We stop near the parking lot. The guests have long since gone, and Nikolai is the last person in the lot. He leans against his Cadillac, smoking a cigarette and looking dashing in the rain, coat collar turned up against his neck. A pang of unbridled, glittering, deep joy goes through me at the sight of him. Suddenly I feel stronger, better, like I can take on anything so long as he’s at my side.
“Yeah,” I say to Yvan. “We weren’t, actually.”
“Well. I’m happy to say my wedding gift comes with a honeymoon.”
I look up at him, searching his face. “You’re really OK with me just walking away from this?”
He reaches for me, then hesitates. After a moment, he gently places his hand on my shoulder, and my heart fills with tentative warmth. “Your father wanted you free, Zane. Let’s honor his memory the best we can. Agreed?”
I smile, and place my hand over his. “Agreed.”
23
Nik
“Maya will be here in an hour,” I say. Zane is buzzing around the kitchen, cooking with surprising prowess. The kitchen in the Victoria cottage is her favorite room. She says the light reminds her of her Philly studio, and the rushing sea outside makes her forget it. “You sure you’ve got this?”
She pins me with a knowing stare. “Don’t.”
I smile. “Come on. You really expect me to not be overprotective? The first trimester is the—”
“Nik!” But she laughs, and when I round the counter and pull her into my arms, she kisses me softly. “I’m not made of glass.”
“Fuck no, you’re not.” I kiss the tip of her nose. She’s all radiance and curves; the scar on her neck is so faded it might have disappeared completely. Us being out here, being severed from the world we no longer feel chained to, has changed everything. There are no more games, no more lies, no more fear or violence or sacrifice. We’re safe here. With each other. And soon, with our first child. My heart soars when I imagine cradling that child, knowing they will never have to grow up the way we did. “You know, if everything’s wrapped up here…”
“Oh, yeah?” She giggles, the sound winding me tight. I slide a hand over her belly. Soon she’ll start showing. Every milestone feels earth shattering, and I can barely fathom the pride that wells in me, looking at my wife. “Something you wanna do?”
“Don’t taunt me,” I say, kissing her jaw, her neck, her clavicle. I trail my tongue between her breasts, kneeling before her. When I look up, her eyes are heavy-lidded, her lips pouting. “I can’t be rough with you, you know.”
She smiles, arching a brow. “A little gentleness can be just as sexy.”
I follow her into the bedroom.
24
Zane
Sunlight pours through the open window. Autumn is around the corner. This time last year, my life was falling apart. Now almost every inch of it is mended.
I lie back on the bed, Nik climbing on top of me, his beautiful face devoid of misery or anguish or anger or sorrow. The soldier is dead. Now there is a full man, a passionate man, a man with a purpose and a place and a wife and a child on the way.
My man.
When he kisses me, that familiar hunger cinches tight in my navel. We could do this a million times, and I’d never tire of it. The way he holds me, the way he looks at me, the way desire falls from him openly like light.
I thread my fingers through his thick black curls, parting my lips for his hot, deliberate tongue. My legs lock around his hips, and I savor the slow act of sliding his shirt over his head. He sits back, gazing down at me, sunlight a halo behind him. I bite my lip, heart skipping a beat as I watch him unbuckle his belt.
“You really are glowing.”
“Stop,” I laugh, but I feel it. Happiness, radiating out of me from deep within. I slowly lift the hem of my flowery red dress, enticing him with a pair of lace panties I bought just for this occasion. The slack desire that fills his face turns me on like no other. “Maya is probably landing right now…”
He takes the hint, gently pushing my dress further up and running warm, rough palms down my thighs. I shudder with anticipation, biting my lip as he begins kissing my knee, my inner thigh, my hip. His fingers hook under my panties, and he slowly pulls them low.
His tongue finds me easily, and I sink into the bed, moaning softly. His hands rise to my breasts, delicately pulling the top of my dress down, liberating them. I mewl as his fingers circle my nipples, his tongue sliding inside of me.
He knows exactly what I like. He knows exactly what my body needs. His tongue stroking my clit, he lowers his hand, stroking me with his fingers. When I’m wet enough to beg, he thrusts one inside of me.
But today, it’s not enough. “Nik,” I plead, and he chuckles, smiling up at me. “Please.”
