Page 74 of A Rogue to Watch Over Me
She pressed a kiss to his lips, craving every moment of contact. “I do hope that’s true.”
“It’s true, my sweet Amelia. Ye see, lass... ye’re in my heart.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
Ye’re in myheart.A cascade of emotions swept over Amelia at Logan’s gravel-roughened confession. His words seduced her with their honest simplicity, even as the truth crashed into her like a rogue wave.
Logan wanted her. And not for only this night.
Her stomach did a little somersault.
She had longed to hear him speak these words, words that echoed the desire in her heart and made her knees wobble.
Caressing her with a light touch, his lips brushed over hers. Gentle. Undemanding. So very, very tempting.
And then, he eased his hold, releasing her. This close, she could see the charcoal-hued hairs of new beard dusting his carved jaw. He rubbed his palm against his cheek, as if he debated a question within his own mind.
Taking a tiny step back, she pulled in a low breath. Logan’s brows dipped into a frown.
“If ye think I aim to sweet talk ye into spending this night with me, ye’re mistaken.” His mouth curved in a rueful half-smile. “Yer bed is beckoning ye for a good night’s rest.”
Her heartbeat pounded in a staccato rhythm. He’d uttered the words that should send her on her way. She could simply bid Logan good night and make her way to a comfortable bed. She’d crawl beneath the covers, and sooner or later, she would fall into slumber and dream of him.
Dream of the passion she had turned away from.
Of the love that might’ve been hers.
No, she would not—could not—walk away. She could not allow a twinge of doubt to destroy this moment.
She wanted Logan. The hunger went bone deep. The need in his eyes, a desire he could not entirely hide, told her he longed for her with the same intensity.
Some thought Logan MacLain a rogue.
But she knew the truth. He was a good man—a man worth the risk of another scar on her heart.
She met his deep brown eyes. “I know you don’t want me to leave.”
“Want ye to leave?” Logan chuckled under his breath. “Lass, I am neither a fool nor a eunuch. But what I want... it’s not what’s best for ye.”
Rather presumptuous of the man. Despite the quickly doused flickers of hesitation, she was a woman who knew her own mind. She would be the judge of what was right for her.
Cocking her chin, she leveled her hands on her hips. “What’s best for me?”
“I shouldn’t have said... what I said.” He raked long fingers through his hair. “A woman like ye deserves more than a tumble between the sheets.”
She drew nearer and reached for him. Amelia studied his features for a long moment, taking in the rugged planes of his cheeks, the subtle curves of his mouth. Slowly, she traced the contours of his hand, skimming over his slightly roughened skin with a subtle touch.
“Surely you don’t believe that’s all there is between us.”
“Ye’ve been through hell, Amelia. Yer emotions are stirred up. Ye’re vulnerable. I’ve no right—”
“Vulnerable?” She pondered the word. “Perhaps. But I am not an innocent. I am a woman. A woman who knows my own mind. My own desires. My own longings.” Amelia cuppedher palm against his stubble-roughened cheek. “But I have to know... is there nothing more between us than the prospect of a night in your bed?”
Passion glimmered in the depths of his gaze. “There has always been more between the two of us. And ye well know it.”
Raw feeling tinged the words, filling Amelia with joy. Logan was not a man to seduce a woman with pretty, meaningless endearments. But if she lived to be a very old woman, she would never forget the pure emotion in his husky voice.
Her fingertips skimmed over his chest, delighting in the strength of his firm, muscular body. “I know what I want.” She glided her fingers over the expanse of his collarbones, delighting in the primal response he could not disguise.
