A/N: Alright, here it is! The true final installment of this story! Don't get me wrong, I really have enjoyed writing this, it's just been an interesting experience waiting to find out how it would end! LOL Anyway, enough of my rambling; I hope this epilogue lives up to your expectations, please enjoy! (And yes, there is a little OOCness, it's kinda unavoidable given their increased age and the situation, please forgive me!)

Disclaimer: I still don't own Bleach…

Surrender

Epilogue – Four Years Later

Orihime's head fell back against her pillow as Ichigo's lips moved across her throat, alternating between light butterfly kisses and hard, almost bruising, kisses. Another moan escaped her lips as he sucked at the nape of her neck, and she tangled her manicured fist in his orange hair. "Ichigo," she gasped, trying desperately to retain coherent thought while his callused fingers teased one of her breasts expertly.

Rolling her hardened nipple between thumb and forefinger, Ichigo smirked against her slender throat as she arched beneath him, sucking in a ragged breath. One of her slender legs looped up, curving over his hip, and he released her breast in order to trail his hand slowly down her flat stomach. She moaned again when he found what he was looking for, and he let his fingers skim over her slick entrance as he trailed his lips up once more. He caught her lips in a hungry, heated kiss even as his hand altered course and trailed across her hip, holding her lifted leg in place.

A fleeting moment of sanity returning, Orihime tore her lips from his as his hand settled over her hip and gasped, "We're going to…be late-!"

Nibbling teasingly on the skin beneath her ear, Ichigo rumbled, "I'd much rather be here anyway."

The hand clinging to his back curled, holding him tighter as her nails dug slightly into his skin, and Orihime managed, "B-but…dinner…?"

Ichigo stilled completely above her, his member barely a hair's breadth from her entrance, and pulled back enough to look into her hooded gray eyes. Arching an orange eyebrow, he asked, "Do you want me to stop?"

An embarrassed flush stained her cheeks and Orihime pulled her lower lip between her teeth as she gave a quick shake of her head. "No," she admitted.

He smirked, leaning down to press a kiss to the tip of her nose, before growling, "Then fuck dinner."

Her understanding laughter was caught by his hungry lips as his tongue dove into her mouth to dance with hers. She moaned into the kiss and tightened the leg that was still curled around him encouragingly.

Ichigo required no further invitation, plunging himself into her core swiftly and groaning against her lips at the familiar, pleasurable sensations that immediately coursed through him. Her nails dug into his skin again and he dragged his lips from hers in order to once again ravish her delicious throat.

His name fell from her lips in a breathless gasp as he moved against her, her hips lifting to match his increasing rhythm instinctively. Her other leg lifted up, wrapping around his hip, and the shift in the angle enabled her to take him deeper, causing her to moan loudly.

He grunted something with his head half-buried in her loose hair and thrust harder, the tension within him building up quickly. Her body was arching beneath him responsively, the sounds coming out of her mouth driving him mad, and he subconsciously tightened his hold on her hip as he pumped in and out of her.

His lips found her heated skin again and he resumed trailing kisses across her shoulder and collar. She gasped his name again and he knew, as much from her voice as from the tension in his own body, that she was close to the edge.

Picking up speed, he thrust into her again and again, and he wrapped his lips over a sensitive spot on her shoulder, biting the skin just enough to leave a mark. He ran his tongue over the wound, soothing the skin, as the hand that wasn't attached to her hip lifted to massage one of her breasts.

Suddenly Orihime was tugging on his hair and neck with both hands, gasping and arching beneath him, and he lifted his lips from her collar, knowing exactly what she wanted. Their lips met in a heated frenzy as she curled both arms around his neck, and he braced himself properly as he moved in and out of her.

Her lips tore from his as her body convulsed around him and she screamed out his name in ecstasy, clinging to him like a lifeline.

Her release was all he needed to fall over the edge, and he thrust into her one final time, his own body shaking with the force of his orgasm as he grunted her name into her hair.

After taking a minute to recover, Ichigo withdrew from her and rolled over, pulling her with him as he always did. Orihime snuggled into him without a moment's hesitation, and he angled his head to press a sweet kiss to her temple.

Orihime smiled into his shoulder, her fingertips dancing lightly over his solid muscle, and she murmured sweetly, "Happy anniversary, Ichigo."

Ichigo pulled her closer, somehow, and lowered his lips to her ear before murmuring, "Happy anniversary, Hime. I'm sorry I made us miss our reservation; I promise I'll make it up to you."

Giggling against him, Orihime said, "You'd have stopped if I asked, Ichi."

"True," Ichigo relented, a teasing smirk curving his lips as one hand lazily trailed over her side. "You know, now that I think about it, it was really all your fault, anyway."

