“Another time, Callum. I’m Princess of the Southern Isles, and for the first time, I want to take advantage of that.”
His eyes showed a hint of disagreement, but he didn’t voice it.
We’d spent the week making love—and not much else. Conversations were brief and superficial. It seemed like neither of us wanted to talk about everything that had happened, or we just wanted to enjoy this beautiful peace as long as possible.
He finished his food in a few bites, eating his meal quickly like he was ravenous. Then he grabbed the glass of wine and took a few sips before he set it aside. He crossed his arms over his chest, and he seemed content just to watch me eat. He never forced conversation or needed to be stimulated by a dialogue. Even now that he was alive, he was still the strong and silent type, comfortable with long stretches of silence and intense eye contact. “You should probably visit your family.”
“I’m not ready.”
He didn’t press it because he never pressed anything. “I’m sure I can get a job in the village as a carpenter or a painter or a craftsman. Get a place of my own if you need?—”
“I want to marry you.”
He stilled when he heard my declaration.
“I want you here with me—always.” I didn’t want us ever to be separated again. He was my person, the love of my life, the man I wanted always. “I don’t ever want us to be apart.”
He gave a slight nod. “I didn’t want to be presumptuous.”
“Then I cleared up any confusion that might have remained.” I turned back to my food and continued to eat. “Unless you feel otherwise.”
“If you knew the depth of my feelings, it would frighten you, Lily.” He declared that with the same intensity in his gaze, confident in his words without a hint of regret for saying them. “You think you know, but I don’t think you’ll ever truly understand.”
I held his gaze for a while, feeling overpowered by the confidence that radiated from his presence. I was the first one to look away and return to my food, still feeling his hot stare on me all the while.
Minutes of silence passed, and he seemed to be content just looking at me. Then he changed the subject. “Now that I’m a living man, my seed is active. If you want to avoid a pregnancy, you should seek a contraceptive.”
“I’ve already taken care of that.”
He didn’t ask what treatment I sought or when I’d sought it. He didn’t necessarily seem worried about a pregnancy, but he didn’t necessarily seem to want it either. His thoughts on the matter were unclear.
“I want a family, but I just want you for right now.” I lifted my eyes to his again.
He held my stare, his emotions hard to read.
“How do you feel?”
“Whenever it happens, I’ll be ready.”
“Most men aren’t keen on fatherhood, but you seem made for it.”
Something about my words provoked him because the confidence in his stare softened. He blinked, even looked away, as his arms changed positions over his chest.
I waited for him to share his thoughts with me on his own, but he never did.
I decided to let it lie. Let him come to me when he was ready to share whatever he was concealing from me.
“You knew I didn’t abandon you.” His eyes came back to mine, his stare confident once more, but with a hint of emotion. “And that means the world to me.”
“You promised you wouldn’t leave without a goodbye.”
“And it means the world that you would hold me to that. That you knew I didn’t leave because I wanted to.” His eyes softened as he continued his stare. “That you didn’t assume the worst about me.”
“How could I assume the worst when I only know the best?”
He didn’t have anything to say to that because his stare continued.
“When I still had your strength, I took that as a message from beyond the grave. That you were still alive but unable to get to me. At first, I assumed you were busy, but when the weeks passed and you didn’t return…I knew something had happened to you. Because nothing would stop you from coming back to me.”
