Words, the ones she wanted to say and the ones she must, tumbled through her mind as they walked off the path and into the thicker, darker copse that would hide them from sight. Then he stopped and faced her, not releasing her hand. Indeed, he pulled her closer and lowered his mouth to hers. And—damn her!—she lifted hers to accept the kiss. She opened to his tongue and he tasted her deeply. Elizabeth leaned against him, clutching the leather of his jacket with her free hand. When her needy whimper echoed through the trees surrounding them and floated along the glen, she pulled away from him.
Memories of the sight of him kissing and caressing Ciara, much as he did now to her, reminded her of their path. She rubbed the back of her hand across her mouth, trying to stop the urges his kiss caused within her. She looked at him and saw his chest heaving as he breathed deeply and unevenly, his gaze never leaving her face.
“Elizabeth, I can explain,” he said, stepping toward her again.
“The kissing? The way you touched her?” She could not help the hurt or jealousy that tinged her voice. She was both and would not hide either from him.
“Aye, all that and more,” he said, softly, reaching for her hands. “I have found a husband for you after all.”
The tears burned her eyes and her throat. Ciara had suggested that James find Elizabeth a husband from among his clan so she would stay with them in Perthshire after their marriage. Now, such an offer, coming from him, sounded like blasphemy.
“James, I...” she began. Shaking her head, she tried to form the words.
“Listen to me, Elizabeth,” he said, shaking her hands to gain her attention. “Yesterday was a test. I suspected that there were no feelings between Ciara and I and that kiss proved it to me. Her lips, her body, do not cause what yours do.”
He pulled her into his arms and kissed her until they both lost their breath. Sliding his hand around until it rested on her buttocks, he pressed her against his body...and the very evident proof of the growing passion between them. She should push him away, but she gave in to the scandalous way he made her feel, rubbing her hips against his strong body. Then, he leaned away, cupping her face in his hands.
“My heart is yours, my sweet Elizabeth,” he whispered. His words, his pledge of love, only served to tear her own heart in pieces.
“But, you cannot...we cannot...” He shook his head and kissed her to stop her words. Then he gazed at her once more.
“Marry me.”
She froze, blinking several times at the unbelievable words he’d uttered. They were a denial of all they lived by, and she could not get her mind to accept such a thing. As though he understood she could not conceive of such a thing, he repeated them.
“Marry me, Elizabeth. Be my wife.”
The moment spun out between them as her heart warred with her mind, even as her heart tried to hope. It could not.
“James, it is worse than folly to think on such things that can never, never be. It is cruel and not something I would expect from you,” she accused. Pulling free, she turned so that he could not see the torment that must be visible in her eyes. “You are betrothed to another and not free to make such an offer.” No matter how much she wanted him to do so.
“And if I were free? Would you marry me then?”
“Do not ask something like this, James.” He strode to her and gathered her in his arms.
“I want to know. Would you?”
It took only a moment to give her answer—the word had been on her tongue since she’d fallen in love with him and only awaited the right time to say it. In spite of the sheer folly and incredible danger of it, the time was now.
“Aye. I would.” Saying the words did not lighten the burden on her heart. Instead guilt assailed her for her betrayal of her friend and her duty to her family. “But, it cannot be. It would be best if we ended this now.” She took the first step away from him, from the love he offered, and back toward the life she would lead without him.
A clean break, one that began at this moment and extended for the rest of her life would be the only way to salvage her honor and her heart. She would decline Ciara’s offer to move with her to Perthshire and be her companion. Since Elizabeth suspected that Ciara had recognized the attraction between her and James, most likely she would not even have to make up some excuse. Her friend would not force her to create a lie to cover the uncomfortable and unforgivable truth between them.
Elizabeth forced one foot to move in front of the other, intent on leaving him now, but his grasp from behind her prevented her from doing so.
“I cannot marry her, not for family nor for honor, when I love you,” he said softly. His breath tickled her ear as he spoke. And the words warmed her heart, no matter that he spoke of something that could not be. “I plan to break the betrothal and want you to come with me...away from here.”
She faced him and stared into his eyes, trying to determine if his intent was true. All she could see was love shining there.
But Ciara was the bold one. Ciara was the taker of risks, the one to challenge the way things were done and did things that only men did. Not her. Not Elizabeth. With but one exception, one she had learned a dear lesson from, she followed the rules, she did as she was told. How could she agree to something that would break all the rules and would tear apart her family and loyalties?
“Come with you? Your parents will never allow you to do that.”
“I am not asking them. Though if you agree to my proposal, you take to husband a man who can claim little more than what he carries and who can promise nothing but the love in his heart.”
“Jamie...” she whispered, so tempted to accept his offer. “I canna...we canna...do this.” She could remember no one who had betrayed the laird and not lived to regret it. Worse, they would not be the only targets of the earl’s fury—his clan and her family would bear it, too. “The laird would...” She could not even think of what Connor MacLerie was capable of doing in retribution for such a public act against his honor. Against his plans.
“Elizabeth, ‘tis a simple matter now for me. With your consent, we will leave this night, once the keep and village have settled in.”