Orihime gasped, feigning offense, and playfully shoved at his chest. "It was not!"

"Sure it was," Ichigo insisted, rolling all the way onto his back and subsequently dragging her half on top of him. Grinning at her, he added, "You should've known I'd never let you leave the house in that dress."

A satisfied smile curving her lips, she replied, "I was hoping you'd like it."

"Tch," he grunted, hauling her up so that he could kiss her properly as he buried his hands in her long hair. When their lips parted, he said, "I'm not dead, Hime."

Orihime opened her mouth to respond, but suddenly Ichigo was kissing her again. She melted into the kiss, her body tingling as his tongue danced with hers and his hands skimmed over her bare skin.

He pulled away after a long minute and, voice thick, asked, "Can you wait here for a minute?"

Slightly confused, Orihime pouted faintly at having to move already, and asked, "Why do you have to move?"

Smiling reassuringly, Ichigo pulled her in for a short, tender kiss before saying, "It's a surprise; but I'll only be a minute."

Her curiosity growing, she nodded. "Alright, if you promise."

Rolling her over once again, Ichigo pressed a kiss to her forehead and whispered, "I promise," before promptly pulling back from her.

She watched in silent curiosity as he rolled to his feet and padded quietly across the room, finally crouching down beside his haphazardly discarded trousers. She couldn't help but lick her lips at the fantastic view of his toned backside, her eyes travelling up to the muscles that rippled across his back as he dug through the pockets.

Ichigo easily found what he was searching for, and he ran his thumb over the crushed velvet of the box for the hundredth time that day. He swallowed heavily, ignoring the snickering voice in the back of his head that was thoroughly enjoying his nervousness. Here goes nothing, I guess, he thought fleetingly as he pushed himself back to his feet.

When he turned back around, he took a moment to absorb the sight before him. His princess was lying, propped up by one elbow on her side, watching him with a mixture of emotions dancing across her expressive (and deceptively innocent) gray eyes. Their comforter was pooled around the foot of the bed, leaving her completely exposed to his piercing gaze.

He moved back to the bed, keeping the box hidden in his hand, and lowered himself onto the mattress beside her. She sat up as he reached out with his free hand to lightly brush her bangs from her face, and she stayed silent as he leaned in and captured her lips in a light kiss, before letting his hand trail down her arm until he had her hand caught in his.

Their eyes met again, and Ichigo took a silent breath. He hadn't expected to be nearly as nervous as he was, but he forced himself to push past it. Squeezing her hand, he launched in to the speech he had rehearsed in his head for the better part of a week.

"I love you, Orihime," he began, keeping their gazes locked. "You are the single most important person in my life, and I know I've said this before, but I would do anything to keep you safe; to keep you with me. And I know four years sounds like a long time to a lot of people, but, the truth is, I don't think I could ever have enough time with you."

He paused, as much to take a breath and calm his nerves as to bring up his other hand and snap open the lid of the box before continuing. With the introduction of an unexpected object, Orihime's gaze flickered to his hand, and her expressive eyes widened as she caught sight of the diamond ring within the small box. She swallowed noticeably and her eyes snapped back to his, but she managed to wait for him to continue.

"This isn't how I'd originally planned to ask you this," he admitted sheepishly, knowing full well it was his own fault that his plan had failed. "But that doesn't change the question. Orihime Inoue, will you…will you marry me?"

Tears were instantly pooling in her eyes and her smile was shaky but genuine as she said, "Yes, of course, Ichigo." She paused, one tear escaping, and pulled her hand from his to throw her arms around his neck. "Yes, yes!" she exclaimed happily.

His nerves vanished at her enthusiastic, and heartfelt, reaction, and he wrapped his arms around her, careful not to drop the box that still held the ring.

"I love you, Ichigo," she breathed beside his ear.

Ichigo smiled into her hair, lightly kissing the exposed skin beneath her ear, before teasingly asking, "Do you want the ring, Hime?"

"Oh! Yes!" Orihime assured him, releasing him and pulling back quickly, her face faintly flushed. "Eh hehe, I guess I got distracted."

Smiling lovingly at her, Ichigo lifted his free hand and trailed his thumb across her jaw before reassuring her, "It's alright."

Then he lifted the box and carefully pulled the ring from within as she held out her left hand expectantly. He slid the ring easily into place, his heart hammering against his ribcage.

"It's so beautiful," Orihime breathed, angling her hand so that she could get a good look at the simple elegance of the diamond. Looking back up at her boyfriend – now her fiancé – she smiled and said, "I love it."

An unfamiliar burning began behind his eyes and Ichigo forced the offensive liquid back, smiling softly at Orihime and whispering, "It…it was my mother's."

