Dimitri surged forward, cupping my face as he pressed his lips to mine. I melted into his kiss as my lips instantly responded. My libido instantly flared up, and I found myself clawing at Dimitri's shirt as our kiss continued. I tugged it over his head and quickly brought our lips back together.

"The door," he murmured, breaking our kiss.

I kicked it closed with my foot, having moved into the room a bit during our kiss. "I want you," I whispered. "I've wanted you for weeks."

"Are you sure?"

I nodded. The increased libido during pregnancy wasn't something I had expected, and I wasn't going to turn down an opportunity to have sex now. Dimitri wasn't one to argue, and we quickly shifted toward the bed. We paused before moving onto the bed.

"What's going to be the most comfortable for you?"

I bit my lip. "I'm not sure," I said. "In general, I haven't been sleeping on my back because it's painful after a few moments."

Dimitri made a humming sound deep in his throat and pulled out his phone. He spent a few moments looking at something before looking at me with a wicked grin.

"Do you trust me?"

I nodded. "Yes."

"I'm going to take care of you, Roza," he murmured. "Come here."

In one swift motion, he pulled the sweater and the thermal I was wearing over my head. He tossed them aside, and his dark eyes devoured me as I stood there in my leggings and bra. Slowly, I reached behind me and unsnapped the bra. I held Dimitri's gaze while doing so, and I pulled it off slowly, tossing it over to where my sweater was. Dimitri's tongue poked out, wetting his lips, and his gaze still didn't leave me.

"Where do you want me?" I whispered.

My words broke him out of the trance, and he turned to the bed. He rearranged some of the pillows on the bed so that there was a fluffy nest in the center. He reached for my hand and pulled me closer to the bed but didn't have me sit down yet. Instead, he knelt before me and carefully pulled my leggings off. I used his shoulders for balance as I stepped out of them. My underwear quickly followed. Dimitri looked up at me, his eyes full of love and wonder. He pressed a small kiss to the swell of my belly.

"My love," he said in Russian. "My Roza."

"Yours," I responded, choosing to answer in Russian.

If possible, his eyes darkened, and a smile spread across my face as I realized that my talking in Russian turned him on.

"Lay back," he said, still speaking in Russian. I wasn't sure he realized. "Keep your ass on the edge."

I did as he said. The pillows provided enough support that I wasn't lying flat on the bed, keeping the pressure off of my back. My legs hung off the bed, and in a smooth motion, Dimitri scooted forward and rested my legs on his shoulders. He was so close to where I wanted him but so far away at the same time.

"Please," I begged.

Dimitri looked up at me with a groan. "You look so sexy with your stomach swollen with my child. You've given me everything I could ever wish for, Roza."

I flushed under his stare. "I love you."

"I love you, too," he murmured before burying his face between my thighs.

I bit my lip to keep from crying out too loudly as my hands scrambled for purchase, eventually landing in his hair. My legs were over his shoulders, and my thighs tightened around his head as he devoured me. He ate like he was starving, and I was the last meal on earth, alternating between playful licks to thrusting his tongue deep inside of me. I grabbed one of the pillows from by my head and held it between my teeth to muffle the sound of my moans. I was mumbling nonsense as my hips moved against Dimitri's face, and my orgasm pulsed through me without warning. I couldn't help but call out Dimitri's name as it did, though the pillow kept it from being a full-on shout.

Dimitri looked up at me from between my legs with a self-satisfied smirk on his face. His lips were wet, and his tongue darted out to lick my juices from his face. I threw my head back with another groan.

"You're going to be the death of me," I said, speaking to the ceiling.

"A pleasurable one, I hope," he said.

I sat up and leaned down to kiss him, tasting myself on his lips as I did. "Always," I murmured.

Dimitri broke the kiss to stand up. He was still in his sweater and jeans from earlier, and I tugged him closer by his belt loops, intending to repay the favor. I had just rested my hand against his bulge when he shifted.

"There's time for that later, Roza," he said. "I want to take care of you tonight."

I nodded. "Later," I promised.

