"How do you feel?" Malcolm asks as I lay in his arms, luxuriating in the afterglow of our lovemaking.

"Complete," I sigh, snuggling the side of my face against his chest and tightening my hold around his torso.

"Well, I'm glad I could complete you," Malcolm teases, and I feel the rumble of his own amus.e.m.e.nt inside his chest.

Malcolm places an index finger underneath my chin gently prodding me to lift my head and look at him. When I do, I can't prevent myself from sliding up and kissing his lips. Malcolm plunges his hands into my hair, cradling my head and rolling me over onto my back with his hips strategically positioned between my thighs.

I pull my lips away from his in surprise.

"I thought it would take you more time to recover," I say, feeling the hard proof of his arousal pushing against me.

"Obviously not," he says, with a rakish grin.

"I'm not complaining," I quickly tell him. "I just didn't expect you to be ready again so soon."

Malcolm leans down and kisses me lightly on the lips.

"First things first," he says rising off me and standing up from the bed. "Stay in bed for a moment. I'll be right back."

I watch him as he walks toward the bathroom and sigh in great disappointment when he enters it, ending my own private display of a naked Malcolm. I pull the top sheet up over me and curl up in its soft comfort with a contented smile on my face. Making love with Malcolm was everything I could have hoped for and more. His gentle nature with me was simply further proof of how much he loved me.

I could hear the flow of water in the bathroom, making me wonder why Malcolm would be taking a bath at a time like this. He soon returns to the bedroom providing me with another generous opportunity to blatantly admire his physique. His natural beauty would be a feast for any woman's eyes, but as his wife, I feel proud to be able to think of him as belonging completely to me.

When he reaches the side of the bed, he holds out a hand for me to take.

"Come with me, my love," he says. "Let's take a bath together."

He doesn't have to suggest such a thing to me twice. I eagerly throw off the sheet and scoot over to the side of the bed. I take his offered hand and stand up. After I'm on my feet, I wince from a slight ache, which I can only attribute to our lovemaking.

Malcolm lifts me easily in his arms, and I don't protest because my legs do feel a little wobbly. When we reach the bathroom, Malcolm gently lowers me into the tub full of warm water. I expect him to immediately join me but he doesn't. Instead, he dries his arms off with a nearby towel.

"Where are you going?" I ask, wondering about his curious behavior.

"I need to change the sheets on the bed," he tells me.

"The sheets?" I ask.

"There's a little blood on them," he replies, tossing the towel in his hands onto a nearby chair. He leans down and kisses me on the lips. "I won't be long."

I watch him walk out of the room to take care of the proof of my lost virginity and marvel at his thoughtfulness. Not only did he want to make the bed comfortable for the rest of our night together, but I think he also knew a warm soak would ease the ache I feel between my legs. I toss my hair over the end of the tub so it doesn't get wet as I lay back and let my body delight in the soothing heat of the water.

Malcolm is true to his word and returns to me a few short minutes later. I watch him walk over to the sink and pull out a drawer in the vanity. He picks something up from it and shuts the drawer before walking behind me. Malcolm gathers my hair in one hand, and I feel him tie it back with something, then lift it through what must be a ponytail holder to loop it and make a small bun.

"Scoot up a bit, my love," Malcolm tells me.

I do as asked and he steps into the tub behind me. He sits down and gathers me into his arms until my back is resting against his chest. I hear him sigh in contentment and can't help but smile happily at the sound.

"Is the water helping the pain?" He asks me, sliding both his hands across my stomach, underneath the water to hold me close.

"It doesn't really hurt that much," I tell him. "It just aches a bit."

"We don't have to do anything else tonight if you're in pain," he says understandingly. "I'm perfectly fine with just holding you, as long as you're naked, of course."

I rest my hands on top of Malcolm's in the water. I push one down between my legs and lift the other one up to cup a breast.

"I'm not fine with just holding," I tell him in no uncertain terms.

Malcolm's fingers begin to move in the strategic positions I've placed them, soon making my body ache in a very different way.

"I need more," I moan to him. "Please, Malcolm."

"Sit up for a moment," he instructs, removing his hands from me.

