I tense at his question and pull back to look at him. Was I being too obvious about this?

"I'm sorry", I mumble.

"Don't apologize when it's not your fault", he lifts my chin slightly for me to look at him. "Shit. It's all my freaking fault. I owe you way too much apology and I'll keep apologizing for it until the day I die. The words I said in anger when Liam had called you mother the first time.....God, I am so sorry. I know it has hurt you terribly and I have been noticing how your eyes light up when he calls you but you hold yourself back and it's all because of me."

"It's okay", my voice cracks as I try not to cry. "You were angry because I was careless. But yeah, those words did hurt. It still does. I just don't respond because I don't want to get Liam's hopes up and I don't want to get attach too much with the idea of being his mother. What if one day you say...."

"Hey", he interrupts me. "You are stuck with us for lifetime and there is no way Liam or I can live without you. My little boy knows what he is doing when he calls you mom. I promise to never say those horrible words to you again. I'm so sorry."

"You are making me cry", I am on full mode crying now.

"I'm sorry", he murmurs, apologetically again and envelops me in his arms where I keep crying in the most ugly way. "I love you Jess. So freaking much and it hurts me as well when I think how rudely I spoke to you."

"I love you too", I sniff and hiccup. "And I love Liam so much. I promise to never be careless with him."

"Hush now", he kisses my hair and pulls me gently back by holding my shoulders. He wipes my tears away and leans down, closer to my lips.

"Thank you for giving another chance"

Two days later, Stefan gets the green signal to go home and he holds my hand instantly when we are about to leave the hospital. He looks so stressed for some reason.

"You are coming back to stay with us, right?"

"You have to ask me nicely first", I say, teasingly.

"Come back to me please", his utters in a hoarse tone as his face changes. He almost looks ready to beg.

"I am coming back", I assure him a kiss and add just to make him smile. "Don't start crying now."

"I was already ready to kidnap you if you had refused", he grins.

"Oh kinky", I nudge him with my shoulder. "I knew you were a stalker at heart for me the first time you asked me to work for you."

"Only for you", he laughs and pulls me flush against him. "That was the best decision I had ever made in my whole life."

"Please", I hook my hands around his neck. "You have to thank Liam for it. He found me first."

"He did", his gaze twinkles with joy and he leans down and adds, sliding his hands down my lower back, "For the kinky part, I can show how much kinky I can get for you once we get home"

"I see you are much very excited even after getting shot Mr Saviour", Leo's voice causes me to jump slightly back.

"But let me remind you that you both have a child waiting for you two to go back home. Y'all can continue your activities at home and Jess honey, please call me when you reach there safely."

"I will Leo", I say, trying yet again to reign in my blush. "Thank you for waiting for us."

"I'll see you tomorrow. Take care Stefan", he winks at me before leaving.

"Damn", Stefan murmurs and clasping my hand with his, he starts leading us out. "This guy is definitely something."

"He is a softie at heart", I laugh. "Just don't mind him. He loves being extra."

"I'm well aware of the extraness", he shakes his head slightly in disbelief.

Once we reach home, Mary meets Stefan and after making dinner, she takes her leave. Stefan stays with Liam until he falls asleep and then he goes for a bath while I start stressing again.

I'm scared shitless right now. How am I suppose to shower in that washroom where I was filmed? I am being paranoid again. But what if it happens again?

"Jess are you okay?", Stefen asks, in concern. I am so lost while overthinking that I don't even sense him standing close to me.

"Yeah", I murmur. "I'll change your dressing. Take a seat."

"Tell me", he says in a gentle voice, not even moving when I try to pull him to walk.

"I want to take a shower", my voice is still low. "But I'm scared. What if....."

"Hey", he takes my hands into his. "There's no camera inside. I checked every corner myself. Trust me, there's nothing inside."

"Are you sure?", I ask, my skin crawling when I think about the naked pictures and videos of mine.

"I'm sure darling", he assures me again.