I slid my hands under his sweater, helping as he tugged it off. He took a step back to step out of his jeans, and I watched him hungrily as his dick sprung free.

"Stand up," Dimitri whispered. "You'll be on top."

My lips quirked up as I did what he said. "Seems to be a pretty good position for us." One hand found my stomach as I spoke, remembering that I had been on top the night our son was conceived.

Dimitri met my smile with one of his own as he settled onto the bed, moving the pillows so he was propped up near the headboard. I watched as he slowly stroked himself, his eyes on me. I climbed onto the bed and perched myself over his lap, kneeling on either side of his hips. I replaced his hand with mine, stroking him from tip to root a couple of times before I slowly sank down on him.

We both took a moment to adjust, and I rose a couple of inches before slowly lowering myself again. Dimitri's hands found my hips, and he gripped me there. He didn't try to guide me, and I continued to ride him slowly, savoring the feel of him sliding in and out of me. I moved a few inches at a time, controlling the pace and the depth. Dimitri gave me the control, though his grip tightened on my hips, and I grinned.

The next time I rose up, I went a few more inches, just keeping his tip inside of me, and I didn't give him any warning before slamming back down, setting a punishing pace. Dimitri was quick to figure it out, though, and he started to guide me as our hips came together more rapidly.

"You take me so well," Dimitri bit out, his hips thrusting up to meet me. "You were meant for me."

"Only you," I murmured, pressing our lips together as I rode him. "Only you."

With the new fast pace, it didn't take long for me to start to tighten around Dimitri, and as soon as he felt the first signs of fluttering, one of his hands moved from my hip to my clit where he massaged it. With a quick pinch, I was falling into my orgasm, and Dimitri took over the motion, both hands back on my hips as he moved me up and down on his dick. I buried my face in his shoulder, trying to muffle my moans, and as a second shockwave went through me, I bit down lightly on his shoulder. That spurred him on, and a moment later, Dimitri was coming. He bit his lip as he did so, careful to keep his face away from my neck. A flutter of disappointment went through me, and I shoved it away.

As we both came down from our orgasms, Dimitri carefully lifted me off of him. He stood from the bed, pulling on a pair of sweatpants quickly before he disappeared out of the bedroom. He returned a moment later with a damp washcloth, and he gently cleaned me before cleaning himself. He stripped back out of the sweats and crawled back onto the bed next to me. I turned on my side, a pillow between my knees, and Dimitri curled up behind me.

"Get some rest, Roza," Dimitri said, brushing his lips against my head. "I'll be here when you wake up."

True to his words, I was still in Dimitri's arms when I woke up. For a moment, déjà vu and a hint of apprehension washed through me as I remembered the last time I woke up like this. It passed just as quickly as it came, though. I shifted, and when I looked at Dimitri, I saw he was already awake and watching me.

"I'm not going anywhere," Dimitri murmured, guessing my thoughts. "Not this time."

I nodded. "Merry Christmas, Comrade."

"Merry Christmas, Roza."

The rest of the Belikova family, plus our guests, were awake when we made our way downstairs. Lissa gave me a knowing look and hid her smile behind her hand. Viktoria was the next person to realize that Dimitri and I were holding hands, and she squealed.

"I told you!" she told Sonya in rapid Russian.

Sonya replied just as quickly, and I only managed to catch half of it. I turned to Dimitri for a translation and saw him blushing. He looked down at me with a half-smile.

"Seems like we might have been a bit too loud last night," he murmured, soft enough for only me to hear.

My face burned. "Oh God," I said. "Well, it's not like they didn't already know we'd been together."

I gestured to my stomach, and Dimitri's face got redder, if possible. I had always known that he wasn't a fan of PDA, and this was probably a nightmare scenario for him.

"Lissa," I said, switching to English. "Is Jill coming? I know you weren't sure if it would work out logistically or not."

Dimitri squeezed my hand, thanking me for the topic change before his sisters could continue commenting on our sex life.

Lissa shook her head. "I was hoping to have a vote from the Council about the quorum law before Christmas, but they kept adding other things to the agenda and pushing back the vote. It's not safe for her."

