AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He kicks open the door to his bedroom. I laugh at the expression on his face. The love there, the joy, the hope.
“Yes,” I say.
I really am able to grant wishes. I feel in this moment that I’m able to do anything.
“Diamonds or sapphires—which do you want? I’ll make you a ring that outshines the sun.”
“Yes,” I say. “Yes to both. Yes to everything.”
Max drops down on the bed, laying me on the feather comforter and covering me with his weight. I sink into the mattress and wrap my legs around him. He makes a low noise at the back of his throat, and I stretch up and drag my mouth over his neck, tasting the salt and the heat of him. He presses against me, ready again.
“One last wish,” he says, pressing his mouth to my cheeks, my eyes, the corner of my mouth.
I arch into him, running my hands over him, opening myself to him. “What’s your wish?”
“Let me love you,” he says, his voice rough-edged and loving. “Let me love you.”
I smile at him. I’m soaring again, flying into the stars. But this time Max is there with me. We’ve jumped off the cliff together, and below us is a sparkling turquoise sea, an ocean of love.
“Always,” I say. “I’ll let you love me always. And I’ll love you just as long.”
At that Max smiles, and it’s glorious.
And then he loves me—in a million shining, different ways.
Epilogue
Max
5 years later
I wake up from the strangest dream. For a short time I was back in that place where I was alone, certain I didn’t want love or a life full of passion. I reach across the bed and pull Anna close, brushing a kiss over her neck and breathing in the scent of her.
She’s sand and saltwater and jasmine, echoing the day we spent at the beach. The curtain nearby flutters, and the sound of the waves crashing over the sand is its own lullaby. Anna stirs, shifting closer, pressing her curves into me.
I wrap my arms around her and she murmurs, “Love you,” in her sleepy, husky voice.
“I love you,” I whisper, but she’s already back asleep. I smile into the pale light.
It’s hours before dawn and the stars and moon reflect off the sea, casting that magical, silvery illumination you only find on the Côte d'Azur.
I settle back into the warmth of the bed, the soft breeze drifting over the sheets, and I’m starting to count all the things I’m grateful for?—
When a soft cry breaks through the sound of the waves.
Anna sits up, immediately awake. That’s what moms do.
“What? Oh,” she says, blinking, starting to kick aside the sheets.
“I’ll get her,” I say, stroking back her hair and pressing a kiss to her mouth.
“You’re sure?”
I nod and give her a final kiss. “Get some rest.”
Then I’m out of the bedroom and across the hall, lifting Madeleine (named for her mom) out of her crib. She kicks out her feet and waves her arms, letting out another unhappy cry.
A change and a bottle later, we’re settled in a rocking chair.
