Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew you

[dharmalady]

Juliet Scott was married for five years. Three of them were good. She was young, Damien was too. They were in love and carefree; had fun and had a lot of sex, traveled to a lot of places. She'd been on track to start med school but when she met Damien, she wanted him instead, and she thought she'd always choose him over everything.

Until she got pregnant.

He stuck around for a few months but then, conveniently his job took him away and the stretches of time between being home and being gone were longer. He was never a bad dad to Mia, not once, but it was like a chore to be home, to be a husband and civilian again. Juliet missed him but she tried to talk to him about it and it was a fight, every time. He had a job, he had missions, he couldn't just give that up. So she decided a year and a half ago to not make him choose anymore. She sent him divorce papers, certified mail, with a letter explaining to him that she was tired of feeling like she and Mia weren't a priority. Like he didn't want to be there when he was back in the states. She wasn't surprised when she got the signed paperwork back with no note in response.

She and Mia have been solo ever since, the two of them moving to Miami to be closer to Juliet's sister. Med school finally happens, and now Juliet's an intern and Mia is five. It's been hard, harder than Juliet ever thought she'd have to do on her own, but she's doing it. She's never told Damien he can't be a part of Mia's life, she's never tried to keep him away from her. When she moves, she makes sure someone in his branch of the military, wherever he is, gets her address. She's not even angry at him anymore, just sad that it ended this way between them.

Comments

[dharmalady]

"I fell at work," she breathes out, eyes moving over his face, unable to stop drinking him in. "Blood. Someone didn't clean up. I fell face first and had my arm around my belly to protect it, and my arm broke," she explains. "The baby's fine. She's fine."

[inthewar]

He looks so pained, eyes closing for a moment as he just takes her in, lightly touching her cast, fingers moving gingerly over the cuts on her face. He wasn't here.

[dharmalady]

"It's okay, Damien," she whispers softly. "It was at the hospital. There wasn't anything you could have done."

[inthewar]

He leans in, pressing soft kisses to all those bruises, stroking his fingers through her hair. But then he pulls back, realizing what she said.

"...she? Our baby...we have another little girl?"

[dharmalady]

Juliet takes his hand and kisses his fingertips lightly, then presses his hand to her belly. "We're having a girl," she says with a tearful smile. "I found out when they did an ultrasound to be sure she was okay." His kisses on her skin feel like pure heaven, and she melts into him, reaching out to stroke his face.

[inthewar]

He laughs tearfully, a wide grin on his face as he takes this in. "I fucking love you," he breathes out, pressing his hand a little closer against her belly.

[dharmalady]

Juliet hugs him tightly, pressing her face against his neck with one hand buried in his hair at the back of his head. "I love you. God, kiss me, Damien," she says with a tearful laugh.

[inthewar]

He doesn't hesitate, kissing her deeply, over and over, like it's been ten years since they did this. And really, it has been, for all intents and purposes.

They have a baby coming.

Fuck. He's just so happy and grateful to be home and safe with his family.

[dharmalady]

She feels like she can't stop kissing him, but finally, she pulls back, forehead against his. "God, you must be exhausted. Come on. Come take a shower and come to bed, baby."

[inthewar]

Changing timezones has fucked with him, but really it's just been a long four months, and he is exhausted. They take a hot shower, and it's clear he's been in the field. He has some fresh wounds that have all been stitched and are healing nicely.

He dotes on her, kissing her bare skin all over as they shower.

[dharmalady]

Juliet's fingers move expertly over every single stitch and mark on him that's new, using her own medical eye to judge for herself. And when she's satisfied, she kisses every single one softly, tenderly. "Thank you for staying alive. God, thank you, Damien," she whispers.

[inthewar]

"Told you I'd never leave you again," he whispers against her ear, kissing her tempe and her cheek, then capturing her lips in another soft kiss.

[dharmalady]

"Now you won't? You really won't? Because if Michael ever shows up at our house again, I'll murder him. I really will."

[inthewar]

"You won't get a chance at him, I'll get to him first," he says sincerely.

[dharmalady]

Once Damien's all rinsed off, she moves with him out of the shower, dries him off, and then gets into bed with him completely naked, not wanting anything between them right now. She lays across his chest, positioning herself so she's comfortable with her broken arm, and kisses his skin where she can reach. "God, I missed this," she murmurs, nuzzling and just doting on him.

[inthewar]

"I missed you, too, baby," he breathes out, stroking his fingers across her bare shoulder, hating that she's in pain right now with her arm. He kisses her forehead tenderly, breathing her in. "So fucking much."

[dharmalady]

"God, Mia's gonna be so happy," she smiles brightly in the dark. "She missed you, too. She talks about you every day."

[inthewar]

He smiles softly, quietly asking, "Is she...so she forgives me?"

[dharmalady]

"She does. For a while, she was...really quiet. She wouldn't play, she didn't want to go anywhere or do anything, Damien. She was depressed, I don't know how else to put it. But one night she slept in here with me and we talked about it. She asked me if you wanted to go, I told her no, that you would always stay with her if you could. I just explained to her that sometimes people need help and only really good people like daddy can go rescue them," Juliet murmurs as she nuzzles Damien. "She liked that."

[inthewar]

Damien smiles a little when he hears that, a grin on his face because he knows his baby is proud of him on some level. "I can't wait to see her tomorrow."

[dharmalady]

"Why don't you wake her up for school, and I'll call her out for the day so you two can just be together. She watches the videos from Chuck E. Cheese every night before bed. She wants to go there with you again so bad, Damien."

[inthewar]

Damien smiles tearfully, nodding at her in the dark. "Okay. I will. Thank you, baby. Fucking...thank you. For everything. I'm home now, I promise."

[dharmalady]

"Damien, we've made it through so much," she says softly, reaching with her good arm to rake her fingers through his hair. "Look at where we are now. We made it. And I know....Damien, I know we can make it through anything now."

[inthewar]

"I know we can," he agrees with her, nuzzling her hand, kissing her palm and then just pressing his forehead to hers as he closes his eyes.

[dharmalady]

"I love you, Damien," she murmurs softly, and she's said his name so many times because to be talking to him, right here, to be in the same bed with him, feels like an amazing dream she never wants to wake up from. But eventually they fall asleep, and she doesn't move at all once in the night.