"It's probably for the better," I mused, placing a hand on my stomach.

Lissa sensed where my thoughts were going and nodded. "Right, because it wouldn't have just been Jill and her parents, though, clearly, Emily can keep a secret. Eddie would have insisted on coming, and so would Adrian. At that point, Sydney and Angeline would likely have come too."

"They wouldn't have said anything," Abe said, guessing where our thoughts were. "I have Sydney Sage in my pocket, and I would have ensured that she didn't report anything back to her superiors."

I wanted to roll my eyes. I knew that Abe having Sydney in his pocket meant he had something over her. I considered her a friend, and while she may have been friendly with dhampirs and Moroi more now than she was earlier this year, I still wasn't sure that I would trust her with the true paternity of my child.

"And you know Eddie and Jill would never do anything to hurt you," Lissa said. "But, still, it's likely for the better."

I shook my head. "They can't know. Nobody else can know."

"Jill likely knows," Lissa said, giving me a look.

A side effect of the newly formed bond between Adrian and Jill meant that he likely had no secrets with her. I grimaced, not having considered that. I knew Jill meant well, but I didn't know her well enough to be confident that she would keep this secret. Though, considering that nobody had shown up or questioned Lissa about my whereabouts was a good sign that she hadn't already told someone.

Christian frowned, joining the conversation. "Rose, it's going to be hard to hide that you were pregnant. Babies don't just come out of thin air."

"It's going to have to come out at some point," my mom added, agreeing with Christian.

I shook my head. "No, it's not. The baby is staying here when I return to Court next summer. The people at Court won't see me with him, so they won't need to know about my pregnancy."

"You're not going to raise him?" my mom said a moment later, fighting through her shock. "I thought that was what you resented most about me. That I wasn't there to raise you."

Tears stung at the corner of my eyes. "It was. But I can't subject him to whatever experiments the Moroi, or the Alchemists, are going to want to do."

"So don't tell them," Dimitri said lowly.

"What?"

"Don't tell them the child is mine," he said. "Dhampirs adopting a baby together or using a sperm donor isn't uncommon."

"It is at Court!" I raked a hand through my hair in frustration.

What if it happens again? Lissa spoke through the bond, not voicing her question out loud. Clearly, you and Dimitri are back together.

"We'll be careful," I said, answering her question. I ignored everyone else's confused looks, including Dimitri's. "I've already made up my mind. End of conversation."

The rest of the group exchanged uneasy glances, but nobody said anything.

"Breakfast is ready," Olena chimed in, cutting the tension in the room and distracting the group.

We gathered around the dining room table and passed dishes back and forth. Olena had outdone herself with the food, and the group couldn't stop raving about her cooking. Her face flushed under the attention, but part of me knew she enjoyed being recognized for her cooking.

The rest of Christmas passed uneventfully. We opened presents as a group, and my haul consisted of a mix of pregnancy and baby-related items, and items for me. The topic of the baby after he was born didn't come up again, and I spent the rest of the day curled up by Dimitri's side, relishing in the time I had left with him before he returned to Court in a couple of days.

The rest of their time here went by too fast, and before I knew it, it was the morning that Lissa, Christian, Dimitri, and the rest of the guardians were leaving. Dimitri and I spent the morning together in each other's arms, making up for lost time. When we finally pulled ourselves from the bedroom, there were only a couple of more hours before their departure, and I took a couple of steps back, turning him over to his family to spend time with them alone as well.

Dimitri had moved all of my items from the house next door back after that first morning, so there wasn't anything to move back over, but I still found myself going over there. Lissa was finalizing her packing in the living room. When I walked in, she was going through her list and making sure she wasn't leaving anything behind. As she did so, I spotted the glint of the ring on her finger.

"Congratulations," I said, coming up beside her. I knew the proposal was coming, and while I didn't know the exact details, once I realized the bond was blocked last night, I was quick to figure out the reason.

Lissa held out her hand, showing the ring properly. "Thank you." She narrowed her eyes at me. "Did you know?"

I nodded. "Christian told me a few weeks ago."

