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‘You didn’t have to fight him alone.’
‘It’s a flaw I will work on, but I’m used to doing things on my own. Genie, you conquered your demons long ago. I was ashamed I’d let mine get the better of me for so long. I wanted to make myself whole. For you.’
Her nostrils quivered but again she shook her head, terrifying him even more. ‘Don’t you see? You were always whole to me. Our scars remind us of what we’ve been through. How far we’ve come. They’re what make you the man I...’
His heart lurched when she stopped. ‘The man you what, Genie?’
‘It doesn’t matter. Not any more.’
His fists bunched but he forced himself to relax them. ‘Please, my love. Forgive me. I’m so used to doing things on my own. I’ve been so busy fighting to make things right in Cardosia that I didn’t stop to consider what this would do to you. To us. But what you’ve shown me these past few months... I never want to jeopardise that.’ He sucked in a deep breath and reached out to cup her delicate jaw. ‘I love you.’
A shudder ran through her, and she visibly shook as she inhaled. ‘You do?’
‘Dulce cielo, si.With everything inside me. I worship the ground you walk on,mi amor. That incredible brain of yours. This insane body nurturing our child. You’re everything to me.’
‘Oh, Seve. I thought... I thought...’
‘I know what you thought. I swear I will never betray or mislead you.’
Wide beautiful eyes stared up at him. ‘I was crushed, Seve. After everything we’ve been through, I felt like an afterthought. I never want to feel like that again.’
He swallowed as he leaned forward and brushed her lips with his. ‘I’m sorry. Forgive me.’
Her hands rose to grip his wrists and she nodded. ‘Yes.’
Joy tore through him. But as he went to kiss her again, she placed a finger on his lips. ‘I think this is where you ask me why I was so crushed.’
He frowned. ‘What?’
She rolled her eyes. ‘I love you too, Seve. Only love can make things hurt this deeply. I’ve been in love with you for weeks. Months. I’ve been dying to tell you, but I think I needed to hear how you felt first, just in case—’
‘Te quiero mucho. Siempre.You never need to wonder again.’
A long, moan-filled kiss later, he pulled back. ‘Have mercy and tell me I can take you home now? Before Lita sends in the army?’
Her smile sucked the air from his lungs. Dear God, she was so beautiful.
And mine.
‘Yes,’ she said simply.
Rising, he plucked the phone and called his driver. Then he whirled around as Genie made a choking sound. She was standing next to the bed, clutching her belly.
‘Oh...oh, my God! I think Lita’s going to have to wait a little longer.’
His lungs emptied as a new burst of terror exploded in his chest. Tossing the phone aside, he gripped her arms. ‘Why? Tell me what’s happening, Genie,’ he rasped, his voice breaking with the fear pulsing through him.
Her eyes filled with trepidation...and wonder. Then, miraculously, another smile that set his world to rights. ‘Seve...the baby... I think it’s coming.’
He shook his head fiercely, as if the act could reverse her words. ‘But...it can’t. You have two more weeks...’
‘I don’t think our baby wants to wait that long.’
‘Dios mio,’he muttered, then bellowed for the doctor.
A long time later, he would wonder how he’d managed to keep breathing. To keep reasoning. To keep from losing his mind when every cell in his body was either frozen in shock or marvelling at the strength his wife possessed.
Because watching Genie bring their daughter into the world floored him and changed him on a fundamental level he never wanted to reverse.
