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As light began to flood the room, Beom Sook awoke at sunrise and opened his eyes.  To discover the woman whom he loved…lying next to him.  Her beautiful face was the first thing that filled his view.  His lips stretched into a wide smile.

Ni Na’s face was relaxed in slumber.  That innocent pose made her appear several years younger than she was.  He felt his heart bend in tenderness towards her.  He reached up to touch her cheek.

And by that one movement was suddenly made aware of his aching body.  He groaned.  Still, his fingertips found her soft skin.  And slid across her smooth cheek.  Until they found the silk of her hair.  He sighed with happiness.  Even in the midst of his obvious discomfort. 

His head was no longer pounding, but the rest of him felt as though someone had punished his flesh yesterday.  He could have drawn a very accurate sketch of every single one of his muscle groups.  They were making their presence known this morning with a definite ache.  He stretched anyway.  And groaned again.

Still, Ni Na slept on.

And he wondered how on earth she had come to sleep in his own bed.  He slid his hand across the distance between them under the covers, and his fingertips brushed her arm.  He stroked her skin lightly.  And watched in fascination as a sweet smile slowly curled her lips upward.

He really wanted to kiss her.

“Beom Sook?” came a soft voice.

Still, he jumped.  And flipped over to face his mother.  He could feel his face flooding with color.  Like it had when he was a child and she’d caught him sneaking a rice cake off the plate in the kitchen.

“Eomma!” he gasped.  Then, to cover his confusion, he gulped, “Good morning!”

“Is it?” she queried curiously.  “You’ve been groaning since you woke up.  Are you in pain?”

“Only from my shoulders to my toes.”

“That’s an improvement!  No pain in your head anymore?”

He frowned.  “How did you know that my head hurt?”

“Ni Na told me.”

He cleared his throat.  And found it horribly dry.  “Can I have a drink?”

“Certainly.”  She reached for the glass of water on his nightstand.  “Can you sit up?”

He struggled into a sitting position and gratefully received the glass from her.  “Thank you, Eomma.”  He took several long gulps of the water.

“You need to take your medicine.  I’ll find you a cup of broth and mix it in.”  She stood up.

“Eomma.”

“Hmm?”

“Why is Ni Na sleeping here?”

“Because that sweet – and stubborn – woman refused to leave you last night.  I came in here at three in the morning, and she was struggling to stay awake.  Sitting up in your bed.”  She pinned him with a steely glare.  “Beom Sook.”

“Hmm?”  He quirked a dark eyebrow at her. 

“You had best marry that girl at the earliest possible convenience.”

“How about today?  I’ve no plans but lounging around in this bed,” he grinned at her.

But in the next moment, that smile faded as another moan escaped his lips.  “On second thought, maybe we should wait until my body stops being angry with me.”

“Good idea.  Your bride should be well-rested too.”  She tilted her head as she gazed down at him.  “Does she know yet?”

“Know what?”

“That you love her.”

He nodded.  “Yes.  I told her.”

“And what did she say?”

The grin was back.  His eyes shining, he declared, “She loves me too!”

And he sounded so much like his five-year-old self that his mother giggled. 

“She really makes you happy, doesn’t she?”

He glanced down at Ni Na.  And bobbed his head.  “She makes me really happy.  And she completely exasperates me too,” he muttered.

“What’s this?” his mother asked, in surprise.

He lifted his eyes to meet hers again.  “Eomma.  Think about it.  The darling girl insisted on adopting twenty-four children.  And the next thing we know, they’re puking all over my house.  And exhausting us both.  If this is the very beginning of our relationship, what are we in for next?”

“I don’t know, darling.  But one thing is for certain.”

“What’s that?”

Her lips spread into a wide smile. “It’s sure to be an adventure.”

He snickered and glanced back down at Ni Na.  The girl who had claimed that adventure scared her.  She seemed pretty fearless to him now.  Not many souls would brave the challenges of raising two dozen children. 

Suddenly, he was curious about something.  Would she still want four of her own babies now?  Or would she be satisfied raising someone else’s children?

For his part, he hoped that she remained unsatisfied.  Nothing would fill his life with more happiness than several miniature versions of Ni Na running around his house and permeating it with their laughter.

He groaned again.  Not from pain.  But from impatience. 

He wanted this woman to belong to him.  Already. 

Then he laughed at himself.  He’d known this little beauty for exactly twenty-three days.  And he was chafing at the bit because she wasn’t his wife yet.  He must have lost his mind.

He shook his head.

No, that wasn’t it. 

He glanced down at her lovely face again and smiled.  At Ni Na.  He knew what it was.

He hadn’t lost his mind. 

He’d lost his heart.