Val woke before the sun had properly found its way through the curtains.
The room was still, dim, and quiet—just the sound of my breathing beside her, slow and even, the kind that came with deep sleep.
I didn't know it then, of course.
Her side of the bed stayed perfectly still—no shift, no sound, nothing to give her away.
But if I'd been awake, maybe I would've noticed the way she was watching me—quietly, like she was trying to read something written on my face, or maybe just thinking too much again.
But I wasn't awake. So I didn't.
Her hand moved before I even stirred. A soft touch, tracing along my jaw. I didn't flinch, just felt a slow warmth move across my skin as her finger followed the line of my cheek, down the bridge of my nose. Slow. Careful. Like she was memorizing me.
It stopped at my lips, and that's when I stirred. A small shift, a groan caught somewhere in my throat as my eyes fluttered open.
She smiled. "Morning, husband."
