Chapter 2

"That's terrible!" Cara exclaimed in shock as she swatted his chest playfully with the back of her hand. "That is not a real name. You made it up."

"I did not!" Garren stoically maintained, his hand gently caressing the swell of his wifes belly as they lay in bed together. "You should feel bad. It's my mother's name you know."

"It is not! Your mother's name is Sara," she managed to retort through fits of laughter.

Her hand moved to join his on her growing belly, their fingers interlocking protectively over their baby. "Now that you mention it, you may be right," Garren chuckled softly, unable to keep up the charade any longer as he pressed his lips against her ear. "Do you have a better suggestion?"

Cara rolled her eyes at the thought. "Anything but that. It sounds more like a terrible disease than a name for a baby. Besides, we have plenty of time to decide."

"We only have a little over two months, Cara."

The Mord'Sith suddenly grew serious as his words began to sink in, realization taking the amusement out of their conversation over names. Two months. Two more months and their baby would truly be here, in her arms and forever in their lives, depending on them…on her…to take care of.

The last few months had been a whirlwind to her, her body seeming to change almost daily now. It hadn't seemed real to her even with these changes until the baby began to move, that little subtle nudge inside of her that first time stopping her in her tracks and forcing her to accept the inevitability of it all.

She could still picture the look of sheer elation that had filled Garren's face when he had placed his hand over her abdomen and felt their baby move, the tears that had filled his steel gray eyes. She would never forget that moment for as long as she lived, having locked it safely away in her heart.

Cara internally grimaced despite the joy. She knew nothing about being a mother, didn't know the first thing about babies except how they were made, of course, and that they cried and made messes. Sure she had helped with Paige and Priya, but at the end of the day, they belonged to Lord Rahl and Kahlan. The responsibility of raising them lay solely on their shoulders, not hers.

She hadn't seen her own mother since the day she had been taken from her home as a young girl…her sister since that trial that had condemned her to die by the hand of the Mother Confessor…

"Cara," Garren called her name again. "Are you alright?"

"Yes…I'm fine…"

"You're still considering that name, aren't you?"

"No, I'm trying to forget about it," she curtly replied, trying to shove aside the inner turmoil that suddenly besieged her.

"What is your mother like?" Cara softly asked after a long moment, suddenly so serious.

"My mother?" Garren repeated, stunned by her question. It had been completely unexpected. "My mother is actually a lot like you."

"No, she's not," Cara shook her head at the thought. It was ludicrous to her to think that someone as amazing as Garren would ever have a mother that was anything like her.

"Fine, then she's not like you at all. She has a wooden leg, one eye and a beard."

"She sounds beautiful," Cara muttered in frustration, trying to remember what her own mother had looked like. She suddenly found she couldn't.

"She has hair the same color as yours, similar piercing green eyes," he told her. "She is very strong like you, has a stubborn streak that could do battle with yours any day. You both share a sarcastic sense of humor and she has a good heart just like you too."

"Like mine?"

"Yes," he simply said, ignoring the skepticism in her voice. "Whether you believe it or not, you have a good heart, Cara. I see it in the little things you do, your fierce love for me, your friends. You try to hide it beneath that brash exterior, but it's there. It's one of the things that drew me to you."

"Your father must be a saint," she murmured under her breath.

"My father loves her very much, worships her in fact…just like I do you."

Cara could feel the tears begin to prick her eyes but she quickly banished them. This life that she had with Garren still seemed so surreal to her at times, like she was living someone else's life that had been meant for someone other than her, better than her.

"I love you," she softly said, afraid to test her voice.

"I love you too," he smiled, tilting his head and kissing her head. "You know you're going to have to start thinking about cutting back on your duties here in the next few weeks."

Cara involuntarily bristled with his words. "I still have plenty of time before this baby comes. Kahlan is working right up until she delivers."

"And we both know how strongly Richard feels about that," Garren added with a huff. "You know that he is not at all happy about it."

"It's just a baby, Garren. I don't know what the big deal is. We are still fully capable of performing our duties until the baby arrives," she snapped.

"I never said that you and Kahlan weren't capable," he cautiously proceeded, noting the abrupt change in her mood. "I just worry about you, Cara. I want you and the baby to be alright. Do you really need to carry that agiel still?"

"Have you ever seen a Mord'Sith without an agiel?"

"No…I don't think so," he thoughtfully replied, his mind scurrying for an answer that wouldn't lead to an argument.

"Well, you aren't going to see one now," Cara shot back. "I'm fine; the baby is fine. The agiel isn't going to cause any harm. I absorb the majority of the pain, blocking it from touching our child."

"I still don't like it."

"I didn't expect that you would, but it's not going to change my mind," she firmly stated.

"I'm not going to give up," he informed her. He could be just as stubborn as she and Cara knew it.

"I guess I'll just have to break you then," she said as she suddenly moved to straddle him.

