Embrace the Night

Page 150



She nodded, her eyes brimming with tears. "I only want to be with you."

"I know. Don't you think I want it, too?" His gaze met hers and she saw the anguish in his eyes. "Don't you think I'd love to fall asleep beside you, to have your face be the first thing I see when I awake?"

"We could go away," she said. "I could sleep during the day and spend my nights with you." "Is that what you want, to give up dancing, to give up all you've worked for, to be with me?"
"Yes."

It was tempting. For a moment, he let himself imagine what it would be like to have Sara there beside him, to fall asleep in her arms, to reach for her when he awoke.

But he had to give her a chance to think it through, to fully understand what kind of life she would have if she chose to stay with him.

"You're a young woman, Sara. You have your whole life ahead of you. Think of what you'd be giving up. You'll never have a normal life if you decide to stay with me."

He ran his fingertips over her cheek, loving the warmth of her skin, wishing, as he had wished so many times before, that he was a mortal man again, that he could live with her and love her as he yearned to do.

He looked deep into her eyes. "Once you are truly mine, I will never let you go."

The possessiveness in his gaze, the intensity in voice, gave her a moment's pause. He was telling her, warning her, that if she decided to stay with him, her decision, once made, would be irrevocable.

He saw the sudden apprehension rise in her eyes, knew the very moment when she remembered that he was no ordinary man, that she wouldn't be able to decide she'd made a mistake and walk away.

"We'll talk more about it later," he said.

Sara nodded. Reaching for her robe, she slid out of bed and began gathering the clothes she'd need for the day. As an afterthought, she took the little silver cross from her jewelry box.

"Till tonight," she said, kissing his cheek.

"Tonight."

For Sara, the daylight hours passed slowly. She had little to occupy her time since she dared not go outside alone. After eating breakfast and washing her few dishes, she wandered through the apartment, finally settling down on the sofa with a book. But she couldn't concentrate. She kept hearing Gabriel's words in her mind: Once you are truly mine, I'll never let you go.

Wasn't that what she wanted, to be his forever?

She sat there for hours, her mind replaying every moment they had spent together, weighing her love for