Page 195 of Seeking Shadows

I step back slightly to face him.

He smiles, almost as if testing the words. “Let’s live there. Travel the world. Do whatever we want.”

The idea settles into me as something natural, something right. My smile widens. “Sounds perfect.”

But then my mind returns to reality.

Nico is still alive.

And I know that justice and peace cannot exist at the same time as long as he continues to breathe.

Zane sees the change in my expression before I even say anything.

“I know,” he murmurs.

I stare at him. “We can have peace when he dies.”

He smiles weakly, a dark glint in his eyes.

“You never take the easy option, do you?”

I shrug, a smile playing on my lips. “Never.”

“I told you, wherever you go I go, Mia Hill. I would run if you wanted me to. But I can also fight if that’s your choice.”

“There is no peace without justice, Zane,” I murmur. “Even though the idea of living far away from here is tempting. I can’t let the people I love live through this war alone. And I suspect neither can you.”

He looks at me with an intensity that tears apart any distance between us, and his eyes shine with a mixture of deep love and a slight melancholy.

“Sometimes I forget how good you are, wife,” he whispers, pulling me close and burying his face in my neck, as if he wants to absorb every inch of me. “Good in so many ways I can’t even count.”

I smile, a small smile, trying to hide the insecurity that creeps into me. “I know, you don’t support killing.”

He pulls back slightly, his eyes glinting with slight provocation. “No. You can kill whoever you want, love,” Zane says with a goofy smile on his lips. “At this point, I’ll just be here to help you.”

I laugh softly, feeling the heat of his body against mine, and he pulls me to him again, his arms wrapping around me like I’m the only thing that matters. “You have no idea what you made me do, do you?” he whispers against my skin. “I’d let you cut me open if that’s what you wanted. I’d let you burn the world down. And I’d follow you, Mia. I’d always follow you.”

I teasingly place a soft kiss on his lips, feeling the need to tease him, to test the limits of his love. “Obsessed.”

He sighs, and his eyes darken, as if desire has taken hold of him in a way he can no longer control. “To the point of sickness,” he murmurs. “I’m glad you don’t want kids, because I don’t know if I can share you with anyone else.”

“I love how you match my madness,” I say, smiling sweetly, and I can see he smiles too, but it’s the smile of someone who’s lost in the chaos of love.

“I love you, as easy as breathing,” he whispers, and kisses me again, with a softness that only he knows how to have.

"You said that to me that day at the hearing, why?" I ask, curiosity tugging at my voice.

Zane’s gaze softens, the intensity in his eyes shifting, like he’s letting me see a piece of him few ever get to touch.

His fingers trace the edge of my jaw, a gentle touch, as if he’s grounding himself before he speaks. "Because my father once told me that with the right person, love would be as easy as breathing." His eyes lock onto mine, deep and unwavering. "You are that person."

The words hang between us, raw and filled with something I can’t name. I smile, my heart swelling with a love I don’t even know how to contain. It’s a warmth that spreads through me, filling the hollow parts I didn’t know were there.

I close the distance between us, pressing my lips against his briefly, feeling the storm of emotions that always surge when we touch. He responds, pulling me closer, as if he needs to keep me tethered to him. The kiss deepens, and I feel the weight of his love in every touch, in the way his arms tighten around me.

He murmurs against my lips, voice rough and dark, like it’s meant just for me. “I never thought I'd find someone like you, Mia. You make everything... easier. Even this madness.” His breath catches in his chest, and I feel the shiver run through him. “You make me feel like I can breathe again."

I pull back just enough to meet his eyes, my heart racing. "I love you, Zane. As easy as breathing."

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