Page 137 of To Tango, with Desire

“Tired. Doc says surgery went well.”

“I heard.” The burning sensation spread from my chest up my throat.

“Zane?” Amira reached out to stroke my face, brushing away the tears.

“Fuck,” I whispered softly. But I didn’t care. I didn’t try to hide my emotions. I was madly in love with my wife and was fucking relieved that she was alive. “I was so scared I was going to lose you.”

“I was, too.”

I took her palm, kissing the soft center. “I’m so sorry. This is my fault. I was reckless.”

“Zane, you couldn’t have known that this would happen.”

“I never want it to happen again.”

“We’ll be careful.”

“I’m getting a vasectomy.”

“What?” Amira blinked a few times. “Zane, you don’t need to do that.”

“I don’t want to ever have your life put in danger again, so yes, I do. And you’ve still one healthy tube left, so chances are it might happen again and I couldn’t live with myself if it did. While you were in surgery, I did a bit of research. I want to get it done. What do you think?”

“I think this is a surprise, but I’ll support whatever you want to do.”

“If you change your mind about kids in the future, I’ll get it reversed.”

Amira shook her head. “I don’t. I won’t. This has made me realize that being a mother isn’t something I want. It would be unfair to have a child out of obligation.”

“Consider it done.” I stroked her hair. “You need to rest.”

“I will.”

“I’m going to bunk out on that lounge chair there until you come home.”

“Zane, that’s silly. You don’t—”

“I do. No arguments. I’ll grab a few things from your closet and be back.” I made a list of what she might want, prolonging the moment for as long as I could. I wanted to chat with her for hours, to make her laugh and hold her close, but I knew she needed to rest. I kissed her on her nose, then, because I could, placed a gentle kiss on her lips. “I’m going to bring in some non-hospital food, curl up beside you, and watch crap films on my phone until you fall asleep.”

“Sounds perfect.”

“Amira, I’m so fucking happy that you’re okay.”

“I know, so am I. It was so scary, and I felt so helpless, but the doctors were fantastic.”

“I’ll make sure to donate a disgustingly large amount of money to the hospital.”

She smiled. “That’s my billionaire. Hey.” She squeezed my hand. “I heard you. When you were talking, in the car. All those things you said, about wanting me to live. I—Hearing your voice helped.”

“It’s all true. I can’t bear to be without you, wife.” I lifted her hand, kissing her knuckles, needing to linger just a little while longer.

Even though she was out of danger and the surgery was successful, at that moment, I couldn’t bear to let go.

AMIRA

Zane took charge of my recovery at home like a general going in to battle. He bossed me around, making sure I didn’t lift anything heavy, or heaven forbid, pick up anything off the floor. He was attentive as ever, managing my dressings, helping me move around the house, even setting up an interim plan for my business so nothing would fall behind while I recovered.

Once I had the staples removed, I felt more mobile. By the time I hit the six-week mark, I was back to my old self.