His words trailed off into the night in an unspoken confession as he found his way to her. In the shadow of the gazebo, his hot pulse at war with the cool night, he watched her as he loved her, and he saw the heat of desire blossom into the ecstasy of satisfaction. Together they found a love so exquisite that he knew it could never be recaptured. Only his own traitorous duplicity marred the perfect enchantment that he knew as he fell against her and felt the warmt
h of her breasts flatten against his weight.
It was several minutes before he spoke, as if he were unable to break the peaceful spell of enchantment that covered them. When at last he broke the silence, it was to murmur her name over and over in the night, as if trying to impress her memory upon his lips. It was so difficult to say all the things that he wanted so urgently for her to know. And the questions that had to be asked plagued him. He knew that it was time for explanation and discussion. Too much was at stake to continue to hide behind the truth. He needed her so desperately, yet his duplicity was eating at him. The fear of losing her gripped him more savagely each day. It was time for something to be done.
“What is it?” Erin asked suddenly, staring at the dread in his eyes. Once again she sensed the wariness had appeared, and the knowledge frightened her. She had hoped that all Kane’s reservations had melted away. Shivering more from Kane’s obvious apprehension than from the coolness of the night, she felt the same cold doubts crawl up her spine. He noticed the chill, rolled off her and pulled his jacket lightly over her shoulders.
His hands trembled as they pressed against her face. “Marry me, darling,” he whispered in a voice dry with emotion. For a moment Erin’s heart turned over. Her first impulse was to throw her arms around his neck and confess the depth of her love, but something in his face made her pull the reins in on her excitement.
“What?” she asked quietly, looking deeply into his eyes for the trace of love she hoped to find.
“I’m asking you to marry me. Now—as soon as possible,” he clarified, and pressed her fingers against his lips. “We need to be together.”
She wanted to accept his proposal, to take part in the elation that was beginning to burst in her veins. But there was the strong scent of accusation that hung between them and made her pause.
“I would love to marry you,” Erin breathed, trying to think rationally. The stars, the moon, the wind of the night were all closing in on her, and she found it difficult to concentrate on anything but the feelings of love that were swelling in her veins. “You must know that….”
“Then, get packed. We’ll fly to Reno tonight—or early in the morning. The sooner the better.” He began to slide into his pants in his urgency to persuade her.
“We have time….”
“No!” he nearly shouted. And then, in a somewhat calmer voice, he continued, “No—we don’t have any time.”
“But, Kane,” she argued, fearing the continuation of the discussion, but unable to stop herself. “You have to put certain things into perspective. We have to take Krista’s feelings into consideration—surely you can understand that. And the bank—”
“Erin!” He grabbed her shoulders roughly, and forced her to look up at him. His grip tightened on her forearms, and his face was a harsh mask of determination. “It’s got to be soon. You know that.”
“Why? We have the rest of our lives…”
“No, we don’t!” he snapped. “Don’t you understand?” His eyes were shadowed by the darkness of the gazebo, but Erin could feel the pain and torture of his words without being able to probe his desperate gaze. Why was he so insistent? A cold strange feeling passed over her, transferred from him by the urgency of his forceful grasp on her upper arms.
With an unsteady voice, she asked, “Kane, just what is it that you’re trying to say?”
“I’m asking you to be my wife, pure and simple. Is that so difficult to understand?”
She wasn’t convinced. “There’s more, isn’t there? Has it got something to do with Krista, because she’s already made it plain to me that she doesn’t have room in her life for a ‘new mother.”’ In the blackness Erin tried to read the expression on Kane’s face. Hoping to find love, she was disappointed. A cloud passed over the moon, and once the pale light was restored, she found his eyes torn with an emotion she couldn’t understand. She tried to draw away from him but still he held her desperately, passionately.
Slowly the grip on her forearms relaxed, and resignation covered Kane’s features. “Get dressed,” he commanded softly. “And then I promise you we’ll talk.”
Hurriedly she did as he instructed her, running her pantyhose in her hasty efforts. Was it the chill of the night that made her shudder, or the cold look of determination heightening the masculine angles of Kane’s face that cooled her blood?
As she was smoothing the silk dress over her hips, he began to speak in a distant voice that was dry with dread.
“When I was in California,” he started, stepping away from her and pacing the length of the gazebo, “some more money was embezzled from the dividend account…three thousand dollars to be exact.” He whirled to face her, and his guarded eyes found hers. The expression on her face was one of confusion.
“I don’t understand—I thought that Mitch was the suspect….”
He cut off her conjecture. “Of course he’s the prime suspect, but it’s become apparent that he has an accomplice in the department!”
“No!” she gasped.
“Yes!”
Her voice was faint, barely a whisper. “But who?”
“Why don’t you tell me?” he suggested, his voice taking on the quality of a smooth courtroom lawyer.
“But I don’t know.”