Ethan caught Becca in his arms as he surged upright.

Ever since their escape from the destroyed Ceto habitat, he hadn’t been able to get enough of her. The primitive need to mark her, claim her as his forever burned fiercely in his gut.

He tucked his face in the crook of her neck, her diamond-hard nipples grazing his skin in an exquisite drag as hot water poured over them. He cupped her jaw in his hand, and she dipped her head into his touch, her eyes heavy-lidded and a little hazy. She licked her top lip and her expression stretched into a slow, easy smile.

He wanted all of her. Now.

He spoke against her neck. “I have something else for you, Dr. Johnson”

“Oh?”

Her breath caught as he thumbed her lower lip, bumping the edge of her teeth. Her tongue darted against his thumb, sending raw shivers down his spine. He’d been numb, anesthetized, locked away from the world and all the hurt it contained but also inoculated against all the beauty. Now, desire exploded in a rush that blew everything but Becca from the edges of his consciousness. It was new and fresh. Pleasure, pure and simple, tore through him, unhampered by regret and memories, the weight of the past lifted from his shoulders.

Her mouth closed, and she sucked his finger in, up to the second joint. Her tongue swirled, toying with him as she sucked hard and watched his every reaction. She was lit up, looking at him with eyes the clear blue of the ocean on a sunny day, her hair slicked into a tousled mess.

Ethan surrendered to his fading control. He grasped the tangle of hair at the nape of her neck, enjoying the escalation in her breathing as he held her. The air locked in his throat as she shifted upward, stretching out her body along the length of him, begging him to take her in a wild, out-of-control kiss.

She lifted one leg and hooked it around him, so the wet heat of her sex rode against the sensitive head of his engorged cock. He groaned and gripped her hips, digging his fingers into her soft curves. Then he curled his hands around her ass, cupping her buttocks and pushing her higher against the tiled wall, lining his hard cock up against the entrance to her body. Becca whimpered, echoing his own ragged breathing as the need to have her, to possess her, drummed in his chest.

Ethan steadied himself, then thrust inside her. He watched her face, savoring her widening eyes as he filled her to the hilt. She panted, clutching at his side before she began to move, riding him in a slow up and down drag that made his gut clench, as her body flexed around his cock.

She was so tight and wet, her soft folds claiming him. He began to thrust, in and out in a slow deliberate rhythm, his legs straining as he picked up his pace. Becca’s heels drove into the small of his back, urging him on, her body clasping him tightly while he buried his face in the softness of her neck. His cock was so hard it hurt as he plunged himself deep within her, needing to imprint himself on her flesh so nothing could tear them apart again.

She stiffened and cried out his name, arching in his embrace as her body clamped down on his under the force of her own orgasm. Ethan couldn’t take any more. The animal in him broke free and he threw his head back and roared, his release ripping through him.

When his scattered thoughts coalesced into something resembling focus, Ethan lowered her to the floor, careful that she found her feet before he released her. Her cheeks were rosy, abraded by his unshaven scruff, but there was something else in her softly unfocused eyes that made his heart soar. Happiness.

He stroked her cheek. “You okay?”

“Very. You?”

“Yes.” And he meant it. Since their return to dry land, he’d slept like a rock every night, Becca safe in his arms.

He turned off the shower and wrapped a fluffy towel around her before picking her up and throwing her on the bed. She squealed and erupted into giggles as he joined her, tugging her close. He kissed her damp hair, enjoying the sense of peace washing through him. This complicated, clever gorgeous woman was his. He rolled her onto her back and the towel fell open, revealing the soft curve of her belly. It was a slow process. It was only in the last few days that she’d allowed him to touch the scar.

He placed his palm flat below her belly button. The span of his hand covered the pale star that marred the skin above her dark curls.

“So beautiful.”

She sucked in a breath, her face crumpling. “Nothing’s changed, Ethan.” She closed her eyes. “I told you there won’t be any babies.”

“Hush.” He placed a finger on her lips, his gaze searching her face, his heart full of compassion. “I know. We discussed this. It’s you I want, Becca. Nothing else. Just you. We can look into adoption, anything we want, but right now all I want is you.”

He twisted away from her and pulled a small parcel wrapped in pink tissue paper out from under the bed. “Here.”

She opened her eyes, tears streaking her cheeks.

He kissed the tears away then placed the parcel in her hands. “For you.”

Her forehead crinkled in puzzlement as she pulled the ribbon and unwrapped the gift. “Ethan.” Her hand flew to her mouth as she held the china cat and looked at him, more tears welling. “I thought it was blown up.”

He shook his head and smiled. “I was so surprised when I saw it on your desk, given that I broke it the day I gave it to you.”

“I dug it out of the trash and glued it. Badly.” She turned the wonky cat ornament in her hands and traced the thin seam of gold that now joined the cat’s head to its body.

“It’s called Kintsugi,” Ethan said. “It means golden repair. It’s a Japanese tradition of repairing broken pots with gold.”

“It’s beautiful,” she whispered, and his heart soared.

“Like you.” Inside and out.

Her cheeks pinked. “Flatterer.”

“When a broken pot is repaired through Kintsugi, it often becomes more beautiful than before it was broken.” He was aware of how earnest his voice sounded, but he didn’t care. “That’s how I see things between us, Becca. Events broke us and split us apart. But that was just part of our journey and now we’re building something strong but still beautiful from the broken pieces, despite all the heartache.”

He touched her belly once more, covering the scar with his palm. “Someone who’s suffered has a history and we should treasure that. We’re forging something new, but at the same time, I don’t want to forget. Our history is part of us and we’re stronger because of it.” He kissed her then, kissed her through her hot tears and hiccupping sobs.

It was time for them to mend.

He tilted his head and kissed the shell of her ear. “Wife.”

Despite the tears, her cheeks rounded in a smile against him and she whispered back, “Husband.”