“After that, Lily was recuperating and thendealing with significant financial hardships. Thebirth was described to me by Lily and also byher obstetrician, who I spoke to myself yesterday.The doctor, in his own words, remembers whathe describes as that ‘hideous day’ like it was yesterday.The labour, intense and excruciating, lastedfor days. In the end, in extreme distress atthe length of the labour, the baby nearly died.Lily did die. She was flatline for two minutes andthirty-eight –”Alistair didn’t get the opportunity to finish hisgrand statement because Nate surged out of hischair so fast, it flew on its wheels and shot acrossthe room, slamming into the wall.“Mr. McAllister…” Alistair said warninglybut Nate was coming swiftly around the table,coming at her.At this sight, Lily, too, jumped out of her chairin a panic, her numbness not that complete, andbacked away in self-defence as Nate came at her,came at her with purposeful, long strides. Shebacked up jerkily, one hand behind her, one handin front, retreating until she hit the wall. Beforeshe knew what he was about, his hard chest cameup against her hand, pushing it back and his bodypressed against hers.Terrified and confused at this sudden change,she looked to the right and to the left, anywherefor escape, anywhere but at Nate.And to her shock, his hands caught her face,resting one on either side, gently trying to forceher to look into his impossibly dark eyes.“I didn’t know,” he whispered and the absoluteache dripping from his first words said to hersince she found out he was alive cut through herthin shield of numbness like a razor.She attempted to pull her face free but hishands tightened.“Lily, I didn’t know,” he repeated, and shecaught his eyes and they were glittering dark withsomething that she couldn’t read, somethinghideously painful and she had to get away fromit. Was desperate to get away from it. She neededto flee.She tried to look over his shoulder but he wastoo tall, too close. Things were happening in theroom, there was urgent talk, maybe even a tussle.But all she could see was Nate.”

“He started to pull away again but she called his name so he stopped.“Yeah?”“Before you go, give me the dimples,” she demanded.That thing in his throat prickled and Hawk dipped his head and kissed the indentation at the base of his wife’s throat. Then he lifted his head and smiled at her.Her hand came to his face and he felt the pad of her thumb in one of his dimples.Then her eyes moved from her thumb to his and she smiled back. ”

“You told me you’d never let me go,” shewhispered but it was an accusation.His eyes closed and the pain in them sweptover his entire face and settled there like it wouldnever, ever leave.Then he shocked her again. He dropped hisforehead to hers and kept his hands on her.Something out of her control made her continue.“You told me,” she said in a shaky voice,“you’d always take care of me.”He opened his eyes and stared into hers. Hewas so close that if she moved the lower half ofher face forward, less than an inch, she wouldhave been kissing him.“You didn’t take care of me,” she murmured,stating the obvious.”

