"We was reportin' for duty," Hubie nodded earnestly, whipping a worn cap from his head and fidgeting with it.

"What duty? And who said to feed them?" I directed at Nelo, who looked up at me guiltily from picking up the broken pieces of plate.

"Was it wrong to feed them? They're our guests."

"Trust me, they are not our guests, Nelo." I tried to sound less stern before he shook himself into a nervous fit. "I hope your servitude to Raum was worth giving up your lives, boys, because I warned him to leave me and mine alone." Summoning my sword, I faced them down.

"N-No... you've got the w-wrong idea, miss," Bert stammered. "Tell her, Hubie." His jaundiced eyes bulged terribly.

"Indeed, we ain't here after you, Mistress, we's here for you."

"For me," I repeated, staring at them blankly.

"We's here as tribute," Hubie nodded so fast I thought his head might wobble off.

"To keep you safe," Bert added with a bright smile. Well, as bright as a mouth full of rotten teeth could be.

"To keep me safe?" I felt like a parrot, but found myself absolutely dumbfounded by the proclamation. The pair of them nodded and smiled, and I almost wished they'd go back to their normal sullen demeanor.

"See, they're friends." Nelo smiled wide, blinking up at me with innocence, and I patted his head, letting the sword disappear.

"I don't know about that, but you and I are going to have a talk later about the definition of guests." Turning to face the pair of demons, I tried to ignore the litter of food liberally dusting my living room. "You two are here as bodyguards then?" Why did the idea make me cringe?

"Right-o. Where you go, we go, don't we Hubie?" They both visibly eased after I put the sword away.

"I don't need a bodyguard, so you can go back home."

Hubie took a step closer, twisting the cap in his hands. "Oh no, we can't go back, miss, leastwise not now. Raum'll have our heads."

"Fine, then you don't have to go home, but you can't stay here," I waved them off. "Go play somewhere else." Preferably in traffic.

"If Raum finds out we wasn't living up to our end of the bargain, he'd be ever so angry," Bert said in a mournful voice.

"Tell me again why I'm supposed to care?"

Nelo tugged at my sleeve. "Raum is must unpleasant when he's angry," he said softly, and I felt bad for the position Raum had put them in, but it really wasn't my problem.

"Well, you can't stay here. I told you, I don't need a bodyguard."

"We wasn't thinkin' of puttin' you out, Mistress," Hubie piped up in an ingratiating tone. At least I think it was supposed to be ingratiating, but it came out more annoying. "We'll find somewheres to hole up. We just wanted to present ourselves all friendly-like so's you wouldn't be afeared when we accompany you places."

"Boys, let me make something crystal clear." I clapped my hands on their shoulders, trying to ignore the cloud of stench that motion raised. "I don't want a demon entourage. So, if you're thinking about following me around day and night, you can forget it. If you think Raum's temper is bad, trust me, you haven't seen mine."

"It is a fearsome thing indeed," Nelo nodded solemnly.

The pair flinched under my hands almost as if I'd struck them, and I let go with a sigh, disgusted with myself for feeling pity for them. They were the same two demons that dragged me off to Midian in the first place! I shouldn't feel anything but contempt, but instead I couldn't help the niggling little idea I was somehow responsible for them since Raum gifted me with them.

"What if I gave you another a.s.signment?"

"What kind of a.s.signment?" Bert asked, a light of hope behind his yellowed eyes.

"What if you protect Oriana instead? She could use looking after more than I can, and she might actually appreciate a familiar face hanging around." Not that I thought they'd keep her out of trouble when it came to fitting in, but they could probably be counted on to keep her from burning to death in a microwave related fire.

"What do you reckon, Hubie? Could we do such a thing?" Bert blinked, and Hubie scratched at his lanky hair absently.

"We was to follow her orders, keep her and hers safe. Might could make it work."

"Great, it's a done deal as soon as I talk to Oriana. If she objects, you guys are on your own."

"She won't mind, she's always been right friendly to us," Bert beamed.

"Right, well, we'll see if she's interested. In the meantime, you guys have to clear out of here. It's late and you two are very... pungent."

"I had a bath not three months ago," Hubie smoothed his hands over his grubby coat as Bert sniffed delicately at his shoulder, shrugging them when he detected nothing amiss.

