Page 82 of Never Leave Me
“Look, love,” he whispered, “when we returned from Saint Lucia, I promised you friendship. And that’s what we’ll have. We’ve just got to get through tonight.”
“You’re a good man, Harrison—”
“Maybe I once entertained the possibility of having more than friendship, but I’ve come to my senses.” He wasn’t interested in listening to her platitudes about him again, how he was a good man, her best friend, and how much she cared about him. He couldn’t stomach it. Not anymore. “The truth is, when I was paralyzed, I became somewhat of a confirmed bachelor. I don’t think I’ve ever really seen myself with a wife, and especially not with children, not when I’d be such an old dad ... like my parents.”
She blew out a breath. “Oh...”
“I know you only want friendship too. And I promise I’ll fix this somehow.” He motioned between them.
She remained tense. “So is this marriage binding? I mean, if we somehow make it back to the present, will we be married there too?”
“No. We won’t have a marriage certificate or any record of it. So it’s just for tonight.”
“Really?” Did her voice contain a note of disappointment?
He wanted to adjust his position and look into her eyes and read her expression. But he didn’t trust himself to move.
“I thought our vows were sacred. No matter where we are—whether past or present—we are man and wife. We’re married.”
He shook his head. “I think it’s the intent behind the vows. And since neither of us meant the vows and are only pretending, like we have previously, we needn’t worry.”
The door handle jiggled, and he guessed the priest was planning to peek inside to make sure they were indeed doing their marital duty so that he could report truthfully to Will or the bishop.
Quickly, Harrison shifted and pressed more fully against Ellen. “We have to playact again for the priest, love.” Resisting the urge to kiss her full on the mouth, he bent in and nuzzled his nose into her neck and her hair. As the door scraped open a crack, he let his hand skim along her arm.
He had to give the priest a convincing enough performance that he’d leave them alone. He let his lips connect with the soft spot beneath her ear with a breathy kiss. At the contact, she gasped, letting her arms slide around him and glide over his back.
Her touch lit a blaze within him as it always did, making him need her more than he wanted to admit, even to himself.
He dropped another kiss to her jaw, then another. Each time he made contact, she drew in a short, sharp breath, the sound beckoning him nearer to her lips.
When his mouth finally brushed hers, she arched into him and released a murmur of pleasure, meeting his kiss eagerly, her fingers digging into his hair.
He lost himself and was helpless to do anything but deepen thekiss. He forgot about time and space and everything and everyone except her. All he wanted was her. Forever.
At the click of the door closing, he paused and pulled back, trying to bring coherency to his passion-laden conscience. What was he doing? He couldn’t lose control now. He’d only hurt her again. And that’s the last thing he wanted to do.
Her gasping breaths bathed his lips. Lord in heaven above, he wanted to keep kissing her. But he sensed that if he gave his passion any more leeway, he wouldn’t be able to stop, especially because her arms were tightly wound around him and her fingers curled against the bare flesh of his back, almost as though she was giving him permission to keep going.
He closed his eyes so he wouldn’t be tempted to look at her mouth again. “Well done, you.”
She released a pent-up breath. “What?”
“We’re becoming first-rate actors, you and I.”
“Actors?” She released him.
He wanted to gather her close and hold her just this one night, all night. But he couldn’t. He wouldn’t make it another five minutes beside her without wanting more than he should take. “This time we really should win an Oscar for our performance.”
She rolled away.
“It’s almost as good, if not better, than the performance we gave in Saint Lucia.” Once the words were out, he could hear the bitter edge to his voice and wished he could take them back.
She faced the opposite wall and didn’t turn to look at him.
He sat up and buried his face in his hands.
“I’m sorry I hurt you there, Harrison.” Her statement was low and sincere. “I realize now that I was very selfish and didn’t think about what was best for you.”
