Author's note: So I started this chapter going a different direction and I hated it. It probably would have happened sooner had I just done it this way in the first place. Anyway, please let me know what you think.

Happy reading!

Chapter Five

"Mama!" Jill said happily as she ran to her mother across the room.

"Oh, darling. I missed you." Emily said as she gathered her close. "You must tell me everything."

"Yes, Mama. I'll tell you all." She promised. "Just let me hold you another moment."

"Of course." She smoothed a hand over her hair for a few seconds. She finally stepped back and asked for tea as she pulled her daughter to the sofa.

Jill launched into her tale of the honeymoon trip. "Adrian bought me so many dresses. And he painted me pictures. There were museums and parties and teas. It was fantastic."

Eddie stood off in the corner and smiled at the passion in her voice and expression on her face as she told her mother all the details of their trip. She spent a lot of time talking about the journeys across the ocean and how much fun she had with the water.

Her story came to a close after a while. She glanced at Eddie a moment and then leaned close to her mother. "Mama, how can I tell if I'm having a child?"

The guardian froze.

Emily squeezed her hands. "Are you sick?"

"Yes, but mostly first thing in the morning. Sometimes smelling food makes me ill. And I'm behind…"

Her mother nodded. "I believe you are then. You should have a physician see to you to confirm it."

Eddie tore his eyes away from the scene. A smile played on his lips. A baby. He made a silent vow then that she would never leave his sight until the child was born.

He escorted her back to her home after the visit with her mother. He slipped a hand into hers as they stepped into the house. "Why didn't you say anything to me about the baby?"

She looked around. No one was currently in the front hall. She lifted her hand and placed it on his cheek. "I didn't want to say it out loud yet."

He rested his hands on her waist and stepped closer. "I'm happy for you."

"Are you really?" She laid her hands on his arms.

"I am. We should get a physician and confirm it. I'll make the arrangements." He kissed her forehead and stepped away. "You go up to your room and rest. Do you want me to tell Adrian?"

"Delegate it to someone else. You're my guardian, not my servant." She ran a hand down his arm. "Send Matthews for the physician. Adrian is with Lissa practicing some Spirit things. He can go over there after fetching the physician." She took his hand and pulled him toward the stairs. "But even all that can wait."

He smiled. "I need to get something. Meet me up there in a couple minutes."

She squeezed his hand and let go. "What are you doing?"

"I bought a gift for you in anticipation of a baby." He hurried toward the back of the house to his office. He pulled a box out of the back of a drawer. It was something he'd come across in France when he wandered off one morning before Jill awoke.

He climbed the stairs slowly, thinking about the ghost she'd been for so long. She was now slowly getting better. He was happy for her and Adrian. And he knew that as soon as this baby arrived, he'd love it as much as if it were his own child.

He tapped on the door softly. She opened it immediately and pulled him inside.

She held out her hand. "Give me the gift."

Eddie grinned and put the box in her hand. He watched her as she sat down on the chair by the fire and opened it. He sat on the foot stool.

It contained a book with a drawing of a baby on the front. She read, "'Première Année de Mon Bébé.'" She smiled and started leafing through the book. It had prompts in French about weight and length at different times in the baby's life. There were sections to talk about the daily events and other milestones.

Her lover grinned. "I know it's in French, but you know the language as well as any native person."

"I probably should have learned Russian." She closed the book. "There's still time. Thank you for this."

"I know there's still time until you start filling those out, but it was the best I could do."

"Maybe I'll take my time when I'm in confinement and translate all the French. I'll have to hide away. The queen can be seen in her advanced months, but not a princess whose only use in the world is to keep the quorum."

He leaned forward. "I'm not letting you stay away from me."

She met him with a kiss. "Of course not. I won't let you leave my sight."

They shared another kiss and then Eddie stood. "You need to be seen by a professional who knows a thing or two about this situation." He left.

Jill looked through the book slowly as she waited. Eddie returned after a while and they played a game of chess to pass the time, despite wanting to do more.

When Adrian arrived home a short time later, the physician was just leaving.

