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KARA
“Hey, beautiful.”
I startle for a second, wondering how I missed Maximus coming back into the apartment, let alone onto the bed platform and then by my side. Has all my emotion dragged me that far under?
No. Not just emotion.
This is worse than a puddle of nerves.
This is a tidal wave of terror. A panic so deep, I’m positive my bones are rattling against each other. I can practically hear them, knocking in time to the wild poundings in my brain. I wouldn’t mind it by half, if only the beats made sense. But it’s all chaos, a desperate tumble that makes me long for an old-fashioned fetal position sob fest.
Fetal position.
There’sthatmotivation killer.
Which triples my gratitude for the man now wrapping his powerful arms around me. For the kiss he presses into my temple, as casual as if we’re sitting at a park and feeding the ducks. How I wish that were the case. That all I had to worry about was a little gaggle of waddling birds.
Waddling.
Clearly, I’m determined to shred more than the positive thinking posters tonight. My scattered mind is now responsible for cranking open the spigot of my tears, which I dump all over his shirt through too many tense minutes. All too soon, he’s going ask why I’m losing it like the duck who can’t stop sticking its backside up in the air, and I won’t have a single word of an answer. But the calamity is inevitable. His mounting confusion is palpable. I feel it, rising and thickening…
But he doesn’t say a word.
Hardly a sound wells from him except a rough sigh. Another. Just like that, we’re psychologically switched. I’m the one with a baffled gawk, and he’s the guy with no words. Not even in the moment before he sets his expression with determination and then turns and gathers me closer. At once, he circles his arms tighter. He swaddles the back of my head in his massive but gentle hand, his fingertips so soft and reassuring along my scalp.
Oh,damn. In all the best ways there are.
I’ve never dwelled much on the concept of heaven. Never saw the need. But this moment… Oh, I’ve arrived. This is it. And he’s my saving angel.
I burrow in, whimpering in open delight while working my head against the plane of his shoulder. I still feel all the bafflement biting at him, but there’s something else in his spirit now. Something that confirms I really have discovered the meaning of heaven.
It’s his compassion.
His own acknowledgement—ofmyfeelings. Not because he can sense or smell or hear them.
Because he simply knows them.
Because he knowsme.
He knows that I don’t need all his words right now. Not his questions, and not his responses to my answers. No pretty words or reassurances. No talk of rushing out for baby books or doctor’s appointments. Nothing but his loving silence and ongoing understanding.
Nothing but the fortitude ofhim.
I’m not sure if it’s minutes or hours that pass, but throughout every second, his warmth and strength subside. It’s not just around me, but inside me. There’s not a moment that I’m not drenched in his tender love.
But eventually, I have to pull back and reach for a tissue. Once I’m done blowing my nose and wiping my eyes, I force out a laugh. What other option is there when knowing I must have a Santa-red nose and darker eye rings than Catwoman after an all-night fight?
“Well. Still happy you knocked me up, Professor?”
To his credit—probably more than he knows—Maximus gives back a full chuckle. But as he smooths his long fingers across my damp cheek, his mirth fades just as fast. The summer sky lights in his eyes are replaced by a dozen deeper hues. They range from rich indigo to the dark cobalt that always steals every molecule of my breath. This time is no exception. I’m motionless. Boneless. Beyond enthralled.
“Oh, my beautiful sweetheart. I’ve never been happier in my life.”
And now, I’m beyond in love.
I had no idea there was such a realm for my heart and soul, but I’m there now—and determined to stay—as this incredible man pushes in at me more. My sights are consumed by his broad, proud torso—but that’s not half the joy of letting him dominate my breath with his sizzling sweep of a kiss.
But damn it, that’s all it is. A brush so fast, it’s hardly contact. A kiss that’s hardly a kiss—but so much of one.