"Nobody saw them?"

"Nobody saw them", he continues, reassuringly. "I destroyed everything. Don't stress yourself please. I won't let anything happen to you."

Unknowingly a tear slips from my eye at the thought that he saw me naked in the video. My toes curl with discomfort. I didn't want him to see me like this. He has always been with skinny women. They were perfect but me on the other hand, I have stretch marks. I am nothing compare to those skinny and beautiful women. He once called me ugly himself.

"Is there something else bothering you?", he probes further and wipes the stray tear away.

"You saw the pictures and videos", I admit in a hush voice. 

"Does it bothers you that I saw them?", he demands slowly in a distant voice.

"Yes", I admit truthfully. "I didn't want you to see me like this."

"Why?"

I lift my eyes to look at him and notice the hurt look on his face. I don't know what else to say and just avert my gaze again.

"Talk to me baby", he pleads. "Pkease"

"I just didn't want you to see me like this", I repeat.

I wonder what must have gone through their mind when they saw me naked. Did they laugh at my body? Did he noticed all my imperfections and felt disgusted? Do I still disgust him?

"I'm going for a shower", I say aloud and pull my hand back when he tries to grab it again.

"Do you want me to wait in the bathroom?", he asks in concern.

"No", I blurt quickly with wide eyes. "I'll be fine."

I close the bathroom door quickly behind me and lean against it. Am I being too sensitive again? Or am I thinking too much and making everything about me?

Stefan just got home and I am unable to move past my traumas and overthinking. I just can't help it. I start crying silently when I no longer can handle my own emotions. I really have to work on myself but the real question I keep asking myself is whether I will be able to be with Stefan in every sense. I can't even stand the fact that he has seen me naked.

I try my best to suppress my fear and take a shower quickly. Once I'm done, I wrap my towel around my body and close my eyes in disbelief when I realize that I have forgotten to take my clothes with me, in haste. I really hope Stefan is not still in the room. I open the door slowly and my heart jolts when I find him standing just outside the washroom, waiting for me. My heart aches at the sight. He looks so worried for me.

"I forgot to take my clothes", I explain in a low voice and tries to walk past him.

"You have been crying", he claims and holds my arm.

My grip tightens on the towel and I stare at the floor. More tears start gathering in my eyes and I try my best to not let them fall.

"What's wrong Jess?", he inquires in a soft tone. "I'm so sorry I saw the photos and videos. I know you don't feel comfortable with whatever happened and I'm really sorry for that. Please don't avoid me like this. It's breaking my heart. Tell me what I can do to make you feel better. I love you so much baby and I can't see you like this."

I burst into tears at his words and lean my head on his chest. He instantly wraps his arms around me pulling me more closer to him.

"Please talk to me"

"I think I'm just being too sensitive for no reason", I try to brush it off.

"Don't brush your feelings off just because you feel like crying", he cups my face and tilts my head back. "Your feelings matter to me and if you are comfortable enough to share it with me, I'm all ears for you. We have yet to have a conversation regarding what happened last time you were here but please don't call yourself sensitive when I know how bad it has affected your mental health. I need you to talk to me about it. Don't bottle it all up inside."

"I feel so overwhelm Stef", I decide to confess. "I have really come a long way in loving myself but the thought that my body was being filmed makes my skin crawl. The thought that everyone could have seen me naked makes me feel disgusting with myself. Growing up, I didn't liked myself at all. I was always bullied. It was really bad even my own family used to make comments about my body. I was on the bigger side because food was always my comfort."

I lift my head from his chest and look up at him.

"And you have never been with someone like me", I blurt the words which have been haunting me the worst and clutch the towel more closer to me.

"What do you mean someone like you?", he demands in a tight voice.

"Stefan", I sigh, suddenly feeling too drained. "The women you have always been was tall, leggy, skinny with the perfect smooth skin. They were beautiful and I'm not like them. I have stretch marks and I'm nothing like them...."

