As much grief as she gives her husband for his dramatic tendencies, Carol has to admit that she loves it when Ezekiel turns romantic. She never knows when it will happen but when it does it makes the butterflies in her stomach take flight and flutter around.
It can be something as small as leaving a flower near her face if he wakes before her or finding a bar of chocolate and discretely handing it to her before anyone notices, or it can be as big as organizing a day-long outing where it's just the two of them and they can reinforce and strengthen their relationship without prying eyes.
Tonight he has guided her to the garden, the place they had their first real conversation and has surprised her with a firelight dinner complete with a king-sized chocolate bar that they are currently sharing. She doesn't know where he's found it but she's grateful for it.
The dinner, the chocolate and the fact that she's wrapped up with her husband in front of a fire, have painted a smile on her face and have made her cheeks turn pink but she doesn't care. She's in love, she's happy and nothing can change that.
"What crosses your mind, milady?" Ezekiel whispers near her ear before taking the chunk of chocolate she's offering him between his lips.
Carol turns to look at him over her shoulder, the only way she can look into his eyes since he's embracing her from behind and holding the ends of the blanket together in front of her. "That I'm happy and that I love you very much."
She can see the way her words affect him, pulling a bright smile from his lips that rivals the brightness of his eyes. It makes her heart speed up just to know how much he changes when she verbally reminds him of her love.
"And that I have the best husband I could have ever hoped for." She wiggles in his embrace so that they are side by side with her head resting on his shoulder, her legs over his knees. He leans ever so slightly against her head, his hand sliding to press against her outer thigh, securing her against him. The blanket falls off them for a second which lets air into their cocoon, giving her a shiver and prompting her to curl against him even more.
"Come here." He embraces her fully after catching hold of the end of the blanket and rising it again to cover her. "You only say that because you've discovered I can keep you as warm as any furnace could in the olden world."
She lets out a laugh before shaking her head and swallowing the chocolate she'd had in her mouth. "It's an added bonus," she teases him. "I never thought I would find love, real love, certainly not after Ed." She feels the way he tenses at the mention of her ex-husband. Ezekiel is not a fan of Ed Peletier, not after she told him exactly how he'd given her every mark on her body. She cuts a piece of chocolate and offers it to him then gently smooths her hand back and forth on his shirt covered chest to soothe the anger away.
"Back then I thought I loved Ed. I really did. I even thought he loved me at first. Now I know that was a lie I was telling myself." She leans her head back a little before nuzzling the side of his neck and the bottom of his chin with the tip of her nose. "I adjusted to him, told myself lie after lie, over and over to justify him. Learned to survive his beatings, but I was never in love, not the way I am with you."
Ezekiel turns down to look at her and Carol takes the opportunity to catch his lips with her's, her right hand rising to press against his cheek and pull him closer. She opens her mouth to him just as he twists them so that she can sit on his lap, her back to the fire, the chocolate partly forgotten between them. Her left-hand joins the right in framing his face, her fingers caressing the hair of his beard. His hands raise over her back, smoothing against her clothing as they go, losing themselves in her shoulder-length hair.
Once, a long time ago, that action would have made her tense and pull back or would have made her turn completely still with the knowledge of the danger that lay ahead. Now it just serves to ignite something in her that has laid dormant for such a long time. She kisses him with abandon, enjoying the feel of his lips against hers, of his tongue caressing her's, of his body pressed against her's so tightly.
When she pulls back her lips are bright red, her nose a little chapped by his beard. He chuckles at the breathless look she carries, tracing his finger over her lips. "You deserve nothing less than the best in this world, my love. When our vows were exchanged, I promised to always put your well-being before mine, to love you like no other has ever had the privilege to love you, deeply and with abandon. I intend to fulfill that promise until my dying day."
Carol presses her forehead against him, closing her eyes and relaxing as she feels his breath against her face. The hand that had previously traced her lips tangles once more in her hair but he doesn't guide her to his lips, instead massaging her scalp at the base of her neck. She puts the chocolate bar to the side choosing instead to focus on the sweetness of her husband's presence.
"Did I ever tell you why I decided to grow my hair out?" Carol whispers as she pulls back, her blue eyes seeking his chocolate ones.
"I don't believe you did," Ezekiel replies sincerely but quickly adds. "I love it, just as much as I loved your pixie hair. Though I must admit that I have wondered why it is you've suddenly wanted it long. Why did you decide to increase its length?"
She smiles at him before stealing a quick kiss from his lips, a kiss that has him following her as she moves back. She teases him with a softer kiss, then another as he continues to beg for her kisses.