I do as asked and Malcolm phases to the other side of the tub to position himself in front of me.

"Lie back," he tells me as he leans forward to partially rest on top of me. He places one hand on the side of the tub to prop himself up with and the other travels underneath my bottom to keep me from sliding as he enters me easily, un.o.bstructed this time.

As Malcolm makes love to me for only the second time in our married life, I hold onto his shoulders as he pleasures my body with his and brings us both past the point of no return. Afterwards, I hold onto him and feel my body tremble against his.

"Are you all right?" Malcolm asks worried.

I nod my head against his shoulder.

"Yes. I'm just trying to believe this is real and not a dream."

"If it is a dream, I hope I never wake up from it," Malcolm says fervently, kissing my shoulder.

I pull back and hold Malcolm's face between my hands, kissing his lips tenderly.

"I want you to do something for me," I murmur against his mouth.

"Anything," he replies.

"Let's get out of this tub and go back to bed first."

I don't have to make my request twice. Malcolm rises from the tub looking like a G.o.d rising from the depths of an ocean as the water clings to his skin making it glisten. He helps me out of the water and uses the towel he dried off with earlier to soak up the water from my body.

He quickly dries himself off and then takes one of my hands into his as we walk back to the bedroom together.

"What is it that you want me to do?" Malcolm asks, sounding intrigued by my vague request.

"Lay down on the bed," I tell him, lifting my hands to the makeshift bun my hair is in to make sure it's still secure.

Malcolm does as I ask, watching me closely and with open curiosity.

I crawl onto the fresh linens and sit beside him.

"You've been doing far too much of the work this evening. I may be new to all this, but I want to learn how to pleasure you too," I tell him, running one hand over his thigh closest to me. "And I want you to tell me what you like and if I do something that you don't like."

"I'm not sure there's much you could do that I wouldn't like," Malcolm says hoa.r.s.ely as he watches me.

I smile and move to kneel between Malcolm's legs. When I take hold of him, I hear him groan in pleasure just from that simple act.

"Just let me know if I do something you don't like then," I tell him. "I'm sure your responses to my touch will rea.s.sure me if I'm doing it right."

As I begin my own private lessons on how to pleasure my husband, I realize I may not have known exactly what I was doing, but I don't hear any complaints from Malcolm while I learn from him for the rest of the night.

When I wake up the next morning, I'm a little disoriented by my surroundings until I feel Malcolm's warm, steady breath tickle the back of my neck. One of his arms is underneath my head and the other is wrapped around my waist. I smile, feeling on the verge of happy tears.

The night before was everything I could have ever wanted and more. We did things to each other's bodies that I didn't even know were possible, but Malcolm was a patient and tender lover who didn't ask anything of me that he didn't reciprocate ten-fold. His desire to pleasure me seemed like the most important thing to him. I had no doubt that it would always be like that with Malcolm. He would always make sure my needs were met first, and quite often, before ever gratifying his own desires.

I rest one arm and hand over the one he has around my waist basking in the joy of having such a man to have and to hold for the rest of my life. I feel Malcolm's arm tighten slightly around me as his lips plant tiny kisses across my exposed shoulder.

"Good morning, my love," he whispers, sounding drowsy from sleep.

"Did I wake you?" I ask, wondering if my movement woke him before he was ready.

"I'm a light sleeper," he explains. "Why didn't you join me in my dreams last night? Didn't you sleep?"

I lay there for a moment realizing Malcolm is right. I didn't join in his dream world when we fell asleep. I feel a knot form in the pit of my stomach as I realize why my connection to him in that way has been affected.

"Yes, I slept," I tell him, rolling over to face his confused expression.

"The seals?" He asks knowingly, not really needing me to confirm his own a.s.sumption.

"They must be affecting my ability to do that too," I say, feeling a deep disappointment that I can't share that time with Malcolm any more.

"Hey, don't look so sad," Malcolm tells me. "We'll be able to do it again after you take the seals back to Heaven. It won't last forever."

I feel tears threaten to show my worry over this new development, but Malcolm's rea.s.surance helps me fight them off.

"Anyway," Malcolm says, smiling at me. "What we can do in real life is so much better than just dreaming about it."

