My Savior(21)

She finished washing and stepped out. She dried off as fast as she could and wrapped her hair up in a towel. She would wait until it was almost dry before working a sculpting cream through her hair. Even during the coldest winters, she never blow-dried her curls; if she did, the natural curls she inherited from her mother would end up in a pouffy mess. More than once, when she was growing up she had longed for straight hair like her brothers.

Standing at the bathroom counter, she opened her everyday makeup bag. She went through her familiar routine of applying her favorite foundations and eyeshadows. Each action brought order to the chaos she was feeling. When she was done, she was happy with the soft, feminine look she had created. She unwrapped her hair from the towel and worked her favorite hair cream through her long curls. She bent over and shook out her hair at the roots to give it volume. Standing, she blew a kiss to herself in the mirror. She hung up the towel and stepped into the room. Coming from a heated, steamy bathroom, her bedroom felt cold. Goosebumps covered her from head to toe as she raced naked over to her suitcase and pulled out a haphazard outfit. Black knee high socks, skinny jeans, black tank top, and a zippered black hoodie sweater completed her outfit. Smiling, she picked out her favorite ruby red bra and panty set. Surprisingly, her underthings were as colorful as the rainbow. Only her outer clothes seemed to stay black and white.

Once dressed, she tucked her phone into her back pocket, grabbed her coat from the chair, and went downstairs. She walked through the foyer and down the hallway to the empty dining room. Without everyone around the table, the room seemed much bigger than the night before. She heard sounds from the kitchen and followed the voices. She found Rheia and Ryuu at the kitchen table sipping on tea.

Ryuu stood, smiling. "I'm happy to see that not everyone in this house rises with the sun. Please, join us." He pointed to an empty kitchen chair.

Amelia hung her coat on the back of the chair and sat down. Ryuu glided over to the cabinet and pulled down another cup and saucer. He placed them in front of her and sat down again. Rheia poured her a cup of what looked and smelled like jasmine green tea.

"The aroma is lovely." Amelia added five teaspoons of sugar and stirred lightly.

"I don't know how you or Meryn have any teeth left. You both drink your sugar with a bit of tea." Rheia shook her head.

"I need the sugar this morning. I usually rise with the sun, as Ryuu put it, but woke up this morning after a nightmare feeling completely out of sorts," she confessed.

"Is there anything we can do to help?" Ryuu asked.

Amelia shook her head. "It's something I need to work out. The tea is helping, I feel calmer already."

Smiling, Ryuu and Rheia shared a look.

Amelia frowned. "What?"

Rheia apologized quickly. "I'm sorry. Let me explain. This is my mother's tea service. Whenever I needed a pick-me-up, she would use this set, and it seemed like my worries would just float away."

"Is it okay for me to use?" Amelia asked, worried she had blundered in where she didn't belong.

Rheia laughed. "Of course, it's okay. In fact, maybe my mother is looking out for the both of us this morning."

"Why do you need its calming effects?" Amelia asked.

"I'm worried about having this baby; it's my first. Like Meryn, I'm human having a shifter baby. I have heard that sometimes human women can have issues delivering." Rheia sat back in her chair.

Amelia frowned. She was confused. She could have sworn she met Rheia's daughter the night before. "But Penny..."

"Penny is my adopted daughter. Even though I didn't give birth to her, she couldn't be more like me if we tried. So, even though I'm already a mother, I've never actually experienced giving birth. I bet it's much different being the one pushing than telling someone to push."

"I think you'll be fine, at least you know what to expect. You're not going into it wide eyed with expectations of a twenty minute delivery before holding your perfect baby, hair and makeup still looking great."

"You're right, but I think it's a double-edged sword. I also know everything that can go wrong." Rheia stared into her cup, a frown pulling her eyebrows together in worry.

Amelia knew no matter what she said, Rheia would continue to fret until her baby was safe in her arms, so she decided to change the subject to something happier.

"So are you decorating in Star Wars and Doctor Who, too?" Amelia joked.

Rheia's face brightened and she laughed. "God, no. Colton and I decided on a baby wolf theme. Evidently, it's very popular here in Lycaonia at the moment due to a suggestion Meryn made to another pregnant woman a couple months ago. A lot of shops in the city started creating different shifter-themed items. We chose wolf, not only because my baby will be half wolf shifter, but we're also including Penny in the decorations. The baby's nursery will have a mural of Colton and Penny in their shifted forms painted on one of the walls."