Page 29 of Love Me Forever

His grin surfaced on purpose. “You are pleased that I have no wife?”

She attempted a reasonable explanation. “I would not want your wife upset over you tending me.”

“You are in need. I would expect my wife to understand.”

“You would not be unfaithful to your wife.” It was a statement of fact. Somehow she knew that a wife would mean much to him. Nay, love would mean much to him.

“I intend to marry for love and love my wife until the end of our days and beyond.”

His words touched her heart, for she had felt the same when she had married. Her smile faded with the thought of never finding such an enduring love.

He understood her concern and wished to ease it “You will know love.”

Strange that he had not told her she would love again, simply that she would love. “I had thought I had. I made a foolish mistake. How do I know I will not make that mistake again?”

He took her hand, his thumb softly stroking her warm palm. “The mistake would be not to try.”

She stared at him, a tear tempting the corner of her eye. “I do not want to feel that pain again.”

He locked his fingers with her slim ones. “You would give up love because of the fear of pain?” He shook his head as if he attempted to understand. “Yet I have watched you bear pain with courage.”

He gave her words to think on and a challenge to meet. “My body heals.”

“The heart also heals.”

“Does it?” Her fingers tightly gripped his. “I have wondered—once a heart is broken, can it ever heal?”

“The heart can heal only if you allow it to.”

Had she allowed her heart to heal or had she protected her heart by not facing the truth? She decided to speak of what was most worrisome to her. “I thought he loved me as much as I loved him.”

He heard the pain in her voice and encouraged her to release it. “You cannot blame yourself for loving him more. We do not always love wisely.”

She sighed, her fingers remaining tightly locked with his. “I wonder if I will ever love wisely.”

“It matters only that you love.”

She slowly shook her head. ‘To love is to hurt.”

‘To love is to know the fullness of life.”

“I knew no such fullness.”

He leaned down and kissed her cheek. “Then you knew not love.”

“I was in love,” she protested.

“A young lassies’ innocent love.”

“Innocent, aye, but no more,” she said with regret.

He wiped at the unshed tear that pooled in the corner of her eye. “You are more innocent than you know.”

“My innocence has been taken from me. It is long gone.”

“Nay, I do not agree. You are innocent.” Before she could protest, he asked, “Have you ever been kissed?”

“I was married.” She sounded as if his question was nonsense.