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“You, however, deserve everything good. To echo what you’ve told me on more than one occasion, I won’t judge you, Braden.”
“It’s not a pretty story.”
“Well, my life has certainly been no fairy tale, so you needn’t worry about scaring me off.”
He reached over and took her hand, raising it to his lips for a brief kiss. “I’m so lucky to have found you, sweet lass.”
That rather choked her up, but over the next few minutes he told a tale that dried up any tears. She found herself wanting to kill Annalise’s brute of a husband for the murderous deed, one that had left Braden grief stricken and harrowed with guilt.
“I am so, so sorry,” she said when he’d finished. “What a complete travesty of justice.”
He scrubbed a hand through his hair, as if trying to get rid of the awful memories. “Yes. Annalise deserved justice, at least, and I could not give that to her.”
“You tried, though.”
“And failed.”
“That wasnotyour fault, Braden.”
He gave a slow nod. “It’s still a burden, though, even if I’ve learned to live with it.”
Samantha propped her chin on her hands, staring into the fire. On a very deep level, they shared more than she’d ever imagined. In her mind’s eye, she could see two lonely gravestones, and she wondered if she and Braden could ever rise above the sorrows of the past.
“We’re quite the pair, aren’t we?” she said with a sigh.
“Aye, that.”
“It’s terrible that you weren’t able to find justice for Annalise.”
“Some crimes can only be left to divine justice.” He turned to look at her, his gaze now calm and determined. “I’m convinced, however, that wecanfind justice for Roger Penwith. He was a good man and deserves nothing less. You deserve nothing less.”
His words carried the tone of a solemn vow, and she suddenly realized that Braden needed to find Roger’s killer almost as much as she did. For both of them, it could mean redemption and a chance to start over again.
She reached for his hand. “Thank you for telling me.”
“You’re my wife, Samantha. I don’t want there to be secrets between us.”
“There have been quite a lot, haven’t there?” she ruefully replied.
There was at least one more she should share with him—but not tonight. The poor man was looking ragged around the edges, and she was teetering on the brink of emotional exhaustion.
When he cocked his head, she could see the change come over him. Dr. Kendrick had just reappeared.
“How is your headache?” he asked.
Samantha blinked. “It’s gone, actually.”
And wasn’t that a surprise? Her headaches normally lasted for hours and were conquered only by sleep.
He smiled. “Good. Think you can sleep, now?”
She nodded.
“Even better.” He stood and then reached down to pull her up from the chair. “Off to bed with you, lass.”
She stared up at him, getting lost in the depths of his gaze. Braden tipped up her chin and brushed a soft kiss across her lips. Barely a touch, it sent shivers rippling along her nerves.
But when she rested a hand on his chest, instinctively wanting to deepen the caress, he pulled back.
