Page 97 of Babalon

“You were afraid I was with someone other than you? Kace, there’s not even another person in my life outside of Darkwater. There’s just you.”

My heart races at that notion. I am so in love with her.

“I believe you, that’s why I am apologizing for manhandling you when you first got here. I thought the worst and that’s not fair. Please, tell me you forgive me.”

I tilt in, barely grazing my lips against her again, silently pleading for her to provide that simple comfort.

“I accept your apology, Kace.”

When she push's up to meet my lips, I gave her what she came for. A slow, languid kiss that screams how much I am hers.

“Now, can we talk about what you really wanted me out here for?”

“Mhm,” I reply, draping one arm over her shoulder, holding her close to me.

“Getting all the bullshit out of the way, I want to be yours. I know there are roadblocks and limitations but you own me, Nadia.”

She stands there quiet now.

While waiting for her response, I pull her with me back to the wall, turning her around to face outward. Guiding her till she is flush against me, I tilt her chin until she looks up at the night sky with me. The crescent moon framing the trees with an ethereal glow. And I patiently wait for her to speak.

Whatever she chooses, I will respect. A life with an inmate is hard, especially one who will never parole out and return to society. No long nights curled up in bed, no breakfast for dinner, no road trips, nothing. Just day in, and day out, visits to a cell.

I won’t blame her if she decides this isn’t for her but my heart, already aching for the woman before me, screams for her. Not a single person on God's green Earth has entered my life and turned it in a million different directions like Nadia has. From our first run in, to each bruise she has left on my body through the years, seeing her smile, smelling her unique scent, feeling her take and grip me while we were together, then the look in her wide grey eyes when I told her to let me love her.

I have this belief that we are all made of the same stuff, stardust if you think about it. The same molecules, the same chemicals, the same atoms that have existed for billions of years. Then what draws us together is the polarization of my atoms to hers. Every one of hers, attracts every one of mine.

I accidentally killed that girl, but she led me to this one and I am forever indebted to her.

“I want to be yours too, Kace.”

The warmth that explodes in my chest nearly brings tears to my eyes but when I look down at her, I can’t stop the shit-eating grin that spreads across my face.

“Yeah?”

“Yeah, it will be a challenge, but I’m not going anywhere. I’m yours.”

“That’s what I like to hear, snitch.”

Brushing my lips against hers once more, I savor the feel and taste of my— yeah,MY— woman.

“Remember when I told you about my dad and a little about my childhood, a while back?”

“I do.”

“I kinda burned the house down the other day, when I was off work, and Detective Whitlock showed up to work an arson case.”

Fucking whiplash. We go from relationships to crime.

“What? Hold up, backtrack a bit. One, you burnt the house down?”

“Sure did. Dad hasn’t been to his cancer treatments in the past month or what not, so when I went to check on him, he was passed out in a chair. The house was disgusting and we got into an altercation.”

“Baby, you’re going to have to stop with all the bombs. What altercation?”

“He tried to hit me and I beat him to the punch, countered and had him disengaged pretty quick. He said some shady shit that I wasn’t going to allow. After that I went to my room and saw that he had destroyed it. I—”

She stalls for a second, which I’ve learned is her way of gathering her words without being emotional. So, insteadof rushing her, because my body was already humming for movement, I wait till she continues.

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