I started to feel hopeful, and I prayed for you every day.”
Layla blinked against a sudden sheen of tears. “I still can’t believe you tricked Commander Edek into bringing you into Sumlin on auction day just in hopes that you’d catch a glimpse of me. That was rather devious of you. But it was wonderful to see you that day, even if we couldn’t even hug one another or talk for long.”
Betsy grinned for a moment, but her visage abruptly darkened. “It didn’t take him long to figure it out. When I kept making excuses to walk closer to the vendors near the square, he caught on and asked if I was looking for you. I thought that perhaps if you were still alive, General Zamek might decide to sell you.
“Of course, it wasn’t precisely auction day that drew me into town but seeing the Tammusha on the landing platform outside Sumlin,” Betsy continued, “and then once I realized it was also auction day, well I couldn’t not look for you. Even though Edek was annoyed with me, he took me closer to the auction, and then once it ended, we walked the streets of Sumlin, hoping for a glimpse of you.”
They fell silent for some time, each lost in their memories of that day. A sharp breeze cut through the vineyard, and Layla pressed her hands down on her dress to keep it from flipping up in the wind. Little Colleen started rolling and kicking inside her, as if excited by the breeze.
“Perhaps once the video feed on the general’s interplanetary comm is working, you can introduce me to your friend Fiona Lockhart. I-I know that everything has worked out—it’s a relief to know she has found happiness with Ambassador Merokk—but I still feel as though I ought to apologize to her. Or thank her. I-I am not sure which. Both, I guess. Do you think she’ll want to talk to me?” Betsy shot Layla a hopeful look.
“Fiona has a kind and forgiving heart and I’m certain she’ll wish to meet you,” Layla replied.
Two huge Kall warriors stepped into their path, and Layla’s heart raced at the sight of Zamek. He’d taken an airship into Sumlin today with Commander Edek, but apparently the two males had returned from their business with the council, business to which neither she nor Betsy were privy, though Zamek had assured her that it was nothing to worry about.
As Zamek approached Layla, his gaze sweeping appreciatively over her swollen belly, Edek wrapped an arm around Betsy and whispered something in her ear that made her laugh.
“Wife,” Zamek said, taking Layla’s hand. He pulled her close and gave her a chastising look. “You shouldn’t walk so far from the house. What if you go into labor?”
She resisted the urge to roll her eyes. “Then the baby will fall out right here in the middle of the vineyard.” She grinned when he growled at her impertinent reply.
As Betsy and Edek walked ahead to join the others, Zamek guided Layla deeper into the vineyard, stealing her away for a moment of privacy. Once they reached a shaded area, he gathered her in his arms and kissed her forehead. Then he placed a hand upon her stomach. His eyes widened when little Colleen kicked him.
“She’s strong. Just like her mother.”
“And her father,” Layla added, standing on her toes to kiss Zamek.
He grasped her face and pressed his lips to hers with a softness that made her heart flutter. But the slow growl that emanated from his chest, as well as the growing hardness of his manhood, revealed he was restraining himself. When he stepped away, his eyes blazed with heat and longing. And affection. The warmth he settled upon her with a single glance often caused her heart to skip a beat.
He stepped closer then and leaned down, resting his forehead against hers.
“Soul to soul, wife,” he whispered, his breath caressing her face.
Her throat burned and she found herself blinking back tears. He’d only quoted this poem to her once. Several months ago, on the night they officially consummated their marriage. But hearing him say it again, or at least the last line, brought back the memories of that night, when they’d confessed their love to one another.
“Soul to soul, husband.”
~ FREE NAUGHTY BONUS SCENE ~
featuring Betsy + Commander Edek
Betsy deceived her husband, Commander Edek, to get him to take her to Sumlin on auction day so she might look for Layla… and he’s not happy she lied