Page 5 of Absolution (Favorite Malady Trilogy #3)

ABIGAIL

D ane is stunning in the mid-morning sunlight, even if his midnight hair is slightly disheveled from the sleepless night in the police station.

Once he was released, I insisted that we go on a walk instead of returning to our rented penthouse to nap.

After being trapped behind bars for hours, he needs fresh air and freedom.

His untrimmed beard is a shade darker than usual, but it only adds to his rugged perfection. Despite his fatigue from the ordeal, his forest green eyes are as keen as ever. He studies me intently, like he’s memorizing each of my features.

“I thought they might not let you out,” I confess, my chest tight with residual anxiety. “James promised that he could handle everything, but I wasn’t sure until we walked out of the station. It still doesn’t quite feel real that we’re walking around York.”

The setting is stunning: lush gardens surround the ruins of a centuries-old abbey, and the public space is quiet at this early hour. It feels as though we have the entire park to ourselves. I’m grateful for the intimate time with Dane.

His hand firms around mine. “I won’t let anything separate us ever again,” he promises. “Did the police give you a hard time while I was being questioned?”

“No,” I reassure him. “The officers were nice to me once they arrested you. I think they expected me to talk if they treated me kindly. But I would never betray you,” I swear.

“And I wouldn’t ask you to take anything from your parents that might come with strings attached. Thank you for accepting James’ help.”

His eyes pin me sharply enough to pierce my soul.

“I would do anything to be with you. Thank you for making me see reason. James doesn’t deserve my hatred.

” His sensual lips quirk in a cruelly satisfied smile.

“You came up with the perfect solution. My parents will be utterly miserable spending the rest of their lives in their quiet slice of paradise, unable to return to England.”

“They deserve worse,” I assert, fiercely protective.

He drops a doting kiss on my forehead. “I’ve spent my entire life trying to make them suffer. Nothing will ever be adequate punishment for all of their sins, but you’ve ensured that they will finally face some consequences. It’s more than I ever managed.”

“You don’t have to waste one more minute of your time or energy on them,” I reply staunchly. “You’re free, Dane.”

“Thanks to you, my clever pet.”

I flush at the endearment, not remotely irked by the diminutive term. I could never feel degraded by it when Dane says it with such reverence.

“I had several long hours to think last night,” I say, considering my words carefully. “Before I was sure that they would release you, I thought I might be compelled to give evidence against you.”

Dane’s jaw firms. “If it ever comes down to that, you will do what you have to do in order to protect yourself. If that means telling the police the truth about what happened so that you won’t be implicated, then you’ll do it.”

“No, I won’t.” I swallow hard, and then I say in a rush, “I think we should get married.”

His eyes flash, and his hand tightens like a vise around mine.

“I mean…” I fumble, unsure how to read his fierce expression.

Is he angry at my suggestion?

“I don’t want to have to testify against you,” I reason quickly. “If we’re married, they can’t make me, right? I’m not sure what the law is here in England. But that would protect both of us, wouldn’t it? If we’re husband and wife, you’ll be safe.”

“No.”

My heart stops at his flat refusal.

“What?” I ask on a puff of air, my chest constricting so tight that I can’t breathe.

His dark brows draw together in forbidding slashes. “You won’t marry me to protect me. You’ll marry me because you’re mine. ”

“Oh.” My mind whirs. “Is that… Are you proposing?”

His lips pinch with distaste. “Of course not. You deserve a much better proposal than that. When I do propose, there will be no question of my intentions. And you will have only one answer for me.”

“But I just said I want to marry you.” His edgy mood is throwing me for a loop. I think I might’ve offended him with the way I worded things. “It’s a yes. ”

His eyes turn stormy. “You want to for pragmatic reasons. That’s not how our marriage will work.”

He’s talking about our marriage as if it’s a foregone conclusion, but he still seems angry.

I study each sharp line of his tautly drawn features.

“It’s not only for pragmatic reasons,” I say quietly when I realize what he needs from me. “I wouldn’t say I want to marry you if I didn’t love you.” I place my hand on his cheek, and his jaw ticks beneath my palm. “I love you, Dane.”

His expression is almost feral with desire, but his eyes are cautious as they search mine. “After everything I’ve done to you?”

I think back to the dark day when I realized he was my stalker. He kidnapped me away to England. He held me in his family home against my will.

But he’s changed somehow. He’s still the man I fell for in Charleston, but I understand him more deeply now. Back in the studio he built for me in his manor, he dropped to his knees and apologized. He swore that he couldn’t live without me.

Then I learned what happened to his sister. I saw how his family treated him, how they tormented and warped him.

I’ve known that I’m still in love with Dane ever since we arrived in York, but I haven’t said it aloud yet.

“Even though I’m a murderer?” he rumbles in challenge. “You can love a killer?”

I trace the line of his cheekbone with my thumb, as though I can smooth away his tension.

“I made sure you got out of prison, didn’t I? I couldn’t bear the thought of spending the rest of my life without you. I love you, and I will marry you, Dane.”

His fingers tangle in my hair, capturing me in a firm grip. “You’re all I need in this life, Abigail.”

My heart soars. It’s not I love you , but I don’t require that to pledge myself to him forever. Dane’s affection for me is stronger than any words could express, and I feel the depth of his need for me in the way he tugs at my hair to pull me in for an almost savage kiss.