"Nelo, do you think you could help them find a place to stay for the night?"

"No worries, miss," Hubie interrupted. "We've spent plenty of time around these parts, won't be no trouble findin' suitable digs."

"How comforting," I gave him a thin smile. "Alright then boys, why don't you head off, and I'll be in touch." Only without actually touching. I already felt like I needed a shower just from sharing the same air with them.

"Right-o," Hubie pushed Bert towards the door. "Never you fear, Mistress. We'll be nearby in case you needs us."

"Thank you, Mistress," Bert echoed. "It was ever so nice to see you again." He offered a last rotted smile before they were out the door.

"I can clean up the mess if you wish to rest now, Mistress," Nelo said in a small voice. "You must be fatigued from learning to birth."

"Learning to... no, I wasn't practicing the actual labor, Nelo," I shook my head. "The cla.s.s was about what to expect when it happens. Besides, I don't think I could relax right now, I feel like I need to scrub down everything," I shuddered, surveying the mess. At least I had a vinyl couch that could be easily wiped down instead of having to rent an upholstery cleaner.

"Leave that to me, it was my mistake in welcoming them into your home." Nelo began to busily gather up the remains of the food, catching on to the fact that I wanted to toss all the leftovers rather than share what they'd already touched.

"It's alright, Nelo, I'm not blaming you. But we should talk about this," I replied, grabbing a big, black garbage bag to help out. "In the future, don't let anyone in unless you know I've invited them, or they're close friends."

"As you wish, Mistress."

"If you're unsure, then keep them out. Or you can try calling me if it's an emergency."

"I have no means to call you."

I had no landline, just my cell phone which was usually with me. For a split second I toyed with the idea of getting him his own phone, but decided that was a luxury I couldn't afford. "You just have to call my full name and I'll hear you," I replied. "But only save that for real emergencies. Running out of bacon doesn't count."

"What if I need bacon?" he asked, looking worried about the idea of being without its salty goodness since I'd brought it up.

"No one needs bacon all that badly. Something like that can wait."

"Not even if I need it for a recipe?"

"Not even then," I replied gravely. "Nelo, are you lonely here?" I asked, wondering if that had something to do why he'd invited frick and frack in for a party.

"Lonely?" he blinked. "Of course not. I have Mimsy to talk to always, and your company to look forward to."

"I meant for your own kind. Do you ever miss being in Midian?"

"Miss it?" Nelo made a strange keening sound, doubling over as if he was in pain and I dropped to my knees to see what was the matter. He rolled onto his back, feet waving in the air and that's when I realized he was laughing. Uncontrollable giggles to be more exact, and it took him a few minutes to catch his breath enough to speak.

"No, Mistress. I do not miss Midian. I love it here with you. Why... do you wish me to return to Midian when the Bunny comes?" His eyes widened in sudden fear.

"No, Nelo." I gathered him onto my shrinking lap as best I could. "I don't want you to go back to Midian. Ohana means family, and we don't leave family behind." I put it in terms he could understand. "We're adding a new member to the family, but that doesn't mean there isn't room for you too. There's always room for family."

"Then why did you tell your mother there wasn't room for her to live with us?"

d.a.m.n, he had me there. "I didn't mean there isn't room for her in my life, I meant there isn't room for her physically here. She comes with way too much baggage. Besides, you can't have too many mama bears in the house, the baby bear won't know who to listen to."

"I thought you said it was a bunny..."

"It's not..." Lord, did he really think I had a fuzzy rabbit growing inside of me? "There's no bunny or bear inside here, it's a normal human baby." I hoped... "Bunny is a nick name until I find out if it's a girl or a boy and pick out a real name."

"Oh." Nelo nodded in understanding. "I like Bunny, it sounds playful. Will the Bunny like to play?"

"Not right at first, it'll be too small for games to start with. Human babies are very delicate, we have to be careful not to break them. But when it gets bigger, then yes, I think it'll like games."

"I'll be very careful not to break it."

"I know you will, Nelo. But right at first, how about we come up with the rule that you only touch the baby when I'm around. Just until you get the hang of being around it."

