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Did I die on the plane ride to South America?
I’m spiraling, desperate to trace back the point of my demise when two warm hands bracket my face. Her touch grounds me. An anchor in a storm.
Those hands feel real. They smell like some kind of exotic spice I could never find even if I bought every perfume factory in the world. The rings on those fingers slightly dig into my cheek and I wish they’d dig even harder. Wish they’d leave an indent. Brand me so everyone knows I belong to her.
Is this… really happening?
She inhales deeply and releases it.
Hee-hoo.
Hee-hoo.
Like she’s walking me through a panic attack.
Or a pregnancy.
Something snaps in my head.
Senses come alive. The smell of her hand. The feel of her palm against my cheek. The sight of her sweet brown eyes.
Yaya is real.
Not a figment of my imagination.
Not an angel here to take me to the afterlife.
Does this mean she’s mine? Does this mean I get to love her now, marry her now, impregnate her with all my children?
She drops her hand and I want to nuzzle back into them like a dog with his favorite owner.
Smile growing, she signs, “Surprise!”
“What are you doing here?” I sign. Including the demolished car in my sweeping hand gesture, I ask, “Why did you do this?”
Rather than answer, she produces an envelope and hands it to me.
The last thing I want to do is read it, but she’s looking at me so earnestly that I take a deep breath, push my raging desire to kiss her to the side, and read the contents.
By the time I’ve read the last word, my heart is about to swell to the point of bursting. If I were the kind of man who got emotional, I’d probably be in tears.
“I. Love. You. If you still love me too…” She voices, “Sign here.”
“I love you. I will always love you,” I sign back.
She taps her lips impatiently.
“But maybe we sign with ink this time. Just in case you want to change your mind.”
She rolls her eyes.
I laugh at her response, joy unfurling in my chest. And then I wrap my hands around her waist, crush her to me, and I kiss the living daylights out of her.
CHAPTER22
the final contract
THIS COMPENSATION AGREEMENT (this “Agreement”) dated this day
