I rested against Oliver's chest, with his arms wrapped around me. He was gently stroking the side of my neck with his thumb while playing with my hair with the fingers of his other hand. We stayed like that until the swirling storm within me subsided.

"Do you feel better?" Oliver asked, probably feeling that my breathing and my heartbeat were now calm and steady.

"Yes. Thank you!" I answered.

"Oh, the pleasure is entirely mine," he replied, burying his nose in my hair, then brushed a few strands away and placed a soft kiss on my neck, sending shivers of delight through my entire body.

"I think we need to get back to work," I said in a slightly husky voice. I cleared my throat and added, "We have just a few more boxes and we're ready."

"Ah! And I was hoping you'd forget about that," Oliver said, and I could hear the laughter in his voice.

"Come on, I'll pack 5 and you take the other two, agree?!"

"Mmm, maybe, but I have one condition," Oliver loosened his grip and adjusted me so that our eyes met, his brows furrowed and the serious voice he continued in showed me that there was no new joke, "Please please tell me why you got upset!"

My heart sank at the pain in his voice. I reached up and gently caressed his cheek, feeling his stubble scraping my fingers.

"I wasn't upset...well, not exactly," he arched one eyebrow, "I mean...I felt emotional, so emotional I couldn't help but cry. But it wasn't just out of sadness. In fact... I think I cried out of happiness."

"I'm not sure I understand you," Oliver said with a baffled expression.

I chuckled. "No wonder! I myself can't understand it fully."

A while ago I wanted to tell him, but now my eternal insecurity raised its head inside me and tried to dissuade me.

I looked down at the floor and the mess of boxes and paper and ribbons. My hand slowly started to withdraw from his face but he held it back. Oliver's warm palm covered mine and pressed it to his cheek. My eyes immediately searched for his.

"Don't back off, Ashley, please!" He said, and I heard in his voice, and saw in his eyes, that my attempt to distance myself, to shut myself in, had hurt him, and that shattered any uncertainty in me.

"I won't!" I said emphatically and smiled as his features relaxed and the pain faded away.

"Okay, because you can tell me anything, you know that, right?!"

I nodded, "Yes."

"Okay," he repeated, kissing me on the forehead. Then he pulled his hand away from mine and stroked my cheekbone gently. I leaned into his hand and let him cup my face. My upper lashes feathered down before I locked my gaze back into his. The warmth in Oliver's eyes made my heart swell with... love.

And then the words came out of my mouth on their own.

"I was moved by the images you depicted!"

He lifted his head and looked around the room, recalling the images his imagination had conjured up and remarked, "They really were wonderful, weren't they!"

His lips stretched into a satisfied smile, the dreamy expression from earlier appeared on his face, and when he looked back at me, his eyes shone with happiness and desire. A desire mirroring my own - to make these pictures a reality.

My breath caught because my heart overflowed with so much love for him that it could not fit in my chest anymore. And the feeling was... new, odd, but oh-so amazingly good that taking my next breath seemed less essential than... kissing him.

Kissing him! The very thought made me blush and I bit my bottom lip. Never before had I felt the urge to kiss someone. Not like this. Not like now.

I took a loud breath and confessed instead, "Yes, they were, but they got me so emotional because they reflected my own desires, my own visions of the future."

Oliver's expression changed and not only did he leave me breathless again, but he made my heart pound so hard in my chest that I could feel it pulsing in every part of my body. And the reason for my reaction was that on his face, in his eyes, one unmistakable emotion could be read - Love.

Love was pouring out of him, enveloping me tenderly in warmth and filling my heart with gratitude and joy that I met him, that he was here by my side, holding me tightly in his arms. My lips stretched into a smile that grew and grew and grew until sheer bliss started tingling under my skin, making me feel as happy as I had ever felt in my entire life.

I buried my face in his chest, hiding my insanely wide smile, and inbreathing his incredible fragrance. I could sense notes of the earthy spiciness of patchouli, the sweetness of which was enhanced by... um, maybe pear?! I took another deep breath. Yes, definitely pear and all the sweetness was nicely balanced with musk and something else that could only be Oliver's unique scent.

"You're fine now," Oliver declared, his chest rose and fell with a sigh of relief.

Indeed, I was. In fact, I was better than ever.