Try Me

Chapter 24

Shade's POV

It's been almost nine months and Jacey hasn't moved at all. Earlier this morning Willow's water broke, and soon their son will be born. The others were waiting in the hall outside of the medical room waiting to greet our newest member while I decided to go see Jacey. 

I put my hand on his snout, "Come on you over grown lizard. Willow is currently in labor, and you're going to miss it if you keep sleeping." My eyes burned as I spoke to him. I then thought I saw his eyelid shift. "Come on Jacey, wake up," I said to him. I watched his nostrils flare. 

Jacey's moving, I was quick to shout it through the mind link. 

"Come on you big ass gecko," I said to him. "Willow is currently in labor and has missed you these last nine months." 

Ethan, Leroy, Lucas, Alicia, and dad were now outside. 

Jacey's eyes then cracked open. Dad crouched so he could look at Jacey, "Come on Jacey. Willow needs you to wake up." 

Jacey's eyes widened then. He looked around us. "She's currently giving birth," dad said to him. Jacey then seemed to be struggling before he shifted to his human form. Leroy and I were quick to help him put on shorts. He lacked the strength to stand on his own so he assisted him inside. 

We had just gotten in the hall when we heard the sound of a baby crying. Mom was then in the open door, holding it open for us. Once in the room we saw Willow holding a little baby in a blue blanket. 

Jacey was then moving on his own and we let him go as he went to her bed. She looked at him with tears falling down her face. "Willow I..." Jacey said as he sat on the edge of her bed. "It's okay Jacey. It's not your fault," she said with a smile. "What matters is that you're here now." 

I couldn't hold back my tears. There was so much to celebrate. Jacey finally woke up and we were welcoming our newest family member. Things may finally be looking up for us. 

Jacey's POV

I missed so much. I was at least able to make it to my mate giving birth to our son, even if I did miss her pregnancy. When Willow was recovering from the birth, I still lacked the strength to help her. It took me two weeks to be back to normal. 

When I heard our son, Hawthorne, start to cry for his three am feeding, I shifted quickly and slipped on my shorts before going into his room that was connected to ours. I picked him up from his crib. He had my dark hair but he had Willow's eyes.

I smiled and kissed his cheek before changing him. I then brought him to Willow who was barely conscious. She didn't bother wearing a shirt to bed because of these late night feedings. I laid him down with her and she shifted to hold him properly as he fed from her. She looked at me with a soft smile. I bent down and kissed her, "I love you."

"I love you too," she said to me. I brushed some of her hair from her face.

"I missed you," she whispered to me. "I know," I said to her. "I'm sorry." "You don't have anything to be sorry for," she said to me. I kissed her again, unable to help myself. 

She gave me a tired smile and I fixed her blankets. I waited for Hawthorne to finish eating before taking him from her. After getting him settled into his crib once more, I shifted and laid with her once more. 

It was around nine when we woke to Hawthorne crying again. Willow got up and dressed before going into his room this time while I shifted and dressed myself. I then began to make her some coffee. When it was ready I took it to her. She was sitting in the rocking chair as she fed him. 

I loved the sight before me. My beautiful mate and our son, who would be the first of many. "Thank you handsome," she said as she took the cup from me. I gave her a kiss before going into our kitchen to make us some breakfast. 

As I cooked, I let the last couple of weeks run through my head. After the attack here, there was a fight between the council members, but no lives were lost. Each side is blaming the other for the lives lost. Its become insane, but the fighting has died down a bit, but tensions were still high. We're keeping our eyes on the skies and our ears on the ground though. 

If there is another attack we'll be ready for them. 

Willow came out of the nursery with Hawthorne in her arms, pulling me from my thoughts. She came over to me and I gave her a kiss before kissing Hawthorne's head. When breakfast was ready, I fixed her plate and sat it in front of her before taking him. I put him in the swing before making my plate and sat beside her at the island. 

"When do you go back to doing patrols," she asked me. I shrugged, "I don't know. They're not letting me. Keep telling me I need to rest." 

"We nearly lost you," she said to me. "They're just worried." 

I nodded, "Yeah I know. This is my home too though, and I'm third in command, I can't just have them doing all of the patrols." 

"I know how you feel," she said with a sigh. "Hawthorne wakes you up a few times a night, you need your rest," I said to her. "He wakes you up too," she reminded me. "I'm fine though, I don't need the sleep," I said to her. She scoffed, "You and I both know that's a load of BS. You get rather grouchy when you haven't slept." 

I rolled my eyes, "I do not." 

She giggled, "Yeah okay." 

I smiled and shook my head. Once we were done eating, we took Hawthorne to the living room to spend time with the rest of our family. My mother was quick to take him from us. "You know, it's weird seeing a baby in human form," Ebony said as she looked at him. "How long till he shifts?" "Eighteen years," Willow answered. 

"Oh jeez that's a long time," she said eyes a little wide. 

"Meaning we have many years to teach him to be the perfect gentleman," my mother said with a smile. "That's the downside of having children that only take five years to grow into adults, you don't get enough time to teach them everything they need to know." 

Willow's brothers were then in the living room chasing each other, Lex covered in pink paint. "And even worse when you only have two years," Willow said with a sigh. "Any paint you spread, you're cleaning," she yelled at them. "Yeah you idiot, you get to clean the shit," Lex yelled at Brax. "Nu uh, you're the one who decided to chase me, you could've washed it off first," Brax argued as he ran out of the living room, dodging Lex's attempt to grab him. 

Willow sighed, "I say the moment they make it outside, we lock them out of the mountain." 

I chuckled, "I don't think that will work." She pouted, "You just had to crush my dreams." She leaned into me and I wrapped my arm around her waist. 

I couldn't help but look around the living room at the family I felt lucky to have. Nearly dying has me cherishing them even more. I just pray once this war is over, we all emerge from the destruction it's left behind in one piece.