Page 73 of Loving Amari
“You’re home.” The words come out choked, strangled, like I can’t get them out properly. Like my throat has closed around them.
She reaches out slowly, giving me time to pull away if this is a dream. Her hand is shaking. She gently strokes my cheek and I can feel her. She’s warm and magical and solid and real.
I close my eyes from her touch, leaning into her palm. She starts crying with me, both of us shaking with the force of our emotions.
I drop to my knees and she falls with me, our bodies crashing together. I pull her into my arms so tightly I’m afraid I might hurt her, but I can’t let go. I can’t. Not now. Not ever again.
We just cry together, two months of separation, of loneliness, of aching need pouring out of us. She wraps her arms around me and buries her face in my neck, taking in the scent of me. Her lips brush against my claim mark and I shudder.
“You’re real. You’re really here. I’m not dreaming.” I bury my face in her curls, breathing her in.
“I’m here. I’m home.”
“It’s over. It’s finally over.” I pull back just enough to cup her face, my thumbs wiping away her pink tears.
“Not quite.” She pulls back slightly, and fear spikes through me.
“What do you mean?” My grip tightens on her.
“I have to physically live in both realms.”
I pull back from her to look at her face properly. To memorize every detail I’ve been missing. “What?”
“When I first became Queen of Limbo, I wasn’t properly balancing out the time. I made here with you more of a priority. I can’t do that anymore.” Gentle words, but final.
I nod in acknowledgment, trying to process. “Okay.”
She sighs, her breath soft against my skin. “And I have other responsibilities. I can’t interfere in what’s going on with Brookstone and Blackburn anymore, nor what’s going on in Wintermoon. I can only observe, offer guidance.
I grab her hand and pull it to my lips, kissing the back of it, then her palm, then her wrist. “I understand. I don’t care. I’ll take whatever I can get.”
“And I have to work with Angie and Anora to build a coven. Not right away, but when the time is right.” She watches my face carefully.
I smile at her, genuine and warm. “The Blackwoods. I love the sound of it.”
She relaxes slightly. “You’re not angry?”
“Angry?” I laugh, the sound wet with tears. “Baby, I’m holding you. You’re in my arms. You’re here. Nothing else matters.”
“How long can you stay?” I ask, my voice soft, almost afraid of the answer.
“Two, three days at the most, then I must go back to limbo.”
Two or three days. It’s not enough. It will never be enough. But it’s more than I had an hour ago.
I stand and pull her up with me, then scoop her up into my arms like she weighs nothing. She fits perfectly against my chest, like she was made for this exact spot.
I start walking her back toward Medina Castle, my steps slow because I’m not ready to share her with anyone else yet.
I look back at the children who are following, their many legs creating a soft symphony in the forest. “Please, give Daddy some time with Mommy. She’s all yours tomorrow, I swear it.”
Tofi, Moria, and Kemnebi send us images of a booing audience and tomatoes being thrown at us.
“Haters. They’re lucky I’m even sharing you.” I kiss Carla’s forehead.
“Are the children still banned from Limbo?” I ask as I carry her, holding her closer.
She shakes her head. “No, not anymore. That was me. I didn’t want you to be alone. I knew if they came to limbo with me, they would stay.”