“Do you randomly check on me every night, princess? I’m going to have to let Derrick know about this.” Abe smirked.
Lucie smiled. It was funny to see a child trying to talk like the man he was mentally. “I was up for a late-night snack and just felt like I needed to check on you. Do you want to talk about it?” Lucie asked and noticed his frown.
“Was … was I a bad person?” Abe looked up at Lucie with wide, sad eyes. He already had a feeling but was now looking for confirmation. She really didn’t even have to say anything. He could see it in her eyes.
“I will tell you about the Abe I know. The one who selflessly took a djinn in his body and became my servant. The one who worked tirelessly to try to find me and always protected me. The one who gave his life protecting my unborn child.”
“I remember all that, Lucie. Who was I before? The past haunts my nights sometimes. And some of the things I see …”
“Don’t, Abe. Don’t entertain those nightmares. That isn’t the person you are. Try to just let those stay dead. Let them die with your past life. Abaas is dead. Abe is who exists now.”
“So I was a bad guy.”
“Abe … you had a rough past that was really cruel and unfair. But that isn’t who you are. I share a special bond with you. We’re connected, and you are my dear friend.” She reached out and squeezed his hand gently. “You’re our Abe, who we love. And you’re the new guardian of the future fairy princess … our little Lenora.”
“I promise I’ll keep her safe. And you as well,” Abe said with firm conviction that sounded cute in his little kid voice.
“And I will protect you as well.” Lucie giggled with a wink. “Get some sleep.”
“Well, quit talking to me so I can sleep,” Abe quipped and turned to roll on his side. A soft smile rested on his lips as he relaxed on the bed. Her presence was comforting, and sleep soon overtook him.
Lucie stayed with him until he fell back asleep. Even though he had an older mind, he was still in a child’s body and it was hard to fight off being tired. She walked out of his room, shutting the door quietly behind her. She turned and was met with Derrick’s sweet smile.
“Still having nightmares?” Derrick frowned as he read her thoughts. “If his memories return, we just have to make sure he knows that isn’t him. We don’t think of him like that at all. In a way, it’s like they’re two different people.”
“I don’t want him harboring that guilt again.” Lucie walked into Derrick’s outstretched arms and sank into his warm embrace. His arms were the best place to be. Nothing else compared to him. His hands rubbed down her body and rested on her sides. He stayed there, holding her gently against him.
“We’ll cross that bridge if the time comes. I think he’ll be okay, Lucie. Especially after our little light is born. He is our light’s guardian, so he can never be in the dark.”
Lucie reached down and rubbed her stomach. “You’ll be a light in the dark, won’t you? These men like to act like they’re strong, but it’s our job to protect them.”
Derrick chuckled and scooped Lucie up in his arms, walking her back to their room. “I won’t argue with that. I’d be lost without you, Lucie. I depended on your light long before you knew I did.”
She leaned her head on his chest and smiled. She couldn’t put into words how content she felt right now in his arms. At the beginning of this summer, she never imagined that she would end up loving Derrick this deeply and irrevocably.
“I love you, Derrick.” Lucie lifted her arms around his neck and leaned her forehead into his.
“I love you too … my little mate.” He gently took her lips, caressing them with his own.
He pulled away as a devilish grin appeared over his lips. “You know … I did just recently stock the refrigerator in our room.”
“Oh, were you expecting something?” Lucie giggled, reading his lecherous thoughts.
“I was really hoping …”
Lucie bit her lip as she smiled up at him. “I don’t know if it’s proper. I should wait until after the wedding.”
He chuckled down at her. “The wedding is a mere formality. You have been mine since the day you were born.” His eyes gazed down at her possessively. His eyes trailed over her face and down to her chest, where his mind began to promise everything he was planning to do to her.
“We have so much to plan for. We don’t have time to be locked away for days.” Lucie watched his eyes flicker up to hers.
“No, Lucie. That’s the one thing we do have time for. We’ve been dealing with nothing but challenges and enemies, and now we’re taking a break from all that, because I am going to enjoy what’s mine.” He walked her into their room and hastily closedthe door. He shifted her body so that her legs wrapped around his waist and he laid siege to her mouth. His hot lips pulled and nipped at her as he walked her to the bed. Her fingers entangled with his hair as he fell on top of her on the bed.
He took his time savoring her lips and then moving down to her neck. He lapped at her skin before sinking his fangs into her. Her liquid ecstasy pooled warmly inside him, a growl of approval ripping from his throat. As the madness began to overtake him, he pulled his fangs out, eliciting a moan from her. He brought his lips to hers, his passion demanding he taste every area inside of her mouth.
Lucie tugged her fingers in his hair and arched into him. She bit at his lip, drawing a bit of blood that she gladly drank. An urgency to become one with him was rising. She tore his shirt off of him and he responded by easing her out of the irritating clothing that separated them. He removed his own bottoms and then hovered over her.
He looked her over greedily, eyeing the prize beneath him, her rounded breasts rising and falling as she tried to catch her breath. He lowered himself down, not able to hold himself back from tasting her mounds. He flicked his tongue over her buds and took one completely into his mouth. She arched her chest into him more, her hips rocking against his. He lowered his hand and grabbed onto her bottom while he continued to drive her crazy, teasing her and moving to her other mound.
