Page 28 of Irish Thoroughbred (Irish Hearts #1)

“You’re lucky it’s not your neck,” he muttered, and, lifting her case with his free hand, he began to pull her after him.

“I’m not going with you—I’m going back to Ireland.”

“You are coming with me,” he corrected. “And you can walk on your own two feet, or I’ll cart you out like a sack of Irish potatoes.”

“A sack of Irish potatoes, is it?” she spat at him, but as he towered over her, formidable and powerful, she tossed her head and went on calmly. “Aye, I’ll walk, Master Grant. There’ll be other planes.”

Muttering an oath, he strode purposefully out to his waiting car, towing her with him.

He opened the door and gave her a none too gentle shove inside.

“You’ve got a lot of explaining to do, Adelia,” he said as he started the engine.

She opened her mouth to retort, but he cut her off with a deadly look.

“Save it until we get home. I have no desire to commit murder publicly.”

She remained silent on the drive home, stubbornly staring out the side window. Pulling up in front of the large stone house, Travis got out of the car, slamming his door with such force Adelia was amazed that the glass remained intact. He pulled Adelia out and dragged her inside.

“We’re not to be disturbed,” he announced to a gaping Hannah as he hauled Adelia up the staircase. Pushing her into her room, he slammed the door and locked it. “Now, let’s hear it.”

“I’ve an earful for you, Travis Grant,” she raged.

“You great thundering blackguard, I’m sick to death of your shoving me and pushing me and tearing my arms from the sockets.

I warn you, you black-hearted son of the devil, you’ll not be battering me about any longer unless you’ve a mind to have a few bruises of your own! ”

“If you’ve finished,” he returned evenly, “I’d like to see you use that double-edged tongue of yours for an explanation.”

“I’ve no need to explain a blessed thing to the likes of you.” Her eyes glittered bright green in her furious face. “I told you plain in the note: I want nothing from you. I’ve my pride if nothing else.”

“Yes, you and your Irish pride,” Travis growled, stepping forward and taking her by the shoulders. “I’d like to strangle you with your pride. What was all that about divorce and annulments?”

“I thought my wording clear enough.” She jerked away and backed up. “I said that, as an annulment was no longer possible, I was leaving and you’d be free to divorce me. I wanted none of your money and would pay you back for what I took with me.”

“And you expect me to accept that?” he shouted at her, and she backed up another step. “Just calmly read your little note and go from marriage to divorce in one easy step?”

“Don’t you shout at me,” she snapped back. “It was agreed when we started that this marriage was only for Uncle Paddy, and we’d have an annulment when he was better. Now that can’t be, so you’ll have to divorce me. I’m not able to do it myself.”

“You can talk of annulments and divorce after last night?” he threw back bitterly. “I thought it meant something to you.”

“I can speak of it? I can speak of it?” she roared, out of control.

“You dare say that to me? The devil take you, Travis Grant, for your hypocrisy! You’d no more than left the bed when you spoke of divorcing me with your fine lady.

Give me money to buy me off, will you? You low, sneaking buzzard!

I would rather die than touch one penny of your money, you low-lying snake! ”

“Dee, is that why you left?” Travis demanded, shaking her as she resorted to Gaelic curses.

“Aye.” Her small fists beat uselessly at his chest. “Take your hands off me, you cursed brute. I’ll not wait around to be bought off like some cheap fancy lady.”

He picked her up bodily, tucking her like a football under his arm, and ignoring the flailing fists, laid her gently on the bed.

“So it’s back to bed again, is it? I’ll not lie in this bed with the likes of you again. A curse on you, Travis Grant!”

“Be quiet, you little fool.” Travis captured her mouth, shutting off the stream of Gaelic, and held it until her furious struggles lost their force.

“Did you think I’d let you go after all I’ve been through to get you?

” He cut off her reply with another breathtaking kiss.

“Now, you little spitfire, keep your mouth shut and listen. Margot came here this morning without invitation. She brought up the subject of divorce, not I. In the first place— Keep still,” he warned as she squirmed beside him, “or I’ll have to get tough.

” He demonstrated by closing his mouth over hers until, for a moment, her struggles lost their force.

“In the first place,” he began again, “I had never considered marrying her; any plans in that direction were her own. We had a fairly compatible relationship for a while— Adelia, hold still . You’re going to hurt yourself.

” He shifted his weight, took both of her wrists in his hand, and held them over her head.

“She got it into her head that I should marry her and give up my work here, with some crazy notion about traveling the world and living in high style. I told her she was out of her mind, and she took off for Europe, telling me it was her or the horses.” He grinned down at Adelia’s flushed face.

“The horses won, hands down. She got it stuck in that small brain of hers that I married you to spite her, and when she came here this morning going on about divorce and settlements, I let her ramble, curious to see how big a fool she’d make of herself. ”

He took Adelia’s chin in his free hand and held her head still. “Now, if you had listened to the entire conversation, you would have heard me tell her that I had no intention of divorcing a wife I loved, now or any time within the next thousand years.”

“You said that?” All struggles stopped.

“Or words to that effect. The meaning was clear.”

“I—well, you might have told your wife you loved her. It would have saved a great deal of trouble.”

“How could I tell her I loved her five minutes after she raged at me, standing there looking like an outraged urchin?” He brushed her curls aside to kiss the creamy skin of her throat.

“My first thought was to gentle you so you could stand the sight of me and go from there. Did you really think I took you to Kentucky and New York just for Majesty?” His lips explored her smooth skin.

“I didn’t dare let you out of my sight; someone might have come along and snatched you away.

I decided to wear you down slowly.” His mouth moved over her face with slow, lingering kisses.

“I thought I was making some headway, but Paddy’s heart attack changed everything.

I felt the best way to help him was to assure him of your welfare, so I railroaded you into marriage with the promise of an annulment.

Of course”—his free hand began fresh explorations—“I never intended to give you one.”

“Let go of my hands,” she demanded, and he raised his head and shook it.

“Not if I have to keep you here for the next twenty years.”

“You thick-brained idiot, couldn’t you see how I was dying for loving you? Let go of my hands, blast your eyes, and kiss me.”

She pulled his head to hers with her freed hands, and buried her face in the strong column of his neck.

“It appears,” he murmured in her scented hair, “we’ve wasted a great deal of time.”

“You seemed so far away. All those weeks you never even touched me. You never even said you loved me last night.”

“I didn’t dare touch you. I wanted you so much it was driving me mad. If I had told you I love you last night— and how I wanted to!—you might have thought I said it just to keep you in bed.”

“I won’t think that now, Travis. Let me hear you say it. I’ve been needing to hear you say it for such a long time.”

He obliged her, telling her over and over until his lips sought hers and told her silently.

“Travis,” she finally whispered against his ear. “I’m wondering if you could arrange another thunderstorm?”