Coming Home to You

Her POV

I pick up my sample container and my travel mug before I start to make my way to the freezers. Taking a sip of my coffee, I notice that no one is here. All the scientists left about ten minutes ago and it seemed the guards had all gone too.

With the lab empty to watch the upcoming fight in the arena, I take advantage of the silence to move around the room.

Each station I pass on the way to the back wall is littered with papers and test samples. There was no organization system in place for some of the scientists working here as I stop at a table full of different prototype weapons.

Walking over to the small device, I lifted the open research notebook Dr. Anderson had been using and scanned through his chicken scratch.

A three-inch-wide device would be designed to work the same as a smoke grenade, however, the detonation will release particles of silver as the gas. The canister device on the table now was an actual smoke grenade. Picking it up gently, it weighed no more than a few pounds and was barely larger than my hand, yet Anderson’s notes said his could fill an entire floor of a skyscraper with the gas.

Moving along, I continue taking note of the new devices and research each group of scientists is working on. Before long, I head to the back of the lab where the DNA samples are stored in a large freezer.

I needed to get to work. I knew I needed to get this job done, but it seemed impossible. Every step forward was two back. I barely knew more than when I started, but there wasn’t time to keep looking.

A war would start any day now between the hunters and the supernaturals.

I could feel my time running out, but I knew I needed to hold on to my focus to keep going. I was doing this for my husband.

Everything I do is for him.

Years Ago

He held me in his arms tightly as we relaxed after our perfect date.

He surprised me this afternoon with a romantic picnic at our favorite spot. He cooked his stuffed ricotta pasta recipe that he knew I loved and had brought cheesecake for our dessert.

He had thought of everything to make today perfect.

I laughed as he kissed up my neck, “Nic!”

He pulls away, giving me an odd look, “Nic?” he questions.

“Yep, I’m trying out a nickname,” I tell him, my words causing his smile to widen.

“Since when have you ever called me by a nickname?” he asks, moving to kiss up my neck again until he reaches my ear, “Not including every night in bed.”

I barely hear his words as my entire body heats up. I can feel his smirk against my skin before he continues to nibble and kiss my skin.

“I’m serious,” I laugh, my tone completely different than my words. I lift my hands to his chest and push him away from me, “Nic!”

“Fine,” he says, moving only an inch or two away. His eyes connecting with mine, “But I don’t see why you want to shorten my name.”

“Because you call me nicknames all the time,” I tell him, “You almost never use my name. I want to call you something no one else does, too, and you’re lucky I didn’t shorten it to Nicky.”

“Alright,” he takes a moment in deep thought before his smile widened, “You could call me your husband.”

Shock fills me. I try to make my lips say something, but no sound comes out. It doesn’t help me that he just continues to watch me with his perfect smile.

He shifts slightly before reaching into his pocket. He lifts his hand between us to show an emerald princess cut ring, “Marry me.”

I don’t say anything as tears fill my vision. He leans forward to kiss each tear that escapes. My heart melting completely at the action.

I never imagined I would find love. I had dedicated almost my entire life to science that relationships always took a back seat to my research. I never thought I would run into the love of my life.

But then I did and he became everything. It wasn’t even how every time we made love, it felt like our souls were connecting and he drives me to delirious amounts of pleasure. But he makes me laugh like it’s his life’s mission to keep a smile on my face. He takes interest in my work, even though I know he has no idea what I’m talking about half the time. He listens and remembers everything I tell him and I could talk to him for hours without ever tiring of hearing his voice.

He is perfect.

“Marry me,” he says again. He gently takes hold of my left hand and slides the ring into place on my finger, “Say yes. Marry me.”

“Yes,” I tell him, nodding my head. I feel like my smile will never leave my face, “A million times yes.”

“I love you,” he kisses me soundly. I could feel every ounce of love pour into me through his kiss, “And please don’t shorten my name to Nic.”

“Agreed and I love you too,” I pull back to say before kissing him again, “We’re getting married.”

I look down at the ring he gave me as I think again how I don’t know if I’ll ever stop smiling.

“We have a live one,” Anderson’s voice calls out as he enters the room. A handful of guards follow him while wheeling in an unconscious prisoner with them.

Quickly setting my travel mug down and closing the freezer doors, I move around the wall.

“Bring him over to the table,” I order out as I leave the coolant area. I see the guards lift the unconscious man onto the metal slab. I feel my heartbeat increase as I recognize who they brought in.

Moving closer, I notice the wounds across his torso and the massive amount of blood covering his skin, “What happened?” I rush my words out as I quickly move to put pressure on his chest.

“He went up against three vampires. I wouldn’t say he won,” Anderson comments as he lays down a few of the medical supplies, “Guards wanted to let him die, but it’s not like we have another lycan just lying around.”

I feel a sharp pain in the back of my neck as Anderson talks about only keeping him alive because he is a rarity.

Shaking off my thoughts, I go to work on stitching up each wound carefully. After about an hour or two, I could finally start to see his body start to heal itself.

“Is he good to go?” one of the guards, Thompson I think, asks us.

“All done,” Anderson answers.

“One minute,” I hold them up from taking him as I quickly go to my work table and grab one of the vials of serum I had been working on. Walking back to the group, I grab a syringe and inject the liquid into his bloodstream.

“I thought you weren’t ready for testing.”

“It’s the first opportunity I’ve had to test a lycan,” I tell him, “I might not get another.”

Anderson nods in understanding as I move to grab a blood kit.

"This lycan may be exactly what I'm looking for," I say. I hold his arm in my hands, and I quickly take a sample before gently lowering his hand back to the table.

“He’s all set,” I tell the guards and move away. Feeling the tightness in my neck again, I rub the spot gently.

Pushing the pain deep down, I keep eyes off the guards as they leave the room and I go back to finishing my job.