Pieces of Us (Missing Pieces, #3)

by N.R. Walker

“Can I ask you something?” “Of course you can,” Megan replied. “Well, I’ve been thinking about it a lot. And with my leg and m’arm, and m’head too, I guess, being what they are.” I shrugged. “But I was wondering what’d be the best position for me and Dallas to have sex?”

“The guy swabbed my dick,” he mumbled. I laughed. “Yep.” It was a full sexual health check. Swabs and bloods. “You went before me, so I asked him if he’d ever seen a dick as big as yours.” I shot him a look. “You didn’t.” He grinned sleepily. “Did. But he didn’t answer me. Did smile though.” “Oh God.” He chuckled. “Tell me, what was my reaction when I saw your dick the first time?” Jesus H Christ. So apparently when I said he could ask me anything, my dick would be a constant topic of conversation . . . “Uh, well,” I began. “You were . . . happy.” “Bet I was.” “You wanted it a lot.” His eyes were dreamy, tired; his smile was smug. “Bet I did.” I chuckled at the memory. “Actually, after the first time we had sex, we were in bed, up to about round three, I think it was, and you said my dick was better than when you got a Transformer truck for your birthday when you were six.” He laughed, a deep rumbling sound. “Oh my God. Optimus Prime. Loved that truck.” The sound of his genuine belly laugh made me laugh too. “You said it was just like a normal toy truck, then in bed it transformed, and bam! Optimus Prime.”

“Hey,” I said. “You wanna know what real love is?” “What’s that?” he mumbled into my chest. “Real love is hard. And sometimes it hurts. Sometimes we need to change what was our normal course and take a different path. Sometimes everything we knew becomes something different, and we need to adapt. There might be medical appointments and we might have to change the way we shop for groceries or if we go out for lunch. But that’s just what we do because that’s what love is. It’s not all roses and sunshine. It’s laundry and dishes, bills and mortgages, and wet towels on the floor, or changing the cat litter. We adapt and we roll with it. So all these changes that we’ve had to deal with because of the accident, I don’t mind one bit, Juss. Because when I fell in love with you, it was forever. In health and in sickness, or however that goes.”

“What I’m trying to say, Juss, is that love has its ups and downs. But you and me, we got this. We found each other years ago, and when the universe tried to pull us apart with the accident, we found each other again.”

“Justin,” he began. “The last two and a half years have been a helluva road we’ve travelled. Some would call it hell, and some wouldn’t have survived. But not us. We’ve come out better, stronger. Because steel has to go through fire to come out stronger.” He let out a shaky breath. “Every day with you is a gift, and I promise to cherish you always. I will never take you for granted, not for a single second. I love you, Juss. Always have, always will. And I am proud to call you my husband.”

“Dallas. You have been, without a doubt, a mountain of strength. Through everything, every procedure, every ordeal, you never took a backward step. And because of you, every step I’ve taken, no matter how small, has been forward. And I’m more in love with you than I thought was ever possible.” I smiled at him. “After my accident, I spent a lot of time wishing for my memories to come back. I was missing pieces of my life, and pieces of myself were gone. But there was always you. And through it all, I realised the pieces of us were what kept me together.” I squeezed his hands. “I promise you, Dallas, that I will love you forever. You are the reason I get up in the morning and the reason I try to be a better man than I was the day before. And I am proud and honoured and lucky as hell to call you my husband.”