Page 280 of The Wild Prince's Favorite
The man nodded and slowly stood.
She smiled. She wouldn’t have thought it felt so nice to meet someone from the Dragon Clan who spoke their tongue, and certainly not well enough to know what her name meant. When he was standing, Kassein’s father was even more imposing. Perhaps it was worse because she was lying down, but he looked like a dark mountain, not unlike their home. He gently putLumie back on the bed, and she clumsily crawled back to her mom until her head landed heavily on Alezya’s chest.
Just then, they heard steps coming up. The door opened, and Kassein appeared in the doorway. He briefly glanced at her, but then, his gaze did a double-take, and once his eyes landed on Alezya again, and he realized she was awake, they opened even wider in surprise, his shock written all over his face.
She wasn’t prepared to see him, and he gave her no time to figure out what to do or say. One second he was at the door, and the next, he’d ran across the room to be by her side, his weight pressing the mattress next to her. His wide hand cupped her cheek, his gaze still wide and breath suddenly close while he studied her.
“Alezya,” he let out in a shaky breath.
She smiled because any head movement was painful, but that was enough. He replied with the first sincere smile she had seen on him in a while, one of relief. Then, his smile broke a little, and he sunk forward, hiding his face in her hair, hugging her into the bed. It took her a second to realize his shoulders were shaking, and her heart sunk.
“Kassein… Are you crying?” Her throat tightened as she asked.
He didn’t move, but she could feel that man’s large body trembling in her arms. He let out a strangled, muted sob, and she felt her own tears escape. She could feel all of his emotions crashing all over him, the heavy relief of seeing her awake. Gently, she forced herself to move to press kiss after kiss on his raspy cheek, lifting her hand to caress his nape, her thumb rubbing his cheek softly.
“I’m sorry, baby,” she cried, the nickname in her language coming naturally. “I’m sorry… I’m fine.I’m fine.”
It took a few seconds for Kassein to calm down, and slowly pull back, his eyes red and his jaw still trembling. Never had shethought she would ever see this man cry, but the misty sheen on those green eyes she adored wrecked her heart. She cupped his wet cheeks, wiping them with her thumbs, and brought him in for a long, tender and overdue kiss. Then, he pulled back, still looking at her like he couldn’t believe his eyes, relief written all over his face.
“I love you.”
Him suddenly using her language to say those three words shook Alezya.
She didn’t even know how to react, but before she did, he smiled, and pressed another long kiss against her forehead. Next to them, Lumie suddenly let out a delighted giggle, reminding them they weren’t alone.
“Mama is awake,” he whispered to the baby girl, who squealed at him.
“Are you alright?” Alezya asked, fighting the heaviness in her limbs again to touch his warm arm.
He gave her a strong nod, immediately followed by a frown.
“You? Pain?”
Alezya went for a shrug, but that made her wince too. She sighed and nodded.
“Yes,” she confessed, “andI’m tired.”
He nodded and pressed another long kiss to her forehead before he glanced back, saying something to his father, who nodded and left the room.
“Your dad,” she said, still amazed.
He nodded.
“He helped,”he said, “withkulani. He speaks like you.”
“Not you? You didn’t speak to thekulani?”
Kassein hesitated, before he shook his head, and leaned in even more, his cheek against her cheek, breathing in deeply under her ear.
“With you,”he whispered. “I stayed with you. Kiera and Father spoke to thekulani.”
Alezya let out a sigh and lifted her hand further to run her fingers through his hair. He felt warm, with that faint smell of sweat she didn’t hate and the fresh scent of the forest. Stuck under his arm as he hugged them both, Lumie decided to lean against her mom too, wrapping her tiny chubby arms around Alezya’s neck. She exhaled slowly, sinking into his warmth and reality. She had survived. They had survived.
“...Kiera?” she asked. “Lorey? Ekata? Ekut? Tievin?”
She had missed him, but now that her memories were coming back, so was her sense of duty. She had more or less triggered that war; she needed to know the outcome. Kassein let out a sigh and slowly pulled back a few inches. He lay on the edge of the bed, next to Niiru, and leaned his upper body next to her on the bed, propped on his elbow, while Lumie had decided to stay on her mom, playing with her hair in her fist. He was careful to keep at a distance this time, visibly worried about touching her anywhere that could hurt, his hand only caressing hers softly.
“...Ekut is dead,” Kassein admitted.