Cara leaned over, resting the palms of her hands on his chest as she kissed him and therefore abruptly ending the discussion for now. She knew how to distract him, keeping him from going down a path she was not prepared to be taken down.

And this was a path that she was definitely not going to take any time soon.

XXX

He watched as Kahlan paced back and forth before him in the bedchamber of their suite, her white Confessor's dress swirling at her feet with her movements. She held Paige against her chest, gently patting their daughter's back. He loved watching her with their girls, the way that she so lovingly cared for them. She was the perfect mother in every way, down to the simplest act.

Right now, though, her face was a mixture of emotions that he couldn't begin to decipher. She didn't appear to be mad exactly, but she was by no means pleased either. There was a hint of sorrow and maybe some fear, but most of all there was a deep heartache that he wanted more than anything in this world to abolish.

"Why does he have to come here? And why now?" Kahlan finally asked with a scowl on her lips.

"I don't know, but we'll find out soon enough," Richard shook his head.

He wasn't exactly elated with the news himself. Kahlan's father couldn't have chosen a worse time to suddenly make an appearance. She was so close to giving birth. She could go into labor any time within the next week.

The baby had dropped the other day, moving into position for his imminent arrival and finally allowing Kahlan to breathe a little easier. It was only a matter of time now until his son arrived. Her father's visit was only going to be added stress on her, strain that she didn't need right now. He would be more than happy if Kahlan never had to see her father again, but he also knew that he couldn't make that decision for her.

"He's going to be here any day," she huffed again, her movements still amazingly graceful despite being almost full term.

"Why didn't Edmund send word sooner?"

"He was tied up with the riots that had broken out in Aydindril," Kahlan told him, gently pressing her lips to Paige's forehead. "It took days to get them settled."

"You don't have to see him," Richard replied, adjusting his hold on Priya who was fighting against sleep, wanting to play with her father instead. She reached for the short rough hair that lined his jaw, trying to grasp hold of it with her fist. "I will gladly meet with him alone and tell him to never return."

Kahlan paused to look at him, his unexpectedly angry tone capturing her attention. All she'd have to do is say the word and Richard would take care of it, send her father away never to be heard from again...or possibly even worse depending on just how angry Richard truly got when he finally met him.

The thought momentarily intrigued her, happy to avoid having to see him altogether and just let Richard handle it, but at the same time she felt a sense of sadness that she did not quite understand.

Sensing her conflict, Richard got up from his chair to stand before her. "Kahlan, I only want you to be happy. If you don't want to see him, you don't have to," he gently told her. "But if you want him in our lives, then I will welcome him into our family and let go of the past.

"But, I will not let your father come into our home and cause trouble or upset you in anyway. I won't risk your health or the health of our son for any reason. Our family is the most important thing in this world to me. I won't let him harm that no matter who he is."

Kahlan looked into his brown eyes, so hard like steel with the resolve she saw swimming there and yet gentle with love. She gazed into them for a long moment before replying, a smile rising to her lips. "Thank you, Richard," she softly replied, leaning in and kissing him, their daughters caught between them. "But I need to at least see what he wants. I owe him that much."

"You owe him nothing," Richard frowned, bouncing Priya in his arms as she babbled to herself.

"He helped me when Nicci cast that spell that bound us together," she reminded him. "Without his help, I never would've gotten free."

"One way or another, I would've found a way to free you," he bit out, fighting back his anger at the memory. "Besides, that still doesn't erase everything that he put you and Dennee through."

Kahlan could feel him growing angrier by the moment. He had never forgiven her father for what he had done to her as a child and probably never truly would. Seeing children being abused especially by a parent was intolerable to Richard, creating such a fierce rage inside of him. Knowing that she had endured such atrocities as well only seemed to make that fury blaze even hotter.

"He promised me that he would start a new life, make an honest living. Maybe he's truly changed."

"And what if he hasn't? What if this visit is just part of some scheme or meant to harm you again?" he asked, his muscles taut with the possible threat. "I don't want to upset you, Kahlan, but I will not hesitate to throw him out of here if he does anything that hurts you."

"I'm sorry, Richard," Kahlan sighed, her hand coming to rest against his cheek. "I didn't mean to make you angry. I'm sure it's probably nothing at all."

The corner of Richard's mouth curled at her words as he shook his head in wonder at her. "It's your father that's coming and you're the one reassuring me," he replied, releasing a deep breath. "I'm the one who is sorry. I shouldn't let my anger get the best of me. I just can't stand the thought of you being hurt again by him."

"I won't let him," Kahlan said. "Besides, I'm not that same little girl anymore."

"No…no, you are definitely not," he murmured with a smirk. Leaning in, he kissed her deeply, his hand finding her face as he lost himself in the soft sweetness of her lips.

Priya suddenly squealed with delight as she successfully fisted a handful of Richard's beard, reminding them both that they were not alone at that moment. Kahlan giggled softly against Richard's lips as she caressed his face, the intrusive sound dragging them both from the edge of passion back to the reality of parenthood.

