The Consort

Chapter 56: Opening

Five months later:

"Wake up." I whisper, poking at his shoulder.

Heloix doesn't move, choosing instead to pretend like he's still asleep. Sighing, I remind him that he is forcing me to do this before roughly shoving my fingers into his sides, tickling him.

He jerks away at my touch, quickly rolling over to the other side of the bed.

"Heloix." I snap, climbing on the bed and crawling over to his body. "Get up."

His left eye creaks open as he sneaks a peek at me. I spot the corners of his lips turn up slightly as he tries to hold back a smile, his amusement felt strongly through our bond. I crawl my way on top of his body and plop down on his chest, peering down at him over my large belly.

He lifts his hands and presses them against my stretched skin, his eyes shining as the baby kicks at his palm.

"We don't need to be up for another hour." He pouts, sliding his hand down suggestively.

I reach down and grab his wrist, stopping him. He groans at my actions, rolling his eyes dramatically as he tries again with his other hand. I reach out and stop that one as well, not in the mood.

"It's been days, Addie." Heloix sighs. "My cock is growing cobwebs."

I shake my head, refusing to give in.

"I want to get there early to make sure everything is set up correctly."

Heloix pushes me back a couple of inches, moving me from his chest to his hips so he can sit up. He wraps his arms around my waist and presses me against him. I blush as my bump gets in the way, embarrassed at how big I've gotten.

A low growl reverberates out from his chest, his Beast unhappy with the dislike I have for my body.

"I love your belly." He murmurs, leaning forward and pressing a soft kiss to my lips. "It's carrying our baby."

His lips are on mine once more, and he wastes no time deepening it, sliding his tongue in my mouth. It's warm as it presses against my own, and my thighs clench around his hips in return. As much as I'd love to feel him inside of me right now, the need for today to go smoothly takes precedence, so with a quiet sigh I pull away.

"Adeline-" Heloix groans. "Pretty please."

I smirk, shaking my head. "I'll make it up to you tonight. I promise."

He visibly perks up at my promise, his eyebrows raising suggestively. Wrapping his arms back around my midsection, he squeezes me against him and stands, setting me gently on my feet at the foot of the bed.

"Then let's get going."

----

We pull up to the building slowly, the driver cautious not to hit anybody as they scramble around in the road. Everything looks so good, and it seems like significant progress has been made since I was last here.

I glance around the mass of bodies, surprised at the number of Beasts helping the humans set up. While I expected that there would be a couple, from where I sit there appear to be dozens.

"There's a lot more Beasts here than I thought there'd be." I comment, unable to hold back my smile.

Heloix chuckles, his hand gripping mine as he pulls me across the seat into his body. His arm wraps around my waist as he opens the door and steps out, bringing me along with him.

"They came to support."

I close the car door behind us, enjoying the sight of the humans and Beasts working together so closely. I spot John standing with a couple of others near the front door, his arms waving as he gives directions as to where they can put the merchandise.