Forcefully ignoring the ache of longing the sight of him stirred within me, I focused on restarting the necessary, but painful, conversation I’d begun earlier. “Jamie—”
I stood, clutching the ridiculously large pants before they fell down around my knees. “I’m not trying to make any decisions for you, but it’s obvious you have feelings for Sofia and have for some time. You’ve only known me a few days.” I couldn’t bring myself to tell him what the king had said to me; it would only make him feel as if his father were controlling his destiny from the grave.
He stopped pacing and stared down at me like I imagined Heathcliff had with Catherine. And look how their romance turned out.
“You’ve known her your whole life. The people of Doon trust and care for her.” Then, before I lost the courage, I rushed on. “How could anything you feel for me compete with that?”
As I stared into his expressive eyes, the emotions warring across his face convinced me I’d made my point. I may be the shiny new toy that’d momentarily attracted his attention, but his relationship with Sofia had history and substance. And a future …
He took my hand and led me to the hearth, where we sat facing each other. Jamie searched my face. “Will ye deny the Calling then?”
I pulled my hand from his, realizing with a sinking heart that the more we touched, the harder our ultimate separation would become. “Considering the direction your dreams took, I don’t know if we can ever be sure it was a real Calling.”
I broke eye contact, unable to bear the expectation burning in his gaze. “Besides, you would always be watching me, waiting for me to prove your nightmares true. There wouldn’t be any trust between us.”
“I admit it would be much easier if I could put the dreams out of my mind … put you out of my mind.” He cupped my cheek, urging me to return his tortured stare. “But I canna. Can you?”
Ignoring his question, I turned away from him and unwound my damp hair. The mundane task of fanning the strands out in front of the fire helped to distract me from the temptation sitting way too close.
“Has anyone ever told you that yer so beautiful you glow?”
Chills raised the hair on the back of my neck. Trying to act as if his words didn’t affect me, I shrugged. “No.”
I felt him close the distance between us and stifled a groan of frustration.
“Let me do that for ye, love.”
My arms dropped into my lap as if they had a will of their own. Jamie pulled his fingers smoothly through the strands of my hair, and I wondered if this was part of his strategy to win me over. But as he repeated the motion, his fingers brushing the nape of my neck and massaging my scalp, I forgot to care. Melting into a puddle of spineless goo, I was ready to curl up on his lap and purr like a contented kitten.
Seriously, how much more could a girl take?
“Do ye not care for me, Verranica? If no’, then tell me to leave ye be.” His deep voice was hypnotic. And calculating … and controlling. At least that’s what I tried to believe as I steeled myself to say the words that would turn him away from me forever: I don’t care for you a bit, Jamie MacCrae … I could never love you.
But when I opened my eyes to his beautifully noble face only inches from mine—looking as if I were the only thing that mattered in his world—the lie died on my lips.
His mouth shifted into a lazy grin. The hand that’d been stroking my hair cupped my jaw. His thumb rested on my chin as he tilted my face and lowered his mouth toward mine, his tempestuous scent weaving its spell around me.
He watched me under heavy lids as the pad of his thumb swept over my bottom lip. “I canna resist you.”
Oh no! I turned into a mindless lemming when he kissed me. I could not let it happen again. My mission repeated in my head. It was my only defense. Get the journal out of Doon and make sure Jamie ends up with the right girl—which, heart-breakingly, wasn’t me.
“No!” I practically yelled the word as I jumped up, my exhausted body betraying me when I stumbled back several steps.