"It means leaving here…can you do that? Can you leave this behind?"
She looked seriously at him. "My babies, my unborn babies, they aren't in that ground. I know that. They are in heaven now, at peace. And one day I will join them. But now, I will do anything it takes to marry you. Yes, I can! You are worth everything to me. I never thought I'd say that, but what we have, is so powerful, even I can't deny it..."
He grabbed her and kissed her hard. "You will be my wife?"
"Yes…"
He bowed his head. "It will not be easy at times. Your people will scorn you. The people, the white people will call you names and disrespect you for it. You must know that. I will protect you all I can. But it w
ill happen, you must know this."
"As long as you love me, I don't care…" She cried.
"And I will love you always, my love…" He kissed her hard. "The hardships will only make our love stronger."
Then he picked her up and took her back into the water and they scrubbed each other clean, his hands massaging her as he cleansed her.
"We must face the fact that we will have many obstacles to overcome to be happy with our love. In the village, my people will resent you at first. They will give you a hard time. But you must remember, that my love for you is true. I will not take an Indian wife; you are mine, and all I need."
"Are you sure you don't want an Indian wife?" She asked looking at him. "Because, I could not bare to share you with another. I want you to know that. I can't share you."
"All I need or want is you. And you…do you want another white husband?" He asked staring into her sparkling eyes.
"You are all I'll ever need or want. You must know that."
He kissed her hotly again, but pulled away before it went too far.
"When we encounter white people, how shall we handle that? They certainly won't understand you being with me."
"I must think on that, for there will be much trouble. Your people would never accept it."
"No, I'm sorry to say they wouldn't. If they saw us, they might hunt us down and try to kill us."
"We do not need or even seek their approval. I will not let you go!" He promised. "You are my woman. I will fight for you to the end."
"Nor I you, you are my one and only love." She smiled and kissed his lips.
He kissed her hard and stared into her shining eyes, "They will call you names, hiss at you, even try to rape you because they will consider you trash."
She nodded, solemnly.
"Remember you are none of those things, you are simply mine, and I yours."
"Yes, yes, my darling." She cried.
The children were still sound asleep when they went back, and so he curled her into his arms and they slept together. His lips were on her forehead, his hands underneath her shirt on her breast. She sighed happily in his arms.
When Jane Ann woke up first, Hawk took her in his arms and whirled her around high into the air until she giggled.
It woke Matthew up and he watched. They were quickly becoming a family now. Contentment settled over Matthew.
Eve would never forget this day as long as she lived. The day Hawk asked her to marry, and they sealed their promises with their love.
Chapter Twelve
"So where do we go from here?" Eve asked as they ate their breakfast.
"North, to Indian territory. We will live there." He announced.