“One day, I wish to find a man like in mybooks. He has to be just like in one of my books.And he has to love me, love me more than anythingin the world. Most important of all, he hasto think I’m beautiful.”“Lily, I need to tell you something.” Fazirewas going to tell her about Becky’s wish and hismistake and let her look forward to something, lether look forward to the incomparable beauty shewas going to be.Most of all, he had to stop her wish now. Hedidn’t want her wasting it on some fool idea. Hewanted it to be special, perfect, to make her worldbetter like she had made Becky and Will’s and,indeed, his.But again she didn’t hear him. Her eyes werebright and they were steady on his.“He has to be tall, very tall and dark andbroad-shouldered and narrow-hipped.”Fazire stared. He didn’t even know what“narrow-hipped” meant.“And he has to be handsome, unbelievablyhandsome, impossibly handsome with a strong,square jaw and powerful cheekbones and tannedskin and beautiful eyes with lush, thick lashes.He has to be clever and very wealthy but hardworking.He has to be virile, fierce, ruthless andrugged.”Now she was getting over his head. He didn’tthink there was such a thing as impossibly handsome.How cheekbones could be powerful,Fazire didn’t know. He was even thinking hemight have to look up “virile” in the dictionarySarah had given him.“And he has to be hard and cold and maybe alittle bit forbidding, a little bit bad with a brokenheart I have to mend or one encased in ice I haveto melt or better yet… both!”Fazire thought this was getting a bit ridiculous.It was the most complicated wish he’d everheard.But she wasn’t yet finished.“We have to go through some trials and tribulations.Something to test our love, make it strongand worthy. And… and… he has to be daring andvery masculine. Powerful. People must respecthim, maybe even fear him. Graceful too and lithe,like a… like a cat! Or a lion. Or something likethat.”She was losing steam and Fazire had to admithe was grateful for it.“And he has to be a good lover.” Lily shockedFazire by saying. “The best, so good, he could almostmake love to me just by using his eyes.”Fazire felt himself blush. Perhaps he shouldhave a look at these books she was reading andshow them to Becky. Lily was a very sharp girl,sharp as a tack (another one of Sarah’s sayings,although Fazire couldn’t imagine a tack ever beingas clever as Lily) but she was too young tobe reading about any man making love to herwith his eyes. Fazire had never made love, neverwould, genies just didn’t. But he was pretty certainfourteen year old girls shouldn’t be thinkingabout it.Though, he was wrong about that, or at leastBecky would tell him that later.Then Fazire realised she’d stopped talking.“Is that it?” he asked.She thought for a bit, clearly not wanting toleave anything out.Then she nodded.”

“Kavita looks peaceful when she's sleeping, when the Morphine finally brings her some comfort. Jasu sits in a chair next to the bed and reaches for her frail hand. With his touch, her eyes flutter open and she licks her dried lips. She sees him and smiles. “Jani, you’re back,” she says softly.“I went there, chakli.” He tries to begin slowly, but the words come tumbling out. “I went to Shanti, the orphanage. The man there knows her, he’s met her, Kavi. Her name is Asha now. She grew up in America, her parents are doctors, and she writes stories for newspapers—look, this is hers, she wrote this.” He waves the article in front of her.“America.” Kavita’s voice is barely a whisper. She closes her eyes and a tear drips down the side of her face and into her ear. “So far from home. All this time, she’s been so far from us.”“Such a good thing you did, chakli.” He strokes her hair, pulled back into a loose bun, and wipes her tears away with his rough fingers. “Just imagine if…” He looks down, shakes his head, and clasps her hand between his. He rests his head against their hands and begins to cry. “Such a good thing.”He looks up at her again. “She came looking for us, Kavi. She left this.”Jasu hands her the letter. A small smile breaks through on Kavita’s face. She peers at the page while he recites from memory.“My name is Asha…”

“Shy burst out laughing. When he quit, he saw she was smiling up at him.and it hit him.All of it.Waking up to her. Going to bed with her. Making love to her. Eating with her. Laughing with her. Kissing her. Going shopping with her, and when she was in a store and wandering away, he saw her looking over the racks, looking for him, and when he came to her at her back, she'd turned to him, looking lost, and leaned into him the second he got there, suddenly found.Jesus, he had it.All of it."I never dreamed any fuckin' dream," he whispered, and the smile faded from her face as tears filled her eyes.She understood him."Shy-""Didn't dream it, saw it, waited my time, and then you gave it to me.""Shy," her voice broke on his name.He looked into her blue eyes swimming with tears, feeling her fingers digging into his shoulders, her weight in his lap, the smell of her hair, the taste of her still on his tongue.Yes, he fucking had it.When he was twelve he lost it.Now he had it again.All of it.Everything.”

“She got to her knees, running her nails lightly along his chest, loving the way he groaned, loving how his breath wheezed out when she took him into her hands, loving him, even when he reared up and said, “Now,” and took her waist in his hands and pushed her onto her back. She didn’t object or take offense. Words were beyond her, too, as he surged into her, hard and fast, and she forgot how to breathe and how to think.”