He paused, to swallow, and Orihime drew a silent breath, looking back at the ring she now wore.

"I know she would want you to have it," he continued, reaching out to take her hand in his.

Another single tear slid down Orihime's smooth cheek and she looked back up at him, a loving and understanding smile curving her lips. "Oh, Ichigo…thank you. I'll treasure it," she added, gently pulling her hand from his and reaching up to frame his face with her small hands, "as much as I treasure you."

"Hime," Ichigo murmured, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her close. His warm brown eyes shone with his love for her, and he slowly dipped his head, catching her lips again in a long, sweet kiss.

Orihime pressed herself against him as she curled her arms around his neck, suddenly extremely grateful that he'd kept them from making their dinner reservations. If he had proposed to her at the restaurant, as she was sure he had planned, she wasn't sure how they ever would have made it all the way home. Flash-step, maybe, but then what would we have done with his body?

Her thoughts derailed as one of his hands slid down, curving slowly over her backside before hooking beneath her thigh and pulling her leg over him. Their slow and tender kiss had become deep and sensual, and her hands, she realized, were roaming over his sculpted back, shoulders, and arms greedily.

The next thing she knew, her back was pressed against the mattress, and Ichigo was buried to the hilt inside of her as his tongue ravaged her mouth. Orihime cried out in delicious surprise at his sudden invasion, arching beneath him and curving her hands around his back once more. He pumped into her rapidly as they got lost in each other, his lips tearing from hers to trail down her throat and over her collar before latching onto one of her large breasts.

Orihime could already feel herself getting close to the edge as Ichigo thrust into her again and again, grazing his teeth over her sensitized nipple before soothing it with his skilled tongue. As she lifted her hips, eagerly welcoming his quickening pace, he switched his attention to the other breast, taking as much of it into his mouth as he could and sucking hard. She cried out again, moaning his name loudly as she thrashed against the pillow.

When he was finished with her bosom, he trailed hot kisses back up her chest until his lips were beside her ear, and, still pumping rapidly into her, he growled out, "Don't hold back, Hime; let me hear you."

Burying one hand roughly in his spiky orange hair, Orihime gasped, "I don't think…you have to…worry – oh!" The added exclamation was caused by the sudden sensation of him nipping at the sensitive spot just beneath her ear, even as his hands dragged down the sides of her body before clamping over her hips.

He thrust into her, harder and faster than before, each time filling her completely, and she writhed beneath his hot touch. They were both breathing raggedly, and with one final, heavy thrust, Orihime screamed out his name as she went careening over the edge at an incredible speed. Ichigo came right after her, shouting as his own release crashed over him, and he collapsed against her, his body drained.

Neither moved, or spoke, for several long minutes as they waited for their bodies to return to normal. Then Ichigo carefully withdrew from her and rolled until she was on top of him, nestled between his legs with her head tucked beneath his chin.

"Love you, Ichi," Orihime mumbled drowsily as her physical exhaustion caught up with her.

Using his feet, Ichigo skillfully pulled the comforter up enough for him to grab it with one hand and, as he adjusted it properly, he murmured, "Love you, too, Hime."

"See," Ichigo declared with a teasing smirk as he set down a plate of waffles in front of his fiancé the following morning, "I told you I'd make it up to you."

Orihime laughed and dipped her finger in the whip-cream, bringing it deliberately up to her lips and running her tongue along it before sucking it all the way in and dragging it out, releasing it with an audible pop. "Mhmm," she agreed, "you certainly did."

Ichigo's eyes darkened as he watched her teasing and he said, "If you want to eat this breakfast, I suggest you not do that again."

Smiling innocently, Orihime asked, "Whatever do you mean, Ichigo?"

Grunting something incoherent, Ichigo rolled his eyes and turned to take his own waffle off the griddle, saying, "You know damn well what I mean."

She giggled and picked up her fork, looking hungrily at the waffles, which were covered in thick strawberry syrup (because he knew it was her favorite) and whip-cream, and said, "Okay, I promise to behave at least until we're done eating."

Chuckling faintly, Ichigo took his seat opposite her and replied, "I thought you'd feel that way."

They exchanged a brief smile before proceeding to dig into their late breakfast. After several bites, Orihime paused and looked up, saying, "Thank you for breakfast, Ichigo. This was a much better way to celebrate our anniversary than just going out to dinner."

He lifted his brown eyes from his plate before smiling at her. "Yeah, definitely."

Together they finished their breakfast in silence as Orihime rubbed the band of the ring on her left hand with her free thumb. Orihime Kurosaki, she mused silently. I can't wait.

The End

A/N: Well there you have it! I feel like this is my ultimate smutty/fluffy IchiHime love fest…but maybe it's just me? Either way, please let me know what you thought of it!