I can't help but smile back and agree. "That is very true."

I feel the proof of Malcolm's arousal stir against my legs.

"So early in the morning?" I ask, amazed at Malcolm's eagerness to continue where we left off the night before.

"It's the best way to start off the day," Malcolm a.s.sures me, leaning in for a kiss and showing me just how great a day we were going to have with one another.

By the time Malcolm and I decide to roll out of bed, it's midday. The only reason I relent in allowing him to talk me into leaving the room is because my stomach is protesting against not being fed since the night before. We decide to walk down to the kitchen instead of phasing. Mostly because I know when we get there we'll run into people, and I'm not quite ready to lose these private moments with Malcolm just yet. It becomes obvious that my husband isn't ready either. More than a few times, he stops and either pulls me to him for his sweet kisses or pushes me up against whatever wall we're nearby for an impromptu make out session. I have absolutely no complaints about his manhandling of me because I can give as good as I get.

We do eventually make it to the kitchen and find Millie, Jered, Giles, Lucas, Vala, and Luna present. The humans in the room are sitting at the table eating lunch together while Vala keeps a watchful eye on Luna.

"Well," Jered says looking up from his bowl of soup as we enter the room. "We didn't expect to see the two of you so soon."

"My wife was hungry for food," Malcolm says. "I couldn't have her wasting away on me."

Lucas smiles at us. "So when are the babies going to come?"

Giles coughs loudly like he might have swallowed his soup down the wrong pipe after hearing Lucas' innocent question.

"I guess we'll just have to wait and see," I tell my son. I see no reason to tell him that we've decided to hold off on having children for the time being. He doesn't need to know the details. "It may take some time before their ready to come into this world."

"I hope they come soon," Lucas says longingly. "I really want to play with them."

"We'll do our best to provide you with a brother and sister as soon as possible," Malcolm promises. "I'll make it my own personal mission to get the job done."

This seems to satisfy Lucas because his smile grows wider. I just look at Malcolm and roll my eyes.

"Then I know it'll happen," Lucas says to his father. "You always do what you say, Daddy."

"And I always will," Malcolm rea.s.sures him.

"Would the two of you like some soup?" Millie asks, even though she's already stood from her chair and is heading to the pot on the stove before we even have a chance to give her our answer.

Malcolm and I sit on either side of Lucas as we settle to eat. My son leans over and hugs me around the waist.

"You were the prettiest bride I ever saw, Mommy," Lucas says with pride.

"I think I'm probably the only bride you've ever seen," I tell him good-naturedly, hugging him back.

"Yeah, but you were so pretty yesterday."

"She's pretty every day," Malcolm chimes in.

"Ok, both of you stop it," I say. "You're going to make me blush if you don't."

While we eat, Giles speaks with Malcolm about some business in the city, and Jered tells me about something of interest happening in Stratus.

"Brutus and Desmond are spending the day there," Jered says. "Apparently, Lorcan is supposed to make some grand declaration this afternoon."

"Does anyone know what he intends to say?"

"No," Jered says. "Only he seems to know what he plans to announce. I'll wager it isn't anything good considering it's really Abaddon who's in charge. Though, Lorcan wouldn't have been any better. Like Malcolm said before, Abaddon might even be a slight improvement to the real Lorcan Halloran."

"How is he treating the people in the Stratus' down-world? The last time Desmond spoke about Lorcan, he was sending them aid. Of course, that was before we knew it was really Abaddon in charge."

"He's still sending supplies," Jered confirms. "Which makes us all very curious about his announcement. He's gained the down-worlders' support and seems to have the aristocrats of Stratus backing him completely now."

"He's already emperor," I say. "I don't see what else he could possibly want."

Jered shrugs. "I'm not sure. We'll just have to wait and see I guess. Whatever it is, it will probably be something the people of Stratus wouldn't otherwise agree to."

"War?" I ask. "Do you think he means to try and stage a coup of one of the other cloud cities?"

Jered shakes his head. "No. I don't think that's it since Lucifer has people in positions of power in the other cities already. Honestly, I don't have a clue what's going to happen. We'll just have to wait and see like everyone else."