"Congratulations, Lord Ivashkov." He said as he gathered his coat and hat by the door.

"I'm sorry?" He looked up to the top of the stairs to see Jill standing there in her wrapper. "Are you…?

She nodded.

He grinned and shook the physician's hand, murmuring a quick thank you before he ran around him and up the stairs. He wrapped his arms around his wife and lifted her off her feet with a kiss to her cheek. He put her down and cupped her cheeks. "To your room." He demanded. "And you mustn't leave it until the baby arrives. Go."

"Not a chance." She grinned. "Come here. You have to see what Eddie got me." She tugged his hand toward her room.

Adrian took a trip the following week to see a house he'd been corresponding about. He returned with a painting and great excitement. He called Jill and Eddie into his studio for the big reveal.

"Jill, I think you'll love it." He said as he paced. "Did you see it already?"

"I took a peek, but only a small one." She turned her grin to Eddie. "I had some other things I wanted to do."

Her husband snorted. "Right." He walked to the painting he had covered and pulled away the sheet.

Jill smiled and stepped forward. "Oh, it's beautiful." She pointed to a window on the second floor. "That's where my room will be. I can already tell you can see the beach well from there."

"Speaking of the beach, my dear." He walked to a satchel on a table on the far wall. "Come see. We have a private beach. You can visit it whenever you wish, even in your confinement. There's a fence that runs most of the length of the property." He unrolled a large sheet of paper and pointed out the fence as well as the rest of the features of the land he liked the best.

"It's perfect. When can we move?" She asked, looking over the floor plans for the house.

He gave her a doting smile. "I have a few more things to finish in negotiations. But I think we can move within the month."

Jill laughed and threw her arms around him. "Thank you."

"Anything for you, my princess." He kissed her cheek. "Did you see the nursery?"

He pulled away and they all three went over the drawings of the house. Eddie pointed out sections he thought were security hazards and suggested ways to improve them. Jill and Adrian discussed how they would decorate.

Eddie looked over at one point to see Adrian with a hand on Jill's lower back as they leaned over the plans. He cleared his throat. Both looked at him and then at each other. She stepped out of his embrace and gave a reassuring smile to her lover.

Adrian rolled up the papers at last. "Start packing, dear." He looked her over. "Actually, don't. Have someone else start packing for you. Don't lift a finger. You're in a delicate condition."

She gave him a no-nonsense look. "I'm not delicate. I wasn't before and I won't be during. I'll do what I want, when I want and no one can stop me."

Eddie spoke, "Jill, I don't want you doing much either. Please, for both of us, just don't do anything strenuous."

She looked between them. "I won't lift anything heavier than a dress. That is my promise to you both. Now, if you will excuse me, I need to see to supper."

Adrian sighed. "Thank you for backing me up, Eddie."

"You need the baby and I need her. We can't have her hurting herself or risking the baby." He smiled. "It's going to be a lovely home."

"When you and Jill have children, which I know you will, they will have a place in this home as well. They won't be exiled to a different part of the house or sent off as soon as they are born." He walked to the painting. "I want a lot of children running through it. It's what it was made for. As I walked through it, I imaged the sound of little feet running through it. An entire pack of them." He grinned. "Some of the children in my imagination look a bit like you."

"We'll wait to see how your children fare first." He clapped the vampire on the back. "I have guardian duties."

They made the move a few weeks later. Jill walked from room to room, examining every inch of the house. She dictated the use for all the rooms, letting Adrian choose rooms dedicated for his painting and Eddie decide on the best room for his office and as the home headquarters for their guardians. They had officially hired Tanner and Petrov in addition to Eddie and Shane. Now that they were away from Court, they needed more full-time security, even with the ward around the property.

Eddie kept a constant eye on Jill. If anything, he became even more protective of her, especially whenever they were out. He stayed close and watched everyone that crossed their path.

One evening, they were taking a walk along the beach before breakfast when Eddie heard an odd rustling and grabbed Jill's arm, ready to push her behind him, but it was just an animal scurrying past.

She laughed. "Scared of a little rat, Guardian Castile?"

