Page 159 of Beneath the Quiet

“Honey,” I whisper, my breath burning in my lungs.

He pushes a strand of my hair behind my ear, then keeps his hand resting on my neck, his thumb drawing slow circles on my skin.

“It scared the fucking life out of me, I couldn’t stop it, but why would I? My heart recognised yours, knew you were the treasure I’d secretly longed for. I’m never letting go.”

Silent tears skate down my eyes. “You need to stop talking,” I sniffle.

His thumbs wipe away my tears and he leans down, still staring into my eyes. “Grateful you’re mine, sweetheart.”

I laugh through my happy tears and press my lips to his, pouring all my love into the kiss. His mouth moves with reckless abandon with mine, his arms tightening around me, and I feel his words in my bones.

He’ll never let me go, because he can’t.

Just like it’s impossible for me to tell him goodbye.

We’re tethered together in the strongest way imaginable.

I end the kiss and bury my face in the crook of his neck. “We need to get up,” I whisper into his warm skin.

He squeezes me once and pushes off, slipping from me, and I squeeze my legs together.

“Don’t move. I’ll get a washcloth and clean you up.”

I smile in thanks and stay where I am, sated and blissed out as usual. While I wait for Aidan to return to me, I do my best to get control over myself, and my eyes wander to his bedroom.

Our bedroom.

I still have to remind myself that it’s mine, too, even though I’ve lived with him and Katie for a few months now. When I moved in, he gave me free reins to put my touch on every single room, and I quickly turned my attention to our bedroom. Instead of the grey, white, and black colours, I’ve added a mix of soft pastels, especially my favourite light blue which I’ve always loved. I bought the yellow and rose towels in our ensuite bathroom, because the black ones made me depressed.

Every time I remember the day when Aidan first noticed them, my heart constricts with heat. We were brushing our teeth together one evening, getting ready for bed, when he saw them. His eyes met mine in the mirror, and my bellow swooped with nerves when he just raised his eyebrows at me. For a long moment, we stared at each other, then he lifted his shoulders in a shrug, finished brushing his teeth, and wiped his mouth on the new towels. He leaned into my space and kissed my cheek.

“I like them,” he whispered, earning me another belly-swoosh, and that was that.

That’s not all I’ve done. Gone is all his grey bedding, replaced with crisp white or sky-blue linens that remind me of the beach and the waves when they crash against the rocks.

I’ve kept the white, porcelain bedside lamps shaped like lilies, because they are absolutely stunning, and they bathe the room in the softest of lights.

I look towards the windows, smiling when my eyes fall on the snowflakes fluttering down outside, and my heart is fit to burst from happiness. I love sitting on the dove-grey mattress on the wide windowsill, the plush lavender cushions stacked in my back, as I watch the day give way to night before I go to bed. Sometimes, Aidan joins me, and we spend a long time just sitting like this in the quiet watching the sky. Heavy, green curtains hang from the copper curtain poles and feel like velvet, and I love the silky touch against my skin whenever Aidan makes sweet love to me in the moonlight right there.

There’s no ring on my finger tying me to him, but that doesn’t matter to me. I don’t need a piece of paper to know that we belong together.

My eyes linger on our secret spot, and I stretch languidly. My head turns to Aidan as he walks back into our bedroom and walks towards me. I smile up at him as he sits down on the mattress, his back curved as he leans to the side and gently wipes the warm cloth between my legs.

I reach out my hand to wrap it around his wrist, and he looks up at me.

“Thank you, honey.”

“For what?”

“For making this the best Christmas I’ve ever had.”

He quirks his lips. “I’ve hardly done anything special.”

I shake my head, silencing him. “Being with you and Katie has already made it special. I don’t need anything more than that.”

He swallows hard, the swirling storm back in his eyes. “Mae…”

I blink my eyes, fighting the hardest battle not to well up again. “Come on. Let’s get dressed and go wake up our girl.”