“Alright. I’ll send you their information.”
I felt something loosen in my chest.
“Thank you.”
Amai reached out and pulled me back into his arms, his hand cradling the back of my head.
“I hate this,” he murmured against my hair. “Every instinct I have is telling me to keep you locked down where I can see you.”
“I know.”
“But I’m trying.” His voice was rough, raw. “I’m trying to do this your way.”
I pulled back just enough to look at him, and I smiled.
Not because I’d won.
But because he was learning.
He was learning to protect me on my terms, not just his own.
And that—that meant more than anything else he could have given me.
“I know you are,” I said softly. “And that’s all I’m asking.”
He kissed me then, slow and deep, and I felt the promise in it.
The promise that he was trying.
That he was choosing me.
That he was learning to love me the way I needed to be loved.
And for now, that was all I needed.
I pulled back slightly, my hand resting on his chest, and took a breath.
“There’s one more thing.”
Amai’s eyes searched mine, his expression shifting from tender to alert in an instant.
“What is it?”
“I need your DNA.”
He blinked. “What?”
“My doctor ordered a paternity test,” I explained, keeping my voice steady. “She needs samples from both you and Kaisen to determine who the father is.”
For a moment, Amai just stared at me.
And then, slowly, a grin spread across his face.
“My DNA is already inside you, Truth.”
My mouth dropped open. “Amai!”
He started laughing, that deep, rumbling sound that made my stomach flip despite myself.