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[watch for the breaks between chapters]

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Aresius' POV

"It doesn't matter, um I a-am sorry that y-you had to help me, I didn't know you would be there I promise," she looked down at her lap when she finished and all of the relief at her waking up twisted into fiery anger at myself.

I couldn't find the right words to say what I wanted to say.

I was ashamed at myself for losing control and hurting her.

I was ashamed that I was too cowardly to go to her sooner.

I was struggling, I knew that, but I broke her trust. It wasn't fair to her that I had chosen to let my emotions build up to the point that I took it out on her.

When she had approached me, asking what was wrong, asking if I was okay, it was the catalyst that had broken the tightly wound strings holding me together.

She deserved the greatest of things, but I was afraid.

I needed to apologize to her; show her that I recognized my mistakes. I had to tell her that I was entirely responsible, that it was my fault.

I was still afraid, but I knew I had a decision to make now.

Would I allow myself to drown?

Or, would I let myself swim up to the surface and see the sun?

I practically flew downstairs, almost breaking my neck in the process when I didn't see her upstairs after showering.

My breath caught in my throat and I came to an abrupt stop when I saw her sitting on the kitchen counter.

She looked beautiful.

She always looked beautiful.

Under her spell, I slowly walked over to her, seeing her eyes widen as I approached her.

I came to a stop in between her legs, the strawberry in her hand falling back into the bowl.

Her chest rose and fell in synch with mine as we stared at each other.

I swallowed, my throat beyond dry, and brought my hand up to cup her jaw.

She took my breath away.

My calloused thumb brushed against her soft lips and I heard a small gasp as she took a breath in.

Alette Faye had consumed my whole being.

And I wouldn't have it any other way.

I wanted to show her.

I wanted her to know.

With a dazed breath, I began leaning in just as she did the same.

I closed my eyes, letting all of my worries go.

I had fallen hard.

And it was the greatest feeling in the world.

I hadn't ever experienced anything close to what I was experiencing at this moment in time.

When our lips touch, I felt as though the world around us had ceased to exist.

I had read a lot of books in my life. A lot of poetry: some of the most beautiful writing.

And as I held her face in my hands, felt her hands on my chest, her lips on mine, I understood what it was that people wrote poetry about.

When we pulled away, our arms still around each other, I looked down at her with wide eyes.

I had known it from the moment we met, but with each passing day, it was established even more:

She was a different kind of magic.

I was glad that I had apologized for my mistakes. Glad that she was okay. Glad that I was giving myself a chance to be the person I knew I was.

After the earth-shattering kiss, I couldn't keep my eyes off of her. I couldn't stop wanting to hold her close.

And that evening, when she spoke to Oscar and Selina, held Lucia in her arms and played with Rowan, the only thought in my mind was how I wanted all of her forever.

The surge of emotion that flowed through my body as she looked down at the baby in her arms made my heart stagger.

It was all foreign to me, everything she made me feel.

I don't think I would ever stop being in awe of how strong and stunning Alette Faye was.

Anger wasn't necessarily a new feeling to me; it just always had a different undertone based on the circumstances.

I felt contempt filled anger as I thought about my past and upbringing.

I felt despair filled anger when I wasn't successful at solving a case.

I felt dejection filled anger any time I was unable to save someone.

The anger I felt when she told me about Kan and what he had done to her was different from all of that.

It was a vicious, burning anger; like a forest fire, lighting quickly and spreading even quicker.

I had never set out to kill wrongdoers in my line of work. There were so many moments where I faced the most despicable people and wanted to pull the trigger.

But I didn't. That wasn't what I strived to do.

I wouldn't turn into a killer myself just to get revenge on killers.

I made sure they were caught and punished to the highest degree, and my job was done.

But as she told me about Kan, all I wanted to do was put a bullet through his head.

That would've been too kind though.

I wanted him to suffer.

I wanted him to burn as remorselessly as my anger.

I held Alette in my arms, knowing that I wouldn't let any harm come to her ever again.

She was strong, undoubtedly; I would never question that.

She was always going to be strong, but I was going to be that safety net for her when she struggled.

I vowed myself to keep her safe, always.

With a soft kiss, I looked into her eyes, and asked her that question that she had asked me so long ago.

This time though, I would make sure we went through with it.

"Will you go on a date with me, my guardian angel?"

I had spent so long trying to make sure that everything was perfect for our date.

I had confirmed about a million times with her Uncle and Grandmother that the spot I had chosen wouldn't upset her too much. It had something to do with her parents, I knew that, and I didn't want our first date to end up being a dumpster fire because I brought up bad memories.

She ended up loving the spot I had chosen, and as we sat in our secluded bubble, just the two of us, I realized more and more how strongly I felt for her.

How my feelings for her weren't fleeting, but rather, they made me feel stable.

She made me feel like myself.

Tumbling with nerves, I had driven her back to my house and guided her into the backyard where her family and friends surprised her for her birthday.

I had planned the party, with help from everyone, and she was bursting with happiness.

