Maya
Conrad and I are snuggled up in bed after making love for the last hour. I have my head on his chest and my body draped over him.
“That was perfect, my love,” I whisper, kissing his chest.
He kisses the top of my head, “Yes, it was.”
I had missed our strong, intimate connection. Being with him again was everything I needed to feel whole again, something I hadn’t felt in the last couple of months.
“You have been the part of me that has been missing. I haven’t felt complete like this since our last time together.” I say.
“Me neither. We won’t ever need to feel that type of emptiness again. I promise.”
I bury my face in his neck, “I love you, Conrad, so much.”
He strokes my hair, “I love you too, my sweet angel.”
I smile at the cute nickname and kiss his neck. I close my eyes, taking in his scent and savouring the moment between us. I don’t ever want to let him go again.
“Do you want to go and see Chelsea and Adrian? I am sure she is eager to see you.” He says.
“Yes, we should go see them. Five more minutes.” I say, snuggling tighter into him.
“We can stay here as long as you need, beautiful.”
I wasn’t ready for him to let me go, not yet. He runs his fingers up and down my back, making me a little sleepy. I feel myself drifting off, but I force myself awake because I want to go see Chelsea and Adrian. I thought she would hate me for hurting her brother, but she must have understood why I did. I am glad Conrad had her when he was going through it all.
“Are you sure you are okay to stay with me?” I ask.
“Yes. I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else, sweetheart. I belong wherever you are. We can look at somewhere to rent tonight. Would it be okay for me to stay here with you tonight? Or would it be better if you came and stayed with me at my hotel?”
“I will come to you. Catherine is great, but I am not sure about the policy of having someone stay over with me since I am at my workplace.” I reply honestly.
“That is fine. We can look at places to rent in bed.” He smiles and kisses my forehead.
“Sounds perfect. After we know what is happening, I will talk to Catherine in the morning.”
She will be fine with me staying somewhere else. Only some people who work here stay here. She will be thrilled when she finds out Conrad found me. She was always trying to encourage me to reach out to him.
“You don’t know how happy I am to have you back in my arms.”
“Trust me, I do because I feel it too. Do your parents hate me?”
He shakes his head, “No. They aren’t mad. They understand and have been helping in every way possible. They have been helping search for you and trying to find Callum. My mom misses you. She will be thrilled when she finds out we are together. I haven’t had a chance to tell her yet.”
I thought they would be, at least, his dad. I am glad they aren’t because it would make returning to New York even harder, especially after everything we went through to get on good terms and get along.
“Good. Okay, we should get ready and head out. I need food.” I laugh.
“Yes, me too. I have been too busy to eat much the last couple of days. All I could think about was finding you.”
“And you found me, so now, we can start taking care of ourselves and each other again.”
I kiss him softly before climbing off the bed. I offer him my hand, which he takes, and help him get to his feet. We head for a shower and to get organized before heading out. I have missed Chelsea, too. I have only met Adrian a few times, but it will also be good to see him.
****
An hour later, we finally arrive at the café to see Chelsea and Adrian. We got distracted in the shower, and when we got out too, we had to clean up again.
As we enter, Conrad’s hand is tightly in mine. I can’t stop smiling. He lifts our hands to his lips and kisses my knuckles. I grin brightly at him, and he reaches down, stealing a kiss.
“You found her,” Margaret gushes as she sees us enter.
“Yes, I did, thanks to you,” Conrad replies brightly.
“I am so glad. It makes me happy seeing a real smile on your lips and the sadness gone from your eyes.” She beams.
I hug her tightly, “Thank you for telling him where I was.”
“You are welcome, sweetie, but he would still have found out even if I didn’t know. He wouldn’t have given up until he found you. That right there is true love, Maya. I am happy you found your way back to one another.” She says, hugging back.
When we part, Conrad gives her a quick hug before we go in search of Chelsea and Adrian. We find them in the outside seating area, all cuddled up, giggling and acting very much in love. It makes me smile to see them happy.
I sneak up behind them, “Boo.” I giggle.
They jump, but when they turn around and see me, Chelsea smiles brightly and jumps to her feet, hugging me tightly, “I am so happy to see you and know you are okay. I missed you.”
“I’m sorry I disappeared from everyone. I missed you too,” I reply, getting emotional.
She hugs me tighter. “Don’t ever do such a thing again. You could have come to me, and he wouldn’t have known any different,” she says softly.
When we parted, she seemed as emotional as I was: “I know, I am sorry, but he was threatening you too. I didn’t want him to come after you. It was best for everyone if I disappeared for a while.”
“I understand. It is so good to see you. I am sorry you had to disappear because of him. We will get him. He never needs to know you are reunited with us.” She smiles.
“I can’t believe you are here.” I whimper.
“Come on now, babe. You know my brother better than anyone. He would have done what it takes to find you,” she says, wiping my tears away.
“I know he would.” I smile.
She hugs me one last time before Adrian stands to greet me too, “It is nice to see you, Maya and I am happy you are safe and okay.”
“Thank you. You too.”
Once they had said their hellos, Conrad appeared by my side, slipping his arm around me, keeping me close, and we all took a seat. It feels like home being with them all again. Home isn’t a place; it is the people you are with.
“I would ask what took so long, but I think I know.” Chelsea laughs.
I blush. Conrad laughs, “It has been two months.”
They all laugh, and I do, too. I rest my head on Conrad’s shoulder. I smile. This is home. He is home. Deep down, a part of me always knew he would come find me. A part of me wanted him to come to find me. The only thing we need now to make everything okay is for Callum to be caught, and we can get back to our lives.