It had been several weeks since that fateful day in the woods when Dakir died on my Darailtar’s horn.

The world was a different place now; well, at least for Alpazon, it was. I had worked tirelessly and diligently to free all the slaves from the mines. There had been a ton of paperwork involved in the mission, but after the final man walked free from the depths of the caves, everyone around cheered.

The aura around the land was no longer cloudy and disillusioned by the iron fist of dread that came with Dakir and his looming, brooding presence.

The clouds lifted and so did everyone’s spirits, and it all came from his death. The entire planet sang my praises, as well as Marissa’s. I’d finally gained her approval and support, which meant the world to me. Life was almost perfect, but one thing was missing.

I still needed Marissa as my bride.

I had waited over the course of these past few weeks to make sure that Marissa really did love me as she’d claimed she did. I had a deep fear rooted in the back of my brain that there was still a slight possibility that she had only confessed her love to me because I saved her life and her gratitude was confused with love.

I sat at the kitchen table across from Marissa, watching her eat.

“Kadic, you haven’t even touched your food yet. Is something the matter?”

I looked up at her. “Huh? Oh no, darling, I’m fine.” I wrung my nervous hands together under the table and tried to take a deep breath, acting as casual as possible.

The reason for my mental strain came from the fact that I knew the spaceship arrived today. I went back and forth between the light and dark side of my mind like a ping pong ball.

Should I tell her about the ship?

If I gave her the choice between staying with me or leaving to go back to Earth, she could very well choose to go home. I ran a risk by telling her the truth, but I knew that she would question me about it again at some point. If I lied to her now and she found out about it later, there would surely be hell to pay.

Meanwhile, I could feel it in the depths of my soul that Marissa and I were made for each other. I just wasn’t sure if she was completely on board with the idea or fully believed in fate yet.

If she truly loved me like she said she did, then, even if I were to tell her about the ship, she would choose to stay with me.

It is the ultimate test to prove her genuine love.

Even so, I was still scared of the answer either way, and hence, I wasn’t touching the breakfast, as Marissa pointed out a moment ago.

Now that Dakir was dead, I didn’t need a wife. There were no other brothers to compete with for the throne and it was mine. I was well received across the board from the Alpazonians living on this planet and I wouldn’t have to prove myself to them, I’d already done so.

I shook my head and shut my eyes. I had to tell her the truth, it was the only way. I would just have to suffer the consequences if she chose to leave me. I would have plenty of kingdom duties to keep me busy and distracted, if it came to that.

“What’s wrong, Kadic?” Marissa’s voice was a chime of concern.

“Marissa, I have to tell you something.” We made eye contact and it burned my soul.

“Okay…” she said with caution.

“The spaceship comes back today,” I blurted out, ripping off the bandage. She didn’t say anything at first, so I charged on. “I just wanted to let you know because before, when I told you that you could have a choice whether to leave or stay, I meant it. I’m a man of my word and if you want to go home, I will understand and allow it.”

I swallowed hard, the air clinging to my frozen lungs. She still didn’t provide an immediate response, which increased my worry.

“You must know how much I love you, Marissa.” I took her tiny hand in mine. It was soft and warm. “I know we are meant to be together. I would give you the world on a silver platter if it’s what you wanted. You will never have to suffer with me.”

I looked deep into her eyes, searching for response.

Then I did the craziest thing that came to mind, but I thought it might work. I dropped down on one knee.

“Marissa, I’m willing to take a chance on love. You are the most incredible woman I’ve ever known and I want you to be my wife. I want to make love to you and I want you to bear my children…but only if you want to.”

When I finally had the courage to look up, Marissa was staring down at me with tears in her eyes. She was crying joyful tears.

“Yes, Kadic, of course I will marry you. I want to stay here with you. I meant it when I said I loved you and I can’t wait to give you a son or daughter.”

I immediately stood up and embraced her in a colossal hug while I swung her around and around in a circle.

We both laughed and then I eased her back, planting her feet firmly on the floor. I took her head in my hands and drew her in for the most sensual kiss I’d ever felt. In this moment, I’d never been happier in my entire life.