"Stop!", he cuts me off abruptly in a slight harsh tone. "I won't tolerate you belittling yourself. Do you hear me?"

"Look at me", he urges and cups the sides of my face, lifting my face up so that I can look at him.

"You are perfect for me Jess", he admits in firm yet gentle tone. "I don't want any skinny or leggy women. I want you. I only need you. The things which you are thinking are your imperfections makes you more beautiful in my eyes. If only you could see yourself through my gaze my love. I'm head over heels for you and in my eyes, there's nobody better than you for me."

I stare at him, feeling lost at his words. My gaze search his and when I see nothing but only truth swirling in them, warm tears start pouring down my face again.

"Don't cry sweetheart", he presses his forehead against mine. "You have cried enough. Not anymore."

He kisses my tears away and places a feather like kiss on my lips.

"If only you could see how much I long for you", he continues in a hoarse voice. "You are perfect my love and if the cold shower that I have been constantly taking whenever you touch me or even give me an innocent look is not proof enough then maybe I can show you."

My eyes pop open when I feel his lips against my ear. I can almost start hearing my own heartbeat pounding in my chest.

"My body craves yours my love, in a way it never craved anyone before. And trust me when I say it's hard when I have to control myself around you. I don't want to scare you."

He starts kissing my neck, licking the droplets of water away from my skin. My eyes flutter close at the feel of his lips against my warm skin.

"I'm going to be totally honest with you Jess", he rasps and lifts his head to look at me. My breath gets stuck in my throat when I see the raw desire for me glazing in his gaze.

He removes a few tendrils of hair from my shoulder which have somehow managed to escape my bun. He runs his fingertips gently on my skin and I feel goosebumps rising everywhere.

"I was enraged when I saw the pictures and videos. At that time all I felt was anger when I thought about it because it was taken without your consent and I knew how devastated you would be but now when I'm thinking about them, it makes me all hot and flustered for you. All I can think is you", he whispers the last words against the corner of my lips.

My chest heaves at his words. I can't breath normally suddenly. Stefan glides his hands over my waist and pulls my body more closer. Heat creeps in my entire body when he presses our lower body together.

"I can't stop thinking about your beautiful curves", he continues in a heavy voice and moves his hands on my hips and waist. "I can't stop thinking how you closed your eyes with pleasure when the water glides down your skin. I can't stop thinking about how your chest moved when you were breathing."

"Stefan", I say in embarrassmemt. My face is beyond red at this point.

"I can't stop thinking about you", he adds and kisses my shoulder. "Because you are the most desirable woman for me. No one compares to you Jess."

I return my eyes back on his in awe and without even giving me time to blink, he captures my lips with him. His hands move into my hair and he frees them from my bun. Through this kiss, somehow he makes me feel enough comfortable to let some of my fear vanish away. His words keep whirling in my mind and the way he had looked at me while confessing how he feels for me creates a warm feeling in the pit of my stomach.

"I love you", he murmurs and kisses me again.

I hold the towel closer to my chest when Stefan kisses me again and he notices it. He pulls away and looks at me in a serious way, his gaze searching my face for answers.

"Have I ever made you feel uncomfortable?", he questions. "Just be honest with me."

I shake my head.

"I need words baby"

"No", I answer.

"Do you feel like things are going way too fast between us or you feel the need to do something which you are not comfortable with?"

"No"

"Then you don't have to be afraid", he says gently and loosens my grip on my towel. "I am not going to remove your towel. I will wait for you darling. No matter how much time you need, I will wait."

"I am not scared of you", I assure him and curse myself when he gets the wrong message.

"I understand", he caresses my cheeks. "You don't need to explain anything. We will take things slow and I mean it when I say I will wait for you."

"Even if I die with blue balls", he adds with a smirk.

I blush furiously and hide my face in his chest.

"I love you", he tightens his grip around me and kisses the top of my head.

"I love you too"