"Because you make me feel safe." She finally whispers between kisses. Ezekiel stops requesting kisses almost as soon as she voices the reason behind her hair growth. She looks deep into his eyes, simply breathing and letting him feel how relaxed her body is, how there is not an ounce of fear in her body nor an ounce of desire to flee. "At first I thought it was Kingdom that did it, that maybe the place was responsible for the feeling, but when we left to fight Negan... I wasn't afraid, not entirely. I was afraid of losing you, of losing those I loved, but I wasn't afraid for my well being because I knew you were there."
"You do not require a knight in shining armor to battle for you, Carol." Ezekiel reminds her which earns him a nod.
"No, I don't. I can protect myself quite well, thank you very much." She agrees with him. "But maybe I needed a stubborn King behind me to remind me what feeling safe felt like."
Ezekiel raises an eyebrow at her, urging her to continue her tale. "Before, when Ed was around, I started out with long curly hair. Sophia loved to play with it as a baby, would curl her little hands in it. I think the reddish tones caught her attention. I didn't mind when she would pull at it, but Ed... Ed always used it against me. He'd grab hold of it and pull, he'd use it to smash me against the walls, he'd... catch it when I was trying to escape his fists. It got so bad that one day I just decided to chop it all off. I knew that as long as I had long hair I wasn't safe from Ed, so it had to go."
"Low-level scum," Ezekiel whispers under his breath though this time he doesn't tense beneath her. Instead, Ezekiel continues to caress her hair, reverently playing with each strand of wavy hair that caresses her shoulders. She is once more enveloped in love; not quite the same love she felt when Sophia would play with it, but an equally important love that radiates from deep within her for the man in front of her.
"I kept it short from then on. If it was short he couldn't get to me. I could escape at times."
"You will never know that pain again,". Ezekiel promises her even though she already knows she's safe. "You can lay your confidence on my words, my Queen, whoever dares bring grief and pain by using your hair against you will meet the most painful death."
"I know you'll avenge me." She jokes though the essence of her words rings true; she knows that Ezekiel will prevent anyone from hurting her and those he couldn't get to she would deal with herself. "I don't doubt it for a single second. Before, I was able to grow and learn to protect myself, but the danger was always on the horizon so I didn't let it grow much. I was safe but I never felt completely safe. Now... now I am happy and in love and I feel safe, so I asked myself 'why not?' and decided to let it grow as wild as it had always been."
She continues caressing his face, her thumbs sweeping back and forth against his stubbled cheek, her eyes locking with his again. "I know you will never hurt me, you will never hit me, you will never let out your anger and frustration against me. I am safe with you, as safe as I've ever been."
"I would rather die by my own sword than ever lay a hand on you in anger." He promises sincerely, a sincerity that brings tears to her eyes, tears he brushes away almost as soon as they fall on her cheeks.
As soon as her tears have dried Carol claims his lips with hers once more. It's just a press of their lips together, neither moves to make it more than that, but even in its simplicity, the kiss is deep, strong and heartfelt. His fingers tangle once more on her shoulder length hair and she knows right at that moment that she will continue to let it grow.
She would have probably continued making out with him, showing him exactly how much she loves him, if it weren't for the fact that she knows they are being watched. She pulls back once more before tilting her head to the side towards the bushes where she knows someone is hidden. "I would show you how much I trust and love you right this second but our son is hiding in the bushes and that's a conversation I'm not quite ready to have with him."
Ezekiel growls playfully and leans forward, pressing his head to her chest. She giggles and lets her fingers caress the base of his neck where his dreads have parted. "I love our boy, I do, but he's working against his father."
His words only make her giggle a little louder before guiding his chin upward so that she can look into his eyes. "Let's go to our room."
Carol untangles herself from Ezekiel's lap, snatches the abandoned chocolate bar and holds the ends of the blanket around her. Ezekiel proceeds to put out the fire before turning to the bushes Carol had just signaled to. "I trust the happenings of this night will remain between us, my love, but if there is a young lad who has skipped his bedtime in favor for adventuring, I also trust he shall be back in bed before the morrow."
Carol hears a branch cracking under Henry's weight before the sound of his hurried steps rush away from the garden. She shakes her head and turns to look at her husband. From under the blankets she extends an arm, offering her hand to take. "Come, husband," she says in a very theatrical tone. "Let me show you how much I love you, how safe I feel."
Ezekiel doesn't have to be told twice. He reaches for her hand and laces their fingers together. The last anyone sees of the King and Queen of The Kingdom that night is the retreating figures they paint as they go into their home, hand in hand, smiles on their lips.
After all, Carol can be romantic too.