Chapter 8: Chapter 8

“Imara, would you mind answering the door for me? I’m afraid Shaw might pull another card if I leave.” Thorin tapped his foot while he and Shaw played cards at the kitchen table. “It’s not possible that you beat me every hand, you damn cheat.”

“Who in the world could that be this time of night?” With her hands behind her back, Imara pulled off her apron as she passed through the foyer. “Mighty late for someone to come calling, don’t you think?”

Thorin chuckled to himself as he drew another card and yelled out to Imara. He couldn’t give her many blessings, but he hoped this would make up for everything. “Maybe your wolf friend learned how to knock, Sweet Girl. He’s got awful good manners, at least.”

After she straightened her dress and gave her hair a shake, she pulled open the door and gasped. “Why, hello, Ben. What are you doing here?”

The scent of his mate wrapped around him like a blanket, and he rubbed his chest with his fingertips when the warmth of it filled his lungs. “Thorin told me I could come to sit with you tonight.” Looking past Imara, he nodded his chin to Thorin as he peeked out from the kitchen doorway and waved.

Her little nose wrinkled when she glanced back over her shoulder and tried to figure out what was happening. “He did? He didn’t mention it.”

All he wanted was to feel her skin against his one more time, but the screen door Shaw installed earlier that morning parted them. “Would you like to come outside? Or?”

She rubbed her forehead with her fingers as her cheeks flushed with color. “Yes, of course. I’m so sorry.” The door hit her bottom as she closed it behind her, and her hand swept away to the porch swing. “Um, would you like to swing with me?”

Perched on the edge of the swing, Imara tucked her hair behind her ear as Ben slid against the seat and stretched his arm along the back. He glanced at her fidgety hands rubbing back and forth on her skirt, then moved his hand to her shoulder and pulled her back against his side. “Don’t be nervous, Imara. I just want to spend some time with you before those two change their minds.”

The heat of his breath made her eyes close as her round cheeks pulled up under them. “I can hardly help it.; my heart’s beating out of my chest. Believe it or not, this is the first time a man has ever called on me.”

His fingers wrapped around her chin, and he pulled until she was looking at him. “And it’s the last time because I’m going to marry you.”

Her eyes darted back and forth between his, and when she said nothing at all, Ben leaned closer. “Did you hear me? I’m telling you we’re getting married.”

A tear dripped down her cheek, and she caught it on her tongue. “Are you sure you mean that? Don’t you be changing your mind and breaking my heart?”

His thumb glided across her bottom lip as he narrowed his eyes. “Of course, I mean it. A man would have to be clean out of his mind not to want you.”

After it circled her cheek, his thumb lifted her chin, and he pressed his lips against hers. “Things are going to change. All these people telling you how to live your life, that’s all over now. The only man you ever need to answer to again is me. You understand what I’m saying to you?”

Her fingers balled his shirt up in them as her lips grazed his when she nodded. “Yes.”

A hand found its way to the back of her head and tangled its fingers up in her hair. “You mind if I do that again?”

Before she finished shaking her head no, Ben pulled her onto his lips. His mouth moved against her in short, soft kisses while he pulled her closer to his chest. She slid her hands around his neck and collapsed onto him as she panted for air. “Is this real?”

A low growl purred through his chest as he rubbed his nose in her hair. “You’re all mine now. So, tell me everything about you.”

Her fingers found the stray hairs that poked out from his shirt, and she rubbed her fingertips in them as she rested against his heart. “From when?”

He placed soft kisses across her forehead while he wound a lock of hair around his finger. “From the beginning, as far back as you can remember. I got all night.”

Imara licked the taste of Ben away from her and closed her eyes for a moment to lock it up in her memory in case it was only a dream. “I was born in Savannah. When my parents died, my brother came back from Europe to take care of me. He was a teacher there, History or something like that. Um, he didn’t think it was safe for me there anymore because, well, he thinks the people who killed my folks might want to hurt us, so we move around a lot. I guess that’s pretty much it.”

“You’re a Healer.” He pulled his face back so he could meet her eyes. “That’s a fairly important detail you’re leaving out.”

Her shoulder shrugged as she played with his shirt button. “Well, I don’t have any schooling about it or anything. Thorin says I’m a White Lighter.”

Chuckling to himself because a wealthy lady like Imara knew even less about the religion than he did, Ben nodded and stroked the back of her fingers. “Lady of the Light.”

“Mmm-hmm.” Imara nodded and hummed as she closed her eyes and nuzzled into his neck. “Yes, that’s what he told me.”

The back of his fingertips caressed her arm as he told her the story. “You’re very special, very rare. The Light Ladies decided who got to live when men were struck down in battle.”

Imara shook her head and snickered. “No, that’s silly. I can’t do anything.”

“This world doesn’t bend the way the Realm does. Some powers don’t work here, but it doesn’t mean they aren’t somewhere inside you. I never cared for learning much about the religion, but I remember when Momma told those stories. I remember thinking how beautiful the ladies must be, that they must sparkle like glass in the sunlight.” The warning Thorin gave him played again in his mind, and he swallowed hard to keep from choking up. “It all makes sense now.”

Like the monsters of the old world were already snatching her away, Ben locked her against his chest. “The dark warlocks hunted your kind to extinction because they didn’t want you interfering in their plans. They didn’t like that woman could undo all their works with a touch of their hand, so they killed you outright or locked you in cages until you learned to behave yourself.”

He felt like he understood the prophecy and why Imara was in danger. “I suppose now I know why that story struck me so. It was you; it’s always been about you.”

Imara’s eyes rose to his face, and she wiped the tears from his cheeks with her fingertips. “What do you mean it was me?”

He shook his head and smiled before he kissed her forehead. “I just meant why I liked the story so much. It must’ve been because I knew deep in my heart that you would be mine someday. I had to know how to take care of a prize like you.”

The tips of her fingers crawled up his chest until she took his chin between them. “You sure do know what to say to make a girl’s heart flutter.”

“That’s how I feel every time you look at me, Imara. Every single time.” He bound his hand in hers and kissed the back of it. “It’s true what they say about you. This hand right here saved me. I was only living, not doing anything interesting, and now I have you. You’re everything. You’re my purpose.”

Her lips moved up his jaw, and she whispered into his ear. “Thorin thinks that folks are coming after us. Are you sure you want to go getting yourself all mixed up in this mess?”

Ben closed his eyes and wrapped her hair around his fingers while she kissed his neck. “He told me everything, but I won’t let anyone hurt you. They’ll have to kill me first.”