AYLETH
She trembled like a leaf, her heart racing. If Etan hadn't been holding her hands, they would have jittered like cook's favorite jelly dessert. Her breath came too fast, not out of desire, but from sheer emotion. The words he spoke broke the surface of her heart like fingers on the water, stroking and rippling, even as they submerged.
He hadn't taken his eyes off of her while he declared himself. She was determined to honor him in the same way. So she swallowed her fear and spoke.
"Etan, my life has been marked by knowledge. Wisdom," she said softly. "So much information, always at my fingertips. I had heard of love, and I had prayed, too, to find a man who would cherish me, who would cherish my people, and who would continue to find love for me even after the thrill of finding one another had grown thin.
"I thought of romantic dreams, and pretty ceremonies. I thought of being Queen with someone at my side of whom I was proud.
