Page 67 of A Duke, a Virgin and a Baby
“No.”
Anna leaned forward, her gaze alight with persistence. “Do I seem like the sort of person who will cower before you?”
Julian’s smile refused to diminish, now obvious as he shook his head, feeling strangely excited as he replied,
“No, my dear.”
Anna huffed, holding her hands out, her cheeks turning pink when he held onto them gently.
“Then you should stay. The possibility of making mistakes doesn’t immediately equate that I will be hurt by you. We’re onlyhuman – mistakes are inevitable. And I would have expected that you would know by now that I would not merely stand by, mute and still, as I am treated unfairly.” She told him, looking as though she was exasperated by the mere idea of having to explain all of this to him.
Julian hummed, trying not to show that his heart was beating out of control in anticipation within him.
“That is true. You have always been so vocal during our fights and stood your ground on all that you wanted. I wonder what I was thinking,” he mused quietly with a smirk.
“I am of the opinion that perhaps you were thinking far too much and perhaps not enough at the same time,” she blushed deeply, shifting her gaze away momentarily. “What I wanted to ensure that you knew was that I wouldn’t be disrespected or hurt so easily. I know what happened to your mother has left you with deep wounds, and I understand that a lot of your reluctance was due to the fact that you wanted to protect me from the fate she had suffered. But you are not your father, Julian. You have carried those memories around so closely to yourself and used them as an excuse to keep yourself from truly living the life you are deserving of. It is the same as picking at the scabs of those wounds within you, preventing them from being healed properly,” Anna pointed out, shuffling closer to him.
She reached out slowly with one of her hands, her eyes searching his for something as her fingers met his hair, patting the messy curls with an affectionate expression.
“You are much more than your past, my dear husband. Much more than your father’s cruelty and your mother’s pain. You are not walking the same path that they did. So you do not need to deny yourself the good things that you are deserving of, in fear of committing sins that were never yours to bear. Yes, you have hurt me before, but it was not intentional. I did not appreciate you telling me that it was for my benefit either, but I understand that you were only trying to protect me. Henceforth, bring such worries to me. If we nip concerns like these in the bud, they will have no time to grow out of control. You are my husband, Julian. And I love you, with everything within me. It is a tad daunting, but I trust you and your love for me. All I ask is that you trust me, too. We might inevitably cause each other pain, because we’re human. But if we stay together and grow past it, I believe that we will get through whatever lies ahead of us together.”
Her touch and her words filled him with reassurance, and somehow tripled the love he had for her. Julian surged upwards, catching her off guard with a kiss, sighing when she kissed him back with fervor, her hands braced at the back of his neck.
“I love you,” he told her when they broke apart, not granting themselves the misfortune of having too much distance between them. “I love you so much, Anna. And I look forward to living out my days here, with you.”
Anna’s eyes filled with tears, and she nodded, pulling him closer, whispering against his lips.
“I love you, too, Julian. Thank you for agreeing to stay with me.”
“I would give my life for you if you’d ask.”
“I don’t need that,” Anna giggled, and Julian’s heart clenched tightly at how precious she was. “I just need you, here. Like this.”
She kissed him again, her fingers clutching at the tufts of hair at the base of his neck. Julian moaned and pressed forward, desiring to be even closer to her, needing more of her warmth and her mesmerizing touch.
He felt…utterly foolish for believing he could live without her, after everything. How would his days have looked without her smile? How would his skin have felt without her touch? How long would it have taken for him to spiral and lose his mind without her?
It was a wholly idiotic idea to assume he would have survived this distance between them when he couldn’t even bear to keep his hands off of her in that moment.
Slowly, Julian rose to his feet, bringing her up with him as they panted for breath, only to capture her lips once more, his hands caressing the curves of her body through her thin nightdress. Anna clung to him tightly, as though she feared he might go back on his word and leave her, the thought making his heart tremble.
In a single motion, he lifted her into his arms, smiling at the squeal that left her lips.
“My love, I meant what I said about giving you a child. And I will be here to raise them with you, every step of the way. In fact, I believe it is in our best interest to work towards this goal.” He told her seriously as he turned around and began to walk in the direction of the door.
“W-Where are we going?” she asked, cling to him with a smile.
“To my chambers, my sweet. I will give you as many children as you desire, right now.” He promised.
Anna’s laugh, along with the weight of her arm around his neck, brought peace to his heart in a gentle trickle, and not for the first time, Julian thanked his stars that he had his wife with him.
He kissed her the moment the door slammed behind them, urgency filling his blood as he recalled how he had nearly given her up.
As his hands slid over the soft, sheer material of her night gown, he couldn’t help but feel utterly stupid over the decision he had nearly made.
‘I had nearly given up on this beautiful creature,’ he mused to himself, guiding her backwards toward the bed. ‘I had nearly ruined my life with my own hands.’
But he hadn’t. Thankfully, Julian had managed to realize what the most important thing to him was and now that he was fully aware, he would never let her go.
