Page 55

He shook his head and his face flushed a dull red. “You could have trusted me to take care of you. Instead you nearly got yourself killed.” He cursed and turned his face away from her.

Was she imagining things, or had there been a sheen of moisture in his eyes?

She laid her hand over his heart, gently caressing him through his clothing. “I didn’t die, and I didn’t marry Garrick.

“No, you didn’t,” he said in a gruff voice. Lifting her hand from his chest, he stripped her glove off and pressed his lips to her palm.

“Kitty,” he choked out after a moment. “For a moment there I thought I might lose you. If anything happened to you, I couldn’t survive it,” he said, his voice so choked with emotion she could barely hear him.

“I’m so sorry I put you through it, my love.

" She drew a fortifying breath. "Zeke, I want you to know, even if I had gone through with marrying Garrick—for Collin’s sake—I meant to slip away the instant his back was turned.” She swallowed.

“I told Collin I wasn’t marrying Garrick. Then Garrick found us. He drugged me."

Zeke’s head snapped in her direction.

She went on. “I woke in the church. I didn’t know what he’d done with Collin, Zeke. I only knew Garrick swore to kill him if I didn't marry him. I had to try and protect him.”

Zeke swore. “He should have been protecting you.”

She cupped his hot cheek. “I know, Zeke. I never would have consummated that marriage, Zeke. You have to know that. And there are so many other things I wish to tell you. Things I learned about my grandfather and my brother which I can’t go into now because there isn’t time.

The main thing I need to tell you is that I made up my mind to marry you.

I love my brother. But not enough to spend the rest of my days without you. ”

Zeke sucked in a breath. He leaned forward, pressing his forehead to hers. “Kitty—"

“Let say one thing more.” She gazed at him through misty eyes.

“I accept you as you are. If you desire travel, to scour the globe for…for those ores you love so much, I will wait for you until you come home--if you still want me, that is, after all I put you through, and there is still the issue of me being unlikely to conceive.” She pressed her lips together.

Zeke’s brows furrowed and he shook his head. “Sweetheart,” he began.

The hackney jerked to a halt.

“We’ve arrived. Perhaps you need time to consider.” She leaped from the vehicle, leaving Zeke to pay the driver.

Her mind raced as she darted into the inn. She told Zeke he was free to not marry her, hoping beyond hope he’d reject the notion out of hand.

He hadn’t. Had he finally given up on her? Had he finally had enough of the trouble that followed in her wake?

She forced the dreaded possibility from her mind. One disaster at a time.

She charged up the stairs and crossed to Collin’s chamber as fast as her feet would carry her. She burst into the room half afraid she’d find her brother dead.

“Milady,” the innkeeper’s wife said, rising from his bedside.

Collin lay still, his eyes closed, his complexion practically bloodless.

Kitty stretched out her hand and moved forward. “Is he…”

“He’s resting,” the woman said with a kind smile. “I’ll leave you to him, then.” She stepped into the hallway, pulling the door closed behind her.

Kitty hovered over her brother, smoothing his greasy hair from his forehead.

He opened his eyes, wincing when he saw her. “Kitty, can you ever forgive me? I was wrong. Wrong to ask you, wrong to help him. I’ve been such a bastard.”

“Shh,” she whispered, and gave Collin a small smile. “Just rest now. We can talk about all that later.”

“But did he…are you…”

“Married to Garrick James? No. And I don’t believe we’ll have to worry about him in future.”

“Thank God. I’ll make it right between us, Kitty, I will.”

“I know. Sleep now.”

He smiled and closed his eyes.

Kitty looked down on his battered form and couldn’t have agreed more with his summation. He had been wrong. He had behaved terribly. But she loved him.

The door opened and closed softly behind her. Zeke stood there, glaring daggers at Collin.

“He’s sleeping,” she mouthed, moving toward Zeke, toward his heat, the innate strength of him.

He crooked a finger under her chin, lifted her gaze to meet his. “Perhaps we can finish that conversation now?”

She nodded, her heart in her throat.

He took her hand and led her from the room.

If she wasn’t mistaken, his hand was shaking. Now if she only knew if that was a good sign or a bad one.

