“And you wanted the land.” He could hear the uneven-ness of her breathing as she grappled with the implications. “You wanted me to fall in love with you.” The hollowness in her voice cut him to the quick. “God, I'm such a fool.”
He knew what he had done was unforgivable. He knew how she'd been hurt by Montgomery and thought he'd done the same thing. But what had happened between them was different.
“I wanted you to want the marriage. I make no excuse for what I did, Elizabeth. I hated deceiving you, but I had good reason for what I did. What happened between us was real. Can you honestly believe that I don't care for you? Everything I've done is because I care for you. I've fought my own men, my own brother, to protect you.”
“All that proves is that you didn't want to see me killed before you could claim your spoils.”
“Damn it, Lizzie, that's not true. If I cared nothing for you, why did I urge you to accept Robert Campbell's proposal? I knew I could not deny you a chance at happiness. I tried to walk away that night you came to the barracks.”
“But I wouldn't let you,” she said, her voice teeming with self-disgust. “Your conscience can be absolved, then—if you even have one. But thank God my mistake isn't irreparable. Thank God I didn't marry you. I'll be happy when I never have to set eyes on you again.”
Her words stung more than he wanted to admit. How much of it was hurt speaking and how much was his being a MacGregor? “You will get your wish soon enough,” he said harshly. He wished that it didn't need to be this way. Wished that he were begging her to understand instead of trying to make it easier for them to part. Wished that they didn't need to part.
Hell, he knew better than to wish.
His eyes met hers. Her cheeks were flushed and her eyes sparked with fire. “I hate you.”
Her words unleashed something primitive inside him, the flare of emotion hot and quick. Anger. Frustration. And fear that it might be true. He didn't think, just reacted, pulling her into his arms. His heart pounded wildly, dangerously, with the primal need to prove her wrong.
She doesn't hate me. I won't let her.
He hardened against her, his body responding to the familiar feel of her pressed against him. Never had he felt so out of control. He wanted to ravage her senseless.
Kiss her.
Take her.
She gasped and tried to wrench out of his arms, but he held her firm.
He could feel the frantic beat of her heart, see her mouth tremble, her eyes wide and damp with tears. They stared at each other for a long moment, her soft mouth parted just below his. He could almost taste her sweetness on his tongue, calling to him.
His body hammered, the urge uncontrollable … almost violent.
The realization stopped him cold, and he released her as suddenly as he'd taken hold of her. What the hell was he doing?
What was between them could not be denied. But proving it would do nothing but salve his own male pride.
He dragged a hand through his hair, turning away from her and allowing his blood to cool. She eyed him warily.
Finally, he spoke. “You can hate me later. But right now, I'm all that stands between you and survival.” He could just imagine her out here alone. A pampered girl brought up at court in the Highland wilderness. She wouldn't last a day. What the hell had he been thinking? “I don't think you have any idea of the precariousness of our situation, but if we are to have any chance, I need to get this ball out of my leg.”
His body still teeming with violent emotion, he sat before the fire, pulled his blade from the scabbard at his waist, and went to work.
Lizzie watched Patrick wipe the flat of the blade of his dirk back and forth over his breeches—cleaning it, though the leather was caked with dirt and dust—her heart still pounding from the ferocity of his attack. No matter that for a moment she'd wanted his lips on hers.
I hate him.Never had she felt this kind of anger— irrational in its intensity. If he weren't already shot, she would have done it herself. She would rather be anywhere than here with him.
He was a MacGregor. Brother to the man who'd attacked her. He'd wanted her not for herself, but for her dowry. He'd used her like a pawn on a chessboard, deceiving her, making her fall in love with him, all for the sake of a few merks of land.
It was all a lie.
I'm such a fool.Actually believing that he cared for her. Of course she did, that's what he'd wanted. It was all part of his cruel plan. She crossed her arms around her waist as if warding off the attack, struggling to keep herself from falling apart. She'd thought she'd found happiness, but all she'd found was betrayal. How could she have been so mistaken? Again.
God, it hurt. The burning in her chest. The feeling that her heart had just been ripped out and stomped on.
I should be used to this.But it wasn't just disappointment. Her feelings for Patrick had gone so much deeper than anything she'd ever felt for John Montgomery.
Tears burned behind her eyes, anger and heartbreak converging in a powerful storm. Her mouth started to tremble. Her breath hitched.
