There was a sacred silence for a long beat as our emotions filtered between us.
Suddenly, I couldn’t hold back the hot tears that rose at the thought of what might have been. Niko came closer, just enough to still look me in the eye.
“Don’t cry. Please, don’t cry. Your tears make me want to tear down this city to ease your pain.” He looked terrified and unsure of what to do. I’d never heard him talk that way.
His protectiveness caused a sob I couldn’t hold back to be released as I laid my forehead on his chest. “I’m so sorry. I am so very sorry,” I mumbled into his shirt.
Niko pulled me into his arms with a force that spoke of his inability to hold back any longer. “Leyla, there isnothingto be sorry for. I’ve told you before. All of that is forgiven.”
“I just wish…well, there are so many things I wish in this moment.”
“In my language, we say ‘keske’. If only. There are a lot of things about you and me I wish for, too. But I strongly believe our steps are ordered by the Lord. Which means that we met for a reason. Even if our paths were meant to part for a little while, He led me back to you now. Rightherein this moment. And that’s all that matters to me.”
Niko had rendered me speechless again. His words wiped away all my regret in a single precious moment.
He leaned back from our embrace and kissed my forehead. A faint memory of Vicky sharing something about Turkish dramas came back to me. “A forehead kiss means more in your culture than in mine, right?”
I felt him smile and then nod. “It denotes a strong affection,” he mumbled against my skin.
Emboldened by that declaration, I asked, “And a kiss on the lips?”
Niko smiled, then bent his head to look into my eyes. “I don’t know. We might have to practice again, dating coach, to see what scientific conclusions we reach.”
“Well,” I shrugged, “I mean, if it’s forscience, how can I refuse?”
In the next breath, his lips were on mine, once again bringing me to the heights of heaven. The moment my arms slipped around his neck once again, the kiss surged, pulling us both under.
Pulling back slowly, his voice was low and raspy. “I’ve wanted to do that for a long time.” Then he kissed me again like he was making sure it had really happened.
I didn’t know if it was the dance, the kiss, or just being held in his arms, his heart wide open to me, but my heart was calling out to his.
Choose me. Love me. Be mine.
The words rang out in my chest with every beat of my heart.
Our kiss ended with a sigh. I wasn’t sure whether it was mine or his. His eyes were glazed over, his lips swollen, as he looked at me with so much affection that my heart expanded.
Once again, I was gifted with the sweetness of a silent and sacred moment. No words were needed. What passed between Niko and me didn’t need words. Not yet, anyway.
“Leyla, I’ve never been kissed like this before.” His words washed over me. He loosened his hold and bent down so I couldsee him. “I’m not saying this right. I meant, I’ve never felt like this before. Not once in mywholelife.”
Overtaken with emotion, I looked up and kissed his lips lightly, then said, “That’s because you’ve never been kissed by a woman who understands you. Who sees you. Thewholeyou.”
His bottom lip trembled slightly, and I was about to lose it when he whispered, “Do you? Do you see me, Leyla?”
“Yes, Niko. I see you. I see your strength, your beautiful mind, your heart. I see all of it. And I’m in awe that I get to be the one in your arms tonight. Honestly, it’s becoming a problem,” I said with a shy smile. “Lately, you’re all I see.”
He breathed out through his nose and closed his eyes. “I never thought I’d find a woman who could. Who would see all of me and still want me.”
He was breaking my heart in two. Quoting the verse that had become precious between us, I said, “The Father created you as a masterpiece, on purpose. My heart wants to believe He created you just for me.”
I was lifted off the ground with the next hug. “You said you see me. The truth is, you’reallI’ve seen since the very first day you walked into chemistry class freshman year. I said in that note I’d be waiting,” he whispered. “I still am.”
“I’m here, Niko. I’m right here.”
The ride homewas filled with shy, adoring looks. He held my hand and kissed it as he drove me home. There wasn’t a declaration of love, not yet, but I knew with everything in me we both felt it.
When he walked me to my door, I realized there was one last thing I needed to clear up. Pulling away from his last good night hug, I asked, “So, I have to ask. What about Pam?”
