Page 50 of The Scattered Bones

Ishut the door gently so I don’t wake them and creep down the hall to my room. With the excitement of the day, neither girl wanted to sleep, and it was a battle of wills to see who would break first. Exhaustion won in the end, and with soft kisses to their small tanned brows, I left them to dream of swimming, tropical fruits, and pink fish.

Kaid sits on our bed as I round the corner to our bedroom, but he’s staring off into space, oblivious to my presence. I smile at how beautiful he is and lean against the doorframe to wait for him to wake from his trance. The first time this happened, it terrified me. It was almost as if he stopped existing in this world, his mind somewhere else, and when he finally snapped out of his daze, I was nearly inconsolable with terror. It happens less now than it used to, but occasionally my husband’s consciousness leaves this plane of existence. All these cycles later, though, it no longer frightens me. Death warned he might be different when he woke, but to our relief, Kaid is the same man I married. These small moments of absence are the only change, and I embrace them instead of fear them. I let his soul find its way back to me as I study his beauty.

His scars are almost invisible now, his sun-kissed skin and rippling muscles hiding Death’s flawless stitching. He no longer limps, his body fully functional, but at the beginning, he was as unsteady as a newborn. After Death left us, Kaid could barely stay awake for more than a few hours at a time. I kept him warm and fed, but as we sat around the fire for days, my request to return to the Vesi flooded my mind. Udens had given his permission for me to bring Kaid to his waters, and as soon as my husband was strong enough, I packed up our camp. It was a quiet journey as Kaid slept on the cart, but he was alive and not in pieces in the chest. I smiled the entire trip, but it was nothing compared to the grin that split my lips when my husband saw the Vesi for the first time.

It was on those shores that I recounted the story of The Stranger and my journeys. It took us days to get through the tale, his body unable to stay awake for long, but he didn’t let me forget a single detail. I told him about every horrifying moment, including those that occurred in these waters. He hated hearing of my suffering. I could feel the rage wafting off him, and I worried learning of my time without him would harm his healing, but he bore it with the same bravery he met his death with.

The following weeks were decidedly more enjoyable. We ate tropical fruit, worked his muscles in the shallow water, and slept naked under the sun. The fish swam with us as I helped him grow stronger, and when my eyes caught sight of the pink one, I couldn’t stop the tears. Udens had come to meet Kaid, and the way he swam around my husband confirmed the god of the sea had claimed him just as he had me.

We both gained much-needed weight on the sun-kissed shores of the Vesi, and after a month of never donning clothes, Kaid laid down beside me one night and dragged my body atop his. We made love for the first time since our wedding. It was awkward and exhausting. We laughed and fumbled as Kaid tried to control his still-weak muscles, but I’ve never loved anything more.

We left the Vesi after that, and true to his promise, we found a small shrine to Elskere. I wore an elaborate gown, and Kaid wore the finest fabrics, and we pledged our marriage vows again. The southern village prepared a wedding feast for us, and we danced and ate and drank until dawn, celebrating our love with strangers who felt like family. Amidst the revelry, I noticed a dark stain watching me with fondness among the sea of vibrantly dressed guests, and while he never came close, my heart surged with joy. Death had come to bear witness. Like a father, he came to his child’s wedding, and as the sun heralded the new day, Kaid and I completed the vows of our body. When we finally emerged from the wedding suite at midday to continue our journey, the villagers showered us with gifts. Some were small and humble, some were homemade, and others were tiny fortunes, but all were presented with kindness. That’s when we knew. We were home, and with the gold I stole from the Mitte Midagi, we purchased a fertile farm.

The weather was bright, the land rich and fruitful, and Sato surprisingly offered us her favor. Within a cycle, we had a harvest beyond our wildest dreams, but it was overshadowed by the birth of our first daughter. She came into this world with gorgeous black hair and a powerful set of lungs, and I never knew how much love I held in my heart until I saw her. She was mine. She was Kaid’s. We had our own family, and I would never abandon her like my parents deserted me. Kaid would never reject her like his father had dismissed him. We would love her until her life was overflowing, and then we would love her more.

