SAVED BY GRACE- Ep 22

Episode 22- I Love You

May 18, 2026

SOTERIA’S POV

His calloused fingers were still cupping the side of my face, his thumb resting right along my jawline, holding me with a gentleness that felt entirely uncharacteristic of a man who commanded battalions.

But his eyes were what kept me anchored. They were wide, dark, and completely uncovered.

The military shutter he usually kept lowered over his emotions had been ripped away by his own admission, leaving behind a raw, burning fire that made my skin prickle under my satin loungewear.

“The truth is what, Akila?” I whispered, my voice barely carrying over the soft murmur of the fountain behind us.

His jaw clenched, the muscles grinding hard under his smooth, dark skin before he let out a long, ragged breath that fanned across my forehead.

“The truth is that I am completely undone by you. I’ve spent months trying to lie to myself. I told myself I was always coming to your house because Effiom needed a brother-in-arms.”

“I told myself I was sitting by your bed in the village because it was my duty to the General. But every time I looked at you, every time I saw you find the strength to smile even when your heart was bleeding. I was falling deeper.”

My breath caught completely in my throat.

My heart did a massive, chaotic flip, pounding so hard against my ribs that I was certain he could feel the vibration through the air.

“I’ve never been a man of many words, Soteria,” he continued, his voice dropping into a rough, low rumble that vibrated straight through my bones.

“In the barracks, they know me as a cold man. But with you... I am completely weak. When you screamed at that grave, my soul almost left my body. I wanted to break every military protocol, push your brothers into the dirt, and just carry you away from that pain. I don’t just want to protect your family. I want to protect you. I want to be the man you lean on when the wall falls down. He paused.

“I am completely, entirely in love with you.”

The confession hung in the midnight air, thick, heavy, and undeniably real.

An overwhelming wave of pure, unadulterated affection crashed through me.

The loneliness that had haunted me vanished completely, replaced by a sudden, intoxicating warmth that made my knees go soft.

I looked at his parted lips, at the dangerous glint in his eyes, and the sheer heat of the moment took over my senses.

I didn’t want to think about the grief anymore.

I didn’t want to think about the mourning period or the rules. I just wanted him.

I stood up on my tiptoes, my hands lifting from my sides to grip the hard, heavy muscles of his shoulders.

I closed the remaining inch between us, my eyes shutting instinctively as I pressed my lips firmly against his.

It was a smooth, deep initiation born out of weeks of silent longing.

His lips were warm, slightly rough, and for a split second, I felt him freeze against me in utter shock.

But before the kiss could deepen, before I could fully lose myself in the solid comfort of his mouth, Akila’s hands came down on my shoulders.

His grip was firm, unyielding, and with a slow, deliberate pressure, he pulled his head back, breaking the contact.

I stumbled back onto the flat soles of my feet, my chest heaving as my eyes snapped open.

The sudden rejection felt like a bucket of ice water dumped over my head.

My lips were still tingling from the heat of his skin, and a sharp, sudden sting of embarrassment and anger flared up in my chest.

“What?” I gasped, my voice rising slightly, my brow furrowing into a tight, defensive line.

“Akila, what is that for? You just told me you love me, and then you push me away?”

I felt a hot flush of shame creep up my neck.

I tore my hands from his shoulders, turning on my heel to walk away toward the veranda.

I felt completely stupid.

I had thrown myself at him, completely exposing my heart, and he had handled me like a security threat that needed to be neutralized.

“Soteria, wait!”

Before I could take two steps down the stone path, his large hand shot out, wrapping around my wrist with a firm but gentle grip.

He pulled me back with an effortless strength, spinning me around until I was tucked right back into the center of his chest.

His other arm came around my waist, locking me against him so tightly I could feel the rapid, frantic drumming of his own heart against my ribcage.

He was breathing heavily, his chest rising and falling against mine like a man who had just run a marathon.

“Let me go, Akila,” I muttered, refusing to look up at him, my lower lip trembling with a mixture of anger and hurt.

“If you don’t want me, you should have just stayed behind your military boundaries.”

“Look at me,” he commanded softly, his voice rough with emotion.

“Unwana, look into my eyes.”

I hesitantly lifted my chin, my glare tight and defensive.

Akila was looking down at me with an expression that was completely torn, his eyes wide and pleading.

“Don’t ever say I don’t want you. If you knew how much I am fighting my own body right now just to stand two inches away from you, you wouldn’t say that. I want you so badly it is making me crazy. But it’s not yet time.”

“Not yet time for what?” I snapped, my voice cracking slightly.

“Is kissing me a sin, Akila? Are we committing a crime by holding each other after everything we’ve been through?”

“No,” he said immediately, his voice steady and grounding as he looked directly into my eyes.

“Kissing you is not a sin, Soteria. There is no law in the Bible that says a man cannot kiss the woman he loves.” He heaves a sigh.

“But I know myself. And I know the fire that is inside the both of us right now. Anything that will lead to sin, anything that will push us past the boundary of God’s holiness before the right time, we must not do it. We have to play it safe.”

