"Yes, more. A commitment, a promise, a… declaration of love."
"And you don't have that in you?"
He runs his hand through his hair showing me how agitated he is with this topic. "I don't have it to give, because it has already been given. To you."
I stare silently at him.
"At this point, Aefre, all I want is you. I have too many years under my belt to play around. I don't want that anymore. I know you are still in a place where your affections are scattered and that's okay. I told you I will wait, and I will."
Dumbfounded by his words, I still just stare at him incredulously.
He sighs at me again. "The irony is not lost on me, Aefre, believe me. I am fully aware that we have switched positions," he says wryly.
I giggle at him. "Are you being serious?" I ask.
"Yes," he snaps. "I told you, I have no reason to lie to you."
"Oh, baby. I love you," I say with tears in my eyes. I go to him.
He pulls me close and kisses me before he says, "I love you. It's always been you."
"Make love to me," I whisper to him.
He responds by pulling my dress over my head. "You are so beautiful," he murmurs. "I want you so much."
He walks us back towards the bed and I pull his t-shirt off as we collapse. He scoots us up to the middle and kisses me. Just kisses me for the longest time. I have missed him so much and he is doing as I asked. No more fucking, just sweet love making, that I want to last forever.
CHAPTER NINETY-ONE
He eventually lets me fall asleep somewhere around 5:30 AM, when I am exhausted. He may be able to get away with half an hour's sleep but me, not so much. I sleep more now, a lot more since becoming Queen. Turns out this nasty habit of falling asleep where I stand, is due to the amount of energy that runs through me to sustain my new Powers. My usual two hours has increased to four or more. But annoyingly, whatever time I fall asleep, I always wake at 6 AM and today is no different.
I groan in annoyance as my eyes open but that is soon muffled as CK swoops down to kiss me.
"Christ, do you never sleep?" I grouse at him and he chuckles.
"We have a lot of time to catch up on. I don't want to waste a second of it."
"Just give me a minute will you," I ask him sweetly as I snuggle into him. "I want to talk." Specifically, about something he said earlier. My hand absently going up to my neck, I find that he has taken the collar off me and a quick glance around tells me it is nowhere in sight. I smile.
"You don't like dating?" I start.
He grunts in amusement at my choice of topic. "Not particularly. I happen to be two thousand, seven hundred and sixty years old, you know. Dating is for children."
"Yes, I am aware of your age, old man,” I say sardonically.
He laughs at my insult but then sobers as we are entering dodgy territory.
"However, I would be inclined to take you out if you asked me nicely," he says, drawing the topic back to the one at hand.
"Why, thank you, kind sir. I will take you up on that. It has been a while. I remember our last date," I say and see his eyes flick quickly to his phone and back to mine.
"Oh?" he asks casually.
"Yes, it was in Milan about two years ago. Some charitable foundation fundraiser of yours."
"Hm," he says nonchalantly.