Page 45 of Rose
He’d be claiming her.
Chapter 6
O - Oblivion
“To feel nothing is safer than feeling everything.”
“Hey, beautiful.”
That deep, smooth voice pulled a smile from her lips before her eyes even opened. The sun kissed her face, and the soft hush of ocean waves rose like music around her. But nothing compared to the sound of him.
William.
Standing above her, shirtless and grinning, with the kind of smile that made her fall in love all over again every time she saw it.
“Hey, husband,” she whispered, grinning as he leaned down and pressed a warm kiss to her lips. He dropped into the lawn chair beside her, and without hesitation, she climbed into his lap, her body melting into his like he was the only place she ever wanted to be.
“It’s beautiful, ain’t it?” William said, his voice low and reverent.
Ahzii glanced toward the endless stretch of sapphire water shimmering beneath the sun. They were in Thailand—paradise—but when she looked back at him, he wasn’t watching the view. His eyes were locked on her, soft and glowing with so much love it made her cheeks flush.
“I love you so much, you know that?” he murmured, hand lifting to cradle her cheek.
She nodded, her voice just as soft. “I love you too.”
He looked down at her stomach then, still flat, still firm... but he knew. Their baby was in there. And in that moment, it was like the entire world was right.
“My queen is having my princess,” he said, rubbing slow, gentle circles against her belly. “Damn, a nigga is blessed.”
Ahzii let out a soft laugh, her head falling against his chest. “You swear it’s a girl. The baby’s literally a bean right now—we don’t know the gender.”
William mugged her playfully. “Don’t disrespect my baby talking about a bean. She is a girl. And she’s gonna be beautiful like her mama.”
He kissed her stomach and Ahzii’s laughter bubbled up again, warm and unfiltered.
“And I hope she’s a he—since you so confident,” she teased, earning a deep chuckle from him.
“I ain’t never been wrong a day in my life,” he said, brushing his fingers through her curls. “When I walked into your shop that day, I knew you was my wife. Was I wrong?”
“Nope,” she answered, popping the p.
“I also said you was gonna be the mother of all my kids. Was I wrong about that too?”
His hand never left her stomach, rubbing slow, tender circles as she smiled and shook her head. “Nope.”
“Exactly. Your husband’s right about everything,” he smirked. “So what we naming our baby girl?”
Ahzii laughed again. He was relentless, and sweet, and hers. “If it’s a girl,” she stressed with a grin, “I want her middle name to be Miani like Kyre. Something tells me she’s gonna take after her godmom more than me.”
“Stop disrespecting me and my baby, Beautiful,” he said with a smirk. “That’s my last warning.”
She rolled her eyes, still grinning. “Okay, Mr. Confident. But if it’s a boy... would you want a Jr.?”
Before she could process what was happening, William scooped her into his arms with a grin that spelled trouble.
“You think I’m playing with you, huh?”
Ahzii squealed, kicking her legs as he took off running toward the ocean.
