Bell’s hands gripped tightly to the desk’s edges while Galen held firmly to her hips. With each thrust, she took a sharp breath as he pushed himself deeper inside her. Even after six years, his every movement, touch, and kiss drove her wild.

She was close, and so was he. She could hear his breaths, his racing heartbeat. Bell squeezed around him, and he let out a thick groan. His fingers dug into her hips, and he shoved himself deeply.

Bell cried out, holding to the desk as his release pushed her over her edge, and her body was flushed with the warmth and euphoria of her orgasm.

She felt the weight of his body as he leaned forward to kiss her spine, still keeping himself inside her as she convulsed around him. Every slight movement he made sent another jolt through her body.

Bell pulled her bottom lip between her teeth and squeezed her walls around him again.

Galen growled and bit her.

“Ouch,” she whined with a giggle.

“Don’t push me,” he growled. “I’m not afraid to keep you in this position all day long if I have to.”

He rolled his hips, drawing a gasp and a moan from Bell’s lips. He was ready to go again, but she was not.

“Okay,” she whispered, letting out a shaky breath as her body was already responding to him, “I’m sorry. I won’t tease anymore.”

“Why not?” he whispered against her back. “I’m happy to keep you as long and as often as possible…”

Galen kissed her back, his tongue flicking out to taste her.

Bell moaned and closed her eyes. She wanted more and was tempted by the desire, but her mind was not completely gone.

“Galen,” she said, trying to keep her senses, “doctor’s orders… remember?”

Galen paused in his kisses, sighed, and dropped his forehead against her back.

“Are we sure she meant a few times a week… not a day?” he asked.

“Galen,” Bell said, more firmly this time.

“A few times a day feels far more reasonable…” he whispered, with another kiss to her back.

“Galen.”

“Fine,” Galen sighed, raising himself off her and slowly separating their bodies.

Bell let out a shaky breath as he pulled away. She began to raise herself from the desk when she was suddenly lifted off the ground.

“Galen!” she cried out in surprise, wrapping her arms around his neck for safety.

Galen chuckled as he held her like a princess.

“Doctor’s orders also said that you shouldn’t strain yourself,” he said with a grin.

He carried her across the room toward the bathroom, as they both laughed. Once inside, he grabbed a towel and set it on the counter, setting Bell down to sit on it.

“My feet on the floor would have been preferable, you know,” she said, looking up at him.

Galen smiled and moved his hand between her thighs to pull them apart. Bell’s eyes widened.

“What are you doing?” she asked. “The doctor said—”

“Oh? Dirty girl, what are you thinking about?” he whispered, leaning close to her. “I was just going to help you get cleaned up, is all.”

Bell raised a brow and pushed him away gently.

“You’re full of it,” she said, hopping off the counter. “Now go, I’m taking a shower.”

“I’d be happy to help you with those hard-to-reach spots,” he smiled.

“Go away…” Bell said, pointing to the door.

Galen chuckled and put his hands up in defeat before grabbing his robe and leaving the bathroom.

Bell couldn’t help but giggle as the door closed. She took a deep breath and moved her hands down to the slight bump of her belly. She smiled as she moved to the shower.

“Your daddy doesn’t play fair, Hannah,” she whispered.

She only had a few weeks left in the pregnancy, and Bell had been told to rest more. Her blood pressure was quick to rise, and she had been almost too nauseous to eat the first month. The baby was smaller than expected, and there was concern. But Bell and the baby were closely monitored and expected to have a safe and healthy delivery.

Galen and Bell had been over the moon when they found out about the pregnancy. They had long talked about wanting a second child, but those first couple of years after the war had been difficult.

Galen had struggled for a long time to sort through his feelings, to accept and move on. Though their relationship had remained strong, there were times when even Bell was not privy to the thoughts that haunted him.

But that was all in the past.

Now, they were waiting for their daughter. Their Hannah.

Ashleigh had questioned the choice of name when she came to visit the month before.

“Isn’t that a bit… weird?” Ashleigh asked.

“What?” Bell asked.

“You know…” Ashleigh said, “because that was Galen’s…”

“His mate?” Bell asked with a laugh. “You can say it. It’s not a dirty word or a secret.”

Ashleigh sighed.

“Come on, it really doesn’t bother you that he wants to name your daughter after his mate?” Ashleigh asked.

Bell sighed. She turned to Ashleigh and smiled.

“It wasn’t his idea.”

“What?” Ashleigh questioned with surprise. “You mean, you?”

Bell nodded.

“It may seem weird to you,” she said. “But not to me. Hannah was his mate, yes… but he knew her at a time in his life when that wasn’t romantic love. She was his best friend.”

Bell took a deep breath.

“Hannah is important to him, just like Renee was important to me,” she said. “Our son is named Ren to honor the best friend I lost. So, our daughter will be named Hannah to honor the one he lost.”

Ashleigh was quiet momentarily but then turned away as she spoke next.

“Is that the only name you considered?”

Her voice was soft, but Bell heard the emotion in it. She knew what Ashleigh was really asking.

“I did suggest a name that honored Caleb,” Bell replied softly. “But Galen didn’t agree.”

“Why not?” Ashleigh asked, not turning.

“He said you would understand,” Bell said.

Ashleigh looked back with furrowed brows.

“He said that Hannah is gone, but Caleb is lost.”

Ashleigh let out a soft chuckle and nodded.

“And what’s lost… can still be found,” she sighed.

Bell nodded.

They enjoyed a quiet moment together, but then Ashleigh looked at Bell seriously.

“Does it upset you?” she asked.

“What?” Bell asked.

Ashleigh swallowed and looked down at her hands.

Bell licked her lips and looked away. Her hand moved over her stomach without intention.

She had thought about it, the idea that if things had been just a little different, she and Galen might never know each other. If Hannah had survived, she and Galen would have been mated, and Bell would have been alone.

It had been a thought that haunted her. One that woke her from a dead sleep from time to time. But Galen was always there to help her see things clearly in those moments.

Bell took a deep breath.

“As far as I am concerned,” she said with a gentle smile. “There is only this life.”

Ashleigh looked up.

“I may be reborn as someone else, but in this life, I’m Bell. And with or without the blessing of an ancient magical bond, Galen is Bell’s one true mate.”

Bell stepped out of the shower with a smile as she remembered the conversation. She pulled on her robe and once more laid her hands on her belly.

“That’s right, little one. Your daddy is my one true mate. No matter what anyone else thinks.”

Bell stepped out of the bathroom, planning to plant a passionate kiss on Galen’s lips as soon as she saw him. But instead, she stopped with concern as she saw the look on his face.

Galen sat at his desk, his face drawn in shock and confusion. He held the phone to his ear but said nothing. Bell hurried to his side.

“Galen, what’s wrong?” she asked.

“Alice…” Galen said softly. His voice was shaky and weak. “Alice… what is this?”

His hand waved to the computer as though he expected Alice to see his screen. He stood up from his chair, putting his hand on the desk and leaning on it heavily.

“Tell me what’s going on… please.”

Bell turned to the screen. She saw an email from Fiona. The subject asked for an explanation. The body was just a picture of Caleb and Ashleigh. She almost turned back to Galen when she noticed the scar on Ashleigh’s face. The one she had only gotten two years ago.