Chapter 8 #2
"You're not going to run again?"
"No."
"Even when it gets hard?"
"Especially when it gets hard."
She launches herself at me, her arms wrapping around my neck, I catch her, holding her tight.
"I'm sorry," I murmur against her hair. "I'm sorry I made you feel like an obligation. I'm sorry I couldn't see what I wanted until now."
"You're here now. That's what matters."
I pull back enough to look at her. "I love you."
The words surprise both of us.
Her eyes go wide. "What?"
"I love you," I say again, more certain this time. "I'm in love with you. Have been since that first night. Maybe even before that."
"Cage." Her voice breaks. "I love you too."
I kiss her. Softly at first, then deeper. Pouring everything I feel into it.
She melts against me, her hands fisting in my shirt.
When we break apart, we're both breathing hard.
"I want you," she whispers.
"India."
"Not because I'm pregnant. I want you."
I search her face. "Are you sure?"
"I've never been more sure of anything."
I kiss her again, walking her backward toward the bedroom. She goes willingly, her hands already working at my shirt buttons.
Inside the bedroom, I slow down. This isn't like last time. This isn't just a physical release or temporary escape, this is a choice, a commitment.
This matters.
I take my time undressing her. Kissing every inch of skin I reveal. Memorizing the way she sighs when I kiss her neck, the way she arches into me when my hands find her breasts.
She's beautiful, more beautiful than I remembered.
"You're staring again," she murmurs.
"I'm allowed to stare. You're mine."
"Am I?"
"If you want to be."
"I do."
I lay her on the bed and hover over her. "Tell me if anything doesn't feel right."
"I will."
I kiss down her body, taking my time. Learning her all over again. When I reach the slight curve of her belly, I pause.
"Hi," I whisper to it.
India laughs, the sound bright and real. "Are you talking to the baby?"
"Yes."
"That's adorable."
"Don't tell anyone."
She threads her fingers through my hair. "Your secret's safe with me."
I continue lower, and she gasps when my mouth finds her. I take my time here too, relearning what she likes, what makes her moan my name.
When she comes apart, I'm there to catch her.
I kiss back up her body and settle between her thighs. She's warm and flushed and perfect.
"I don't have protection," I say.
"I'm already pregnant. And I trust you."
Trust. The word settles in my chest, heavy and real.
I push inside slowly, carefully, watching her face for any sign of discomfort.
She wraps her legs around my waist, pulling me deeper. "Don't treat me like I'm fragile."
"You're carrying my child."
"I'm also strong enough to handle you."
I smile against her lips. "Yes, you are."
I start to move, slow and steady. She moves with me, matching my rhythm.
This is different from last time. Last time was desperate. Urgent. This is deliberate. A conversation without words.
I'm here. I choose you. I'm not leaving.
Her hands slide up my back, her nails digging in slightly. "More."
I give her more. Deeper. Harder. But still controlled. Still careful.
"I love you," I tell her. "I love you so much."
"Show me."
I do. With every thrust. Every kiss. Every touch.
I reach between us and find her clit, circling it the way she likes. She cries out, her body tightening around me.
"Come for me," I murmur. "Let me feel it."
She does, her orgasm crashing over her. I feel it, feel her pulsing around me, and it pushes me over the edge.
I thrust deep and let go, my release hitting me hard. I bury my face in her neck and breathe her in.
For a moment, nothing else exists. Just us. Connected. Whole.
When I can breathe again, I carefully pull out and roll onto my back, pulling her with me. She curls into my side, her head on my chest.
"You're staying this time," she says. Not a question.
"I'm staying."
"For how long?"
"As long as you'll have me."
She tilts her head up to look at me. "What about your cabin?"
"I'll keep it. But I want to be here. With you."
"Just like that?"
"Just like that."
She's quiet for a moment. "What if you wake up tomorrow and change your mind?"
"I won't."
"How do you know?"
"Because I've spent three years running from everything good in my life. I'm done running." I tighten my arms around her. "You're it for me, India. You and this baby. That's my family now."
"Family," she whispers.
"Family."
She kisses my chest, right over my heart. "I'm scared."
"Me too."
"What if we screw this up?"
"Then we figure it out together."
"Together."
"Yeah. Together."
We lie there in the quiet, her hand resting on my chest, my fingers tracing patterns on her shoulder.
"I went to see Sarah Mitchell today," I tell her.
She lifts her head. "You did?"
"Yeah. I needed to face it; the guilt, the anger, all of it."
"What happened?"
"She doesn't forgive me. Maybe never will. But she told me not to waste the life I have."
"That was generous of her."
"It was." I pause. "I also went to the cemetery. Talked to my team."
"What did you tell them?"
"That I met you. That I'm going to be a father. That I'm going to try to actually live instead of just existing."
Her eyes shine with tears. "They'd be proud of you."
"I don't know about that."
"I do."
I pull her close and kiss her forehead. "Thank you."
"For what?"
"For not giving up on me. For pushing me to figure out what I actually wanted. For being brave enough to tell me when I was being an idiot."
She smiles. "Someone had to."
"I'm going to screw up sometimes. I'm going to have bad days. Days where the guilt comes back and I can't see past it."
"I know."
"But I promise I'll always come back to you. I’ll always choose you. And I’ll always try."
"That's all I need."
We fall asleep like that, tangled together, her hand over my heart.
And for the first time in three years, I sleep without nightmares.
When I wake up, morning light is filtering through the window. India is still asleep, curled against my side.
I watch her for a moment, this woman who somehow saw past all my walls and chose to care anyway.
My family.
The thought doesn't scare me anymore.
I carefully extract myself and get dressed before heading to the kitchen to make coffee.
While it's brewing, I look around the cabin. It's small. Cozy. But it's going to need work before the baby comes.
We need a bigger bed, a nursery and we definitely need to baby-proofing this place.
The tasks line up in my head, but this time it doesn't feel like obligation.
It feels like building something. Creating a life.
Our life.
India appears in the doorway, wearing my shirt. It hangs to mid-thigh on her, and she looks sleep-rumpled and beautiful.
"Morning," she says.
"Morning."
"You made coffee."
"And breakfast. Eggs and toast."
She walks over and wraps her arms around my waist from behind. "You're really staying."
"I'm really staying."
"Even when I'm huge and cranky and can't see my feet?"
"Especially then."
"Even when the baby screams all night and we're both exhausted?"
"Yes."
"Even when it's hard?"
"India." I turn in her arms. "I'm not going anywhere. You're stuck with me."
She grins. "Good. Because I love you."
"I love you too."
We eat breakfast together, making plans. Doctor's appointments. What needs to be done to the cabin. How to tell her friends. When to tell the town officially.
It feels normal. Real. Like this is how it's supposed to be.
Later, as I'm getting ready to head up to my cabin to grab some things, India stops me at the door.
"Cage?"
"Yeah?"
"Thank you. For choosing me."
I pull her close and kiss her thoroughly. "Always."
And I mean it.
This is my life now. India. The baby. A future I never thought I'd have.
And I'm going to fight like hell to keep it.