Page 43 of Richard

He held her gaze for a few ticking seconds before a smile touched his lips. “I would hate to have him come between us.”

“I feel as if I am in a dream world. This is–”

“Magical?” he asked her teasingly.

She nodded. “And if I blink, it will go away.”

His smile faded. “I have weighed my mind since that night in my office when you ran out on me.” Letting go of her chin, he eased her off him and rose. “Let me get rid of these things.” He nodded toward their leftovers, littering the space next to them.

Collette's eyes were drawn to his lithe frame, the muscles in his chest rippling as he rose gracefully.

He did not seem the least bit self-conscious about his nudity, but then why should he be? She wondered as she watched him leavethe room. He had a strong athletic frame, and his sex—she shied away from thinking about his appendage that she could still feel inside her.

Coming back inside the room, he pulled her up against him. “I have been telling myself not to rush things, to give you time to get used to me, to us.” His eyes smoldered. “But I don’t care. Darling, I have fallen in love with you.”

Chapter 10

She went rigid in his arms, dark brown eyes staring at him in disbelief.

“You don’t mean that,” she whispered. Her heart was hammering inside her chest, and she felt hope flaring.

“You shouldn’t be saying that to me,” she was pleading with him. “I have agreed to the affair, I– I have been thinking about it, and I like the way you make me feel.” Her fingers curled into his chest. “Please don’t do this to me. You don’t know me. I–”

“I know all I want to know. And I don’t care if you have a million skeletons in your closet.

I love you, and I want you to be my wife.”

She jerked away and would have dragged herself out of hisembrace, but he held her fast.

“No.” Her breath was coming rapidly, and she looked frightened and vulnerable. “I can’t.”

“Baby.” He shook her slightly. “Calm down.” Scooping her into his arms, he went to the sofa and cradled her. “Look at me.” When she did, he continued. “I know what you went through and that this is probably the last thing you want to hear.”

“I was pregnant,” she whispered, tears glistening in her eyes. “He- he told me the day before the wedding that he could not go through with it.” Her fingers curled into his biceps, nails digging into the flesh. “He said he was in love with my sister. I begged him—told him that I would do anything if he went through with it.

All I could think about was the invitations that went out, the gifts that had started to come in, my dress, the church that was decorated by women who spent several hours trying to get it right.” She took a breath.

“I had just discovered earlier that week that I was pregnant, and I wanted to wait until we were on our honeymoon to tell him the good news.” She blinked and caused the tears to trickle down her cheeks.

Richard remained motionless. If he didn’t stay still, he was going to do something rash, like hitting a piece of furniture. He wanted to hurt those who had done this to her, and he wanted it so badly he could practically taste it.

“I told him about the pregnancy, thinking that he would do the right thing,” she gulped. “But he told me he never wanted children, and I was not going to trap him into a marriage he did not want. I lost the baby the next day. It wasn’t a baby yet.”

She stared at him pleadingly, her eyes drenched with tears, and he felt his heart shattering. “I was just three weeks pregnant, so it wasn’t really formed–”

“Enough!” his harsh voice rang out inside the room with enough force to have her staring at him.

“Baby, I cannot bear any more," he whispered thickly. “I want to kill the son of a bitch for hurting you, and I cannot bear to listen to anything else.” He pressed her face into his throat, his expression bleak.

“I am sorry.” She pressed her face into the warmth of his strong throat and felt her tears drying up. His arms were wrapped around her, and for the first time in her life, she felt secure and protected.

“Don’t you dare piss me off by apologizing," he murmured, his hands rubbing up and down her back.

“Thank you.”

“For what?”

“Listening. I went through years of therapy and never felt this good.”

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