Colton, Ramsay, and Crystal.
In that moment, my magic stirred, and I thought I sensed another presence, too--like Eric’s parents had finally been freed and were saying their final goodbyes.
* * *
We didn’t returnto the house right away. Eric and I shifted, silently walking hand-in-hand through the woods. Even without speaking, both of us knew we needed a moment to ourselves to digest the wave of emotions we’d gone through at the burial.
When it finally seemed appropriate to speak, I did so with a broken voice. “I’m sorry, Eric.”
He didn’t ask why I was apologizing. He must have known. He squeezed my hand a little tighter, not wanting to let go.
“I know,” he said softly.
I swallowed another whimper in my throat. “I didn’t want to hurt you.”
“You didn’t hurt me, Matheson.” He stroked his thumb over the back of my hand in gentle circles. “You helped me heal.”
I didn’t want to cry, but I couldn’t hold back my tears anymore. I laid my forehead on his chest and let it all out. The emotions I’d been forcing into silence poured out of me like a spilled glass and I cried into Eric’s chest until my eyes were dried up. If he cried too, he was finished before I was.
Wiping my eyes, I sighed and tried to catch my breath. “I’m sick of crying all the time.”
The corners of Eric’s lips quirked in amusement. “Pregnancy makes you hormonal. Speaking of which…” He bent down to speak to my belly, which made me blush. “How’s my little one doing?”
“Good, as far as I know. It’s still early, you know,” I added with a chuckle.
“I know.” He stood back up and ran his hand along my jaw, tipping my chin up to look into his eyes. “But I missed both of you while you were gone. Especially since I didn’t knowwhatthose humans would’ve done to you.”
“They treated me well,” I said gently.
“That woman. The Madame, you called her. She said you granted her an opportunity, and that you healed her.”
I nodded. “She was scarred, and her womb was… She couldn’t bear children, even though she wanted to.”
Eric seemed surprised. “And you were able to fix it?”
“Yes. It was a shock to me, too.” I stared at my hands. “I knew I could heal flesh wounds, but this is so much more than that. I didn’t know I had such power.”
“Everything about you is amazing,” Eric murmured, running his thumb along my cheek. “Haven’t I told you that before?”
I smirked. “You have. But now I’m a little more inclined to believe you.”
Eric let out a short huff of laughter before leaning in to kiss me. It was our first moment of physical intimacy since I’d been kidnapped, and the wait made it so much sweeter. My eyes fluttered shut and my heart thumped loudly, happily. I didn’t want to break apart.
His hands roamed down my sides, resting on my hips and holding me in place as his tongue delved deeper into my mouth. The kiss was hot and passionate, and made desire stir below my stomach.
Our lips broke apart, but we didn’t move. The next few moments were spent gazing into each other’s eyes, taking in each other's presence. I missed Eric so much--both physically and emotionally--that it was a tangible ache in my chest.
“I’m not the only one who missed you,” Eric murmured with a slight smile. “Colton has been waiting for you this entire time, like a puppy sitting at the door. Shall we head back?”
I linked our hands together once more. “Yeah. Let’s go reunite our family.”
