KALLE

Gahrye led her into the bedroom he was using, but he was moving overly-carefully. As if he was afraid he might break something.

When they got inside, he let her go and turned to close—and lock—the door. She didn't really pay attention to the room. It was him she wanted to see. And this room was plain, little more than a large bed, sized for Anima males, a simple dresser—also large and antique—a chair in the corner that was extra deep and had a matching ottoman. To the right was the door into the bathroom that had been updated a few years earlier when the pipes of the building, which was well over a century old, finally began to fail.

Gahrye was in his own clothes—he hated the human clothing and only wore it when they were leaving the house. Likely another reason he didn't like the car, as she thought about it. He said their clothing was stiff and uncomfortable. She didn't care. She loved the soft leather pants and off-white shirts he wore that were some kind of incredibly soft cotton, or a type of silk they didn't have in her world. The pants clung to his strong thighs and calves, and even though the shirts were looser, they were trim enough to pull on his muscles when he moved his arms and shoulders, so she always had an eyeful of his strength.

She stared at his back—the cotton of the shirt clinging to his broad shoulders, that cord of muscle that ran up, out of the collar and framed his neck, and his thick, barrel chest.

He was so freaking gorgeous her mouth went dry. And she hoped… Creator above she hoped he was finally going to give himself to her.

The thought curled desire in her belly, and made her nerves flutter. So, when he hesitated after locking the door and didn't turn around right away, she stepped into his back, wrapping her arms around him from behind, and laying her chest against his warm back.

He sighed and his hands slid from her elbows, up her arms, to twine their fingers.

"You don't have to be nervous,

" she said finally.

"If this is your first time, I can show you.

"

He snorted.

"It's not my first time giving my body, Kalle,

" he said dryly.

"It is… it's the first time I've come to this with my heart.

" He turned then, looming over her, his bright eyes fierce and intense, locking on hers immediately.

"I'm terrified,

" he whispered.

She had to take a breath. He'd lost that haunted look, the torment of fighting whatever it was inside him that held him back. But instead, it was as if he'd cracked his chest opened and offered his heart to her. He pulsed with vulnerability, as if the wrong move, the wrong word, would bleed him out.

"What scares you?

" she asked.

He dropped his gaze for a moment, taking her hands and stroking them with his thumbs.

"In the past I've always been someone to be pitied or ignored,

" he said slowly.

"An object of disgust or just… dismissed.

" He cleared his throat, then brought his eyes up to hers and she almost gasped. His were fierce and flashing.

"That is not me.

"

"N-no, it's not,

" she gulped.

"They don't know me, Kalle. Not really. Elia sees me, but… I realized this afternoon that I have done the wrong thing with you. I've remained hesitant. I've held myself apart. I've expected you to… reject me. But you haven't. I'm… overwhelmed by that.

"

"You aren't hard to love, Gahrye,

" she said softly, squeezing his fingers.

He huffed a humorless laugh.

"Gahrye—

"

"No, let me do this, Kalle. Let me tell you, and then let me show you.

" He stared, his eyes hot and piercing. She nodded, and he blew out a breath. But their gazes never wavered.

"If you were in my home,

" he began, his features tightening at the reminder of her inability to travel to Anima,

"As soon as I knew who you were, what you were to me, I would have asked you to walk the Flames and Smoke. The Anima would gather the females that were closest to you to prepare you, and the males near me would… well, the point is, we would have prepared. And on that night, we would have stood firm. We would have fought to be close to each other. Denied all others to join together. And when I won you, I would have gathered you up and brought you to the home I'd prepared and offered it to you. And when you accepted, we would have joined in truth. And from that moment on, we would be together—always in each other's lives and hearts whether we were in each other's presence, or not.

" He paused, gathering himself, and swallowed.

"I understand that human traditions are different. That the vows are different. That the intentions may also be different. But I cannot change what's in my heart, or what I choose. So…

"

With a shaky breath he lowered himself to one knee.

*****

GAHRYE

He hadn't expected Kalle to remove her touch and it made his nerves spike. But when she'd seen him go down on one knee, her breath caught and she brought her hands to her mouth, staring at him, wide-eyed, over them.

He was determined to finish this, to have her answer. To give himself. So he blew out a breath and held her eyes. He could hear her heart racing almost as fast as his own.

"Kalle,

" he said hoarsely.

"I love you. You are… you are the one the Creator made for me. I'm certain of it. I wish to never be parted from you. But I know that life will likely remove us from each other. Even knowing that, I do not want anyone else. Whether together or alone, will you have me for your mate? Your… your husband? Will you give me all of you, all of your heart, forever? Because I want to give you all of m—

"

"Yes!

" she gasped, grabbing his face, tiny whimpers breaking in her throat.

"Yes, Gahrye, yes! I will! I love you! Yes!

"

*****

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