"So all of that teasing—"

"Was just that," I confirmed. "I just like messing with a bit."

Lissa shook her head with a small laugh. Her gaze turned wistful. "I can't wait to have you back at Court. We have a wedding to plan now."

I nodded, ignoring the small pit that had formed in my stomach. "I'll be back before you know it."

"You're coming back in June, right?"

I shrugged. "Possibly July. I want to give my body time to heal, so I was thinking around twelve weeks after the birth is when I'll come back. We'll see what date that ends up being once he's born."

Lissa nodded. "I can't wait to meet him."

"Will you be his godmother?" I blurted out. It wasn't how I had intended to ask her, but now that it was out, I couldn't take it back. I was also planning on asking Karolina. She was Dimitri's closest sister, not just in age, and I knew she would be the best choice out of the Belikova sisters.

Lissa covered her mouth as tears sprung to her eyes. "Yes! A thousand times, yes."

I hugged her. "Thank you, Liss.

I met Dimitri back over at the Belikovas before they left, and we stepped into the dining room to have a moment to ourselves.

"I'll miss you, Roza," Dimitri murmured. "I'll be back as soon as I can."

I shook my head. "I'll be okay. Save your time off for when he's born."

"April, right?"

I nodded. "April 15th is the date the doctor gave me last time I saw her."

"I'll be back at the beginning of April then. Just in case you give birth early," he said. "If you notice any signs, tell me immediately, and I'll get here as soon as I can."

I leaned up on my tiptoes to kiss him, trying to take away some of his anxiety. I knew it worried him being so far away. I tried to reassure him over the past couple of days that I would likely have a long labor, and he'd have plenty of time to get here. Karolina and Sonya both had long labors, and all of my research pointed towards having longer labors with the firstborn child.

"Promise me, Roza," he murmured.

I kissed him again. "I promise."

The next few months passed with relative ease. In addition to the weekly updates I sent Lissa, I had started talking with Dimitri every other day. We had to time our calls specifically to make up for the eleven-hour time difference. We tended to start our days around the same time when considering the nocturnal schedule that Dimitri was on, and I set an earlier alarm on the days that I talked to him to make it easier for him to talk before going to his shift. Occasionally, we'd talk at night, but those days were few and far between, especially as the Council got back in session. Some days, the Council would run over, resulting in extra hours worked that Lissa tried her best to make up for. She kept Dimitri off night duty, purely so that it was easier for him to find time to talk to me.

We celebrated my nineteenth birthday with a lowkey family celebration, one that both my parents attended since they were both already on this side of the world. As the rest of March ticked by, I started counting down the days until Dimitri would return. He had sent me his flight information the moment it was booked, and Lissa had given an order for him to have access to the helicopter to save time. Once he landed in Omsk, it would take just over two hours for him to reach Baia instead of the nearly seven hours it would take by car.

The Wednesday after my birthday, and a week before Dimitri would be getting here, I woke up to sharp pains in my back. There was a tightening sensation across my stomach, and I froze, waiting for the pain to pass as I gritted my teeth. Once it did, I rolled over to my other side, trying to fall back asleep. I had just drifted back to sleep when the back pain returned. I lay there as my back throbbed, the pain receding after a minute. There was still a dull ache in my lower back, but it was manageable.

I stood from the bed and changed before going downstairs. The weather had started to change in Baia, and I was no longer in thermal leggings and sweaters. In the kitchen, Olena and Karolina were talking. Zoya was perched on Karolina's hip, and I smiled and waved at her as I grabbed a Greek yogurt from the fridge. As I pulled it out, there was a sharp pain in my back, and I let out an involuntary gasp.

"Rose?" Karolina asked. "What's wrong?"

I rubbed my back with my free hand. "I woke up with a backache. And I keep getting spasms."

Olena and Karolina exchanged a look.

"What kind of spasms?" Olena asked.

"Similar to cramps," I said after a moment. "And my stomach feels tight."

Karolina nodded as if confirming something. "It sounds like you've gone into labor."

Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah to those who celebrate! I hope y'all enjoyed this chapter, and are ready for the adventures to come!