slow morningsXander is still sleeping when Millie comes back to bed. He rolls over with a soft groan, the fine baby hairs on the nape of his neck exposed. They're strawberry blonde and impossibly fine, utterly precious. Millie crawls into bed behind him and kisses them, as gently as she can, so as not to wake him.
It's no use — he's such a light sleeper — but he chuckles quietly when he realizes what Millie's doing. "Mornin'," he mumbles, turning his head slightly.
"Good morning." Millie kisses across his shoulders, running her fingers over his bicep then down over his forearm. "Stay still. I'm busy."
"Doin' what?"
"Loving on you." She wraps her arms around him and lays back down. "I'm gonna be the big spoon for a bit, okay?"
"Mmm, alright."
Millie peppers kisses on his upper back and neck. "I love you," she whispers, squeezing him a little tighter.
"I love you too, sweet mousey."
Her heart melts. Sweet mousey, she thinks, savoring the sound of his voice. It's lower, with a thicker accent, when he's sleepy. Millie rests her cheek on his shoulder and breathes in deep. There's a faint touch of cologne still on his skin: black cardamom, cedarwood, and vanilla, he'd said. The mix of it with his natural scent and the lingering cigar smoke caught in his auburn hair is heaven. Home.
His once-sinewy body is a bit squishier now. Millie's insisted on fattening him up after the starvation in the city. Poor thing — you could see his ribs. Instinctively, her fingers curl over his ribs, and she's relieved to find a layer of fat covering them. He relaxes fully into her touch, already back asleep.
Oh, her heart could break. To be so trusted, to be so loved… Millie's eyes flutter shut to avoid joyful tears (they come anyway) and she drifts off to sleep, with Xander tucked safely in her arms.