Page 53 of Wedded to the Heartless Highlander

Her heart skipped a beat, but then her pulse quickened as his words sank in. The way he looked at her then—intense, unyielding—made her feel both exposed and inexplicably drawn to him.

“Well,” she forced out, “if they’re so insistent, why havenae ye done somethin’ about it?”

Hunter blinked, clearly taken aback. “Done somethin’ about it?”

“Aye,” she said, jutting her chin. “Ye have been dancin’ around this issue, have ye nae? Ye have obviously thought about it, so what’s stoppin’ ye?”

A muscle in his jaw ticked, and for a moment, she thought she’d gone too far.

“Did ye nae get me letter?”

“Letter? Ye thought that ye could resolve all of this with a short letter?” She threw her hands up in the air.

“So, ye did get it?”

“Och, aye. But it didnae addressthis,” she said stubbornly.

“And in what ways could I have beenmoreclear?”

“Just come right out and say it. Ye are dancin’ around the main issue. Again!”

Hunter let out a slow breath. “Careful, lass,” he warned, his voice dangerously soft. “This is dangerous territory ye are walkin’ into.”

Erica felt her cheeks flush, but she refused to back down. “I just think it’s worth discussin’. If the council’s pressurin’ ye, and ye’re…” she trailed off, realizing too late how her words could be interpreted.

Hunter’s lips curled into a slow, knowing smirk. “And I’m what?”

Her heart raced. “Thinkin’ about… ye ken.”

“Do I?” he drawled.

“Ach, ye’re impossible,” she muttered, standing up abruptly.

Hunter was on his feet in an instant, closing the distance between them with a few long strides. “Am I?” he murmured, his voice low and laced with something that sent a shiver down her spine.

“I—” she sputtered.

He tilted his head, his gaze dropping to her lips before returning to her eyes. “I dinnae tell ye everythin’ because I dinnae wish to burden ye with me responsibilities, Erica. But I ken ye’re right. This is yer life too.”

His admission surprised her, and for a moment, she didn’t know what to say.

He stepped closer to her, the heat of his body making her breath hitch. “And for the record,” he added, his voice almost a growl now, “I’ve thought about it. More often than ye realize.”

Her pulse quickened, her thoughts racing as his words sank in.

Is he sayin’ what I think he is sayin’?

“H-Hunter,” she began as she took a step back, but he silenced her with a look.

“Lass,” he said, his voice thick with emotion, “there are things I want. But I’ll nae give in because I willnae be pressured into doin’ anythin’. This is yer life, aye. But it is also mine.”

Erica stared at him, her heart pounding. She wanted to say something, anything, but the intensity in his eyes had rendered her speechless.

“Say somethin’,” he urged, his voice almost pleading now.

She swallowed hard, cursing her body for betraying her at that moment. “I dinnae wish… Nae now—nae like this…” she trailed off, her eyes falling to the floor.

Hunter reached out and brushed a strand of hair from her face. “When I claim ye, Erica Buchanan, it willnae be in me study. It willnae be after a quarrel.”