AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Fourteen
“Are you okay?” Roarke’s deep voice drifted over me like a silk sheet. As he laid his hand across my bare stomach, I realized we were both still lying naked in his bed.
“I’m fine, but thank you for asking.” My cheeks heated, embarrassment flooding back as I pulled the blankets up over us both.
Roarke slid his arm under my head and pulled me close, holding me against him as silence overtook the room. I could feel our hearts beating in our respective chests, listening as they synced as if becoming one.
“Do you regret what happened?” Roarke’s voice was low and shaky. Tentative and uneasy. And it made my heart break.
I leaned up on my elbow, looking him straight in the eyes. “Of course not. I may doubt my role in all this, but I don’t doubt my feelings for you.”
His face relaxed. “Good, because I love you, Milly, and that’s something you should never doubt.”
I love you, Milly. Finally… the words my soul longed to hear.
I felt myself opening up, truly believing we were written in the stars. From the first moment I noticed him in my dreams, I knew he was the man I wanted. And he was right. We were meant to be together. Forever.
I sat up, my nakedness no longer uncomfortable. “Is there some sort of ceremony we should have to solidify our commitment to one another?” I pictured a rose-lined aisle leading to the glass greenhouse on the grounds of Windsor Castle.
“Beyond what happened when we combined our magic?”
I tilted my head. “I hadn’t realized that was a ceremony.”
He sat up, scooting to rest his back against the headboard. “It might not have included chants or rituals or had any witnesses to confirm what we did, but there’s nothing more sacred than combining our magic and you accepting your role as my queen. No one can separate us unless it’s a decision we make for ourselves.”
His words hit me differently, like a cold splash of water against scorched skin. He could choose to separate us if he wanted? Leaving me for a different queen?
I shimmied out of bed. “I suppose I should get back and let you get some rest.”
He laughed but let me go. “It’s not like the world ever really sleeps. You could stay here all day if you wanted. There’s always work to be done.”
I dressed in a hurry, my thoughts rolling over his words. “Does that mean our magic is working together in the dreamscape even when I’m not here?” Again, one more thing I didn’t understand.
“Yes. That’s the beauty of it. As a mortal witch, you can still live your life while our magic makes a difference here.”
“But you’re mortal too, aren’t you? You said yourself that this home exists in the real world.”
“Yes, this home and I are real, but because of my magic, we have to remain hidden. So it’s just easier for me to spend most of my time here.”
Easier or less lonely? I thought.
“I know you said we can’t be together in the real world, but I still don’t understand why.”
“I’m sorry for sounding like a broken record, but it simply boils down to the rules. Weavers cannot interact for long periods of time in the real world without causing a disruption to our magic here.” He rose from the bed and with a swipe of his hand was dressed again.
“All you need to do is live your life as you always have during the day, then join me here when you’re ready to sleep at night. It’s a perfect balance. But if you want to spend more time with me”—he winked—“like I said, there’s always work to be done.”
I laughed, leaning up to place a kiss on his lips. “Yes, well, I might pop in now and again, but my home still requires attention during the day. So will you see me out?”
Roarke scooped me into his arms, lifting me off my feet and walking us out the front door. Setting me down on the frost-covered path, he returned my simple kiss with a deep, passionate one of his own. “I’ll be waiting for your return tonight, my love. See you then.”
A rip opened up, and I walked through, waking on my couch as I emerged from a deep, satisfying sleep.
My love. Two more words I never thought I’d hear.
“Milly, one day you’ll find a man who pulls at your very soul. Everything inside you will feel like it’s falling apart but at the same time clicking together like the missing pieces of a puzzle. Only then will you know your heart has made its choice.”
“Is that what you felt with Daddy?”