He consumes me, his tongue plundering my mouth without waiting for invitation.

He knows that I belong to him. I sigh into him, demonstrating my utter devotion.

I know now that there’s nothing he could do that would make me stop loving him.

Some part of me must be sick and twisted, but the fact that he’s a murderer hasn’t dulled my craving for him.

I meet his kiss with hungry lashes of my tongue against his, and I dare to graze his lips with my teeth in a primal demonstration of my own claim over him. His low growl rumbles into my mouth and rolls lower through my body. My core heats for him, and my pulse begins to race.

I wouldn’t protest if he laid me down and fucked me right here in the ruins. When he’s touching me like this, we’re the only two people in the world. The tourists filtering into the gardens as the morning progresses don’t register in my mind. I’m wanton for him, wet and needy.

A few hours ago, I thought I might have to spend the rest of my life without him.

But we overcame that challenge together. He leaned on me and accepted my help.

He’s so much stronger than I will ever be, but my dark god respects and reveres me. In his restraining arms, I’m more powerful than I’ve ever been.

When I’m panting against his mouth, he finally breaks our kiss with a cruel smirk.

“Don’t worry, little dove. I will fuck you senseless soon enough. Indulge me for a few more hours, and then I’ll make you come so hard that you’ll pass out from pleasure.”

I huff, not bothering to hide my pout. “Hours? Why can’t we go back to the penthouse now?”

He chuckles and drops a doting kiss on my forehead. “We have some shopping to do first.”

I lick my lips with open desire. “I don’t need to buy anything. All I need is you inside me.”

His nostrils flare. “Now you’re being a tease intentionally, naughty pet. Don’t make me punish you later. I’d much rather give you orgasms.”

My inner muscles contract with a pulse of lust, and my fingers curve into his broad shoulders. “If it means feeling your cock filling me up, I’ll gladly take any punishment.”

A shadow flickers at his jaw, and his low hum of consideration is downright predatory.

“It seems I’ll have to behave for both of us,” he rumbles. “I do love your desperation, but we’ll work on your self-control later, greedy little thing.”

I shiver and melt into him, my body ready for his sweet torment.

But he has other ideas. He laces his fingers through mine and urges me to follow him out of the garden.

Within minutes, we’re walking down one of my favorite medieval streets that has a view of the imposing Minster at the end.

My steps quicken in anticipation of another visit to the stunning cathedral, but, again, Dane tugs me in a different direction.

He stops at a shop with a green frontage and large windows that display a glittering array of antique jewelry.

“See anything you like?” He gestures at a ring with a massive, pale-yellow gemstone bracketed by two round cut white stones. “What about that one? It reminds me of your sunny smile.”

I gawk at the price tag. “Dane! Those are diamonds. ”

He quirks a brow at me. “Aren’t engagement rings usually diamond? Do you prefer something different?”

My jaw drops, and he grins. He’s so beautiful when he smiles like this—like a wickedly amused fallen angel.

“So…” I suck in a breath. “This is your proposal?”

He chuckles and shakes his head. “Hardly. I thought you’d like to select your ring. You’ll be wearing it for the rest of your life.”

The last is deeper, darker. Almost a threat.

I lean into him and brush a kiss over his stubbled cheek in reassurance. “Then I’d better pick out a good one.”

His smile is dazzling, sharper and brighter than the diamonds that wink at us through the shop window. Looking up into his deep green eyes, I know exactly what gemstone I want to wear to declare our bond.

“I’d like an emerald.”

His smile turns almost smug, but I don’t mind his arrogant satisfaction one bit. After everything his family has put him through, he needs my love, and a symbol of my devotion will provide him with a sense of security he’s never had before.

I’m going to be his family now. His wife.

And he’ll be my family too.

He doesn’t break our intense connection, holding me in his steady green stare as he presses the bell beside the shop door. It buzzes, and the lock clicks back to permit us entry.

Within minutes, I have a glass of Champagne in my right hand, and I hold out my left to try on a small, princess cut emerald set in yellow gold.

Dane grasps my fingers and directs them away from the ring.

“No. The first time your ring goes on your finger will be when you say yes to me.”

“I already said yes,” I remind him.

He shakes his head, a disapproving but indulgent god. “This one isn’t good enough,” he declares, gesturing at the ring. “Something bigger. With diamonds.”

“I don’t need you to buy me an expensive ring to prove that I love you,” I say.

His jaw firms. “I want every man to know that you’re taken. This doesn’t look like an engagement ring.”

“So possessive.” I sigh, but it’s a happy jibe. “All right, what about that one?”

I indicate a large, oval emerald that’s surrounded by a halo of diamonds set in platinum. The price is insane, but I know better than to put up a fuss about the expense. Dane wants a clearly visible marker of our commitment to one another, and I won’t deny him.

I want it too.

I’m no longer worried that he’ll try to use his money to control me.

He sees me as an equal, and he wants to provide a comfortable life for both of us.

One day, I’ll contribute to our partnership, our home.

Once we return to Charleston, I’ll devote all of my time to my art, and I’m determined to finally open a gallery.

My whole future is opening up before me, and I choose to share it with Dane.