Page 50 of Jager's Prey
“We?” I shifted so I could see his face. “That means you too?”
“Mmm.” He replied. “I know how I feel, Arin Chioma. I’m just waiting for you.”
“Waiting—and you’re okay with that?”
Mack kissed me. “As long as you keep kissing me like this.”
“Oh, that’s not a problem.” I giggled.
“We’re not going to rush this, Jager.” Mack told me softly. “We’re going to do it right and one day, intend on asking you to be my wife.”
“I can’t imagine myself in a white dress and walking down the aisle.”
He scoffed. “I never said you had to wear white. But we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it. Tonight, it’s all about getting to know each other, exploring each other and just—breathing.”
“Speaking of getting to know each other.” I cuddled back into him. “Tell me about your family.”
“I’m not sure there’s anything to tell.” He replied. “My father wasn’t a very nice man—especially when he drank. My mother was his punching bag until he basically drank himself to death when I was eleven. My mother—she lasted until I joined the Army and then her heart gave out.”
“No brothers or sisters?”
“No.” I replied. “I have an aunt and some cousins, but we aren’t close. My aunt and my father had a falling out many years ago and we were left on our own. What about you?”
I explained my journey from Nigeria to New Orleans.
“Wait, they just left you?”
“They weren’t prepared for me.” I told him. “I didn’t speak English. I was goin’ through a lot. To make matters worse, they weren’t black. Apparently, people started whispering and my parents couldn’t handle it all.”
“It doesn’t matter.” He told me. “They were your parents. You weren’t a pair of pants that they ordered and changed their minds and send back to the store. It’s not fair to you. Especially since you’d just lost your birth parents horribly.”
“I keep thinking—if I was a better child.” I admitted. “I kept thinking if I’d caught on to the language faster.”
I pressed my face into his neck.
“Darling…” He rubbed my back. “You’re stronger than you give yourself credit for and I’ll always remind you of that. But please know that what happened with your adopted parents isn’t on you. Carry no shame, guilty.”
I stayed in the safety of his arms, letting his words of comfort swirled about in my head and allowing them to sooth me. His large palm going up and down my back was the next thing that made me melt for him.
“You’re a good man, Mack Salazaar.” I told him. “And when the day comes—when we’re both ready—I’ll be the proud to be Mrs. Arin Salazaar.”
“You promise?”
I kissed his chin. “I promise.”
Epilogue
Mack Salazaar
A year later…
“Come on, Pops!”Cage knelt on the bed beside me and shook me awake. “We’re going to be late.”
“Late?” I groaned. “What time is it?”
“Six?”
“A.M?” I asked. “Cage, your appointment is at ten. Go back to bed.”
