Page 13 of The Genie’s Wish (Harmony Glen #10)
Chapter Thirteen
A Few Months Later
RAYA
“Alright, chat, I know what everyone has been waiting for…” I pause for dramatic effect, watching the chat become flooded with messages. “My boyfriend reveal.”
My smile grows as I read the supportive and excited messages, everyone eager to see the man behind my newfound happiness. The support from my viewers has been amazing, better than I could ever have wished for—not that I’d ever actually make a wish.
Taking my headset off, I set it to the side. There’s no sound coming through them right now anyway, and I don’t want it to be weird when Arman doesn’t have a headset.
I slide my chair to the side slightly, placing myself off-center in the camera view. “Come on in, Arman.”
The door to my office opens, and Arman walks in. He chose to be in his most human form for the reveal, just in case.
I told him I don’t care what any of them potentially think. If they support me, they’ll support him.
He has a grin plastered on his face as he slides the extra chair over, sitting down next to me. He extends his hand out, reaching it across the armrest, and I slip mine into his.
“Hey everyone, I’m Arman.”
I watch him as he watches the screen, his cheeks gaining a purple hue. He must’ve found where the chat is on the screen, and is reading all their messages.
Forcing myself to look away from him, I turn to read what people are saying. Everyone is being so kind, so accepting—just like I knew they would.
People comment on how attractive he is, the way he looked at me when he walked in, the way I looked at him when he sat down. All around, everyone is fawning over us.
The first question we get a bunch of is how we met, so I tell them. “A while back, I was taking back a cart full of parcels from the post office. He saw me doing so, which was so embarrassing.”
“I remember thinking, who is that gorgeous woman pushing a post-office cart.” He laughs. “I also remember wondering if she stole all of the packages.”
I give him a playful nudge with my shoulder. There’s no way he actually thought I stole all of those. Me? The girl who looked like she was about to pass out the moment he started talking to me.
A few people ask what kind of monster he is, which he must see. “I’m a genie—a wish granter, if you will.”
This instantly brings another flood of questions from my viewers, one of them being if he’s granted me any wishes. I giggle just watching the question being repeated. It makes sense that’s what everyone is wondering.
“No, actually, she wouldn’t wish for anything. But she granted me a wish…” he begins, turning to look at me. “Her. She’s the only wish I’ve ever had.”
My cheeks instantly feel hot, and I fight every urge to lean over and kiss him right now, while the stream is live.
“You did grant me a wish—you just don’t know it.” I smile at him, giving his hand a squeeze. “It was a wish I didn’t even know I had until I met you.”
He raises a brow at me, laughing. “What? What was the wish?”
My heart beats fast, pounding in my chest. “To fall in love, and to be loved.”
His lips part and his eyes widen, scanning my face. There’s a moment of silence where we just stare at each other.
Does he know what I’m trying to tell him? Maybe this wasn’t the right moment. It definitely isn’t—we’re in the middle of a livestream!
“I love you, Raya, and I promise to love you for the rest of my life.” He uses his free hand to tuck a piece of my hair behind my ear. “Even if there are days that you wish I didn’t.”
I let out a laugh and melt into his palm, resting my head slightly. “There will never be a day that I wish for that—or anything .”
After we’re done the stream, I turn to him, sliding my legs across his lap and bringing our chairs close. He leans over, planting a kiss on my cheek, then softly on my lips.
“Did I do okay?” He lets out a deep breath, looking at me through wide eyes, his lips curled up only a tiny bit.
I let out a giggle, which makes his small smile completely disappear. Wait, is he really worried about how he did?
“Babe.” I put a hand on his leg, rubbing softly. “You did amazing .”
He lets out a sigh, smiling as he tips his head back. “Thank the Gods.”
“I hope that wasn’t too overwhelming,” I say, but it’s really a question.
He shakes his head, grabbing one of my hands and holding it. “It wasn’t—it just took me some time to relax into it.”
Nodding, I agree. “It does. Even though streaming was something I wanted to do, it took me some getting used to. I think I was awkward for like the first month, or more .”
There’s a twinkle in his eyes, one that I’ve seen there a lot recently. “What made you want to get into streaming?”
“Honestly, I was a really shy kid…” I chew on my bottom lip, debating how many details to share. “So, I played video games. I liked the social aspect they brought, all from the comfort of your home.”
He nods eagerly, resting his free hand beneath his chin and propping his elbow on the armrest.
“Eventually, I heard about streaming, and wondered if it would be possible for me. To like, build a community of friends.” My cheeks warm.
Gods, this is embarrassing. Telling him I basically had no real friends when I was younger.
He moves his hand from mine, sliding it up my arm until he reaches my face, cupping my cheek. “What you’ve worked so hard to create is amazing. Everyone was so pleasant, and you remember so many details about each one of them.”
My cheeks burn, but I lean into his touch. “Well, I care about them, and they care about me.”
“And I care about you, too.” He guides my face forward, our lips softly grazing.
The kiss deepens, and I slip my tongue past his lips. When I take it back, his follows, and he slips out of his chair.
He leans over me, now cupping both sides of my face and kissing me passionately. My head is pushed against my headrest, and my hands travel over his shirt.
Breaking the kiss, he pulls away, gazing intently at me as he catches his breath.
After a few seconds, he says, “I do really love you.”
Letting out a little laugh, I tell him, “I do really love you, too.”
He kisses me once more, deeply, before swiftly sliding his arms under me. He lifts me out of the chair as if I weigh nothing—and I don’t even get caught on the armrests.
“Where are we going?” I ask, letting out an excited squeal.
Glancing down at me, he wriggles his eyebrows. “To the bedroom.”
Playing dumb, I ask, “Why?”
He looks back down at me, but this time, something has changed. His eyes have almost darkened, and I can see the fire catching within them.
“So I can show you just how much I love you.” His tone is serious, as if it’s a promise.
And boy, do I ever hope it is.