I was left in awe every time she smiled.

She also met Jakob that night; I had known him for a long time. He had been the only constant in my life for a long time. He had been my first friend, my business partner and the amount of things we had gone through together made us inseparable.

I wasn't looking for anyone's approval over her, but I hoped that he at least found her tolerable.

I mean, that was slightly foolish considering this was Alette Faye in question:

It was impossible to not adore her.

He spoke a few sentences to her, which for him was shocking, and when he left for the evening, he gave me a nod, letting me know that he was happy for me.

As the sun went down and we got ready for bed, she still shone in the moonlight.

I couldn't even begin to describe what it was that I was feeling towards her.

There were no right words to describe any of my emotions.

And so, when she sat up in bed, holding my face in her hands, I opened my mouth to say the words that my heart had written for her.

Apparently, her heart had written the same ones for me too.

"I love you."

I angrily wove around cars on the street, swearing under my breath at the car that had decided to park on the wrong spot and had held up everyone.

I was anxious to pick up Alette after her classes.

I knew she would be fine, but this was her first day of in-person classes and on a campus that big, it would be overwhelming for anyone.

I had spent the entire morning hoping she was okay; she had been messaging me all day, pictures and everything, so I knew that it had been going well so far.

However, her last message telling me to hurry had my heart beating fast.

I couldn't fathom her not being okay.

With a clenched jaw, I parked my car in the parking lot, shutting the door and practically running over to where I had promised to meet her.

As I got closer, I began to see red.

She was standing outside one of the buildings, looking extremely uncomfortable.

Feeling absolutely feral when I saw the boy reach out and grab her arm, I picked up my speed, wanting to pull out a weapon.

Her eyes widened as her whole body was yanked back and I knew that she would be terrified out of her mind.

It was a horrible situation for anyone to experience, but based on all she had gone through, and how difficult this whole day had been for her, I knew that she would be paralyzed with fear.

"She asked you to stop."

I snarled the words out, trying to keep calm for her sake because I knew she would be more upset if she had any more attention on her.

She broke away from his grasp and immediately ran into my arms.

I could feel how fast her heart was pounding and I wrapped an arm around her, holding her tightly to me.

"S-Sorry man I didn't know she was with someone," he made a desperate attempt at trying to sound less afraid, but his voice was laced with evident fear.

His words made me angrier.

Damn right, she was my woman.

Mine.

But she was a person before that, and he should've have respected that more than anything.

Once I had told him off and watched him get into his car, I jotted down his license plate, sending it out to Jakob.

I would make sure he got the punishment he deserved for scaring my Alette.

I helped her calm down slightly, getting her ice cream and then driving home when she got a call from Selina.

Hearing about Rowan's injury instantly made me worry, but after seeing him, I felt slightly less concerned.

The two of us spent the rest of the evening taking care of Lucia, and as I held them both in my arms while Alette fed her, I couldn't stop thinking about how this was the future I wanted.

I had never even imagined that I would meet someone and care for them the way that I cared for Alette.

Because of that, I never thought about the idea of kids.

And because of that, I never got into figuring out the semantics and timelines of having kids.

I knew that I wanted Alette Faye in my life forever; I was going to marry her.

I knew that.

But she had a whole life that she was just getting to.

Too much of her life had been taken away from her, and now that she was healing, she was getting around to being her smart and successful self.

I loved her. Always her.

Kids would have to wait until we both wanted to take that step.

She had a lot she wanted to achieve first, and I was in her corner, being her biggest supporter.

Plus, selfishly, I wanted her to myself for a while too. We had both lost out on a lot during our childhoods, and I wanted us to enjoy being with each other for a while.

Just her and I.

I felt her heart beating loudly as I tried to keep the gun steady while tattooing her.

The design I had worked on with Tai seemed like a good idea at the time, but I was still slightly apprehensive about her reaction to it.

My eyes flitted to hers as I got more ink, trying to hold back my smirk at her not-so-discreet staring.

She would look at me every few minutes, and then turn away with red cheeks and a gulp.

"Every time my baby has a naughty thought, her heart beats like crazy against my hand," I finally said, my lips close to her ear.

She shut her eyes, letting out a squeak and I couldn't hold back my laugh.

Adorable as hell.

I continued tattooing her, thinking back to just a few hours ago when she told me that she was ready to marry me.

I had met her parents, we had talked about marriage and then we had talked about kids.

All in the span of a few hours.

It didn't scare me whatsoever; it just made me feel practically giddy at the thought of our future together.

I finished up the tattoo and showed it to her, completely unready for her tears.

She loved it.

There was something unbelievably intimate about tattooing her.

I hoped she wanted another one sometime soon, because I wanted to do it all again.

Bidding everyone at the shop a goodnight, we made our way home.

I held up the big demon to her so that she could kiss him goodnight as well and then we went upstairs.

I kept my eyes on her face as I changed her when she requested for me to do so. I hadn't seen all of her body yet, and I knew that when she asked me to help her change, it wasn't a request for me to ogle at her.