He shook his head. "No. Just want to keep you and the baby safe."

"It's not like this is your baby." She said it lightly, but immediately regretted it.

Eddie's eyes narrowed and he clinched his jaw. "I think we should get you back for breakfast, Princess Jillian." He walked a step ahead of her.

"You only call me that when you're upset."

He didn't respond.

She hurried after him. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean it."

He still said nothing.

"So you're not talking to me now?"

"Inside." Was all he said as they approached the house.

They made their way to the sitting room. Eddie closed the door and paced like a caged animal.

"Talk to me." Jill begged, taking a seat on her favorite overstuffed chair.

He paused and watched her a moment before he said, "You think I would guard you any more than I do if it was my baby you were carrying."

She held out her hands in front of her. "That's not what I meant."

He moved closer to her. "I love you, Jill. Do you not get that? You can't move as fast with the baby. Mine or Adrian's, it doesn't matter. You matter. To me. Pregnant or not, I need to keep you safe. Mine or not, I want to keep the baby safe."

She placed a hand on his arm. "You took me the wrong way, Eddie."

He moved away again. "Did I?" His voice was slowly rising. "Because it seems like you think I don't care about this baby, but I do."

"And I believe you. Why are you angry? I was making a joke and I apologized." Her voice rose to match his. "You are over-reacting."

"I'm over-reacting? And how should I react? Huh? Tell me, Jill?"

"Not like this. Not angry. You were about to jump in front of me for a rat. And then I made a joke and now you're mad at me."

He slammed a fist on the table. "Damnit, Jill, that's not the point!"

"I don't know what you want. And by the way, you're not the one carrying the baby. Excuse me for trying to make light of a difficult situation." She walked out of the room, slamming the door behind her.

Adrian walked in a moment later. "What is going on in here?"

Eddie picked up Adrian's favorite bottle of whiskey and examined it. "Jill and I are having a bit of a disagreement."

"So I heard. The whole house heard. And if you forgot, it's a pretty large house." He indicated the bottle. "You can have a glass of that."

Eddie shook his head, put the bottle down, and collapsed on the sofa. "She said something..." He shook his head and stared at the ceiling. "I don't know, Adrian."

Adrian sat down with his friend. "What did she say?"

"She said, 'It's not like it's your baby.'" He rubbed his face. "I felt like she thought I shouldn't care just because she's not carrying my child. But I care. I have to. I mean, I don't have to. But I care about you both. I'm assigned to keep you safe, to keep her safe. I'd do it even if I was no longer assigned to it. I'd do it even if you tried to fire me. I'd follow her to the ends of the earth."

"I'm sorry, Eddie." Jill said from the doorway. "I know you care. I know what you want because I want it too. And I love you."

"Well, isn't this touching?" Adrian stood. "I need some breakfast. Excuse me."

There was silence in the room until the door closed. The pair stared at each other. Then as one, they met in the middle of the room in a crushing embrace.

"I'm sorry I hurt your pride, darling." Jill said bringing her mouth to his again and again.

"It is nothing, my love. It was a joke that I took the wrong way." He let her kiss him for a while and then broke their mouths apart. He rested his forehead against hers. "I was feeling inadequate. And I'd be lying if I didn't say I felt a bit of jealousy toward Adrian.

"You don't need to feel jealousy. Adrian is like my brother. And I tend to have very unbrotherly feelings for you."

They laughed together.

He pressed a kiss to her lips. "I like that the depression passed fairly easily."

"The prospect of bringing a life to the world… Do you know how beautiful and amazing that will be? This child of ours will be something special, I can feel it."

"Any baby you have will be amazing, no matter who the father is."

"I don't want to plan for anymore right now. Is that okay? Just one baby at a time? This one needs to be brought safely into the world first."

He kissed her. "It's a deal. Now, I think we need to get you fed, love. You haven't eaten anything and you're looking a little green. You need food." He took her hand and walked with her to the door. As soon as the door was open, he let go.

They were sure the servants knew of their affair. It wasn't as though they kept it a secret, but they tried not to show off.