Page 37 of The Blacksmith’s Wish

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A sharp, demanding meow shattered the peaceful silence.

Effie startled awake and bolted upright, her heart racing. For several bewildered moments she stared at the unfamiliar room, her mind struggling to untangle dream from reality.

Another meow. A plump orange cat sat regally at the foot of the bed, its golden eyes fixed upon her with unmistakable judgment, as though it found sleeping strangers in its master’s bed a personal affront.

“Oh…goodness,” Effie murmured at noticing her clothing neatly folded at the foot of the bed. She was completely naked. Memory rushed back in a warm, dizzying wave.

Gowan. The kisses. His arms around her. Heat blossomed across her cheeks as she glanced toward the empty place beside her.

Cold linen greeted her fingertips as she looked around the spotless cottage. He was gone.

A small knot formed in her stomach. Had he returned to work… or had he slipped away because he regretted everything?

She pushed the thought aside before it could take root. There was no time to dwell upon it. The fading sunlight spilling through the window painted the room in amber hues. Evening had nearly arrived.

“Oh, saints preserve me.” She hurried into her clothes, every movement reminding her of the tenderness left behind by what had occurred. Instead of embarrassment, however, the lingering ache brought a reluctant smile to her lips. It was a memory she suspected would remain with her long after today.

Fastening the last tie of her gown, she peered through the window again. Her parents would be wondering where she had disappeared to. She would need a believable excuse before she reached home, though none came readily to mind. Certainly not, I spent the afternoon in the blacksmith’s bed.

The cat leapt onto the rumpled blankets and curled into a contented ball.

Effie rested a hand on her hip and regarded the creature. “Where is Gowan?”

The cat blinked once.

“I thought as much.”

It answered with another lazy blink before closing its eyes altogether. She sighed.

“If that stubborn, thick-headed man is hiding from me because he believes I regret today…” She shook her head. “He has another thing coming.”

The very thought tightened something inside her chest. She had seen the distress in his eyes long before he’d kissed her. Of course he feared that once she truly knew him, she would turn away as perhaps others had.

How little he understood her. She loved every part of the man. His quiet strength. His gentle heart. His stubborn pride. Even the broken pieces he tried so desperately to conceal.

If he had left because shame had convinced him she deserved better, she intended to march straight to the forge and tell him exactly how wrong he was.

And if, after looking into her eyes and hearing the truth of her heart, he declared he wanted no future with her…

She swallowed against the painful thought.

Then she would walk away. She had given him her heart this once.

There would never be another chance to break it.

Chapter Twelve

The steady rhythm of his horse’s gait gradually eased the turmoil raging inside Gowan. Cool evening air slipped through the towering pines, carrying the scent of damp earth and heather, but it did little to quiet the memories that refused to loosen their grip.

He had left because he had no choice. Had he remained in that cottage one moment longer, he would have gathered Effie into his arms and made love to her again. Sleeping beside her had felt so natural, as though she’d always belonged there. Her soft hair had spilled across his arm like a silken curtain. Her plump lips curved in peaceful slumber invited more kissing. Every instinct within him had urged him to stay and hold her until she woke.

To spend a lifetime waking beside her was but a dream. His chest tightened. Better to leave while she still smiled in her sleep than remain long enough to witness the inevitable disappointment in her eyes.

Surely it would come.

Once she had time to think… once she remembered the scarred man she’d given herself to… regret would surely follow. He had seen that look before from strangers who caught a glimpse beneath his shirt. Shock. Unease. Pity.