Gideon by Jacquelyn Frank

abilities.
    Demons often went through great surges of development during their lifetime, a series of almost adolescent growth spurts, and she was young enough as an adult to experience these. Yet Gideon could not remember seeing such an unexpected leap in strength and ability in a Demon since... well, since her brother"s youth. Their genetic stock was predisposed to such things, but Noah was of Fire. Fire had its own rules when it came to growth within because of the way the Demon could draw energy from outside sources. Demons of the Mind were a young breed, the eldest and first born of the ability only recently lost to them at the age of 405. Since Lucas"s birth, Demons of the Mind had become a regular and frequent element for the young. The guidelines of their development were set down in expected patterns well before Legna"s birth.
    The medic also knew that Legna was aware enough of this growth and the peculiarity of it to make a pretense of being somewhat weaker than she really was.
    He wondered at that, curious as to why she would deny such remarkable aptitude. He had been observing her somewhat closely these past five months, since his reemergence and her Summoning. However, her continued hostility toward him kept him at a suitable enough distance to prevent him from making a complete diagnosis of her metabolic development. Just as she could read emotion, Legna used the powers of her mind to put up impenetrable barriers around herself, strong enough to keep even Gideon"s formidable powers somewhat at bay.
    That was only part of the obstacle, though. The other part was within Gideon himself. When it came to Legna, he found himself compelled to reserve any action that, should she sense it in any measure, she might take as an intrusion... a violation. He had made the mistake with her once in the past, and would be hard-pressed to ever repeat it. Despite what Isabella and Legna thought, he was quite capable of learning from his mistakes...
    when he chose to.
    Gideon turned back to Isabella, noting the nervous way she was stroking the distended belly that housed her developing child. He had been aware of her fears and concerns even before overhearing her conversation with Magdelegna. However, contrary to what Legna believed, he was quite capable of holding his thoughts to himself when he thought it would be better for his patient. He was incapable of lying, even if he had seen use in it. The truth of his concerns over the hundreds of things that could go wrong with Isabella"s pregnancy would give her little peace of mind and could potentially have illreaching ramifications. So he kept his counsel, offering no false comfort and no frightening truths. He would allow her to continue to draw her own conclusions, so long as it did not reach a pitch of worry that would be detrimental to her health. Unknowingly, Legna"s affirmations of his straightforward nature had been advantageous to both him and the mother-to-be.
    “I see no need to arrive in person this week,” he informed Isabella. “However, if you should require anything or experience any concerns, you may contact me immediately.”
    Gideon took a moment to do a last visual check of the breeding woman, his fingertips touching her chin, turning her head to the side gently as he inspected her pulse and blood pressure with a momentary glance. He briefly ran a hand over the swell of her belly, and then he stepped away from her, dropping his touch from her before the male Enforcer sensed his mate had been touched by another male and showed up in an agitated swirl of dust. Jacob had made no secret of his possessiveness of Isabella. This sometimes occurred in an Imprinting, depending on the nature of the element the Demon came from and factors in personality. Jacob"s affinity with nature made him very susceptible to surges of territoriality when it came to that which he held most precious. The Enforcer was capable of curbing the emotion when absolutely necessary, so it would not