Instead of the finely dressed woman who likely chose her outfit with Callum's tastes in mind, the woman he wanted was in peasant clothing with her mouth hanging slightly open while she slept in his chair.
For a moment, he took in the sight. His broad shoulder pressed against the frame of the threshold. He didn't walk forward.
As he watched her peacefully snoozing, his heart was breaking and made whole all at the same time.
He knew exactly what he was doing to himself and how he couldn't let go even if he didn't dare ever to tell her what was going through his mind. From the moment he saw her waiting for him in his fortress, it felt like a home he was supposed to return to.
He thought he was too old to have such youthful thoughts but, while he watched her sleep, she looked exactly like she did when he first saw her at the orphanage. It made his heart feel young again.
