But now it’s apparent you didn’t know.”
He rests his arms on my hip, holding me while I continue to weep. “However, all these tears are nothing compared to the tears of joy we will experience in the future,” he says. “I believe this is but a prelude of what is to come.”
After wiping my face, I look up at him. “Are you sure you’re not a philosopher disguised as a physician? I swear that is your true calling.”
He arches a brow and gives me a playful smirk. “Are you asking for advice? I could’ve sworn you said you’d never do that.”
“Shut up.” I kiss him, letting my lips linger for a long time before I pull back. “What I want to know, oh wise one, is how can this moment be any more perfect?”
Braxton scratches his chin as though in deep contemplation. “I think you should tell me you love me again.”
“I do love you, so very much.”
“And I love you,” he says. Then he pauses for a moment, studying me. “I have another surprise for you.”
I groan and wink at him. “I don’t think I can handle much more. But,” I say, elongating the word, “I want to know.”
He takes my hand in his and then closes his eyes. I stare at him, not understanding anything until something cool to the touch lands on my palm. When I look down and see the ear cuff resting there, it instantly blurs because of my tears.
“Marry me,” he says, kissing the side of my neck. “Be with me.”
“Yes.”
He nips at my shoulder. “Put it on.”
“Yes, of course.”
“And I want you to wear it and nothing else right now.”
“Yes.” My hands fly to do his bidding, and shortly after, I find myself pressed into the bed with Braxton worshipping my body.
“I want you to come for me,” he whispers.
“God, yes.”
“Love me forever.”
This time, I cannot get the words out as Braxton pulls me under a tidal wave of seduction mixed with affection and love. However, every kiss and every touch is my way of saying yes to him. And he responds in kind.
Never underestimate the power of a healer because they can not only mend your broken body and your wounded soul, but sometimes they bring you back to life by touching your heart and filling it with so much love that you have no choice but to live.
And then you get to spend the rest of your life returning that love only to have it reciprocated in the most beautiful cycle of giving, trust, and joy.
Epilogue
Several years later…
My nights are filled with many sounds.
The sweet sighs of my daughter as she dreams. The rustling of material as my son turns in bed. He was like that in the womb, always moving. There’s also Braxton’s soft words as he pleasures my body and those that tell of his adoration for me. Then there’s the thrumming of my heart as I gaze at my family, the people that bring me more happiness than I could’ve ever imagined.
“What are you doing in here?”
I turn to look at my husband as he enters the children’s room. “You know I have to check on them at least twice,” I whisper.
Braxton wraps his arms around my protruding middle and rests his chin on my shoulder. “I know, but they are fine. You know I’d be able to tell, right? I am a physician.”
I smile at the teasing note in his voice. “There is no one more qualified to care for them.”
“Not even a brilliant scientist?”
“Not even me,” I say.
“I beg to differ, since you’re the one who figured out how to cure the infertility for the Dravian women.”
I nod. “True, but that didn’t stop some of the males from leaving Najarie.”
He turns me in his embrace, gently stroking my back. “They left because they had not found their mates and wanted a chance to do so on Earth. After so many had found them among human females, it seemed inevitable. I know I would’ve left to find you.”
I weave my fingers through his hair and pull him down for a kiss. It’s deep and languid, as if we are savoring one another. That’s how it is for us now. Nothing but being immersed in the love that each person gives.
“That helps me understand a little bit,” I say.
“The need for their mate is something that will not be denied. It dictates our every decision and our every act. Nothing is more important.”
I huff and grin up at