As she settles, her little eyes flutter open and immediately find my face. My breath catches. She blinks slowly, the bright yellow of her eyes disappearing for a only second before shining back up at me.
Kwarq
Blissful. Another lovely human word, and the only one I can use to describe this moment.
The birthing tea has worn off, and Amina rests in the bed of the healing center. Beside her is a shallow bassinet holding our two children. A daughter and a son.
I sit next to her on the bed, holding her hand. Both of our gazes are fixed on the squirming bundles.
“They are small,” I say quietly. Amina smiles and squeezes my hand.
“They’re average human size, I think. Just a little bit bigger.”
“Hm,” I nod and watch as my danaih opens her little mouth to yawn, triggering an answering yawn from her brother. Amina chuckles.
“They’re so adorable. I love it.”
I smile. I’m not sure if it was the effects of the birthing tea, but for the first time, Amina did not scared herself with crazy ideas of what would happen after she gave birth. When I first presented our daughter to her, she didn’t hesitated to open her arms and pull the wailing, slippery little thing to her breast. The moment our son came into the world, she pulled him from my hands right away, pressing them both to her naked chest and initiating the lehti’an. She had encouraged me to do the same.
“It’s called skin to skin. It’s good for newborn babies, and fathers can do it, too,” she’d said before having me remove my shirt and cradle them to my body.
Holding my children close to me, feeling their trusting energy had been a feeling second only to the love I have for their mother.
“They are adorable and beautiful and perfect,” I confirm and lean forward to kiss her soft, beautiful mouth.
“They are.” Amina reaches out and smoothes a hand over T’nai’s thick, red curls and down her smooth, bluish-black cheek. “Kwarq, I swear, I never slept with Bati.”
I chuckle. “They do look like him. Lyqa genes are unpredictable. Our children will look like all of us.”
Our son, Maq’ti, shares his sister’s dark skin, except his hair is a tight cap of coils my shade of ashen brown. They both have the features of their mother, however. It’s almost uncanny.
“Are they well?”
Amina’s smile widens and excitement colors her scent. It’s sweet and vibrant.
“They are. I still can’t believe the lehti’an. I can feel them. It’s so cool and strange, but kind of amazing. Everything is new, so they’re a little overwhelmed, but okay.”
I nod. “And you are happy?”
“I’m so happy.”
She uses her free hand to caress my face. Her fingers burrow into my beard. I cover her hand with mine and I lay the other on our sons back. The babies have managed to each wiggle an arm from their swaddles. Their little hands have found each other’s between them and are clasped. The result is a lively circle of love and warmth between me, Amina and our children. My heart thumps a strong, even beat in my chest. Amina’s keeps in steady rhythm. Beneath it, T’nai and Maq’ti’s hearts patter back and forth. It’s a beautiful song, and one I look forward to hearing for the rest of our lives.
The End
From the Author
Yay, you read all the way to the end! I hope you enjoyed Kwarq and Amina’s story. If so, it would be great for you to take a second to leave this story a review and share with your friends. Knowing you enjoy these stories is great encouragement to keep writing them. Plus, I enjoy all of your feedback. Also, if you’d like to see what happens with Bati and Tiani, let me know.
This story takes the place of the second Bronzeville Love story that was set for release in August. I’m still working on Liana and Sean’s story, but I’ve decided to push that it back some. If you read If There’s Still Time, and would like to see the next in the series, leave a review so I know.
I’m also working on a novella series, because we all love a good quickie.
You can get updates on upcoming releases by visiting www.nikkiclarkeromance.com or following my Amazon author page.
Kwarq (Lyqa Planet Lovers Book 1) Page 28
