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“That’s not true,” he said adamantly. “You are a courageous and beautiful woman.”
“You stand alone in that opinion.”
“Mine is the only opinion that matters.” He smiled, but in his eyes there was a fire.
“A champion,” Terese said as if giving it thought. “I’ve never had one.”
“You do now,” Lachlan assured her.
“Why?” she asked on a soft breath.
He leaned closer. “You deserve one.”
“I do no—”
He pressed his finger to her lips. “You deserve much more, like the kiss I’ve wanted to steal from you ever since I met you.”
“You don’t have to steal it,” she encouraged.
“I’m glad to hear that,” he said and leaned in close to brush his lips across hers as if first familiarizing himself with her and letting her do the same with him. She eagerly returned the favor and soon their lips were seeking more. She was confident in her kiss, with a firm certainty that sparked his passion. She wanted him and she wasn’t afraid to show it.
Their kiss deepened and his arm slipped around her, carefully so as not to cause her injured arm pain. Her little moans and groans excited him and damn if he didn’t want to make love to her here and now. But it wasn’t the time or place, and there was her wound to consider.
“You taste good,” she said with candor when he eased their kiss to an end.
“And you are intoxicating.” He pressed his cheek to hers and lingered in the cool softness.
“We have a situation here, Lachlan.”
His name rolled so comfortably from her lips, as if she were familiar with it and liked the taste.
“We certainly do,” he agreed.
“What do we do?” she asked, though he thought she already knew the answer just as he did.
“We let it happen,” he whispered and kissed her cheek.
“You are not angry with me?”
He understood her query. “I must admit that at first I was, but my anger was more over my own foolishness than anything else. Giving the matter more consideration, I realized the situation you all were in and the wisdom of your choice.”
She scrunched her brow. “You are so very different from the men I have known.”
“And how many men is that?” he asked, unable to hide his annoyance.
She quickly explained. “I’ve bedded no man. I compare you to family and clan members.”
His annoyance instantly evaporated. “I’m one of a kind.”
She laughed lightly. “I’m beginning to realize that.”
“But so are you, which make us the perfect pair.”
“I agree.”
Lachlan took her hand and raised it to his mouth for a kiss, but her grimace stopped him short. “I’m sorry,” he said, easing her arm down to rest their clasped hands on his lap.
“My wound is truly much better then it was,” she assured him.
They stared at each other and the sun came up around them, a brilliant ball of orange that kissed the land and their faces as they came together in their own kiss. It stole their breaths and sparked their passion. When it finished they rested their foreheads against each other, allowing their breathing to return to normal, though it would take more time for their desire to abate.
He chuckled, his forehead continuing to rest against hers. “I’m relieved you never took vows.”
“They are not meant for me,” she said, turning her head from his to tilt it back so that the morning rays could toast her face.
“What is meant for you?”
“Freedom to live my life as I wish.”
“Few people have freedom to do that,” he said.
She shrugged. “Then I will be one of the few.”
“You are obstinate.”
She smiled. “Will that hurt our friendship?”
“Nothing can hurt our friendship.”
“You never know,” she said, shaking her head.
“Then you never had a true friend.”
She stared at him, her blue eyes matching the color of the morning sky and making him think he had never known the color to be lovelier.
“Good friends,” he continued, “are there for each other through the good and bad of things. They don’t judge or condemn.”
“Promise me that?” she asked. “Promise you won’t judge or condemn me.”
“I promise,” he said without hesitation.
But she looked skeptical and again he wondered who had hurt her. He’d find out in time, for as their friendship grew so would trust.
“Will this information change your departure time?” she asked.
“It changes nothing. You are women in need of protection—” He stopped abruptly and grinned. “Maybe not as much protection as I first thought.”
She took his remark as he had intended it, as a compliment. “Thank you,” she said.
“However, there still remains a problem.”
Terese nodded. “We occupy church land and will not be allowed to remain here.”
“No wonder you lead; you have a sharp mind.”
“All the women do. I just happened to fall into the role.”
“It may seem so, but leadership was truly yours from the start as with all great leaders. They never seek it; instead it finds them,” he said.
