Page 58 of Entangled

“Oh. Hmmm. Interesting.” Persimmon’s fingers grazed over the ball and she peered into it intently.

“Honey? Do you see something?” Stone got up and moved in closer. Fang followed.

“I think so, but I can’t be sure. Oh.That is something I didn’t expect.” Her brows arched.

“What is?” asked Sebastian. “Please don’t tell me she has some sort of disease that can’t be cured.”

“Nay, that’s not the case at all,” said Persimmon. Sebastian let out a breath he’d been holding.

“Then what is it?” asked Sebastian anxiously. “Is it something that only happens to sea nymphs? Please tell me it’s not a curse from any of the gods.”

Persimmon chuckled and slipped the gazing orb back into her pouch. “I assure you, she is not cursed. What has happened to her, happens to everyone, no matter if they are magical or not. Or, not everyone. But it does happen to most women.”

“What?” asked Sebastian so nervous that right now that he wanted to shake the answer out of the witch. “Tell me. I need to know. What is ailing her?”

A smile spread across Persimmon’s face. “Sebastian, Merrow is feeling ill but it isn’t because she is ailing. Unless my visions are wrong, I’d say Merrow is pregnant.”

Sebastian almost fell over, having to grab on to the wall so he wouldn’t collapse. “Pregnant? Already? That’s impossible.”

“It seems it is possible. Or at least for sea nymphs,” said Persimmon. “Like I told you, we really don’t know much about them, but now I guess we do.”

“Congratulations,” said Darium, slapping Sebastian on the back. “You have a head start on your family, it seems.”

“You should have let me marry you two when I wanted to,” complained Elric. “Now, it’s going to be trouble. Trouble, I tell you, with a capital T.”

“Elric, what are you babbling about?” asked Zann. “How is Merrow being pregnant going to cause trouble? After all, they are already planning on getting married.”

“That’s right,” said Stone. “Elric, are you just trying to cause problems again? Because, if so, we don’t think it’s funny.” Fang howled, giving his feedback as well.

“You big oafs, wake up!” snapped Elric, pacing back and forth so quickly that it made Sebastian dizzy. “Since she got pregnant before being married, don’t you see the concerns?”

All the men looked at one another and shrugged.

“No, not really,” said Zann. “Mayhap you need to tell us.”

Elric stopped pacing and sighed. Then he jumped up on a wooden bench in the corridor so everyone could see him. “I swear, being a sage and having a brain goes wasted on the lot of you.”

“Father, just tell us what you mean. Please,” begged Persimmon. “We can’t read your mind.”

“She’s about to be married and turn human, right?”

“Yes,” said Sebastian. “But it is Merrow’s choice. No one forced her to do it.”

“Mayhap that is so,” said Elric. “But it is not the baby’s choice.”

“Explain,” said Rhys.

“Don’t you fools see?” Elric was becoming angry. “She was a sea nymph when Sebastian impregnated her. But she’ll be a human when she gives birth.”

“Is that a problem?” asked Sebastian, not understanding at all.

“It is, if the baby is a sea nymph,” spat Elric. “Giving birth to a sea nymph might kill her. Or even if it doesn’t, how is she going to raise a child who is half fish? She loses her tail and sea nymph abilities once she’s married to you, unless you’ve already forgotten.”

“Oh, no,” said Sebastian, feeling as if their marriage would be doomed after all. “I’ve got to see her.” He pushed past the girls and entered the room, needing to talk to Merrow so they could figure out just what to do. This was all something that Sebastian hadn’t expected and neither did he know how to fix it.