My hands fly to my mouth in shock and my eyes fill with happy tears as I look at the woman standing before me. I cannot move because I am overcome with emotion.
Az sees this. Even after five years apart, she knows me like the back of her hand. She moves to stand closer to me, leaning her head to one side and raising an eyebrow.
"If you don't move those hands of yours, this isn't going to be a very fun kiss!"
Reflexively, my hands drop away from my face. Az puts her hand at the base of my neck, and pulls me down so that our lips meet.
As we end our kiss, I take her head in my hands, kissing her forehead, her nose, her cheeks. I can hardly believe she is real.
"Hey there! Slow down! I've been dead for five years, old boy. These bones are creaky, and there are children in the house!" Az laughs easily, and it is the most wondrous sound I think I have ever heard.
I find myself laughing, too.
I pull her to me, burying my face in her neck and breathing in her familiar, comforting scent.
"I've missed you, Az. Oh how I've missed you."
She moves away from me slightly, so she can look me in the eye. "I'm here now, love. It's my sincere hope that I will stay for awhile."