my frosty toes

Romulus saw the flash of color on her cheeks and the sweet smile painting Lillith's pretty face while he explained how she was his family now too. He didn't know how far their relationship would go, but he was invested in it and in for the long haul now. When he'd arrived in Auster, he never would have imagined he'd get hooked on someone as easily as he got hooked on Lil. She'd become his addiction in all the best and intoxicating ways possible. He knew that she liked him and regarded him as her family as well, and that had been the deciding factor in him staying in the Hallows or striking out on his own. Lillith had become the keystone to his entire life here in Ardent. Any future he saw had Lillith in it.

But how deep did it go for Roman? He was still young, so plans for the future were virtually nonexistent. The only certainty he had was that he wanted Lillith in his future. He wanted to see how far they could go together, to run as fast and as far as they could in this crazy thing they had together. Did he want to take her as his mate, marry her and make her his wife? Maybe, the possibility was certainly strong, but marriage wasn't something at the forefront of his mind right now. He knew he would want to have a family one day; it was the cornerstone of being an Armada wolf, after all. He could see Lillith as the mother of his children, raising a family of beautiful snowy silver babies together. She was kind and gentle, nurturing and loving. Lillith would make a great mother one day.

Roman hadn't realized the dopey smile forming on his face as he thought about a future with Lil until she began to give her answer to his question. As soon as she'd started speaking, he knew where this wish was going. His smile faded instantly, and his expression turned serious, but the love in his eyes only burned hotter. "Hey, hey! No! None of that talk," he interjected as he brought their walk to a halt. He turned abruptly to face her, lifting large yet gentle paws up to cup her face and look her in those big, beautiful ruby eyes. "You stop that. That's my favorite wolf you're talking bad about. You will be healed, Lil, but until then I'm not gonna let you keep hating on yourself like this. You're the only wolf that doesn't see how amazing and strong and beautiful you really are." His expression softened as he gazed into her eyes, a happy lovestruck smile creeping its way over his muzzle. He gently stroked over her cheek with one of his paws, looking at her like she were a beautiful work of art. "I wish you could see yourself the way I see you. You'd never talk about yourself like that again if you could."

"Speech"