Chapter 389 A cozy night before the storm 2

Chapter 389: Chapter 389 A cozy night before the storm 2

Talia’s POV

We lay there in the quiet, and I felt the peace settling over me.

The fire crackled, and the wind whispered, and the world outside was quiet. For a moment, it felt like we were the only two people left in the world.

"Tell me what you want," Kaelen said, and his voice was soft. "After the war. Tell me what you want our life to look like."

I closed my eyes, and I let myself imagine it. I let myself see the life that was waiting for us on the other side of the battle. "I want a home," I said. "A real home. Not a storage room, and not a castle. Just a home."

Kaelen nodded, and I felt his hand find mine. His fingers were warm, and they laced through mine like they belonged there.

I looked at our hands, at the way his fingers wrapped around mine. His hands were scarred and calloused from years of training, but they were gentle when they touched me.

"What else?" Kaelen asked.

"I want pups," I said, and I felt the warmth spreading through my chest. "I want to raise them here, in Blackmoor Valley. I want them to run through the gardens and play in the courtyard. I want them to know they are loved."

Kaelen was quiet for a moment, and I looked at him. I saw the tears in his gray eyes.

I had seen Kaelen cry before, but not like this. His shoulders were shaking, and he was gripping my hand so tightly that his knuckles were white. I could feel the tremble in his body, and I could hear the way his breath caught in his throat. These were not tears of grief. These were tears of relief, and of hope, and of a future he had never thought he would have.

"What is it?" I asked, and I reached up to touch his face.

He shook his head, and he pulled me closer. "I never thought I would have this," he said, and his voice was thick. "I never thought I would find someone who wanted a future with me, because I was alone for so long."

I reached up, and I touched his face. His skin was warm beneath my fingers, and I felt the slight tremble in his jaw. "You are not alone anymore, Kaelen. You will never be alone again."

He turned his head, and he pressed a kiss to my palm. "Tell me more," he said. "Tell me about our pups."

I smiled, and I felt the joy spreading through my chest. "I want a girl who looks like you," I said. "With your gray eyes and your stubbornness. And I want a boy who looks like me. With my silver hair and my temper."

Kaelen laughed, and the sound was like music.

It was a sound I did not hear often enough. It was a sound that made my heart feel lighter, and my soul feel warmer. It was the sound of the man I loved, happy and free.

"You have a temper?" Kaelen asked.

I nodded, and I felt the smile spreading across my face. "I do. You just have not seen it yet."

He pulled me closer, and I felt his lips press against my forehead. "I look forward to it."

We lay there in the quiet, and I felt the peace settling over me. The fire crackled, and the wind whispered, and the world outside was quiet.

"What would you name them?" Kaelen asked, and his voice was soft. "Our pups."

I thought about it for a moment.

I thought about the names I had whispered to myself in the dark of the storage room when I dreamed of a different life. I thought about the names I had never thought I would have the chance to give.

"If it is a girl," I said, "I want to name her Seraphina. After my mother."

Kaelen nodded, and I felt his hand tighten around mine. "That is a beautiful name."

"And if it is a boy," I said, "I want to name him after your father. Aldric."

Kaelen was quiet for a long moment.

I could feel the tension in his body, and I could hear the slight catch in his breath. I knew that I had surprised him. I knew that I had touched something deep inside him.

I felt his chest rise and fall beneath my cheek, and I heard the slight catch in his breath.

"Kaelen?" I asked, and I looked up at him.

He looked at me, and I saw the tears in his eyes.

I saw the vulnerability in his gray eyes, and I saw the love. I saw the man behind the Alpha, the man who had lost his father before he could know him, the man who had carried that loss alone for so long.

"You would do that?" Kaelen asked.

I nodded, and I felt the love swelling in my chest. "He died saving my mother. Which meant, he was a hero. So our son should carry his name."

Kaelen pulled me closer, and I felt his lips press against the top of my head. "Thank you, Talia."

I reached up, and I touched his face. "For what?"

"For giving me a future," he said. "For giving me hope."

I leaned up, and I pressed my lips to his. The kiss was soft at first, then it was not.

We did not sleep that night. We just held each other, and we talked about the future, and we let ourselves believe that we would have one.