Page 142 of Axel

Heat blooms in my chest.

“Axel, are you asking me?—”

“God, Wildfire.” He finally smiles. “You’re so predictable. I can’t propose after anal, but you want our engagement to begin with me in boxers and covered in kittens? No, I’ll propose the right way.”

He has no idea howrighthe looksrightnow.

Domineering. Doting. Lethal. Loving. A killer covered in ink and kittens.

No time like the present to commit to my future.

But I worry, “You need to know what you’re asking for. I understand your world now, but you have to understand mine.”

His brows furrow. “I do. I see you, Ruby. I always have.”

“No.” I exhale, sharing what I hide from most. Even him. “You see a lot about me, but not my epilepsy. It’s an invisible disability. Most of the time, I’m fine. I take my meds, manage my triggers, and take care of myself. But it’s always there, waiting for me like a bomb that can drop at any moment. And if I want to get pregnant, I have to change my medications, and that changes everything.”

He reaches for my face. “I’ll do whatever you need.”

“But Axel, we’d have to plan it. What if I have a drop seizure while I’m really pregnant or holding our baby? I worry about having a seizure all the time,” I confess, tears wellingin my eyes. “I just don’t like talking about it. It owns enough of my life as it is. I won’t give it more power.”

“Okay.” He nods. “How do we plan?”

“We’d need a new house,” I explain. “No stairs. No sharp corners. All soft carpets. It’s dangerous for me to cook by myself, or even take a bath by myself, and what if I have a seizure while bathing our baby? I can’t do some things on my own, and if I’m a mom, what if?—”

“It’s okay.” He cups my cheeks. “I’ll be there the whole time. We’ll baby-proofandRuby-proof our new home.”

His smile is assuring, but…

“You can’t be there the whole time.”

“I can be there as much as I can. Iwantto be. And when I’m not? Have you met my mom? She’d love it. Or Wren. Or Sire. God, he’d make the best uncle. You should hear him sing. And Jace? He’s a teddy bear. Kids love him. And then add in all your sisters? We’re not alone. For better or for worse.”

“What if you resent me one day? For needing you?”

He shakes his head, as if he’s in on a secret I’m just now learning.

“Wildfire, you needing me is all I’ve been waiting for.”

He pulls me into a kiss. His lips soft. His beard tickling. His tongue tempting. His breath promising, “Because I need you, too.”

I search his piercing eyes and see our truth. Our future together.

“Okay,” my voice eases, “but we’re getting way ahead of ourselves.” I nuzzle his nose. “There’s no ring on my finger.”

“Such a feisty woman.” His lips quirk. “You want to fight me for it?”

“Fight you? For my ring?” With the way Axel looks now, I’d kill for it. “You may be primal, but I have pride. You know the drill. Get on your knees for me.”

“Yes, ma’am,” he smirks, plucking kittens off him. “Come on, Sparky. You know the drill, too. No more cockblocking and blue balls.”

Axel corrals the kittens, exploding my ovaries when he holds all six, mewling in his inked arms. “Listen here,” he orders them, aiming for the ensuite bathroom. “Play with the toilet paper. Make a mess as usual. I don’t care. Just give us an hour or three.”

Once he sets Sparky in there, too, he closes the door and stalks toward the bed.

“Now, someone was talking about me on my knees with my blue eyes and alpha DNA, and—” He yanks my ankles toward the edge of the bed, making me squeal. “I think we need to practice spreading it.” He smirks. “Like your thighs.”

“You’re already ready for me?”

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