Then he dropped to his knees.
One second he was looming, all height and ink and presence. The next, he knelt on the cool stone, hands braced at my hips, head tilted back to look at me.
The shift did something violent to me. Men like him didn’t kneel. Crows made other people kneel.
“I swear to you. On my knees, where I belong when I’m asking for mercy. I fucking love you, Madeline.”
The rawness in his voice put a crack straight through me.
“Vince—”
His hands slid lower, thumbs tracing the curve of my hip bones. He leaned in and pressed a kiss to my stomach, right below the line of my bikini top.
“One day, I’m putting a baby Crow in here. Maybe two. Twins run strong in our blood.”
My brain tripped overbabyand skidded straight into the wall of how not horrified I was.
“This is so you. I end it, you fly to another capital and immediately threaten to knock me up.”
“That’s Crow, baby.” Another kiss to the same spot. Slower. “We don’t let go. And I’m sure as fuck not letting you go.”
Part of me wanted to scream at him to stop using the future tense like it belonged to us. The other part wanted to ask what the baby’s middle name would be. What is wrong with me when it comes to him.
“You can’t just?—”
His teeth grazed my skin, a quick scrape that made my breath hitch. “That’s Daddy’s. All of it.”
He sat back on his heels, hands still anchoring me.
“I should be furious. You’re being a caveman.”
“I’m being honest.” His thumbs stroked slow circles into my hips. “You think I’m not tracking the dynasty pressures? The mergers they’ll try to shove you into? I see all of it. I’m telling you now—none of those men live long enough to make an announcement if they try to take you from me.”
“That’s…”
His hand slid back to my lower stomach. “This ends with you as my wife. Crest across your back. My name inked where the whole world can see who you belong to. Until then, I’m going to fight like hell to keep you free enough to choose me.”
He switched languages mid-sentence, Crow vowels slipping in. The tone changed—warmer, intimate.
“Say it after me.” His fingers tapped gently against my hip. “Tal ven arik.”
I repeated the sounds slowly. “Tal… ven… arik.”
“That’s ‘I love you.’”
My face burned. “You could be lying.”
“You’ll learn. Next.Adar.”
“Adar.”
“Daddy.”
Of course that was the second word. I forced myself not to smile.
“Naturally.”
“Dom.”
