Gratitude. He hoped like hell she felt more for him than that. He sighed and rolled to his side, pulling her up tight against him. “Do you want children?”
Until he’d met her, the idea of a family of his own had seemed as unreachable as the moon, but now he awaited her answer with a painful tightness in his throat. He liked the idea of her pregnant with his child. He liked it very much.
“I would love to have your children.” Her voice was soft, and her eyes shone with wonder.
“You’d be a wonderful mother,” he whispered, letting his hand drift down her body to rest on her flat stomach.
“And you’ll be a wonderful father. I love that you’re not afraid to show tenderness.”
She’d used the wordloveso many times tonight. But she hadn’t yet used it in the context he desperately wanted her to. “It will be nice to hold you while I sleep,” he told her, changing the subject. “You’re so sweet and soft.”
She snuggled even closer, her chest pressed against his, her calf thrown across his thigh. “Goodnight, husband,” she whispered playfully.
“Goodnight, wife.”I love you, he added silently, wishing he had the courage to say it out loud.
* * * * *
SARAH AWOKE SLOWLY, savoring the warmth and strength of Luke’s body wrapped so casually around her own. They lay spoon fashion, his arm around her waist, his breath soft and gentle in her hair.
If she’d ever been this happy before, she couldn’t remember it. No matter how it had come about, Luke was her husband. She would wake up in his arms every morning for the rest of her life. She’d never be lonely again.
He was everything she’d ever wanted. If she ever found the courage to tell him she’d fallen in love with him, he might even reciprocate.
He stirred behind her and bent to kiss her ear. “Are you awake, sweetheart?”
“Yes.” She rolled to face him, taking in every inch of his beautiful, tousled appearance. His smoky gray eyes were warm and slightly unfocused with sleep, his sultry mouth tilted in a lop-sided smile. “Did you sleep well?”
He nodded. “Never better, thanks to you.” He brushed her cheek with his fingertip. “Would you mind terribly if I made love to you again?”
Heat suffused her face, but she shook her head, her pulse accelerating just at the thought of it. “Of course not.”
Luke’s smile widened. “I feel like I’ve died and gone to heaven, Sarah. I never thought it would be possible to be friends with a woman I desired this much.”
Sarah caressed the powerful curves of his chest, gazing into his eyes as they flared with gray fire. “I never knew desire until I met you.”
He made a soft, wordless sound and lowered his lips to hers, pulling her closer against him, letting her feel the heat and shape of his need. She reached between them and stroked him with bold confidence, feeling a sense of feminine power as he trembled and throbbed in her hands.
She would never get tired of touching him, never stop wanting him. She couldn’t imagine such passion was wrong, not when it was rooted in such love.
The need to tell him, to hear the words in return was overwhelming. She sensed he needed to hear the words nearly as bad as she did.
She cupped his face, gazing into his eyes and hoping she wasn’t making a terrible mistake by taking this chance. “I love you, Luke. You know that, don’t you?”
He shuddered as though he’d taken a body blow. “You love me?” Hope and disbelief chased across his face. Then he closed his eyes and groaned. “I don’t deserve it, sweetheart. I haven’t been honest with you.”
Her heart plummeted as a million possibilities ran through her mind. “What do you mean?” Cold fear washed through her and she grabbed the sheet, pulling it up to her chest as she waited for what was sure to be yet another life-altering disappointment.
Sighing, he scrubbed his hand over his face, still not looking at her. “God, sweetheart. I shouldn’t have kept this from you. Matt lied to you in those letters, and I was afraid to tell you the truth for fear it would drive you away.”
“What are you talking about?” She searched her memory, trying to remember the contents of the letters. They’d been full of lies. She couldn’t imagine which one, in particular, made him think he was unworthy of her love.
He pulled the sheet aside, revealing the wasted remains of his leg. “This.” His voice was low and strained. “This happened during the war. I fought for the Union.”
She stared at him in confusion.Thiswas what he’d been worrying about?
“Say something,” he urged. “Tell me you hate me, tell me you want our marriage annulled, but don’t just sit there.”
“I don’t understand,” she whispered. “Why do you think this changes anything? I don’t care about your past. I love you.”