***

He didn’t speak ‘til he had her alone in her chamber, door locked behind them. Once there, he opened his mouth. “Now, then—”

Kitty erupted with rapid-fire speech. “I understand if you’ve changed your mind. I didn’t mean to imply you had to make good on your previous—”

“—Kitty?”

“Yes?”

“Kindly shut up.”

“Oh.” She dropped onto the edge of the bed.

He knelt before her, taking both her hands in his. He removed her second glove, as he had her first, mostly to buy himself time. He feared he might stammer over his words, and he didn’t want to make a mess of this. Not again.

“Kitty, I’ve done a lot of thinking over the last”—he huffed out a breath—“ever since you crashed into my life.”

She winced.

He shook his head and traced his knuckles over her cheek. “I’m not good at this. Bear with me?” He gazed into her eyes.

She nodded.

“I thought I knew what I wanted. Thought I was so smart, setting up my life in such a way that no one could touch me, no one could hurt me, no one could make me or my family vulnerable, ever again. But the thing is, I had it all wrong.

“I thought my father was weak because he loved my mother so much her death wrecked him. But the truth was…” He stood. Scrubbed a hand over his face. “He was just weak. It had nothing to do with love.”

“Weak like Collin is weak,” Kitty offered in a soft voice. “But not you, Zeke. You’re the strongest, bravest, best man I know.”

He rolled his eyes, but her words filled his heart with warmth and yearning and so much more. “I don’t know about that. I have been weak. Putting all my faith in things. In money and wealth. In my ability to stay detached. ’Til you came along.”

He crouched before her again, taking her hands. “Somewhere inside me, I recognized the truth, but I kept rejecting it. Until today. Until this morning, when I woke beside you. I knew I didn’t want to go anywhere without you.

“When I arrived back to Aylesford, and you’d gone missing, I realized…I realized—” He had to break off to force down the irritating lump in his throat. “Christ,” he muttered. “This is damned embarrassing.”

“Take your time, my darling.” Kitty’s eyes shone with unshed tears, and what looked like joy.

He’d put that light in her eyes. He’d never felt more proud or more like a man.

“I don’t want to. I want to tell you how much I need you and…love you,” he choked.

She emitted a high-pitched squeak, and covered her mouth with her hands.

“I want to tell you I won’t rest until we are married. I won’t ever leave you again, or England, for that matter, unless you’re with me. I need you to know I want babies with you. Lots and lots of baby girls with your jet-black hair and tiger-green eyes, and maybe a boy or two.

“But if we don’t ever have a baby, that’s all right, too, as long as I have you.” He broke off. Thought a moment. “I think that about covers it.”

Kitty fell back on the bed, her body convulsing in silent sobs.

“Kitty?” He pounced on the mattress—only to find her choking on laughter.

That was the trouble with tigers. You just never knew what they’d do next.

“Oh, Zeke,” she said when she had her laughter under control. “I do love you so.”

“And you’ll marry me?” He raked a hand through his hair. “This time I want a straight, yes answer.”

“Yes. Oh, yes, my love.” She reached for him.

He sprawled on his side, pulling her into his chest.

They lay locked together for a long time, Zeke running his hand down her back, assuring himself she was there, alive and well, and truly his.

“At last, you found your way, Thurgood. I can finally rest, knowing my granddaughter is happy despite our many mistakes. Just remember, I’ll be watching.”

Zeke’s head jerked up from the pillow, and his gaze darted around the empty chamber. He heaved an exasperated sigh. “You again, Hastings? Don’t you have something better to do besides harangue me?”

“Who’s haranguing you? Darling, I think you’re dreaming.” She giggled and snuggled closer.

Zeke smoothed a hand over her hair. “Quite right, sweetheart. Did I ever tell you about the diamond I brought back from Africa? The one I named the Tiger’s Eye diamond?”

It was going to look just right on her finger.

She sniffed and toyed with the buttons of his shirt. “I may have…overheard.”

Zeke laughed softly, tracing his fingers over the curve of her cheek. “Never mind that. Come here, tiger.” He pulled her in for a long kiss.