Page 89 of Beyond the Storm
“Perhaps we can make more of those memories tonight.” He winked but still exuded that bashful energy as he led me over to the table. “There are snacks while we wait for dinner to finish.”
“Do you need me to help with anything?”
“No. You just sit here and relax while I finish in the kitchen.”
“It smells lovely.”
“I only hope it tastes as good as it smells,” he said. “Raiden helped in my preparation of the meal by giving me instructions, but I cooked it myself. Baked cod with lemon and garlic sauce. I also have roasted asparagus salad with tomato and basil.”
As he went to the kitchen and removed a pan from the oven, I peeled a fig and nibbled on it. Excitement and joy had me smiling like a fool in love. But that’s exactly what I was. My gaze landed on the roses again, and that lump returned to my throat.
Elasus placed a bowl of salad on the table before bringing over plates with the fish. “Wine?” Before I could respond, he added, “Coffee will not pair well with the cod.”
“I drink more than coffee,” I said with a chuckle. “I quite enjoy the fruit smoothies as well.”
He was the one who laughed that time. “I cherish you more than any other, my warrior.” He kissed my temple before leaving to grab a bottle of wine and two glasses. As he took his seat across from me, I filled our glasses. “Gratitude.”
“Shall we toast?” I asked. “It’s a special day, after all.”
“Very well.” Smiling softly, he lifted his wine. “The world has changed since the first day I saw you on that battlefield, Kallias, but my love for you never will. You are where I belong.”
I lifted mine too. “You captured my heart that day. And it remains yours today, tomorrow, and every day that may come. We might’ve lost many years, but I vow to spend every moment making up for that lost time. You are my heart.”
Our glasses clinked before we drank to the toast. But that wasn’t enough. I stood from my chair and went over to kneel in front of him, resting my head on his knee. There was so much I wished to tell him but had trouble putting it into words. He ran his fingers through my hair. We didn’t say anything more, but I knew we both felt it—the emotion filling our chests and squeezing our hearts. The fated mate bond that was stronger than ever before.
“Raise your head,” Elasus whispered. I obeyed and was met with a gentle kiss on the lips. “Tonight, you and I are all that exist.”
My eyes stung. We had come so far since I’d first said those words to him.
After I returned to my chair, we ate dinner. He’d had nothing to worry about. The cod was cooked to perfection, and the vinaigrette on the salad brought all of the flavors together without being too heavy. We sipped our wine and chatted about our day. Before he’d left early to come home and prepare all of this, he had forged a blade made of Damascus steel.
“I was quite pleased with it,” Elasus said with a spark of excitement in his eyes. I adored that look. I was sure he saw the same one in my eyes when I spoke of a new latte or specialty coffee I’d learned to make. “The pattern in the steel is a true beauty. I’ve forged several Damascus swords and daggers, but this one was by far my best work.”
“I will have to visit the shop and see it.”
That shyness returned to his gaze before he lowered it to the table. “The blade was not all I forged today. Though, I suppose I’ve been working on this other thing for several days.”
I waited for him to say more. As his cheeks reddened and more silence hung between us, I reached across the table and took his hand. “Elasus?”
His brown eyes returned to me. “Will you join me outside?”
“Of course.”
Leaving the dishes on the table to deal with later, we rose from our chairs and stepped through the sliding glass door that led to the deck. The fading daylight cast the sky in shades of dark orange and red. The sea stretched in front of us, the surface glistening where the sun hit it and dark in the places it didn’t.
Elasus faced me and took both of my hands in his. “I have already told you many times today how much you mean to me, but I can never say it enough. When I see you, Kallias, my heart beats quicker, my breaths shorten, and my soul reaches out for yours. I could live for a thousand more years and still find more things to love about you.”
“If we weren’t already wed, I’d think you were about to propose.”
His tender smile blossomed across his entire face. “What can I say? Thousands of years later, and I’m still a fool in love.”
“Kiss him,”Melancholy murmured.“My home.”
“Our home,”I reminded him.
Perhaps one of these days, my sin would learn to share.
“Confessions of the heart don’t come as easily for me,” I said, gently squeezing his fingers. “But I’m still amazed by this life we’ve built together, and I thank the gods each morning when I wake beside you. You still make me feel like I’m flying.”
