Epilogue

Paul

I wake up slowly. The world feels quiet, suspended in peace. Damian is next to me, his breathing steady and deep, his body warm and solid beneath the soft covers.

I turn my head to look at him. His hair is tousled, and his face is relaxed in sleep, the faintest hint of a smile tugging at his lips. He looks so damn beautiful, so at ease. My chest swells with something that feels like gratitude and something deeper, something permanent.

This is home.

The house feels different now, filled with the hum of our lives melding together. It’s not just a place I return to at the end of the day—it’s where we plan our future, where we’ll build the family, we’ve talked about during those long, late-night conversations when neither of us wanted to let go of the moment.

I glance out the window. The barn in the distance looks sturdy and bright, the morning light reflecting off its new coat of paint. Soon, it won’t just be an empty structure waiting to fall apart. It’ll hold life—animals, chaos, laughter. The kind of noise and mess I never thought I’d crave, but now I do. With Damian, I do.

A soft groan pulls my attention back, and Damian stirs, his eyes fluttering open. For a moment, he looks disoriented, but then his gaze lands on me, and his lips curve into a sleepy smile.

“Happy New Year,” I say, my voice hushed, as though the moment might shatter if I speak too loudly.

“Happy New Year,” he murmurs back, his voice raspy from sleep. He stretches, his hand reaching out to touch my chest, his palm warm against my skin. “What time is it?”

“Early,” I reply, leaning down to press a kiss to his forehead. “Too early to get up, but I couldn’t sleep. Not with you here.”

Damian laughs softly, the sound rumbling through the quiet. “That’s a nice way to say I snore.”

“You don’t snore,” I tease, tracing lazy circles on his shoulder. “You just make this little noise when you exhale, like a baby piglet.”

He swats at me, laughing louder now, and I can’t help but join in.

We settle again, the laughter fading into a comfortable silence. After a moment, Damian speaks. “Do you think we’re ready for all this?”

“All this?” I repeat, though I know what he means.

“The barn. The animals. The family. Us.” His voice dips, not with doubt but with the kind of vulnerability that comes when you’re daring to dream too big.

I reach for his hand, threading our fingers together. “We are. We’ve been through the worst, Damian. If we can survive that, we can handle anything. And if we mess up? We’ll figure it out. Together.”

He nods, his smile returning, and it feels like the sun itself has decided to shine just for him.

“What do you want in the barn first?” I ask, shifting the conversation to something lighter.

“Goats,” he says immediately.

“Goats?”

“Yes. Have you seen how they just bounce around? They’re hilarious. And maybe chickens. Fresh eggs sound good.”

I laugh. “Goats and chickens. Got it. But I want ducks too. I’ve always liked ducks.”

Damian looks at me, his eyes softening. “Ducks it is. And maybe a donkey. For character.”

“Obviously. A barn isn’t complete without a donkey,” I reply, grinning.

Damian shifts closer, his grin fading into something softer, something deeper. His hand trails over my chest, his fingers grazing my skin with a deliberate slowness that sends a spark through me. His eyes meet mine, and in them, I see everything—desire, love, trust.

“You’re ridiculous,” he murmurs, but his lips are already brushing against mine, his words dissolving into the warmth of the kiss.

What starts as playful quickly turns into something else entirely. His mouth moves against mine with growing hunger, his hand sliding down my side, his touch leaving a trail of fire in its wake. I feel him respond to me—his breath hitching, his body pressing closer, harder.

We’re naked beneath the covers, skin to skin, and the intimacy of it wraps around me like a spell. I groan against his mouth as my arousal grows, undeniable and insistent. Damian’s body reacts to his length pressing against me, hot and firm.

His hands slide to my back, his fingers digging in as he pulls me closer, and the kiss deepens. It’s not just a kiss—it’s a claiming, a searing connection that leaves no space between us.

“Damian,” I murmur against his lips, my voice low, rough with need.

“Paul,” he replies, his voice barely a whisper, his breath warm against my mouth.

I shift, rolling us so I’m hovering over him, his body arching into mine as I settle against him. The friction is maddening, his hardness against mine, every movement igniting something primal in both of us.

His hands grip my hips, holding me to him, and I can’t help but grind against him, a slow, deliberate motion that has us both groaning. The kiss breaks, but our foreheads stay pressed together, our breaths mingling in the space between us.

“I love you,” I say, the words tumbling out, raw and unguarded.

“I love you too,” Damian replies, his voice trembling with the same emotion that’s coursing through me. But then his eyes lock onto mine, dark with need, his breath hitching as his hands slide down my back. His fingers grip me tightly, pulling me closer, his body arching against mine in silent desperation.

“Paul,” he murmurs, his voice thick with longing. “Please.”

I still, hovering above him, letting the moment stretch between us. “Please what, Damian?” I ask, my voice low, teasing, but the look in his eyes makes my pulse race.

His hands trail over my shoulders, his touch bold now, urgent. “Please,” he says again, his voice cracking, raw with vulnerability. “Take me. Make me yours. Forever.”

The words hit me like a thunderclap, a perfect storm of desire and love crashing over me. “You are mine,” I rasp, my voice trembling with conviction. “You’ve always been mine, Damian.”

But it’s not enough for him—not now. His legs shift, wrapping around me, holding me against him, his body pressing up as though he can’t stand even an inch of space between us. “Then show me,” he breathes, his lips brushing against mine. “Make me feel it. Make me yours.”

The restraint I’ve held onto snaps, and I claim his mouth with a searing kiss, pouring everything into it—every ounce of love, need, and promise I’ve ever felt for him. My hands roam his body, exploring the smooth planes of his skin, the heat of him beneath me, the way he trembles as my touch grows more deliberate, more insistent.

“Say it again,” I demand, my voice rough as my lips trail down his neck, nipping at the sensitive skin there.

“I’m yours,” he gasps, his hands gripping me harder, his head tilting back to give me more. “Forever, Paul. Please?—”

I move lower, savoring the sound of his pleas, the way his body responds to every kiss, every touch. I use the lube and when I finally press into him, his breath hitches, his body arching up to meet mine.

The connection is overwhelming, a perfect melding of bodies and souls. Damian moans, his voice trembling with pleasure as he clings to me, his nails digging into my back. “Yes,” he whispers, his voice a mix of desperation and bliss. “Yes, Paul. You. Always you.”

I move slowly at first, savoring the way his body welcomes mine, the way he feels beneath me, around me. But as his moans grow louder, his hands gripping me tighter, I let go, giving him everything he’s begged for.

Our bodies move together, the rhythm building, a crescendo of emotion and pleasure that drowns out the rest of the world. And when we finally reach that peak, it feels like a promise, like forever has been etched into every inch of our skin, into every breath we take.

After, I collapse beside him, pulling him into my arms, our bodies still entwined, our breaths coming in ragged bursts. He looks up at me, his eyes soft, his smile content.

“Forever,” I whisper, pressing a kiss to his temple.

“Forever,” he echoes, his voice steady now, filled with the kind of certainty that only comes with love this deep, this unbreakable.

And this isn’t just a new year. It’s a new us, a new beginning. Our own beginning. Because we’ve found everything we’ve ever needed—in each other.