Her racing heart compelled her to move across the coach and sit beside him. “I’m sorry, Lachlan. I didn’t mean to cause all this.”
“You’re apologizing tome?” he practically shouted. “You’re the one who stands to suffer the most. And besides, you didn’t cause it.” He frowned almost viciously. “Your sister did, and I swear, with every breath in my body, that I will make her pay for this. There is nothing I won’t do to make her reverse it. I’ll kill her if I have to.”
Catherine shook her head. “Don’t say such things. She is my sister.”
A muscle clenched at his jaw, and he spoke in a dangerous snarl. “She is a witch, and her curse upon me came straight from the fires of hell. Do not forget that my wife died in childbirth. She cried and begged God not to take her from this world. Then she pleaded with Him to let the bairn survive.…” He paused a moment to steady his voice. “I loved my wife, but I had to bury her, and my child as well. I will not let that happen toyou.”
“But it’s not up to you to control how, and when, people die,” she argued. “You don’t have that power. Even if there was no curse, there could be no guarantee that I would survive giving birth to your child. No woman can have that assurance. Life is a risk. Every day, for all of us.”
Lachlan glared at her fiercely. “Raonaid shouldn’t have that power, either—to decide when someone will die.”
He looked away from her, toward the window. The coach bounced over a rough patch of road, and Catherine’s head pounded from the constant jostling and relentless strain of the situation.
He turned his searing, bloodshot eyes to her. “Marry me,” he said.
Her heart turned over in her chest. “I beg your pardon?”
“You heard me, lass. We made love this morning. You could be carrying my child. I know I’m not good enough for a highborn lady such as you—I am a Highlander without title or property—but we’ve lain together. I must marry you.”
She paused while all the blood in her veins slowly went cold. “You’re only proposing to me because of the curse,” she said. “You think I’m going to die, and you feel responsible. Isn’t that it?”
He spoke with dangerous antagonism. “Don’t say that. You’re not going to die. We will reach Edinburgh tonight.”
“But it’s true,” she continued nevertheless. “You would not be proposing otherwise, and I will not accept such an offer from you. I desire you, Lachlan, but how could I marry a man who only expects nine months of matrimony? What if I am not with child? What if we stopped in time? Have you even considered that?”
He dropped his head into his hands and refused to answer.
“I understand your concerns,” she said, more calmly now, “but I think we should at least wait to see if I am with child. Perhaps I am not. Remember, you did not take all of your pleasure inside of me.”
His gaze shot to hers. “Pleasure?You think I enjoyed that? It was torture!”
She frowned at him and sat back against the cushions. “How romantic of you. And here I thought you had a reputation for beingcharming.”
“So your answer is ‘no?’” he hotly replied.
“Of course it is ‘no!’ I have no memories! I don’t even know who I am, much less if I am expecting because of your wretched curse. Besides all that, how can I agree to become your wife when I am about to meet a twin sister who was separated from me at birth—a sister you want to kill!”
“You are in danger because of her.”
“She is still my sister, and she certainly didn’t intend to curseme.She doesn’t even know I exist.”
Suddenly a grim shadow settled over his features, and he spoke in a growling voice. “Sometimes when I look at you,” he said, “I seeher,and I want to close my eyes.”
Catherine glared at him with burning shock while a terrible knot of grief exploded in her stomach.
“Then you should be thankful I declined your offer of marriage just now, or you would have been quite miserable over the next nine months.”
For a long moment they stared at each other; then he pounded on the roof. The coach pulled to a halt, and he did not wait for it to stop before he swung the door open and leaped out.
Chapter Twenty-nine
Lachlan galloped ahead of the coach, determined to put some distance between him and Catherine.
Christ almighty.He had made love to her. Without ever intending to, he had slid into her depths and remained there for a perilous amount of time, unable to withdraw; then he had slid back in, again and again, until the pleasure had snuffed out all logic and self-control. He had taken her rashly and impetuously, andstillhe wanted to take her again.
Even in the coach just now, he had wanted to hold her, to kiss her sweet lips and run his hands through her hair. It was all he could think of—to lie with her again, to make love to her, every night, freely, without constraints, for the rest of his God-forsaken life.
Orhers,which might not be such a very long time.
