Episode 91 Made for This
Made for This
The sound of waves lapping at the shore fills Rominy’s ears, and he blinks at the bright sunlight shining down on them.
Elowyn curls against him beneath the covers as the early morning chill makes him shiver, and he wishes for another blanket.
The piano is still there, and memories of how it felt to play again make him smile.
And how Elowyn looked at him when he did. She was definitely swooning.
Before he can think better of it, he finds her lips in a soft kiss.
Suddenly, her knee connects with his groin, and she hovers over him with a ball of fire dangerously near his face.
Stars above. That hurt. He may be seeing stars.
Elowyn gasps as she hurries to climb off him. “Forgive me. I just reacted. I—”
“It’s my fault,” he whispers. “I should have known better than to kiss the daughter of First Nestraya in her sleep. Just give me a few minutes. I’ll be fine.”
“I hit you hard, didn’t I? I’m sorry, Rominy.”
“That was a well-aimed attack, yes.” He breathes out slowly. “And a strong one. Have you always been that strong, and I just didn’t realize?”
She opens and closes her mouth a few times before looking away. “I’m an elf, Rominy.”
As the pain subsides, he reaches for her shoulder to turn her back toward him. “You’re stronger than I am, aren’t you?”
“I’m honestly not sure. I think so? But I believe you’re stronger than most humans. We may be fairly evenly matched?”
“The way you ended that as a question makes me think you’re definitely stronger than I am.” He chuckles as he draws her into his arms. “My ego will survive, El.”
“And the rest of you?”
“I’ll be fine.”
Probably. Hopefully. That was a hard hit.
At least it’s just the heartlanding. There’s an entire kingdom expecting him to put those parts to good use soon in the real world.
And Father’s definitely ready for grandchildren. Mother wouldn’t complain either.
The thought makes his heart race. Is he ready to be a parent? Is Elowyn?
If she notices his racing heart, she doesn’t say anything. Thank goodness.
“Let’s sleep here every night,” she says as she looks out over the waves.
“Shall I serenade you every night, too? Make you go weak at the knees?” He winks at her, and a gorgeous smile latches on to her face.
“Every night, Rominy. And when we return to Nunia, I wish to transform my chamber into a music room for you so you can have a sanctuary to retreat to when you need to—how did you put it? Feel human again?”
She’d do that for him?
“But what about your bed?” he asks softly.
He already knows the answer, but he longs to hear her say it.
“I thought you might invite me to share yours, my love.” She brushes his hair back from his face, and he pulls her into a gentle kiss.
“Sleep in my bed every night, Elowyn,” he whispers against her lips. “You won’t need yours anymore.”
“In Lostariel, we don’t have separate chambers,” she says as he trails kisses along her jaw.
“Then I guess it’s a good thing you want me in your bed, since that’s where we’re going, love. As soon as you feel up to it.”
She lies back as he nuzzles her ear. “I’ve only been to Celesta a handful of times.” Her breath hitches at his touch.
He pulls away and frowns. “Because of me?”
“Don’t stop. Please. I don’t want to wait to live, Rominy. I’m tired of waiting. I’ve been waiting all my life.”
He looks down at her lying there beside him. How small her world was while she waited for him. For them. And he had no idea she even existed. So many sacrifices for him before they even met. Before he knew her name.
For a moment, he considers throwing caution to the wind and giving her exactly what she wants.
What they both want.
“Elowyn, love,” he whispers instead. “This isn’t how you want our first time to go, with both of us full of guilt for putting your life in more danger.”
Not to mention the fact that he’s still sore. But he keeps that to himself.
She rubs her eyes and whimpers in the most heart-wrenching way, and he just watches her, unsure what to say or do to help.
Then she climbs off the bed and pulls off the simple shift she slept in last night as she gazes out at the sea.
What is she doing?
Before he can decide if he should say anything or not, she wades into the waves and dives under the water.
Is this like when she tried to obliterate the hearth with her fire magic? Maybe she needs some time alone with her magic. That seems to soothe her when she’s frustrated.
He could never keep up with her in the ocean if he tried to join her. He’ll just have to wait for her to return and be here for her when she needs him.
Elowyn pushes the currents to carry her away. Away from the island. From her fears. From everything holding her back.
