She had looked so confused and unsure when he said the words and he had almost regretted them, fearing he had spoken too soon. It was the most honest he had ever been with her and now he realized she was accepting that, accepting him, and that heated him up from the inside out.
As suddenly as she had kissed him, Maggie pulled away, leaving him desperate for the feel of her lips and the soft puff of her breath on his cheek as she struggled for air in between bouts of passion.
“Of course, I love you,” she whispered back to him, her slender fingers caressing his beard. “How could I not?”
Anatoly blushed at that, but he felt the truth in her words, and a huge sense of relief washed over him. “I feared perhaps I spoke too soon…”
Maggie shook her head and smiled at him, still sitting as close as she could get to him. They had remained on the floor and the position was awkward, but at least he was near her. He’d endure more than a little discomfort to be close to Maggie if only for a heartbeat.
“I’m just sorry I didn’t recognize my feelings sooner, Anatoly,” she was saying. “I’ve been wrapped up in the case and then my mother—” She cut herself off. “I really do love you, and while it scares me to feel so strongly for someone, I can’t deny it…”
His expression softened as she mentioned her fear. Yes, he felt it too, the uncertainty that clawed at his insides. He worried he was making too many mistakes where she was concerned. Yet somehow, by divine providence perhaps, she was sitting here telling him what he’d longed to hear.
There was only one thing holding him back and that was his undead nature. She’d assuaged most of his concerns the other night, but he couldn’t get the bishop’s words out of his mind. It created a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach that wouldn’t abate no matter how he tried to counter it.
In response, he carefully pulled Maggie into his lap, needing to feel more of her reassuring warmth. She didn’t resist him, her arms going around his neck and her mouth hovering close to his. The urge to draw her into another heated kiss was powerful, but the dread kept him from feeling the full romance of the moment.
Maggie seemed to sense that something was wrong, her expression turning to one of concern. “Anatoly, are you okay?”
He shook his head, searching for the right words to answer her. He wasn’t okay, but he wanted to be, he wanted to rejoice in this moment instead of worrying.
“What if loving me is mistake?” He proposed the question as casually as he could, but it still came out sounding timid.
“What if a meteor crashes into the earth and we all die in a fiery explosion?” Maggie shot back without missing a beat.
He could tell right away she wasn’t being serious, she was trying to make a point, but he still felt chastised. “Maggie, I am vampire…” He couldn’t keep the shame out of his voice.
To his surprise, Maggie caressed his cheek with her fingertips, her expression turning gentle. “Anatoly, you are the most sincere man I have ever met. Being a vampire doesn’t bother me. It was that you had kept secrets and as far as I can tell you’ve been honest with me ever since that night. I say again, how could I not fall in love with you?”
Then she kissed him in a way she never had before. It was slow, tender, and reassuring. It gave him strength and soothed his worries all at once. Or perhaps it was just Maggie being herself, being honest, and bearing her feelings, which he knew had to be difficult given how emotionally closed off she had been for so long.
That this sweet woman had come to trust him after all that had happened to her was like befriending an elusive animal in the wild. She deserved to be cherished, nurtured, and respected. Anatoly was determined to give her all of that and more. Whatever she wanted or needed he would find a way to provide it.
“I don’t care if it’s wrong,” she breathed, her nose bumping his as she spoke. “There’s no where I’d rather be, than with you.”
Anatoly smiled at her, some of his fears dissolving. “I did not know you could be so sweet,” he said, placing a teasing kiss on the corner of her lips.
She rolled her eyes. “Only to you. Everyone else can fuck off.”
At that, Anatoly couldn’t help but chuckle. Yes, Maggie was tough as nails when she needed to be, but he’d seen beyond her fortress to the tender heart that beat in her warm chest and knew that deep down she just wanted to be loved and cherished. Which was exactly what she deserved.
“I owe you proper date night,” he whispered, afraid that speaking too loud might shatter the moment.
“Yeah, you do,” she answered. Her eyes fell to his mouth as if she were contemplating kissing him again. “I go back to work in a couple days, but my next day off is in a week. Maybe then?”
Anatoly tilted his head, considering. “I heard mention of birthday,” he said, indicating the box from her mother. “Perhaps, if you do not have plans then…”
“It’s tomorrow, but don’t worry about that,” she insisted, shifting on his lap as though she were suddenly uncomfortable. “It’s just another day to me. I usually work.”
A jolt of pain pierced his chest at her confession, and he couldn’t help but frown. “Day you were born is worth celebrating, Maggie,” he told her and meant it. “We will have date next week, but tomorrow, I do not know yet, I will come up with idea.”
She was shaking her head before he finished speaking. “You really don’t have to do that. I’m not worth?—”
“Maggie,” he interrupted her, his voice stern. “Do not finish sentence. You are worth everything.” And he kissed her to punctuate his words. His arms tightened around her, hugging her to his chest.
But she pulled from the kiss, her dark eyes searching his face in earnest. “You really care that much about this?”
He nodded. “Da.”