Death and Lovec, along with his newly returned wife, traveled to us to celebrate our first daughter and then again two cycles later when our second girl was born. We wanted Udens to bless the girls as well, but we waited until they were old enough to visit the Vesi and swim with the pink fish. This was the cycle we finally journeyed to the sunken city, and after an entire season of sun and salt water and fruit, I’m thankful to be home. Our daughters were in their glory, though, and are less excited to be home. They hated leaving the colorful fish, playing with Udens in his innocent form every day until we had to drag them out of the waves for meals. Shortly before we left, a whale presented himself, and the green hint in his white eyes told me Udens had plans for us. We swam to him as a family, and he carried us through the sunken city, the school of fish sending air bubbles our way so we wouldn’t drown. When we resurfaced, Kaid and I told the girls a simplified story of how their mother found one of their father’s scattered bones in these waters. We have yet to tell them the full truth of our history, but they’ve started to question Kaid’s scars and his moments of absence. They didn’t fully understand what we said, but they knew enough to cry and hug their father, Udens carrying us on his back to offer his support. When their tears finally dried, Kaid launched them into the water one by one, and we spent the rest of the day with laughter in the presence of a god. No, our daughters did not want to leave the Vesi, but with the harvest fast approaching, we had to return. Kaid still quietly prays to Varas, but the thief in him died when his body did, and he’s content to live his days chasing his children through the grain and vegetables.

“Did it happen again?” His voice interrupts my reverie, and I smile as he finally registers me standing in the doorway. I nod, and he extends a hand. These moments used to bother him as they did me, but now he accepts that they’re a part of who he is. He knows I don’t love him any less because of them. If anything, I love him more because of how precious our life is. This is the future we weren’t supposed to have, and neither of us takes it for granted.

He grabs my hand as soon as I step within reach and pulls me atop his lap. I straddle him with a laugh that he swallows with a greedy kiss.

“I’m so glad to be home,” he moans into my mouth.

“As am I, but the girls hate it.” I thread my fingers through his hair, tilting his head to gain better access to his mouth, and his groan at my force sends a bolt of electricity to my core.

“We’ll take them back next Season of Growth.” Kaid’s hands find my thighs, and he pushes my nightdress up my legs until my lower half is bare against him. “But I’m going to enjoy that we’re no longer living in a tent and can shut the door.”

I laugh as he grinds against me, and the delicious pressure steals my humor, replacing it with an unholy need.

“Kaid,” I moan.

“My goddess.” He rips my clothing from my body. His mouth finds mine again, and my soul ignites, loving that even all these cycles later, he still calls me that. His love has never once faltered, his devotion to me stronger now than it was at our first wedding.

“Wife.” He bites my bottom lip, his teeth applying just enough pressure to drive me to madness. “I need you.”

I’m already moving before he can finish speaking, my frantic fingers trailing down his chiseled abs to his pants. I’m clumsy as I undo them, suddenly starving for this man. We would sneak down to the water to be alone at the Vesi, but those moments were always rushed so we wouldn’t leave our daughters unattended for too long, and while I never regret our time with our girls, our family, I crave Kaid so badly it hurts. Our love for each other hasn’t waned, our need never dying. With each cycle, we grow closer, and while I want to savor this moment, I’m too desperate.

I grip his length and push him against my opening. His breath catches as he realizes just how deeply I desire him, and I slip my fingers into his dark hair, forcing him to look at me.

“I want you to watch me,” I say as I lower myself slowly onto him. Kaid curses so loud that I clamp my hand over his mouth so he doesn’t wake the girls, and fire burns in his eyes at how I seized control. He revels in my desperation for him, so with my palm still clamped over his lips, I lean forward, my bare body brushing seductively against his chest.

“Sellah,” he growls, gripping my hips. “Stop teasing me. I need you.”

My arm wraps around his neck, my hand still covering his mouth. “I want you hard and loud,” I say, rocking against him as we become one. “I’ll capture your cries, but it has been so long since I’ve had you on a bed, I want to feel you lose yourself.”

Kaid grips my hips harder, and I know there’ll be bruises there tomorrow. The thought floods me with arousal, and he slides inside me without resistance.

He takes my request to heart and thrusts with wild abandon, my pleasure growing out of control. He moans obscenely into my palm, and it’s the most arousing thing I’ve ever heard. His groans are deep and filled with longing, beautiful and full of passion, and it’s the sound of his voice rough with desire that sends me over the edge.

I slam my mouth to his, kissing him so he can contain my screams, and my climax lasts and lasts and lasts until I am boneless and blissfully happy.

“Don’t even think about it,” Kaid growls as he forces me to continue moving. “I’m not done with you yet. I’ll never be done with you, wife.”

His pace increases until I’m the one unable to hide her voice. “Oh gods, Kaid, please.”

“There are no gods in this bed but you,” he says as he kisses my throat. “You are my goddess. You are who I worship.”

“I love you, Kaid.”

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