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The palace grounds were enormous and he wasn’t at all familiar with them. The sight of a glass-walled gazebo in the middle of the clearing made him shake his head wryly. Could it be the same one? It looked exactly like the one engraved in his memories—surely there couldn’t be another so similar?
The drop of rain that hit his left cheek surprised him, so immersed in his surveillance was he. But as the drops quickly became a deluge, he sprinted for the only available cover, the little glass gazebo where he’d made love to Elizabeth the very first time.
Only moments after he rushed through the little entrance into the dry interior, a noise had him whirling to look for a pursuer. Elizabeth halted halfway through the door, her hand to her throat in a gesture of shock that matched the expression on her face.
“Rafe!”
He’d recovered his wits while she goggled at him, though her appearance was as much a surprise to him. “Why don’t you come in before you get soaked?”
“I—” She glanced behind her at the downpour. “What are you doing here?”
“Coming after you.”
She straightened, and he could see her regaining her composure. She wore jeans and an oversize sweater, but when she moved into the room, her manner was so regal that she might as well have had on a crown. “You’ve wasted a trip.” The words dripped ice.
“Why did you come in here?”
Her eyelids flickered. “I was out for a walk and when it started to rain, I simply ran for the nearest cover. I didn’t come here for any other reason.”
He might have said something at that, but a man getting ready to beg for his life was smart not to antagonize the woman he wanted to share it with.
Again, she questioned him. “Why did you come here?”
“I can’t forget it.”
She blinked, looked at him through cool green eyes. “I beg your pardon?”
“Back in Phoenix you told me to forget about marriage. I can’t.”
“That’s what you wormed your way in here to tell me? How did you get in here, anyway?” She held up a hand. “Never mind.” Turning, she looked through the glass panes of the gazebo window. “Go away.”
Her back was rigid, her arms hugged closely together over the swell of the baby. He could see her in profile, her lips pressed tightly together and her chin trembling.
“I’ve made peace with my father,” he said softly.
“That’s nice.” She didn’t look at him, but her tone wasn’t quite so belligerent.
There was another awkward silence while he tried to think of something brilliant that would persuade her to give him another chance. Finally he just blurted out the words that were reverberating in his mind. “You said you loved me.”
She flinched. Lifting a hand, she placed it against the condensation on the window. When she removed it, her small handprint was visible. But it was so humid in the garden house that even as they watched, the outline began to fade. “Some things aren’t meant to be permanent,” she said sadly.
“Elizabeth…” Was there no way to reach her? “If you don’t want to get married, we don’t have to. We can live together for the rest of our lives without making it legal. Just please—” His voice cracked. Stopping for a moment, he closed the space between them and stood directly behind her. “Elizabeth, I don’t want to live without you. Please come back to me.”
She didn’t respond, but she didn’t rebuff him, either. Raising his hands, he nearly placed them lightly on her shoulders but after a moment he let them drop. “Please,” he repeated. “Give me another chance. I was wrong about everything. Your father, my father, you—”
“You would live with me even if I refused to marry you? Why? So you can hound me to death until I agree to make your child legal?” The words were lightly mocking, but he heard the pain underlying them, and his heart sank.
Quietly he said, “Some of us learn lessons more slowly than others. It took me far too long to learn mine.”
He took a deep breath. “I love you.”
Her emerald eyes widened and he could see the flare of an emotion she couldn’t hide.
“I love you,” he said again, pressing his advantage. “I should have told you before. I should have trusted you—”
She put a hand over his lips. “It’s all right, Rafe. We’ll make it all right now.” She cradled his face in her hands and lifted herself on tiptoe against him.
Rafe gathered her closer and fit his mouth to hers, sweet relief flowing through him. Despite everything, she’d forgiven him. Could she ever understand how much he loved her? His mouth grew more demanding as he dragged her close, his body urging him to demonstrate his need for her.
