“You did.” With a languorous smile, she rolled to face him. “And you’ve always taken time where it counts, Garrett. You seem to make it last just the right amount. I feel very satisfied...yet I want more. After a brief rest, of course.”
He gathered her into his arms and she snuggled closer. Running her fingers across the smooth planes of his chest and drawing tiny circles around his nipples with the tip of her finger, she marveled at his physical perfection. He was the most beautiful man she had ever known.
“Are you ready for tomorrow?” she asked, referring of course to their wedding ceremony which would take place in less than twenty-four hours.
“More than ready,” he replied, wrapping both arms around her. “I have absolutely no reservations. What about you? Are you ready?”
“Of course. It’s what we agreed to, and it has all been wonderful, Garrett.”
She felt incredibly relaxed.
“Do you find it strange,” he asked, rubbing his thumb lightly over her shoulder, “that we have been making love, when that was not part of the contract?”
Not entirely sure where this was going, Anne took great care with her reply. “Perhaps a little, but we are attracted to each other. I don’t regret it, if that’s what you’re asking.”
“No, that’s not what I’m asking.”
Anne cleared her throat. “Are you going to elaborate?”
Garrett rose up on an elbow and ran a hand down over her hip. “I love every soft curve of your body...the fragrance of your skin, and the silky feel of your hair when it brushes across my face.”
He hadn’t answered the question, but she didn’t mind when he spoke words like that—words that made her melt into him and feel as if she could stay in bed with him forever.
His eyes met hers. “What would you say if I suggested that we become rebels and break the rules of the contract?”
Her heart began to pound. “In what way?”
All of a sudden, she was no longer relaxed. Her hopes were soaring, yet she was still fighting to grab hold of them, pull them to the ground, and stomp on them. She couldn’t bear if he referred to something different from what she wanted.
True love. Commitment. A devotion that would last a lifetime.
“What if we didn’t part ways after the wedding?” he added. “What if we stayed together for a while?”
Anne wet her lips and labored to appear calm about his proposition.
“I’m not ready for this to end,” he continued. “I like being with you. You like being with me as well, do you not?”
“Of course,” she replied.
“Then let us continue with the charade.” He paused. “Forgive me, that is not what I meant. It is not a charade. It is very real. I am passionate about you Anne, and if I am to be honest, I will confess that I want more. I need more. I was feeling quite dead inside until I met you. Somehow you have awakened me to good things in my life. I feel reborn. So much has happened this past week, and you have been at the center of it all.”
Every word he spoke was like music to her ears. She could hardly breathe... But what did this mean? A few more weeks of lovemaking until he was recovered from all the turmoil in his life, and ready to leave? That would only prolong the agony of her dread—for surely one day it would end. If not tomorrow, then a few weeks from now, or perhaps even a year hence. The contract gave him the right to return to his bachelor life. Could she survive the loss of him one day in the future, when each day made her love him more than the last?
“Where is this headed?” she asked.
He shook his head. “I don’t know exactly. I’m confused by this. It’s not what I expected.”
“Nor I.” She pushed him aside so she could sit up and reach for her dressing gown, which was laid out on the chair beside the bed. She stood and slipped into it, tied the sash, and moved to the chair in front of the fire. There, she sat down and crossed one leg over the other.
She heard the sound of the bed covers rustling and the creak of the mattress as Garrett also rose to his feet.
He was naked. She was afraid to look at him, afraid to get sucked back in again. She must keep her wits about her, because he was everything she could ever dream of. What should she do? Surrender to loving him for as long as he wanted her?
Or protect herself?
When at last she looked at him, she was relieved to see that he had pulled the coverlet off the bed and wrapped himself in it. Thank God it was winter.
He knelt down before her. “What’s wrong? Have I asked too much of you? I know you wish to be independent and I respect that, but you mean a great deal to me. I don’t want to lose you. I want to be a part of your life.”