“I started seeing a therapist back on Earth and worked through some of this shit. I have a ways to go, but the whole healing thing has started. This is a lot to drop at once and I can’t promise I’m all better or whatever. I’m still fucked up. I still hate all this mushy gushy shit. I hate talking about my feelings but,” I pause to take another shaky breath. I force myself to look up at Ghenie. “But you’re worth it.”
Tears fall from Ghenie’s eyes, running down his cheeks as he looks at me. Fuck. I didn’t mean to make him cry!
“Shit. Sorry. Maybe I shouldn’t have said anything.”
Ghenie turns to me fully. He brings his hands to my face, cupping my cheeks. “You havenothingto apologize for.Nothing.”
The fierceness of his response leaves me speechless. All I can do is nod slightly.
“I am so sorry you went through that, but this only makes my heart long for you more. You have gone through hardships no one should go through and yet, you have been brought through to the other side a stronger man. You have worked on yourself and allowed yourself to come back, to come back tome. I cannot promise to never hurt you but I can promise to never intentionally hurt you. And I can promise I will never leave you, for as long as you will have me, it would be my honor to spend my days at your side.”
All of my breath leaves me at once. The tears I’ve been desperately trying to hold back fall against my permission. Ghenie’s thumbs rub them away for me. He looks at me like I’m precious, like I’m worth something. Maybe I am. Maybe I am worthy of his love.
His hands are so big against my face, making me feel small. I’m cracked open and exposed, but Ghenie doesn’t just hold my face, he holds my heart in his hands. I know he’ll be gentle. Iknow that I can trust him, the same way I eventually learned to trust Miles.
“So,” I say slowly, my eyes finally meet his pale ones. “Now you know.”
“Now I know,” he repeats, just barely above a whisper. “And I am not going anywhere.”
I move forward and Ghenie follows me. Our foreheads press together. I close my eyes, breathing the same air as him, letting his soft confession wash over me. It takes everything I have to let the words sink in. It takes even more to actually believe them, not because I mistrust Ghenie but because it’s hard for me to see myself as someone worth staying for.
“Christian?”
“Yeah?”
“May I kiss you? I have been dreaming of it for years. I had one taste of you and now, I fear I will never be sated.”
My heartaches. I’ve never been a guy interested in romance or love or affection, but with Ghenie, everything feels different. His words are like a balm that’s helping soothe my very soul, healing wounds I didn’t even know I had.
Instead of answering with words, I lean forward and kiss Ghenie’s lips. Everything has led to this moment and for that reason alone, I can’t be upset by the ups and down because this has all been worth it. Kissing Ghenie is everything. My head feels light and my heart feels full.
His lips fit perfectly against my own. Ghenie tilts his head, slotting us together even more comfortably. When he opens his lips, mine part as well, allowing his tongue in. The taste of him is even better than I remember.
Ghenie’s hand cups my face as we exchange slow, deep kisses. Our tongues tangle, our breath mingles. Not only does my body long for him, but so does my very soul. It aches for him in a way I’ve never felt before. TheLayperrypeople believe that there isone person out there designed especially for them; their mate. In this moment, I’m not sure if I subscribe to the same belief but it’s hard to argue when everything inside of me is screaming at me that Ghenie ismine.
Ghenie is the one who pulls away, resting his forehead against my own. We stay like that for a long time. I feel connected to him and I can’t stop thinking about all the ways I want to make things up to him, to let him know that I’m serious about this relationship, serious about him. I never want him to go another day wondering if he’s cared for. I might not do all that mushy shit but that doesn’t mean I won’t put in the work to let Ghenie know I’m his.
“My plan was for us to speak and then take a dip in the water,” Ghenie says slowly, “but I’m suddenly feeling something else. I think I will go pick up Maribel now. You can meet me back at the house. Once she’s asleep, I would very much like to take you to bed.”
“Take me to bed?”
Ghenie raises his brow at me and it suddenly hits me.
“Oh? Oh! Yeah, umm. Okay. Go pick up our daughter.”
Ghenie’s features all turn soft at that. He leans forward and kisses my lips again. “I love it when you call her that,” he confesses before standing up and pulling me with him. I just barely keep myself from full on running back to the house.
This time is going to be different. This is the first time we’ll be coming together as two people who care about each other instead of a last ditch effort before I run. This time is the first time that’ll start the rest of our relationship and I want it to be special.
Chapter Nine
Ghenie
My stomach is a whirlwind of emotions. The talk I had with Christian went better than I could have ever imagined. His words play over and over in my head, giving me a better understanding of him. I want to rip his parents to shreds and protect him from every person who has ever hurt him in the past.
I have a child and cannot imagine doing anything like that to her. How could they just abandon their son? It leaves me equal parts baffled and enraged. Christian didn’t deserve that. By the Ancestors,no onedeserves that.
Even the voices in my head agree. So many of them have softened towards Christian. Many of them wish for me to travel back to Earth and make sure his parents have been dealt with. One promised to wake me up in the middle of the night for eternity if I ever pulled something similar on Maribel.
