Total pages in book: 123
Estimated words: 116898 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 584(@200wpm)___ 468(@250wpm)___ 390(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 116898 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 584(@200wpm)___ 468(@250wpm)___ 390(@300wpm)
I take a moment to appreciate that Lavender is willing to deal with the insanity that is my life, and sometimes me. I love her so fiercely, it can be overwhelming at times—for both of us. But we’ve learned how to find our own version of balance. It isn’t always easy, and the long stretches during my away series test me more than they test Lavender, but we manage. She’s proven to be the stronger and more resilient of the two of us in that regard.
I pad back to the kitchen to gather the items I left on the counter, and I arrange them carefully on the end table before I kneel on the floor beside her.
Her lips are parted slightly, the scar from her childhood forever a reminder of the night that cemented our souls together. No matter how far away I am, I feel that connection, like a tripping switch, an invisible energy that only seems to grow stronger the longer we’re together.
I brush my thumb across her bottom lip, and she sighs, head turning in my direction. She swipes at her face with an uncoordinated hand, and when it connects with mine, she finds my pinkie and curls hers around it.
“Baby, you wakin’ up?” I kiss her temple and down her cheek.
She hums softly, and her palm comes to rest against the side of my neck. “Kodiak.”
“You talking to me in your sleep?” I hover over her mouth.
Her lips turn up. “I tried to stay awake.”
“You and the bunnies?”
“Mmm. Me and the bunnies.” She licks her lips. “I need a mint before you kiss me hello.”
“No, you don’t.” I slant my mouth over hers and part her lips with my tongue.
She makes a slight noise of protest that turns into a sweet moan. She tastes like watermelon Jolly Rancher, so she must not have been asleep all that long. We kiss until it’s clear Lavender wants it to become more. She kicks off the blanket and tries to shove my hand down the front of her sleep shorts.
“Not yet.” I smile against her lips. “I have something for you.”
“I’d rather have an orgasm than whatever it is.”
I chuckle. Lavender is always a little surly when she’s woken unexpectedly, and now is a perfect example of that.
“I promise you’ll get what you want after, but I have something special for you since it happens to be your birthday.” I pull back and tilt my head toward the end of the couch where helium balloons and a bottle of champagne are set up. “No more underage drinking for you. Gonna be hard to give up your badass, deviant ways.”
“If we lived in Canada, I’d have been legal for two years already.” She grabs the front of my shirt and tries to pull my mouth back to hers. “Thank you for the balloons and champagne. Let’s drink that after you’ve been inside me.”
“That’s not the present.” I kiss the end of her nose.
“I missed you,” she whispers huskily. “The sun isn’t as bright when you’re not here for it to shine on.”
“I missed you too.” I indulge her in a short, chaste kiss while I produce a small box from behind my back. “Happy twenty-first birthday, baby.” I shift so I’m on one knee and swallow my anxiety as I flip the box open.
Lavender shakes off the residual sleepiness and sits up in a rush. “Kodiak?”
The diamonds sparkle in the dim light. “You’ve had my heart your entire life, Lavender, and even when I bruised yours, you still took care of mine. I’m sorry it took me so long to be able to love you like I was supposed to, and I don’t know if I’ll ever truly deserve you, but I want to try. I want this life with you. Please let me keep your heart.”
She strokes my cheek gently. “It’s always been yours.”
“Bind your soul to mine.” I lift the ring from its satin box and slide it on her finger. The center is set with a pale purple diamond, and on either side are two diamond-encrusted infinity symbols.
“They’re already long bound, but I’ll marry you anyway.” Her smile softens as she takes my face between her palms. “It’s beautiful and perfect, and I love you more than is rational most days.”
“And I love you beyond comprehension.”
“So much we nearly broke us.”
Her kiss is my grace. Lavender is the keeper of my heart. She’s the only truth that matters.
THE END