“A lot of things,” I agree. “And before you bought all of those things, you did hours of research, made a list of only the very best things a kitten could ever want or need, then made sure that I was okay with the budget required to buy those things, going so far as to offer to pay for them yourself, despite the fact that you know I am a millionaire. All of that being the ‘easy’ stuff, I’m sure.”
A divot appears in her cheek. “Correct,” she says. “All of that, easy. Sawing stuff and putting up walls? Not easy. I’m glad we’re in agreement.”
I stick my tongue out at her, and her eyes dip to it. She blinks one, two, three times, before her gaze lifts to mine. The very tip of her tongue sticks out between her lips, then returns to its home inside her mouth.
My head leans toward her, almost compulsively. “You’re very endearing,” I murmur.
“We can’t make out right now,” she crushes. “We have to get this trash off the catio—especially the plastic bags. We can’t risk a suffocation incident because we were too busy giving in to our base carnal urges to think responsibly.”
“If you think what we’ve done so far constitutes me giving in to mybase carnal urges, then I am greatly looking forward to the day you allow me to show you whaturgesI truly possess.”
She stops breathing.
“Goals one to forty-one are the tip of the iceberg, my princess. I wish to take you to lands you have not thought to fantasize about.”
Her breathing restarts in shallow gasps. “I do not think I’m ready for that,” she whispers.
“I know you aren’t,” I reply. “And I’m not pushing you to be. My intentions are only to be transparent about where I am and how I feel.”
“Where are you?” she asks instantly. “And how do you feel? In very clear, very plain language.”
In very clear, very plain language, I answer, “I would like to bed you as a man would bed his wife. I would like to show you in every way how worthy you are to be savored. I grew up in a household that did not prioritize physical touch as a means of showing love, and I find that in my adulthood I crave it quite desperately—with you. And only with you. I am happy to continue as we are for as long as you wish, and I mean that sincerely. I love the space we’re in, where I’m forbidden things that I would dearly enjoy. It will make the enjoyment all the better, and I don’t wish to rush out of this stage in our relationship. I value you. Not just your body, but everything about you. I do not experience less because you keep it safely yours for now. I’m…” I pause, searching for the emotion slithering into the farthest parts of my body and making a home. “I’m content,” I decide. “And happy. Joyous. Emotions I have never played with to this extent dance around my heart, and I’m glad for it.”
I set my boxes down, then grab hers, neatly stacking them together before returning to gather her in my arms. “I love you, Sarelia, and I wish to show you that love.”
“I told you we couldn’t make out right now,” she breathes, blinking against a sheen of wetness gathering in her eyes.
I kiss her cheek, smiling. “I will not misbehave,” I promise.
She sniffles. “You’ve already misbehaved quite beautifully by making me into a liar. Because how could a girl possibly hear everything she’s ever wanted to hear from the mouth of the only man she’s ever wanted to hear it from and not kiss him?”
A tear falls from her eyes to meet my lips, a salty recognition of the depths of emotion she’s feeling.
“Where are you?” I ask, misbehaving perhaps a slight bit more. “And how do you feel?”
She turns her head so that our lips brush with every uttered word as she answers. “I am so happy here with you that each second it continues I wonder ifthiswill be the moment that I wake up and the dream ends forever. I’ve never felt soseen—soknown. Because you watched me, yes, but also because you’re intelligent enough to seefurther, into the broken parts of me that I didn’t understand myself. And then you’ve loved me anyway.” Her breath shudders against mine. “You care for me so well, Archie, and it’s barely been a few days. I can’t begin to imagine the joy that a lifetime with you would bring, but I want it with every cell in my body. I wantyou, forever, always, and completely. And I appreciate that you are the type of man to let me have you at whatever pace I can manage.” She pauses, hazel eyes gleaming as she gathers her courage before finishing, “I love you, my knight.”
My hand flexes against her waist, fingers digging into her. “We’re on the same page, then,” I murmur. “You and I, together, in love, and taking on forever.”
She smiles against my mouth. “You and I. Together, in love, and taking on forever,” she agrees.
Then, she kisses me.
And I misbehave quite thoroughly by kissing her back.
Chapter Twenty
?
Sarelia
“Your marriage kitty is so cute!” Heidi squeals as she enters the catio. Millie and I look up from our places on the floor, where we take turns dangling a feather on a string.
I smile, and my eyes move from Heidi to the kitty in question. She is, undoubtedly, the ugliest cat that has ever existed.
Jagged scars mar her long, black fur, making her coat patchy and uneven. She’s missing an eye, a leg, and half of her tail, and she doesn’t appear to have done any personal grooming in the last, oh, five-hundred years.
I love her.
