Page 57 of Finding You

He glanced back down at Raven who was sleeping soundly, and he couldn’t resist touching her. She’d had a restless night, waking up off and on, crying at times and screaming at others. Zion had thought for sure she’d sleep through the night since the doctor had given her pain killers. They had knocked her out shortly after arriving home, but even those hadn’t stopped her from waking up every couple of hours. Needless to say, he hadn’t slept much either.

Raven was lying on her stomach, and Zion gently brushed his hand over her coily hair, moving some strands out of her face. She had taken her braids down days ago, and her natural coils were shoulder length with hints of auburn highlights. He wasn’t sure what all the hair stylist had done for her yesterday, but he loved the look and how soft her hair was.

“Zion?”

Raven’s voice jolted him out of his thoughts. She hadn’t moved, and he hadn’t realized she was awake, especially since her eyes were still closed.

He bent down and placed a lingering kiss on her cheek. “Yeah, baby?”

“I love you. I’ve been wanting to say that for a long time. Way before yesterday.”

He grinned and then started laughing. “Then why didn’t you?”

“I was too chicken,” she said, easing onto her back.

Immediately, his eyes went to her full breasts where her nipples were pushing against the thin material of her pink camisole. His body stirred, and he felt like a perv for wanting to suck those perky nipples into his mouth. She was in pain. The last thing she needed was for him to be wanting to devour her body.

“How’s the shoulder and your back?” he asked when he noticed her wince. “Do you need a pain pill?”

She finally opened her eyes and looked at him, then gave him a small smile. “My shoulder hurts like crazy, but my back feels much better. I don’t want to take any more of those pills the doctor prescribed. They make me feel loopy.”

Zion brushed the back of his fingers down her soft cheek and nodded. “Okay, how about some ibuprofen or Tylenol?”

“Either one would be good.”

After getting her a couple of pills, Raven washed them down with water, then propped herself up in bed. Zion climbed in beside her and carefully pulled her against his side. He placed a kiss on top of her head.

“In case you missed the twenty times that I told you last night, I love you too.” He smiled when he heard her snort. “Are you hungry?”

“No, I just want to stay right here snuggled up to you. Do you have to work today?”

“Nope, I took the next couple of days off. I wouldn’t have been able to focus on work. So I’m planning to hang around the house and hover over you.”

This time she laughed, then lifted her head to look at him. He didn’t miss the heartrending tenderness in her gaze. The love he saw in her pretty eyes was the same as what he felt deep in his soul. Every day he spent with her confirmed they belonged together.

He lowered his head and claimed her sweet lips, kissing her with all the love flowing through him. He wanted her to feel everything that he felt for her. Love. Respect. Adoration. She was the most amazing woman he’d ever been with, and he felt blessed to have her in his life.

Yeah, this was the woman he wanted to spend the rest of his life with.

When the kiss ended, she was smiling and her eyes looked brighter. She looked happy, and he wanted to keep that look on her face.

“Sit up for a minute. I have something for you,” he said.

When she did, Zion got out of bed and walked across the room to the walk-in closet. He pulled a large box from the top shelf and removed the small velvet box that he had stashed inside it. He had gone ring shopping the day after they had gone to see Wiz, and now he was glad he had planned ahead.

Replacing the large container on the shelf, he tucked her gift into the front pocket of his sleep pants. As he approached her, Raven watched him closely but didn’t say anything. Instead of him going to his side of the bed, he went to hers and sat next to her.

“I know we’ve done things backwards—sex, kids, then moved in together.” He shrugged and chuckled. “Maybe that’s just how we roll, but I love you, Raven. I love you so damn much that it’s a little scary just how much. I want to spend the rest of my life with you.”

He pulled the box from his pants pocket, and Raven released a soft gasp. Her hands went to her mouth as she watched him with large eyes.

He opened the box to reveal a two carat, pear-shaped diamond engagement ring. “Will you marry me? And no, I’m not asking you because of the kids. I’m asking you to be my wife because I adore and love you more than any other human being. Marrying the mother of my children is just a bonus. Will you do me the honor of being my wife?”

“Yes!” she said quickly, then lunged forward to throw her arms around him, but cried out in pain. “Ooouch. I forgot about this stupid shoulder,” she whined.

Zion chuckled and reached for her hand. “Yeah, you gotta be careful because I need you to hurry up and heal. By the way, I don’t want a long engagement.”

She sat back and held her hand out in front of her and stared at the ring. “Oh, my goodness. It’s so pretty, and just so you know, I don’t want a long engagement either. I’d marry you tomorrow if I didn’t think your mother would kill us if we went to the courthouse.”

---