Page 68 of The Miracle of Love
She was in utter anguish.
But this was Grace, too softhearted for her own good, and precisely the reason he was not going to teach her how to fight.
She could not hurt a butterfly.
“All right,” she said, hardly able to catch her breath. “I promise. I’ll run.”
He kissed her on the forehead. “Thank you, love.”
“Do not thank me. It is a terrible thing I’ve just agreed to.” She closed her eyes to avoid his gaze and rested her head against his chest.
He heard a trembling sigh and thought she might be on the verge of tears. “Sweetheart, you are agonizing over something that is not likely to happen. The possibility is remote.”
“Then why insist upon it?”
“Because if it does happen, you need to save yourself and not die along with me.” He stroked her hair as he spoke. Those beautiful golden curls were now dry after their morning washing and were silky to the touch.
He buried his hand in her hair and tipped her head so that her lips met his. He needed to kiss this girl. Ached to kiss her.
Blessed saints, he was in love with her.
But he could not tell her now. She would never leave him behind if she thought he loved her.
She would break her promise to him for this…for love.
Would he not do the same for her?
Love changed everything.
He’d break every rule to save Grace.
Indeed, he was breaking rules now by ignoring Wooton and running off with Grace against his orders.
He nudged her lips apart and dipped his tongue inside the warm velvet of her mouth. She yielded to him immediately, her soft lips molding to the contours of his, and her tongue darting forward to mingle with his.
The words wanted to pour out of him.
Marry me.
I love you, Grace.
I’ll love you always.
Could she feel his words?
Could she feel his love?
He ended the kiss, perhaps too abruptly, because he was going to bed her if they did not stop. She ravaged his senses, his thoughts, and restraint. She was perfection in his arms, seeming to fit every part of him as though created just for him.
He wanted her.
Mine.
Forever.
But only as his wife.
Commitment. Sacrifice. Faithfulness.
