She shook her head. It was impossible for her to speak at the moment, as full as her heart felt.
“I think we should turn George Myerson’s saloon into a dance studio. That way I won’t always be driving down to White Sands when I wake up in the middle of the night and find you gone from bed. And you know what else?”
“What?” she asked wetly.
“I don’t think you should spend another night anywhere but in my arms. Ever.”
Fresh tears spilled down her face.
His expression softened when he fully took in how overwhelmed she was.
“Why are you crying?” he whispered.
“I thought…I thought maybe you wouldn’t be able to forgive me. I thought it was just a matter of time before you saw it was all a big mistake.”
“So you decided to be the one to end things?”
Natalie nodded, feeling foolish. “It hurt so much to let you go,” she said shakily. “I was stupid. I hope you understand. I was the one who caused you all this grief. Before me, you’d considered your parents’ marriage solid…sanctified. Before me, Deidre was your full sister, not your half one.”
“Deidre will always be my sister. Completely,” he said quietly, brushing tears off her cheeks with his thumb. “Nothing can change that. I only wish my father could have given himself time to reflect. He would always be Deidre’s father. Always.”
He placed his hand at the back of her head and brought her head down so he could land several hungry kisses on her mouth. “You were right to do what you did. You and I had nothing to do with the events that led up to that crash, but we had a right to know why it happened. I’m glad you asked me to look into this.”
“You are?” she breathed out in wonder.
“Oh, yeah,” he said certainly before he gently placed her feet on the ground, keeping their bodies pressed close. “You were the one who prodded me into doing what I should have done a long time ago. I’m thankful for that, more thankful than you’ll ever know. It hasn’t been easy, but stuff like this rarely is, I guess.”
She stared up at his face cast in moonlight, thinking he was the most miraculous thing she’d ever seen in her life.
“Is Deidre okay? Did you tell her about Linc?”
“Yeah. She’s flying to Tahoe even as we speak. I saw her off in Detroit.”
“You’re kidding.”
Liam shook his head.
“But surely she shouldn’t go alone,” Natalie murmured.
He sighed. “No one needs to take care of Deidre. She’s a force of nature. I told her I’d come out and join her in a few days if she wanted me there. Who knows what’s going to happen? We’ll just have to let things play out as far as her and Linc. I wanted to get back to Harbor Town as soon as possible, though.”
“Why? Because of your job?”
“No. Because I couldn’t stand not seeing you another second longer,” he said with a low, sexy chuckle that caused goose bumps to rise on her neck. He shook his head in bemusement as he looked down at her. “I wonder if I’ll ever figure you out.” He cupped her jaw in his customary tender gesture. A few more tears spilled down her cheek onto his fingers. “Did you really have yourself convinced this was a temporary thing between us? A blip on the radar screen?”
She winced. “I didn’t want to believe it, but the circumstances have been so strange. I thought maybe…”
“What?” he demanded gently.
“That you’d convinced yourself you cared, when really it was just misplaced guilt…or pity,” she finished in a whisper.
She caught the fierce glint in his eyes before he lowered his head and spoke next to her upturned lips.
“The last thing I feel toward you is pity. Will you get that into your head?”
He raised his eyebrows in half exasperation, half amusement when she nodded meekly. He pressed his forehead next to hers.
“There are a lot of things that are uncertain for my family right now. Please tell me you’re a certainty, Natalie.”