Page 105 of Promised to the Forbidden Laird

“I choose where I stand.”

His fingers tightened beneath hers.

“And I choose tae be here.”

“Ye dinnae ken what may follow.”

“Neither dae ye.”

“Cormac—”

“Isnae here.”

The answer carried more force than she intended. Donaldina softened her voice.

“He has taken enough moments from us. Dinnae invite him intae this one.”

Roy looked toward the waterfall, the woods and the quiet pool surrounding them, then back at her.

“Ye choose this?” he asked.

He was not asking about the place.

Donaldina moved closer until her knee touched his.

“Aye.”

“Kenning me fear may make me difficult?”

“Ye were difficult before I kent of it.”

His mouth curved despite himself. “And kenning I may fail tae protect ye?”

“Ye still dinnae understand.”

She lifted her hand to his face, tracing the scar along his jaw.

“I dinnae choose tae be here because ye can promise naething will ever hurt me. I choose ye because when I am hurt, ye sit beside me upon the floor and refuse tae leave.”

Emotion moved through his eyes.

Donaldina leaned nearer. “I choose the man who crossed a forest because I left him scraps of cloth. The man who turned away from his enemy because I called his name. The man who offered me freedom when a King’s decree placed obedience within his reach.”

Roy’s breathing had grown uneven.

“And I choose tae stay,” she whispered.

His hand settled against the back of her neck.

“Say it again.”

“I choose ye.”

Roy kissed her. There was nothing tentative about it. His mouth claimed hers with all the longing he had held back, yet his hand remained gentle as it cradled her neck. Donaldina turned into him, pressing one palm to his chest and feeling his heart beat hard beneath it.

He drew her closer. Her wet shift clung between them, cold at first, then warmed by the heat of his body. Roy’s other arm closed around her waist, lifting her against him until the stone, water, and daylight seemed to vanish beneath the force of the kiss.

She threaded her fingers into his damp hair. He kissed her as though weeks of silence had become unbearable. She answered with equal hunger.