He stepped closer, his chest pressing firmly against mine, his gaze dropping to my lips for a fleeting, tortured second before returning to my eyes.

“You are grieving. You are vulnerable, and your family has placed their entire trust in me. If I take advantage of this night, if I let our emotions carry us into something we will regret tomorrow, I will fail your father, I will fail your brothers, and most importantly, I will fail God. I want to build this with you the right way. On a clean, holy foundation. Not in the dark of a mourning period.”

The raw, honorable weight of his words slammed into my anger, completely deflating it.

The shame vanished, replaced by a deep, profound awe that made my heart ache with a completely different kind of love.

He wasn’t rejecting me.

He was protecting me, even from myself. He was guarding my spiritual integrity at the expense of his own desires.

I looked up at his handsome, serious face, and despite myself, a small, stubborn pout formed on my lips.

“Fine,” I grumbled, my voice softening as I let my arms relax around his waist.

“No smooth kisses on the mouth. But at least give me a peck. It’s my birthday, Captain. You can’t deny me a birthday peck.”

Akila stared at my pouting lips, and then, a sudden, booming laugh erupted from his chest.

The deep, rich sound shattered the serious tension of the night, making his broad shoulders shake against mine.

The playful, confident Akila I loved came rushing back into his eyes, a brilliant, white smile breaking across his dark face as he shook his head at me.

“Ah, Soteria,” he chuckled, his voice full of amusement as he tightened his arms around my waist, pulling me into a warm, comfortable hug.

“You are a very dangerous woman, you know that? There is plenty of time for pecks and everything else in the future. Don’t rush the Captain.”

I rested my cheek against the soft cotton of his singlet, my hands sliding around his back, soaking in the absolute security of his embrace.

The warmth of his body completely shielded me from the midnight breeze.

He looked down at me with a soft, intensely tender expression that made my breath catch all over again.

He tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear, his fingers lingering on my cheek.

“So,” he murmured, his voice dropping into a low, hopeful rumble that made my pulse race.

“Does this mean you are now my woman? Have I officially captured your heart?”

I looked into his eyes, the playfulness completely melting away into a deep, unyielding certainty that had been growing inside me for months.

I reached up, my small hands cupping his strong jaw, my thumbs tracing the line of his smile.

“Yes, Akila,” I whispered, my voice a steady, sacred vow in the quiet of the night.

“Yes, Akila. I am your woman. I’ve always been yours. You just didn’t know it.”

Akila’s eyes widened, his face lighting up with an expression of pure, unadulterated excitement that I had never seen on him before.

His heart went into an absolute overdrive, a frantic, joyous rhythm that beat wildly against my palms.

“My woman!” he gasped, a huge, radiant grin breaking across his face.

Before I could even scream, he threw his thick arms around my waist, lifted my feet completely off the damp grass, and pulled me into his chest.

He spun me around in a wild, dizzying circle right there in the middle of the dark garden, my black satin pajamas fluttering in the wind, our shared laughter ringing out under the Abuja stars as he held me like the most precious prize he had ever won in his entire life.

SOTERIA’S POV

The morning of the will reading arrived with a strange, heavy tension that hung over the entire estate, but when my eyes fluttered open at 5:00 AM, my heart wasn’t focused on the impending legal drama downstairs.

I lay flat on my back, staring up at the white ceiling plaster, a helpless, radiant smile spreading across my face before I was even fully awake.

The confession from Akila looped in my head like a beautiful, intoxicating melody.

Captain Akila, the cold, unyielding fortress of a man who commanded battalions with a single glance, had completely undone himself in my father’s garden.

He had officially asked me to be his woman– well not outrightly but anyway, he did, and I was still reeling from the sheer, breathless elation of it.

The suffocating gray cloud of grief that had blanketed me for weeks felt slightly pushed back, replaced by a fierce, golden warmth.

Unable to contain the bubbling excitement inside me, I rolled over, snatched my phone from the nightstand, and dialed his number. I knew he was already awake.

A man like Akila didn’t know how to sleep past 04:00am.

He picked up on the second ring.

“Hiiii beautiful,” his deep, gravelly baritone rumbled through the line.

Just hearing his voice sent a delicious shiver straight down my spine.

“Good morning, baby,” I breathed, tucking the duvet tight around my chin, my feet kicking beneath the sheets from pure giddiness.

It was the first time I was calling him that, and the word felt sweet and delightfully wicked on my tongue.

There was a sudden, distinct pause on the other end.

I could practically picture his chest expanding, his jaw tightening as he processed the pet name.

When he spoke, his voice was noticeably thicker, lower.

“Say that again.”

“Say what?” I teased, a soft laugh bubbling past my lips.

“The name, woman. Say it again.”

“Good morning, baby,” I repeated, emphasizing the word, my cheeks burning with a hot, happy flush.

“Are you busy?”

“Never too busy for you,” he murmured, and I could hear the absolute, rare softness in his tone, the private warmth he saved exclusively for me.

