Chapter 76 – Forever and ever

KIRA.

It’s been a long time since I had such a calm conversation with Gabriel. I missed his warm voice.

My heart was aching from the weight of the past as I sat there and watched Gabriel. I knew that in order to put the past behind us and stop hurting one other; we had to bury the hatchet of war.

“Gabriel,” I began, my voice hesitant. “I need to talk to you about Maddie.”

Gabriel looked up, his eyes meeting mine.

“What about her?” he asked, his voice reserved.

“I understand now that I made a mistake in hiding the truth about Maddie being your daughter,” I whispered. “I should have told you the truth from the beginning.”

Gabriel’s expression softened, and he let out a deep sigh.

“I know I didn’t do the right thing either,” he admitted. “When I did the DNA test without your knowledge and filed that lawsuit seeking full custody.”

I nodded, tears pricking at the corners of my eyes.

“We both made mistakes, Gabriel. But Maddie needs us to be her parents, to work together for her sake.” I said.

There was a long moment of silence as we both sat there, lost in thought. And then Gabriel spoke, his voice quiet but firm.

“You’re right,” he said. “Maddie deserves to have both of us in her life. We should work together, to be the best parents we can be for her.”

I felt a weight lift from my shoulders, and a warmth spread through my chest. This was what I had wanted all along, for Maddie to have the love and support of both her parents.

“Thank you, Gabriel,” I said, my voice choking with emotion. “Thank you for understanding.”

Gabriel smiled, his eyes softening.

“Thank you, too,” he said. “For being willing to work with me, to put Maddie first.”

I found it hard to believe. I hadn’t seen my daughter Maddie in such a long time, and now, after all this time, I was going to be reunited with her. Gabriel and I raised Maddie together as a family after setting aside our differences. It would be a new beginning for all of us.

I still vividly recalled the day that we broke up. It seemed like Gabriel and I could never agree to disagree again after the nasty custody trial. Yet as we discussed Maddie and our hopes for her future, it was as if we had never been apart since time cured all wounds.

When Maddie finally saw me again, I couldn’t wait to see her expression. She was someone I really missed, and I knew she did, too. I had so many activities lined up for us to enjoy together, including picnics in the park and movie nights.

As we talked about Maddie, I couldn’t help but ask Gabriel if she had asked for me in all the time that had passed. I held my breath as I waited for his response.

Gabriel’s face fell, and my heart sank with it. He hesitated for a moment before speaking.

“She hasn’t asked for you,” he mumbled.

Tears formed in my eyes. I found it hard to believe. Maddie must have noticed my absence. Has she completely forgotten about me?

Gabriel must have sensed my distress, because he quickly reassured me. “But that doesn’t mean she won’t be happy to see you,” he said. “She’s been looking forward to this day for a long time.”

I inhaled deeply and attempted to relax. He was right. I had to be optimistic. When she would see me again, Maddie was going to be completely baffled. And who knows, perhaps she had simply been too little to comprehend what it meant to miss someone. I only knew that I was prepared to make up for lost time and be the best possible mother to my young daughter.

“Do your wounds still hurt?” Gabriel asked, gently touching me in the corner of my mouth where I had the biggest bruise.

“Not so much…” I answered, but his touch mesmerized me.

I could feel my heart pounding with eagerness as he leaned in closer. As soon as his lips touched mine, it brought me back to the beginning of our love, when it was new and unpolished. Gabriel always had a way of making me feel alive.

Every contact and caress seemed like the very first time again. His hands were tracing a trail of fire across my body as they passed. It appeared he knew precisely how to make me feel complete again from the way he held me to the way he kissed me.

As our passion grew, I could feel the weight of the world lifting off my shoulders. In his arms, I felt safe, loved, and desired. I wanted nothing more than to lose myself in his embrace and forget about everything else.

As he pulled me in for another kiss, I felt his every movement, every jerky breath on my skin. It was like we were two halves of a whole, coming together once again to form a complete and perfect union.

Our love had never truly died. It had simply been dormant, waiting for the right moment to blossom once again. And as I stood there in his arms, feeling the heat of his body against mine, I knew that our love had finally found its way back to us.

In that moment, nothing else mattered. We got lost in each other, our passion growing stronger with every passing second. And as we kissed, I knew that I never wanted to let him go.

Drunk with love, I knew tonight I would give myself to him. To the one man I’ve loved from the beginning even though I denied it. Gabriel would make mad love with me and I would permit that, because I loved him.

I let out another small cry as he pulled me into his arms and held me close. My body felt so soft and fragile. The heat that came from him made me feel like I would melt.

He kissed the top of me, my cheeks, then my lips again, and he whispered.

“I love you...”

I surrendered and let him hold me tight. Then he leaned in again and kissed me softly. It was as if he knew I could feel the tears that were running down my face.

He pulled back, looking at me with such a serious look in his brown eyes I felt a tear escape. This was the first time he’d ever looked at my tears with so much intensity. And it made me realize how much I wanted this to be true.

I could feel it in my heart that he loved me, too. That was what I needed. So I leaned in, letting my lips touch his and his tongue touch mine.

His lips moved over mine and when he did, it felt as though the world was being turned upside down. My eyes were closed and my hands were in fists. All I wanted was to be held, to know that the love of my life was there. When I opened them, his face was in mine, his hands in mine holding me close. My heart was beating so fast and my body was shaking.

He traced every corner of my body making me ready for his love.

He was so gentle; it made me want to cry, but I didn’t. The feeling was more than I’d ever felt before and it took my whole up with it, as I responded to his kisses. My heart beat so fast that it hurt. And when his hand moved over my breasts I moaned.

I heard his voice calling my name, but I wasn’t listening to it because the feeling of his mouth on my skin was too much. I was so ready for him. So wet.

Then, as if in an act of desperation, he pushed himself into me, thrusting deep into me. I screamed, but I couldn’t move. My body froze. I was trembling, his hand still resting on my breast, his eyes wide open as my body shook uncontrollably. The room was spinning. My head was pounding and I could barely breathe. It felt as though I were about to pass out or something.

He moved inside me with thirst whispering my name.

“Kira, I love you!” I felt his lips again on mine, then his kiss became deeper. We kissed, licked, touched, caressed, all over, in, out, everywhere. It was like a slow burn of passion, a blaze that spread through me like wildfire.

Then he moved his hands down to my hips, to cup the sides of me as he dragged me to him, holding me tight. When he finally broke the contact, our eyes locked, and he kissed me again, this time with more passion. A kiss that was so hot and so intense it burned. It felt as though I were being electrocuted.

“I love you too, Gabriel!”

And now I knew I was his forever and ever.