"Isn't it past your bedtime, Princess Priya?" Richard questioned his daughter with a narrowed gaze, holding his youngest up high in the air above his head.

Priya squealed, jabbering loudly in response. She wiggled and squirmed, reaching out again to grab at her father's face. It was a game that they had created months ago and it never ceased to bring him joy. He had sworn from that first moment on, there would always be hair lining his jaw for his daughters to grab.

"This one is out for the night," Kahlan triumphantly informed him as she turned to make her way to the nursery. "You still have your work cut out for you with that one, Seeker."

"Wait," Richard replied in mock indignation as he rushed to catch up to her. "That's not fair. Yours went to sleep before mine did."

"That's because I actually let her go to sleep," Kahlan replied, flashing him a grin before kissing her daughter's forehead as she gently laid her down in her crib.

"It's time you go to sleep, Priya Rahl," Richard whispered to his daughter. "Daddy needs some alone time with your beautiful mother."

As if on cue, Priya yawned halfway through a giggle causing Richard to chuckle in response. "That's my girl," he cooed, kissing her cheek and laying her down in her crib. "Go to sleep, my sweet girl."

Richard quickly followed Kahlan out of the nursery, softly closing the door behind him. Now, he could have Kahlan to himself for the rest of the night.

"I thought life was finally settling down for once now," Kahlan sighed with a heavy heart as she sat down at her dressing table and picked up her hairbrush.

"I know me too," he admitted, sitting down to remove his boots. "Nothing is ever peaceful for long when you're the leaders of an empire."

"At least we had a few months, I guess."

"And it's about to get even more hectic when the baby comes."

Coming to stand behind her, Richard took the brush from her hand and began running the bristles through her thick hair. He loved these quiet moments alone with her when he could just take care of her, be her husband like he had dreamed of before discovering he was a Rahl and heir to a throne and a territory.

In his dreams before, life with her had always been so much simpler. Life had consisted of a cabin in the woods, him and her and their children. He knew deep down that, as the Mother Confessor, he would have to share her with the Midlands as well. He just hadn't anticipated adding the throne of D'Hara to their life.

At the same time, he couldn't imagine his life being any different and definitely not any better. He had Kahlan, the woman that had filled all of his dreams since meeting her. And if that wasn't enough, he had two beautiful daughters and a son who would be arriving any time now.

Setting the brush down, Richard ran his fingers through her hair, relishing the silky feel. He watched in the mirror as Kahlan closed her eyes, a sweet expression of pure contentment suddenly pervading her face. It caused a spark of arousal to flame hotly in his core, reminding him of what he had started in her office before she found out her father was coming to D'Hara.

He wanted to recapture that heady moment with her, to erase the sudden heartache that had invaded their lives with her father's impending arrival. Kahlan didn't need the tension and anxiety right now and he was going to make certain that nothing happened to her or their baby.

Pulling her hair aside, he leaned over and began kissing behind her ear, earning a throaty gasp in response. He began to caress along her shoulders, one hand sneaking around to the front of her dress.

He teasingly played with the laces for a moment as he kissed along her neck before finally tugging them free. "Let me help you forget about everything for a little while," he huskily breathed in her ear, his hand slipping inside of her dress.

Kahlan tilted her head back, already losing herself in the sensations he was reawakening within her. She turned to face him, wanting so much more, needing to touch him as well.

She pulled his shirt free from his breeches, raising it up as her lips sought out his abdomen. She ran her tongue and lips over the deep grooves of his hard muscles, his perfect form never ceasing to excite her. If only her form was as half as perfect as his, able to please him now like she had been able to before being so large with child. Soon, though, soon she'd be able to give him the same pleasure he gave her now.

Richard pulled his shirt up over his head, quickly tossing it aside, wanting nothing in their way. The feel of Kahlan tightly gripping his hips as her mouth teased his abdominals just above his beltline was beginning to drive him mad.

His hands quickly found her hair, his fingers tangling in the thick tresses and holding her against him where he so desperately wanted her. His breath became exerted pulls for air as she caressed him with her mouth, his heart pounding against his chest wall.

Unable to stand her teasing much longer, he hauled her up to her feet, his lips crashing into hers in a heated assault as he pushed her dress off of her body. Kahlan trembled with the feel of his rough hands methodically stroking her skin, his tongue stroking her mouth. She gripped his shoulders to steady herself as he began to kiss along her throat and down her body at a tantalizingly slow pace.

He brushed his lips against her inner thigh as he undid the laces of her boots, removing first one and then the other. His hands slid up the backs of her thighs to grasp her bottom as he kissed her belly, thankful once more for the beautiful life that they had created together, the son that would soon be theirs.

Kahlan ran her fingers through his hair, biting her lip as he massaged her bottom, his mouth on her abdomen. She knew that she wasn't going to survive this too much longer. She was more than ready for him now just as she had been for the last few months and they'd barely gotten started.

Kissing a trail up to her lips, Richard quickly took her by the hand and began leading her towards their bed.