Page 30 of A Swan for Christmas

Vic squirmed on the couch. “Sorry. I’m a tad possessive. But if it’s all right with Kellan, I think you should.”

Kellan regarded Dr. Arthur. He didn’t want a stranger touching him, but he wanted to know if his egg was okay even more. “Go ahead.”

Kellan rested against the back of the couch and untied Vic’s robe, letting it fall open. He mused how lucky he was that he hadn’t fallen flat on his face with all the jumping around he’d done in the robe that was much too long for him. He lifted the hem of the dancing reindeer T-shirt he’d bought in the restaurant’s gift shop and exposed his belly.

An undignified giggle-snort burst out of him at the first press of Dr. Arthur’s cold fingers to his skin. He poked and prodded above and below Kellan’s navel, finally hitting the most solid area at the pit of his abdomen, the pressure making Kellan uncomfortable to the point of wanting to vomit. He was about to ask Dr. Arthur to stop when the specialist pulled his hands away.

“That was fine, Kellan. Now I’ll take a listen.”

Kellan started at the first contact of the cold instrument to his belly and he clenched his fists. He hated waiting. That’s all he’d been doing since he’d first realized he must be carrying an egg. Why couldn’t Dr. Arthur hurry up?

Dr. Arthur scrunched his eyebrows together, nodding as he listened here, then there, then another spot entirely. “Hmm.” He nodded some more then straightened. The smile he radiated back at them had Kellan’s heart soaring even before he began to speak. “I can hear your baby’s heartbeat. The egg is most definitely fertile.”

Kellan squealed—a happy noise instead of a vicious one—and threw his arms around Vic’s neck. Vic hugged him close, rocking him and whispering in Kellan’s ear how happy he was, how he couldn’t wait until their baby was hatched.

That’s right.

Kellan twisted in Vic’s embrace to face Dr. Arthur. “How far along am I, or however that gets worked out.”

Dr. Arthur’s eyebrows shot up. “Don’t you know the basics of your egg-hatching cycle?”

Kellan shook his head. “No. I was the only egg-layer in my herd. An egg-layer was a liability for them once they’d decided to move around the country, making their way through life by robbing people. The only reason my brother put up with me at all was because we were related. At least I think that’s why.”

The blood seemed to drain from his body as a horrible realization came to him. Maybe Finn had planned on abandoning him all along. Perhaps Finn had known he was approaching his heat and didn’t want him dragging down the herd. He hung his head.

“Sweetheart?” Vic encouraged him to look in his eyes. “Aren’t you happy about the egg?”

What’s wrong with me? Finn did me a favor. “The happiest I’ve ever been, Vic. I don’t care about Finn or my herd or any of that anymore. They were never my true family, but you are. And Vale Valley is my genuine home. The beginning of the best day of my life was when Finn pushed me out of that truck. Now I have more joy than I’d ever dreamed possible.”

Vic claimed his mouth in a deep kiss and it wasn’t until Dr. Arthur loudly cleared his throat that they were pulled from their private world.

Kellan wiped the back of his hand across his lips. “Um, excuse us.”

Vic chuckled. “I think he understands.”

Dr. Arthur smiled, his eyes bright. “Oh, I do. But I believe you were wondering about timelines?”

“Oh!” Kellan straightened on the couch, tugging the robe back around him. “Yes. Since the egg is…is..” Oh damn, here I go again. I refuse to cry. If the egg was behind all the waterworks he’d been experiencing lately, then he hoped he’d be back to normal after the baby had hatched.

Baby…

Dr. Arthur leaned in, his eyebrows arched as he waited for Kellan to continue. Vic spoke up.

“I think what we’re both wondering, is when will he lay the egg and how soon after that will it hatch?”

Dr. Arthur chuckled. “Excited parents, that’s a wonderful thing. Since this is his first clutch, it could take longer. By all appearances, he should lay at any minute. The hatching should be approximately four to five weeks after.”

Vic’s arm tightened around him. “When you say ‘clutch’, will he lay more than one egg?”

“Sorry, I’m so accustomed to the terminology. I only detected one heartbeat and it’s typical for a first clutch to either have one or two eggs or infertile ones. If you fertilize him again in the future, you could end up with a few viable eggs.” He winked. “You might want to take that into consideration before you try for any more children.”

Kellan tensed right along with Vic. “But…the egg is for sure fertile?” Vic absent-mindedly stroked Kellan’s arm.

Dr. Arthur rose from the chair, his smile broad as he considered them both. “Yes, no worries there. However, I’m afraid I have to go. It’s a bit of a drive back and I hear another storm is headed this way.”

Vic stood and shook Dr. Arthur’s hand. “Thank you so much, this has meant the world to both of us.”

“You’re welcome. I’m sure it comes as a relief.” Dr. Arthur peered around Vic and gave Kellan a nod. “Congratulations. I know you’re going to be a fantastic daddy.”