The process of healing - Hope

[Neferet's POV]

The moment Amon knew she could stand, he had promptly bought her custom made sandals. They were beautiful and fitted like a glove.

He and the boys had started to take her on walks, showing her the whole house in the process. At first she could only manage to walk to one or two rooms before she needed to rest. But by the end of the week, she'd been as good as new.

Amon had allowed her to roam his house freely. So that's why Neferet lay sprawled on the terrace; legs and arms wide, feet in the pond, wig crooked and fanned-out around her head.

She had been fighting it, but soaking in the heat of the sun had her barely awake anymore. Such bliss...

She was trying to stay awake, because she didn't want to get new sunburns. Or at least, didn't want to get caught red handed while acquiring them.

Surely, Amon would be angry if he found her like this. He'd most certainly be nagging about how she was still recovering from a near death experience and how she shouldn't be in the sun.

"Neferet? Is that you? How long have you been out here?" she could practically hear Amon say it! And then he'd heave a sigh before dramatically continuing with; "How many times do I have to tell you to take better care of yourself?"

To be able to imagine him so accurately, she was so proud of herself! Now, how should she reply to her dream-Amon?

"But I'm so cold when you're not with me," she complained with an unhappy pout and hugged herself as she rolled to her side.

It was quiet for a while. And then she could feel Amon's hot body hovering over her, one of his knees on both sides of her body. The sudden change in temperature gave her goosebumps all over, but she wasn't going to back away. If this was her fantasy, she was going to enjoy it.

"Ne~fer~et~" Amon whispered next to her ear, drawing out her name. "Are you dreaming something naughty? Your ears are red."

She bit her bottom lip in anticipation. She'd never heard his voice like this before...

"You naughty little thing," he chuckled as he traced a finger along her jawline, leaving a hot trail in its wake. His touch electrified her. "What would you have done if one of the servants had found you?"

His breath tickled her cheek. She knew his lips were hovering right above her. The tension between them was unbearable.

She whined as she couldn't hold it anymore and turned her face towards him. She wanted him to kiss her. She needed him to kiss her. Then finally, there was a soft and brief press to her lips.

Her eyes flew open, suddenly realising that she wasn't dreaming. That the soft press to her lips was very, very real.

Amon was hanging above her, petrified. She watched his eyes grow as he realised what she'd caught him doing. However, he didn't look away. He just stared back at her. Searching her face for a reaction.

Neferet stared back for a long while. Her brain was still slow from the near sleep state she had been in moments earlier. Amon watched her as the gears started turning and when it finally clicked, she flushed bright red.

Amon chuckle. He probably was relieved that she hadn't scrambled to her feet and ran away as fast as she could. She could see it in his eyes; a careful mix of sincerity, lust, and fear of rejection.

He averted his eyes and pulled away.

"I'm sorry, Neferet," he said with a sigh. "You were right. You really have grown more beautiful every day since you've come here. It's getting REALLY hard to restrain myself. Certainly when you say such provoking things."

His eyes darkened for a second as the memory resurfaced, then he quickly shook his head to keep control.

She bolted upright and kissed him square on the lips, long and slowly. At first Amon tensed, but already quickly closed his eyes and wrapped his arms around her.

A guttural growl escaped his lips. She answered with a moan of her own, wrapping her arms around his neck.

The kiss deepened and became more heated. When they both surfaced for air, she found herself sitting on his lap, with him still on his knees, both breathing heavy.

She stared at him as she caught her breath. He was frowning and still had his eyes closed as if he was afraid to open them. As if he was afraid that she wouldn't be there if he opened his eyes. As if he was afraid of what he'd find if she hadn't vanish.

At long last, he did open his eyes. His pupils were dilated and they kept flicking between her eyes and her lips. It was nice to see that the kiss had affected him as much as it had affected her.

"You're watching me?" he asked a little confused. She nodded.

"I can't?" she asked, pouting slightly but still studying him. His eyes zeroed in on her pout, then flicked back to her eyes.

"Hmm, you can," he said. "I just don't understand why you would."

"I'm trying to figure out everything you're not saying," she said smoothly. "I want to know how much of what you're showing is real. Why you're being so nice to a stranger... By Toth, I hope you're not this friendly with every stranger you meet..."

That made Amon chuckle. The sound of it made her heart flutter. "You call kissing someone 'being friendly'? I hope you aren't this 'friendly' with all of your friends?"

"You'd call us friends?" she asked, feeling touched.

"I most certainly hope we aren't strangers anymore," he said, frowning worriedly again. "I love you, Neferet."

Time stopped.

Had he said what she thought he'd said? The blood rushed to her head in record time, making her feel hot and dizzy.

"I- I- I-," she stammered, face bright red. Was it possible for steam to blow out of her ears? "Wha~?!"

Amon chuckled again. "Sorry for overwhelming you, but I thought you should know."

He beamed her a brilliant smile. She looked down at his smiling face. It was definitely a good expression on him. The thought crossed her mind that she wanted to see him smile like that more often, and before she knew it, she pressed another feather-light kiss on his lips. He moaned into the tiny kiss, but pushed her away quickly.

"Please, Neferet. I'm already at my limit. I don't want to jump the gun," he said sincerely. "Please, have mercy on me?"

She didn't know what this "gun" was that he was talking about, but "at his limit"? He must be exaggerating. She decided to test him by rolling her hips against his. He buckled involuntary and a surprised "ah!" escaped him.

He looked severely tortured. Was he restraining himself for her? She couldn't help but think it was cute. He looked so very vulnerable, even thought she knew he wasn't. He made her feel so powerful, so strong, so beautiful. She'd never felt anything like it.

"I think I love you too," she blurted out without realising what she was saying, but she was most certainly feeling it. His head shot up to look her in the eyes, silently begging her to not let this be a joke.

She chuckled and kissed him tenderly once more. His eyes were begging her to kill him now. It really did look like he was at his limit. So she bend down and whispered into his ear: "Let's go to OUR room?"

She'd never seen anyone move that fast. Within seconds, he'd managed to crawl to his feet, with her still straddling him. And before she knew it, they were in said room.

Neferet did have the feeling they had passed a bewildered Merenre somewhere, but it wasn't exactly important.

They were alone in their room. Had created their own little heaven on earth. And when she woke up the next morning to his sleeping face, his arms wrapped protectively around her and their legs entangled, there was no-one knocking at their door. So she sneakily placed a soft kiss on his lips and snuggled a little closer.