Once I was finished, I turned away to get changed myself but she pulled me back.

"My turn."

Her words were loud in the quiet room and I felt my eyes widen slightly.

I swallowed, feeling my heart pound.

Once she had my consent, she slowly took off my shirt, kissing the ridges of my upper body, trailing her lips and nails across my skin.

I was completely lost to her touch, feeling blood rush downward. Her soft hands fell onto my heavy belt buckle and my chest heaved with a faltering restraint.

Once my pants had fallen to the floor, I watched as she bit her lip, swallowing.

I hissed when her hands brushed against me.

She sank down on her knees in front of me, looking up at me with her big eyes, and I damn near passed out from the sight alone.

"I want to make you feel good Ares."

Alette Faye would be the death of me.

There was no doubt about it.

I watched with hooded eyes as she kissed just above the waistband of my boxers, pulling them down.

Her eyes widened even further and my whole body buzzed with nerves.

She stood up again, leaning up to kiss me slowly.

"Tell me w-what to do Ares, I want to make you feel good," she said, her eyes still slightly wide as she kissed her way back down.

I threw my head back, letting out a groan as her hands finally touched me. As her lips finally touched me.

She was going to be the death of me.

I unlocked our front door, noticing Josephine's car in the driveway. There was another car there as well, but I didn't recognize it.

I knew she had invited her friends over today so I assumed that they were still here and that the car belonged to one of them.

I hadn't met them yet, only heard about them from her. She usually texted them and often was on calls with them while doing projects.

She was happy and that made me happy.

I pushed the door open, holding two files and bouquet of flowers in one hand.

I heard laughter coming from the living room and I kicked off my shoes, not necessarily ready to meet them.

I wasn't the best with new people; I had already met Josephine, and she was a great person, she was like family.

She was close with Tai and Alette's family as well, so she just fit right in and I didn't feel agitated about being around her.

Shaking my head, I took a breath in and rounded the corner, hoping to quickly greet them and then walk away.

"Reecie!" Alette's voice piped up and everyone quieted down.

She jumped up from her spot on the sofa and gave me a quick side hug, holding on for a second as I kissed the top of her head.

She wasn't too big on the PDA, so I didn't go any further than that. I didn't do what I normally did when I came home to her:

Kiss her senselessly until her lips were swollen and her cheeks were flushed.

"Hi Adler!" Josephine piped up and I nodded, clearing my throat.

"Good evening Josephine," she smiled, shaking her head at my formal greeting.

She was used to it at this point, and often laughed, mocking me by repeating my words with a deep voice.

Alette put her arm around mine and beamed at her other two friends.

"This is Adler!" she told them happily.

They both seemed frozen from the moment I had walked in, but the one with the beige scarf on her head shook herself out of her shock and smiled warmly.

"Hi there! I'm Marah; it's so great to meet you! We've heard lots about you from Faye," she gave Alette a teasing smile and Alette blushed.

"Nice to meet you," I replied, trying to not sound awkward.

Marah nodded back with a smile and the third person finally cleared their throat, giving me a tiny wave.

"Hey, I'm Niesha! It's great to put a face to a name. Marah's right, Faye's obsessed with you," she winked at Alette and I tried not to blush.

I nodded, "Good to meet you," I said cordially, hoping that I wasn't turning red.

I handed Alette the flowers I had brought her, trying not to notice the looks that her friends were exchanging.

I looked at Alette's beaming face and my heart skipped a beat.

She was magnificent.

"I think that's our cue to leave," Josephine said loudly, letting out a whistle.

Alette turned even redder and I looked over at Josephine, narrowing my eyes slightly.

"Funny, Josephine," I said dryly; she had continued to restlessly tease us whenever she was around us, thinking it was the funniest joke in the world.

She laughed out loud and the other two laughed along with her.

I cleared my throat, trying to soften my voice, "Would you like to stay for dinner? I'll order something."

I looked at Alette for approval, and she smiled fondly, her eyes shining.

There goes my heart again.

"It's okay lovebug, they all have early classes and need to get home!" she said sweetly.

"Lovebug?" Niesha squealed and we both looked over to see her face awing.

"What did I tell you? They're like unreal," Josephine said, her eyes twinkling playfully.

"Guys please," Alette mumbled, giggling.

"Sorry about them, thank you for having us over," Marah said to Faye, and then smiled at me, "You have a wonderful home, thank you!"

I nodded slightly abashedly as they all packed up, getting ready to go.

I said a quick goodbye, rolling my eyes in good humour at Josephine who kept looking over at Alette and then winking at me exaggeratedly.

I went to kitchen just as they were all putting on their shoes on, hearing their quiet chatter.

"Go climb your man like a tree Faye," I heard Niesha whisper and I could practically picture the look on Alette's face.

Once the door closed, Alette walked back into the kitchen. I leaned against the counter, raising my brow.

She tilted her head, "What happened Reecie?" she asked, confused.