"Really."
"That is a good answer." He wrapped his arms around her, kissed her again and again.
When he let her up for air, she laughed. "And you know, I'm relieved there won't be women drooling over you everywhere we go. That can get old fast."
He feigned indignation. "You don't think any women will drool over me? I didn't become ugly, you know."
"No, you didn't." Caressing his lower back, Marley stared up at him, marveled at all he had been through, all he had seen and done. Wondered that of all women, he could choose her to be with. Grateful that she had the courage, the confidence, to reach for her own happiness with her very attractive and masculine man. "Not ugly at all."
"Let's go in the house and I'll prove to you I still have certain charms." Damien scooped her up into his arms and held her tightly. "Oh, ma cherie, I don't deserve this."
"Hey." Marley touched his cheek, tears filling her eyes. "Yes, you do. You are a good man, Damien du Bourg, and fortunate that you were given two hundred years to prove it."
He nodded, swallowing hard, then smiled again. "Where will we live? I don't want you to have to give up your life in Cincinnati if you don't want to."
"We'll live here. I love this house, this plantation. I can teach here just as easily."
"What about your family? Your sister?"
Marley wrapped her arms around his neck. She wasn't going to let her sister spoil her perfect moment. "She's not speaking to me. She checked into rehab after Alex dumped her, but the minute she got out, she ran off to Chicago this time. Sebastian is doing great with Rachel, and Lizzie gave her full custody. I told his biological father about him, since Lizzie finally told me his name, and he has visitation now. That was the last nail in the coffin of our relationship, the fact that I went and contacted Alan, but I thought he deserved to know he has a son."
"I'm sorry," he said. "And you know you did the right thing."
"I know, but I'm sorry it had to be this way. But, Sebastian is fine, that's what's important. And I'm free to live here, with you, to make my own life with you and our baby." She dropped that in, wondered if he'd pick up on it.
He paused with his foot on the first step, his arms snugly under her back and legs. "You mean with me and the hypothetical children we might have in the future."
"No. I mean you and me and the baby that's going to be born in seven months."
Damien nearly dropped her. "Holy shit, are you serious?"
"Yes." This wasn't exactly the reaction she had hoped for. "Is that okay? It wasn't intentional, Damien, I swear. I wasn't trying to get pregnant, and I honestly thought it was the wrong time…"
Damien just set her down on the step, went down on one knee, and started speaking in French, clenched fist resting on his forehead. Marley looked at him, stunned. What the hell was he saying? Was that happy French or get-away-from-me French? She had always been lousy at understanding spoken French. Between her fear and panic, and his very traditional accent, she had no clue what he was saying.
"Damien, what are you doing? Is this okay…"
"Amen," he said, eyes still closed.
Unsure, Marley just watched as Damien stopped speaking, took a deep breath, and stood up. He pulled her to him. "I was giving a prayer of gratitude to Mary, the mother of God. For the gift of our child."
Marley closed her eyes, let out the breath she'd been holding. "So you're happy?"
"Are you kidding?" Damien pulled back and grinned at her. "This is fantastique. Perfect."
"I thought so." She laughed when he ran his hands through his hair, forcing it straight up in the air.
"You're feeling okay? Everything is okay?"
She nodded.
"Then we have to call the contractor. We have to wire the house for electricity and plumbing. We have to paint it. We have to buy a crib."
Marley laughed, loving his enthusiasm. "We have seven months. And in the meantime, I can think of other things to do." She leaned closer. "You know, I've been a bit lonely for the last two months."
That changed the look in his eye. He ran his finger over her bottom lip. "I'm so sorry to hear that. But I promise you I'll make up for lost time. I may have lost the lure of the demon, but not the experience I've gained."
That sent a shiver rolling up her spine. "That sounds promising."
"Yes, it does." Damien kissed her softly, passionately. "For the first time in two centuries when I look into the future it's not empty, but full of happiness. Can you see that too?"
"Yes." And Marley pictured a playset in the yard, right where Alex had placed it in her vision, to remind them of where they'd been, what they had, and what they'd refused to submit to.
"I definitely can see it, Damien, and it's beautiful."
Rosa had missed New Orleans, missed the heat and the laid-back attitude, the river, and the crowded French Quarter, So when she returned, she strolled through Jackson Square, took great amusement in getting her palm read by a grizzly haired fortune teller, and treated herself to dinner at Muriel's.
Then she went to Bourbon Street, bored and restless, and walked, not sure what she was looking for, but feeling that hunger rise inside her, that burbling need for satisfaction, for a man.
The October air was getting crisp, but the doors to the bars were still thrown open in welcome, and Rosa caught the eye of a good-looking guy sitting alone at a round table, two empty shot glasses in front of him, a third full glass raised to his lips. She went in as he tossed it back and saluted her with the empty, a welcoming, suggestive smile on his face.
"What are you drinking?" she asked, sliding onto the stool across from him.
"Absolut and Baileys."
"Together? Disgusting. But it will get you suitably shitfaced if that's the goal."
"Yep. Might as well enjoy life while I can." He flagged down the bartender. "Nobody lives forever."
Rosa smiled. He had very nice teeth, and his eyes crinkled at the edges when he spoke. She leaned forward, her leg brushing against his. "Would you like to live forever?"