Page 329 of Reign

“No. You’re a big thing.”

A laugh nearly escapes me, but there’s still too much fear lodged beneath my ribs.

“What does that mean?”

“It means my brain doesn’t know where to put you yet.” She looks down at the front of my soaked shirt. “We just started this, and then your mother brings up babies, and suddenly I’m thinking about an entire life with you.”

Her face warms.

“That’s embarrassing to admit, so I absolutely hate that you’re forcing me to say it.”

I cup her face and brush my thumb beneath her cheek.

“You’re a big thing for me too, Elena. I understand.”

Her eyes soften.

“But we need to find another way for you to think, because sitting at the bottom of a pool isn’t going to work for me.”

“I wasn’t down there long.”

“I don’t care if it was ten seconds or ten minutes.”

She presses her lips together.

I hook my hand around the back of her head and pull her against me.

Her arms slide around my waist. I hold her tightly enough to feel every breath she takes, because each time I close my eyes, I see her sitting motionless beneath the water.

“You jumped in with your shoes on,” she murmurs.

“None of it mattered but you.”

She tilts her face up.

“You really thought I was hurt?”

“You ignored every call I made, and I found you motionless at the bottom of the pool. What else was I supposed to think?”

“I told you I wasn’t going to answer.”

“That doesn’t mean I gave you permission to ignore my calls.”

“I warned you.”

“Yes, and it was a guarantee that you’re getting a consequence.”

Her eyes widen. “You’re giving me a consequence after you hauled me out of my own pool?”

“I rescued you.”

“From what?”

“My own heart stopping.”

The argument leaves her face.

Her fingers curl into my shirt. “I’m sorry.”