“You’re up early. Are you okay? The will reading is today, right?”

“Yes, it’s today,” I said, brushing the thought of the lawyers away for just a moment.

“But that’s not why I’m calling. Akila... I’m still awake. I mean, I’ve been awake, just thinking about last night. Did that really happen? You’re actually my boyfriend now?”

A low, rich chuckle vibrated through the phone, the sound warm and incredibly intimate.

“It happened. I meant every single word. You are officially my woman now. Don’t try to negotiate your way out of the contract this morning.”

“I don’t want to negotiate out of it!” I laughed softly, my heart doing a chaotic flip.

“In fact, I’m so excited I feel like I’m going to burst. Can I... can I tell my friends yet? I just want to tell them that the terrifying Captain has finally been captured.”

The line went quiet for a brief beat.

I could hear him taking a slow, steady breath.

When he spoke, his voice was grounding, protective, and completely wrapped in tenderness.

“Not yet,” he said softly.

“Let’s keep this beautiful thing between us for just a little bit. And when it’s time to tell them... I want us to do it together. I want to stand right beside you when you introduce me as your man.”

My chest swelled so tightly with affection I could barely breathe.

The thought of Akila, proud, serious, and fiercely private. Standing by my side and claiming me in front of the world made me squeeze my eyes shut in pure happiness.

“Okay,” I whispered, a wide smile stretching my face.

“Together. I like the sound of that, baby.”

“Mmm. Keep calling me that and I’ll desert my post just to come hold you,” he murmured, his tone laced with a playful but heavy promise.

“Now, brace yourself for the lawyers today. I’ll check on you the moment I get a breather from the base.”

By the afternoon, the sweetness of the morning felt like a distant luxury.

The family library was suffocatingly quiet, save for the dry, rhythmic rustle of legal papers.

I sat on the leather sofa between Effiom and my other brothers, dressed in a conservative, dark navy kaftan.

Across from us, my father’s longtime attorney adjusted his spectacles, his voice a monotonous drone as he read through the stipulations of the General’s vast estate.

It was an exhausting, emotional ordeal. Hearing my father’s voice captured in cold, legal prose, dividing up properties in Abuja, the ones outside Abuja , and the shares in various firms, made the finality of his death sink in all over again.

Thankfully, there were no dramatic family feuds.

Dad had structured everything with military precision.

Effiom was given the mantle of leadership over the estate, the boys received their trusts, and a significant portion was set aside for my mother’s care and my own security.

The moment the signatures were finalized and the lawyers packed their briefcases, I slipped away.

The house was buzzing with whispers, aunts and uncles already analyzing the logistics of the distribution, and I needed air.

I retreated to the quiet sanctuary of the veranda, leaning against the stone balustrade, and dialed Akila.

“Hey, beautiful” he answered almost instantly, his voice a low, steady anchor in the midst of my mental chaos.

“It’s over,” I sighed, rubbing the tension from my temples.

“The will reading. It’s finally done.”

“How are you?” he asked.

“Tired,” I admitted, looking out over the manicured lawns.

“But relieved. Dad took care of everything. Effiom is handling the bulk of the estate administration. He left the Abuja main house to Mom and me, and ensured the foundation funding is locked down. It was just... hard hearing it all laid out, you know? Like he really isn’t coming back.”

The line went silent, but it wasn’t an empty silence.

It was the heavy, supportive quiet of a man who was fully present, even across the distance.

I could hear the faint sound of military radios in his background, a reminder that he was stuck at headquarters.

“I wish I was there,” Akila said.

I could hear the raw, sweet frustration in his throat.

“I hate that I’m sitting behind this desk while you’re carrying that weight alone. I should be standing right behind that sofa, holding you close.”

A soft, watery smile broke through my exhaustion.

“It’s okay, baby. I know you have duty. Just hearing your voice right now is enough.”

“It’s not enough for me,” he countered, his voice dropping into a rough, intense register that made my heart hammer violently against my ribs.

He was a man of few words, a man who survived on silence and actions, but the absolute sincerity behind his speech was staggering.

“Soteria...”

“Mhmmmm,” I whispered, pressing the phone tight against my ear.

“I love you.”

The confession was sudden, blunt, and entirely unshielded.

He just threw the raw, deep truth of his heart directly into the open air.

My breath caught completely in my throat. My eyes stung with sudden, overwhelming tears, not of grief, but of a profound, beautiful awe.

He had said it last night in the heat of the garden, but hearing him say it now, calmly, deliberately, in the middle of a mundane afternoon, made it anchor deep into my soul.

“Akila...” I choked out, a tear finally slipping down my cheek.

“I don’t know how to say it fancy,” he murmured, his voice thick with emotion, the fierce protector completely vulnerable on the other end of the line.

“But I love you. Deeply. Keep your head up today, my girl. I’m right here with you.”

“I love you too, Akila,” I whispered back, wiping my face.

The heavy weight of the afternoon completely vanished, replaced by the beautiful, unshakeable certainty that no matter what storms lay ahead, I was no longer facing them alone.