Away from Rominy? The thought makes her heart ache. What must he be thinking now? She wasn’t trying to escape him. Just...everything else. And now he consumes her thoughts. They’re not supposed to be apart. She doesn’t want to be apart. She longs for him.
But she needs to just exist for a few minutes.
As much as she hates just existing. But Grandmera always told her when her body felt so full of frustration that she thought she might explode to go somewhere alone and exist within her magic.
Let all the frustration seep out of her and feel the currents flowing around her in her helplessness.
Or let the fire burn away her anger. How many times did Grandmera follow her out to the Waters of Pendarra as she lay back in the river and let her magic keep her afloat while the currents did whatever she asked them to do around her?
It comforted her to know Grandmera was there, watching over her.
The way Rominy watches over her now.
The thought squeezes her heart like a vise. She should go back. Assure him it’s not him. He’s right when she’s wrong. Strong when she’s weak.
Brave when she’s afraid.
He may believe she’s fearless, but this weight ratcheting down on her terrifies her—not that she won’t wake again but that she’ll wither away with the waiting.
She was supposed to be done waiting.
Eventually, the currents carrying her through the waves siphon much of her frustration away, leaving only an aching need for Rominy in her chest.
The way he chases dragons with her at times. The way he helps her just exist at others.
She needs him now.
With a thought, she redirects her currents, pushing her magic harder and faster to carry her back to him. To his strong arms and his soothing voice.
When she nears the shore, a familiar melody tickles her ears. Is Rominy playing his piano again? Soon, his voice joins the music as her feet hit the sand, and she hovers in the water, listening to the words rising in his beautiful voice.
It’s the first song he played for her on his guitar.
“Made to Love You.”
He didn’t sing the words for her before, though, and as she listens, her breath hitches and her eyes prickle.
Words about needing her and feeling like half of a whole without her.
Words about every moment leading to their meeting being a shadow of the life he has with her.
Words about being found when he didn’t realize he was lost. Words about love and purpose and belonging to each other.
About forever and promises and hard times.
About the beauty of every moment together. Because he was made for this. Made to love her.
By the time he finishes, tears join the seawater dripping from her cheeks, and he turns, worry etched in lines on his face as he searches for her.
When his gaze lands on her, relief sweeps over him, but he says nothing. He just watches her as if unsure what to do.
Then he stands and wades toward her in the water. And a moment later he’s there, drawing her to his chest.
“I love you, El. I always will. No matter what.”
As he holds her, sobs choke her. “I hate the...the waiting.”
“I know, love.”
“I hate feeling helpless.”
“I know.” He tightens his arms around her.
“I feel so restless.”
“Did your swim help?”
She nods. “But once the frustration tempered, I needed you.”
“I’m here, love.”
And he holds her until her tears slow.
“Are you ready for breakfast in bed?” he eventually asks. “We need food in our bellies before we start building our treehouse.”
She clings to him and nods. “Thank you.”
“I was made to love you. Can you do me a favor, though?”
She pulls away to look into his eyes, and he brushes her tears away.
“What do you wish for me to do?” she asks.
“Could you put your clothes back on? I can’t claim I’m not enjoying holding you like this. Because that would be a bald lie. But I may need to go for my own swim soon if you don’t.”
A smile tugs at his lips and draws out her own smile.
“Forgive me,” she says. “I—”
“You aren’t allowed to apologize for letting me hold you like this. Ever.”
She laughs and leans into him. Then he takes her hand and draws her back to the dry sand, where she finds her dress again.
The heat in his eyes as he watches her with his arms crossed over his chest fills her with longing, but she resists its pull as she lifts her dress over her head and smooths it into place.
When she turns back to the bed, a breakfast of waffles with whipped cream and strawberries awaits them.
“I love you,” Rominy says. “Until the beating of our hearts fades. Now eat. We have things to do today, and I refuse to wait while life passes us by.”
“Thank you,” she whispers on a last shuddering breath.
“Always, Elowyn. Until my end of days.” He presses a soft kiss to her wet hair and leads her to the bed, where he hands her a plate full of waffles. “Eat up, love. That treehouse won’t build itself. Unfortunately.”
His words make her laugh again, and she reaches for her fork and does as he says.