Like that last day along the lane, Lottie ached to get closer still.
It was as if nothing would ever be enough.
She could spend the rest of her days loving this man, and it would still not be sufficient to purge the sheeremotionof him from her heart.
The thought made her kisses frantic. She trembled, hating the thought that he would leave her. That she might never see him again.
“I can’t lose you,” she whispered, her breath catching on a hiccup. “I c-can’t.”
He responded by holding her tighter.
Lottie lost herself in him. In the feel of his body pressed against hers. In the aching wish to keep him forever.
“Lottie. Lass.” A husky groan escaped him as she continued to kiss his mouth. “All is well. I willnae leave ye.”
“Whatever shall we do?” She continued to press kisses to his jawline.
She felt his smile.
“I say we continue doing this. I am finding it a rather delightful way to spend an evening.” He lifted her up, and Lottie lost her head once more, kissing her Alex.
Tears pricked.
Would that she could keep this man!
Finally, he pulled back, pressing his forehead to hers.
“Marry me,” he murmured against her mouth. “Marry me, Lady Charlotte Whitaker.”
Lottie gasped.
She jolted back onto her feet and rocked backwards, leaning against his arms that banded her waist.
“P-pardon?”
“Marry me.” The simple words hung between them, their portent echoing as loudly as any gunshot.
“But—” Shock had forced air out of her lungs. It took Lottie a moment to remember how to breathe. “But . . . what about the marquisate? You don’t want to be the marquess!”
“Ye have the right of it, lass. But the more I learn, the more I’ve accepted that the only way to solve the marquisate’s ills is to remove it entirely from Lord Frank’s control. That means I assume the title. There is no other solution. I’ve used these past weeks tae truly ponder my future. I dinnae go looking for a marquisate, but as a good friend pointed out, change finds us whether we want it or no—”
“But your practice in Edinburgh? You love being a doctor.”
“Aye. But I figure I can still offer free medical care tae my tenants, so I shall not have tae give it up entirely.”
She stepped back, forcing Alex to release her.
Her treacherous body protested the loss of him.
“Ye have any morebutstae throw at me?” he asked, hand open in supplication. “I’m happy tae argue all the reasons why I think ye should be mine.”
Lottie pressed a hand to her stomach. It was almost painfully glorious to hear Alex say such words.
“Alex,” her voice filled his name with such despair.
“I love you.”
His words were a blow to her chest.
