Page 92 of Highland Sword
“I’ll not be put off again. We arenottalking about it later.” He caught her elbow before she moved away from him. “I want an answer now.”
“Aidan,” she said softly, trying to pull away.
“My Dulcinea.” He placed his hands on her shoulders and looked into her eyes. “Do you love me?”
“I love you. I love you. Of course I love you. I’ve told you that many times.”
He kissed her and was once again taken by how passionately she responded. They stayed in each other’s arms for too short a time, however. The door to the library was open and anyone could walk in on them.
“What really worries you, my love?”
She held his gaze. “I’m too passionate, too opinionated, too volatile. Aren’t you afraid that I might put my dagger into the heart of anyone who doesn’t show you the proper respect?”
“I’m counting on it.” He kissed her nose and placed kisses on each of her cheeks. “What do you think Sebastian’s calling has been?”
“I don’t want to take his job.”
“Have no fear about that. We could be going to London,which is a far more dangerous place than Edinburgh or Inverness. I need you both in my life.”
She was still uncertain. He could tell. “Talk to me. Tell me what I can do to put your mind at ease.”
“It’s not you,” she exploded. “I’mthe problem. Ever since you asked me to marry you, I have no difficulty imagining myself meeting you on the kirk steps. It’s what comes afterward that fills me with doubts. I wasn’t raised in a traditional household. We had no women coming to call; there were no return visits. No darning or embroidery or lacemaking. No arranging of dinner parties. What do I know about being a wife to a person of importance? What do I know about being a wife, at all?”
“What do I know about being a husband?”
“Exactly. All the more reason for us to wait.”
He smiled. “I hand you an imaginary sword and there sits a pell.” He gestured to a chair. “What do you do with it?”
“Right now?”
“Right now.”
“I hammer it to pieces. Cut and slash it into kindling.”
“Imagine this as a metaphor for our marriage.”
Her eyes widened.
“When you’re upset, when you need to release your frustration, you can use me like that chair. I’ll be your trusted old pell.”
She shook her head, a smile tugging at her lips. “A marriage based on the training yard. You’ve lost your mind.”
“A marriage that says we will work hard on everything and solve our problems together. A marriage that begins and continues with the promise that we’ll grow together and learn to complete each other.” Aidan cupped her face and looked into her beautiful dark eyes. “I love you, and you love me. I respect you, and you respect me. I want to spendthe rest of my days with you, and I know you want the same. It’s foolish to let the lack of knowing a few parlor games get in the way of a lifetime of love. I would marry you today if you would say yes.”
Her arms slipped around him. She pressed her face against his chest and held him. “I swear to you, if I could do it now, at this very moment, I would marry you. But I can make no guarantee about tomorrow. My cold feet could return by then.”
He took her by the hand. “Come with me.”
Aidan paid no attention to her questions or complaints. He took her out of the library and past the drawing room and down the stairs. They stopped by the laird’s study.
She looked hopefully at him. “You’re going to tell Cinaed that you’ve reconsidered your decision?”
“Marry me, Morrigan. Tell me now that you’ll marry me.”
“I just told you I would… if it were today. But I can’t speak for tomorrow.”
“Some decisions are irrevocable, my love.” He drew her to the chapel door.