"As you wish, Mistress." I held him in silence then, rocking us both gently. "Mistress?" he asked after a while.

"Hmm?"

"Can the baby hear me?"

"I think so. Studies have shown babies react to sounds outside the womb."

"Good." He leaned down to speak against my swelling abdomen. "I can't wait to play with you, Bunny."

Chapter Sixteen.

"I feel like I'm always thanking you for something lately," I remarked, stretching the seatbelt as wide as it could go to accommodate my giant belly.

"That's not such a bad thing, is it?" Parker looked over the tops of his sungla.s.ses at me. Once more he came to the rescue, offering to take me to my doctor's appointment after my trusty car developed a terminal case of not-working-itis. I could have flown, but I felt like a giant hippo lately, my swelling abdomen throwing me off balance. A car ride seemed safer.

"No, I just hate asking for favors. I should probably get used to it though unless I can scrounge up enough money for a new car."

"Why don't you use Adam's car? He left you a sweet ride, didn't he?"

"I'd rather not owe him any favors," I muttered, looking out the window.

"Good." I heard him say under his breath.

Things were still in limbo between Parker and me in the weeks that pa.s.sed since the kiss. We hadn't talked about it at all, but I noticed that Parker started to take more liberties with me than before. He'd come and rub my shoulders at work when I was on a break or take my hand more often if we went somewhere together. Goodbyes were generally accompanied by a quick peck on the lips. Once or twice not all that quick...

I didn't object.

At the same time, I didn't do anything to give him the green light to take it to the next level either. I still wore Adam's ring, and I still thought on some level that we'd work things out between us, I guess. But it was hard to resist Parker's attention, so most of the time I didn't even try. Instead I found myself sitting next to him on the couch on purpose, hoping he'd linger when the others went home whenever we all hung out together. I probably spent more time with him than I had with most boyfriends in the past, between work and off time, but neither of us rocked the boat to define it.

I admit part of me was afraid if I gave in and did something about the growing attraction I felt for him, I might lose my chances with Adam once and for all. Not to mention the fact that Parker wasn't exactly known for his long term relationships. What if we hooked up and then he decided he was done with me? How could we remain friends or even our working relationship? Plus, part of me didn't want to enter a physical relationship with my body hijacked by the little critter.

I hoped the ultrasound would finally show us the s.e.x of the baby, but after the last couple of failures I didn't hold my breath. Dr. Hathaway held more faith on the matter though, greeting us with a hearty smile.

"Today's the day, I can feel it!"

"I sure hope so, the suspense is killing me." I shook the hand offered. "This is Parker, he's my..." It was getting harder and harder to define our relationship.

"Oh, are you the fiance?" Hathaway dropped my hand to shake his. Maybe I should have stopped wearing the ring in Parker's presence? He didn't seem to mind the misconception though.

"That's me," Parker grinned. "And I know you'll come through for us, Doc. I've got a fifty lined up on it being a girl and I can't collect until we have definitive proof."

"Fifty, huh?" Hathaway considered aloud, still pumping Parker's hand. "I'll take that action, LOL."

Parker's eyes narrowed and I could tell he was trying to figure if the odds had shifted out of his favor based on whatever inside information the doctor might have. But in the end, he was a gambling man by nature, and his smile returned quickly enough. "Done."

"Well then, let's get this show on the road." Hathaway looked positively gleeful, and I wondered if he took bets on all of his patients.

"I've been good by the way," I piped up, miffed over all the interest in odds over Bunny's health. "My energy level's been fine, my ankles are a little swollen though."

"Good, good," the doctor replied, more focused on getting the machine up and running than my answers, I suspected.

"I sure wish I'd stop craving live worms though, I can't get enough of them."

Parker shot me a look, but Hathaway didn't falter. "Good..."

"Maybe it's from all the fresh dirt I've added to my diet."

"Yep..."

"Do you think that could be the reason?" I asked, waiting expectantly and he turned to me with a blank stare.

"I'm sorry, what were you saying?"

"You didn't get any of that, did you?" I shook my head with a sigh while Parker sn.i.g.g.e.red beside me.

"Oh, sorry, I guess not. I get carried away by the technology sometimes, I heart this machine," he apologized with a silly grin.