Chapter Twenty Nine

He awoke a few hours later to the feeling of Luna readjusting herself as they lay spooned together. He tightened his hold on her and nibbled her ear.

"Sorry," Luna whispered. "I didn't mean to wake you."

"Don't apologize. I love waking up with you next to me. Reminds me this isn't just another one of my dreams."

Luna lifted her hand enough to show the ring on her fourth finger. "I'm hoping the ring means this can happen on a more regular basis."

"As often as you like," said Draco. He ran his hand lightly down her arm and raised it so the ring caught the moonlight. "Do you really like it?"

"I love it."

"Why?"

Luna paused then rolled over to face him. "You're not just asking about the ring, are you?" He hesitated and she kissed him softly. "Oh, Draco. I wish there were a spell I could cast or a potion I could brew that would allow you to see what I see when I look at you."

He smiled upon hearing his own words repeated back to him. "What do you see, Luna?"

She propped herself up and said, "I see a man that is stronger and smarter and braver than anyone I've ever known. I see a man so devastatingly handsome that my heart races every time I see him. I see eyes that tell me exactly how he feels about things." She brushed a lock of hair from his forehead. "That was one of the ways I first tried to tell you how I felt."

"When was that?"

"Do you remember the night with the baby graphorn? You asked my favorite color."

"I remember. You said, 'stormy grey blue'. I asked why and you said you might tell me one day."

"I'll tell you now. It's the color of your eyes."

As he leaned in to kiss her, she purred softly and said, "Which brings me to your lips and the way they make me feel...but even more importantly the words that come out of them." She tried to contain the emotion in her voice. "My whole life, Draco, people have used words to try and tear me down but you...your words lift me up and make me think that anything is possible."

He pulled her close as she continued. "Which brings me to your arms - arms that make me feel safe and secure. And hands that make me feel...quite a lot actually."

Her fingers trailed up and stopped at the dark mark branded on his forearm. "Shall I tell you what I think about this?"

He closed his eyes as he felt her lips press against the grim reminder of his past. He fought back tears as she whispered, "When I see this, I see a man willing to take whatever steps necessary to protect his family. I see a man that only had bad options laid in front of him but kept going anyway. When I see this mark I see the thing that kept you alive. Because of this mark, the man that I love is next to me right now. My soon to be husband. The future father of my children. I have all of that because of this mark so, in my eyes, it is the most beautiful thing in the world."

Draco trembled as he dug his hands into her hair. "Sweet Circe. What did I ever do to deserve you?"

"We need to stop asking what we deserve, Draco and simply be grateful for what we have." Luna kissed him deeply as she slid a hand down to his hip, where she began running her nails lightly over his skin. "Now, I can continue telling you what I think about your other attributes or I can show my appreciation in a more...tangible manner."

"Is there an option 'c' - all of the above?"

"Absolutely," Luna responded by running lingering, open mouth kisses down his neck and along his chest. "Looks like it's my turn to start showing off now."

xoxox

They spent the next three days exploring the island and each other, becoming intimately familiar with both.

The morning they were due to head home Draco woke to find a note from Luna propped up on the bedside table saying she had gone to the beach to watch the sunrise. He quickly dressed and hurried outside where he found her sitting on the ground wrapped in a blanket.

He settled in beside her and she snuggled into his chest. "You're up early."

"I wanted to see the sunrise here one more time before we had to leave."

He placed a kiss on her forehead. "Do you like the island that much?"

Luna gave a contented sigh. "I believe that this is, quite possibly, the most perfect place in the entire world."

"You have no idea how happy I am to hear you say that...because it's yours."

Luna tipped her head and gave him a quizzical look. "Excuse me?"

"Well, ours technically after the wedding but I did put the deed in your name."

"You bought the cottage?"

Draco tried to contain his grin. "In a sense."

Luna's eyes widened as she gasped, "You bought the ISLAND?"

Draco shrugged. "Thought it would be a good investment. A safe place to get away from everything from time to time. For us...and the children - eventually."

Luna kissed him soundly. "Show off."

Draco chuckled. "Maybe, a bit..."

Luna's eyes twinkled. "So - is it really true that nobody can see us out here?"

"Absolutely no one."

"Good," Luna said as she dropped the blanket and pulled him toward her.