Tyrel look almost dangerous—and which attracted me to him. Kylan had more of a Prince Charming thing going on, his hair a light shade of brown and the widest smile on his lips. I'd never have guessed that he was a dragon if I hadn't been told.
"How are the babies?" Tyrel's father asked.
"They're fine. Healthy. Gaining weight rapidly. They're sleeping now. You'll have to be super quiet if you want to see them."
He chuckled. "I promise."
"Alright then." I led him into the nursery where my sons were sleeping in their cribs. Initially, we'd let them sleep together, but they kept waking each other up that way, so we separated them. I still took great pleasure in occasionally dressing them thesame, though. They finally fit into the jumpers their grandmother had bought, and today they just so happened to be wearing the pink ones.
Total coincidence, of course.
I pointed. "This is… oh… Tyrel put them in the wrong cribs again. Well, this is Taryn in Eric's crib, and that's Eric in Taryn's crib."
Tyrel's father smiled. "They look a lot like my boys did when they were small."
"Do they?" Kylan asked, coming up behind him. It seemed only Tyrel and his mother had stayed in the dining room.
"They do. You're going to have your hands full when they start to shift and fly."
I groaned at the thought. "Oh God. We've already fire proofed the room."
Tyrel's father laughed. "Probably for the better. Seriously, though, you must be very proud. They're beautiful children."
"I am. Thank you." I ushered them out of the room before my beautiful boys turned into crying monsters. "I'm sure they'll be up in a bit and then you can hold them if you'd like."
His eyes lit up. "I'd like that."
I smiled at him. Maybe this man wasn't as bad as Tyrel made him out to be and we could all be a family. It truly looked like all my wishes were about to come true. If someone had told me that only about a year ago…
"Do you have a mate yet?" I asked Kylan on our way back to the dining room, trying to make small talk.
He looked away. "Oh, no. What you and Tyrel have, that's not so easy to find, you know."
