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And locked it behind them.
****
The children!
Joel startled awake only to find himself immersed in darkness. Nyana lay beside him, eyes closed and breathing deeply. What would happen if the girls found them in the room together? Would Nyana be upset? He’d never had children before until now. He didn’t know the rules.
As quietly as possible, he started to pull the bedsheets aside with the intent to return to the sofa downstairs, but Nyana inhaled sharply a moment later.
“Please don’t go.” She clutched onto him with tragic desperation. “Don’t leave me.”
He swallowed hard at her heartbreaking expectation of abandonment as he settled back in beside her. “I’m not going anywhere. Ever.” He turned and pressed a firm kiss to her lips.
And made love to her again.
****
Nyana stretched, squinting against the bright light entering through the window. Her hands brushed against thick bed sheets. A soft pillow. And her eyes startled open when her fingers grazed skin.
Her head darted up, only for her to smile to find Joel sound asleep beside her. Brown hair lay in a frazzled mess against his pillow, his adorable ears poking out through the chaos. A strand rested over his closed eye, and she gently tucked it behind his ear.
The blushing pink of early morning cast its glow over his face, and she dared to trace his thin, expressive eyebrows. Her finger trailed down his cheek to his neck and then skimmed the hair on his chest to his belly button.
“Mmm.” Joel stirred and cracked open his eyes, smiling sleepily. “Why are you looking at me like that?”
“I just want to memorize you,” she whispered, now lightly tracing the bronze and black tattoos climbing his side. The exploration ended at the silvery scar where he’d been struck by a bolt. This brave, selfless man was her husband. In mind, body, and soul. She cared for him deeply.
He lifted his hand and tenderly cupped her cheek. When he spoke, his voice escaped as a gravely croak. “I love the way the sunlight makes your hair look like molten gold.”
A contented sigh left her lips as she placed her hand over his. “Your sweet, poetic ramblings are something I wouldn’t mind getting used to.”
“Me either.”
Her heart skipped in response to the gentle kiss he bestowed on her lips. Still new. Still nerve-wracking. And wholly wonderful.
Mama! Maisy’s voice broke through her mind, and they reluctantly parted. There is laundry on the stairs.
Her face heated with embarrassment and slight panic. Joel’s shirt. Her dress. And by his wince, he’d heard her voice, too.
“Almost everything made it to the bedroom,” he joked.
A laugh erupted from her mouth, and she shook her head wryly, teasingly pinching his side. “You need to learn how to be a sneakier parent.”
“Me? You were the one throwing clothes right and left.”
An embarrassed chuckle slipped through her hands covering her face. “I suppose you are right. It was more than nice.”
“It was.” Large, gentle hands pulled her fingers away from her face. “You never answered my question.”
“About what?” She searched his eyes, though all it managed to do was twist her stomach in a delightful knot.
“Whether you wanted more children.”
The breath whooshed from her lips. “Oh.” And then her cheeks heated with both fluster and a tinge of hope. “I admit I’m terribly embarrassed. Each of my children will have different fathers.”
“So, you do want more children.”
She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Yes. Lots of them. But only if you are their father.”
