Page 69 of Michael's Awakening
Chapter Twenty-Six
Michael
Christmas Day went perfectly. Gabriel’s family came over to have dinner at my house– which stressed me the hell out, but ended up going very smoothly. Turns out, I’m an excellent host, something I never thought I would be decent at.
David was right, Zack and Gabriel were even bigger jokesters at Christmas. They bickered like old women and chased each other around like they were five years old.
I smiled at the memory.
It was a new year and definitely a new me. These past few months had changed me so completely that I didn’t feel like the same person anymore. I knew the beast was still inside me, as I knew he always would be, but Gabriel helped chase away the darkness that had once haunted me.
He had set me free.
My nightmares about my mother had significantly lessened, but not disappeared entirely. However, I dealt with them differently now. Whenever I awoke from a nightmare and found Gabriel sleeping at my side, nestled in my arms, all shadowed torments disappeared and warmth spread through me.
He was my saving grace… my redemption.
And he currently had drool slipping out of the corner of his mouth as he slept.
Smiling, I leaned down and kissed his cheek. “Good morning, Sleeping Beauty.”
His beautiful eyes fluttered open and briefly stared up at me before he turned over and snuggled into his pillow, his purple-streaked blond hair in disarray around his head. “No. It’s too early.” He yawned as he settled back into a comfortable position.
Soft snores drifted to my ears a few moments later.
Glancing at the time, I decided to let my angel sleep a little while longer before dragging him out of bed. It was Saturday morning, so I didn’t have work, but he did, and I knew trying to convince him to stay home all day would be a futile attempt.
Last night, I took him to the club to celebrate his twenty-second birthday, after having a nice dinner atAmbrosia.It was strange going back to the club again. After meeting Gabriel, I knew there was no one else for me, so the club hadn’t even crossed my mind. But my Princess loved to dance, so for his birthday, that’s where I had taken him.
The entire night, I’d had to fend men off of him, coming very close a few times to kicking some ass. I blamed that on the sexy as sin black leather crop-top he had worn and those come-fuck-me heeled boots that still drove me completely crazy with lust when I saw him in them. Gabriel was too gorgeous for his own good. He’d had fun, though, and that’s all that mattered to me.
Afterward, we’d gone back to his apartment to stay the night since it was closer than my house from the club. Gabriel had gotten hilariously drunk and I wanted to get him tucked into bed as soon as possible before he passed out somewhere.
Giving him a light kiss on the side of his head, I quietly slipped out of bed and walked into the kitchen.
His apartment was too small. And noisy. The neighbors on both sides of the wall were always yelling or bumping into stuff. He lived in the part of town where break-ins were common. I always worried someone was going to try to rob him or hurt him in some way when I wasn’t around. Call me paranoid, but I worked in the legal profession and heard countless skin-crawling stories of crime.
I really wished he would just move in with me.
I casually brought up the topic before, and he’d laughed, thinking I was joking, and said that his apartment lease didn’t end until January so to get back to him about it then. Well, it was January and I wanted him to move in with me. Now.
Shaking my head at my impatience, I started a pot of coffee and leaned against the small counter in the kitchen. As I listened to the coffee brew, I got lost in my thoughts.
I was going to ask Gabriel to marry me, even though, to most people, it was still way too early in our relationship to consider marriage. But Gabriel and I were different than everyone else.
He was the only one for me and no amount of time was ever going to change that fact. My heart hammered wildly in my chest at the thought of proposing to him, but I knew it was what I wanted more than anything in the world– him to be forever mine, and for me to be his.
Gay marriage still wasn’t necessarily legal in the state of Arkansas, so Gabriel and I wouldn’t be able to officially marry until we either moved somewhere else or the state decided to remove the homophobic stick from its ass. Same-sex marriage was legalized briefly a few months ago, but then a ban was put on it almost directly afterward. That ban had since been overruled, but that decision was then taken to appeal.
Until I could officially marry Gabriel, just knowing he said ‘yes’ would be enough for me. I’d already bought his ring, but was just waiting for the appropriate moment to ask him.
How was I supposed to do it?
Most men proposed in overly romanticized ways. Such as taking their beloved to a fancy dinner and popping the question in front of the entire restaurant, or having the ring placed inside their favorite dessert. Knowing Gabriel, he’d probably accidentally eat it if I chose the latter option.
A knock on the front door snapped me from my indecisive musings. Taking the few short steps to the door, I unlocked it and opened it partially, checking to see who it was before opening it wider.
“Hello, Zack,” I greeted him with a nod.
