“Open it,” he said.
Keeping his eyes locked on her, his heart skipped and sputtered. In the back of his mind he wondered if she would remember or if like a number of things, it would slip her mind. Carefully, she pried open the lid. Air whizzed through her lips as her eyes shifted from the contents of the box to Gabriel’s face.
“Ye’ve had this, this whole time?” she asked as she drew out the small ruby pendant. Her face turned red as she flipped the bird pendant over in her fingers, examining it.
Gabriel nodded.
“But I lost it.”
“Aye, and it took me three whole months shifting through the floorboards to find it. Do ye remember how ye lost it though?”
Gabriel could see the wheels in Elena’s head turning as she sorted through all the memories she had locked away.
“Ye were wit’ yer sisters in the study. I was outside, watchin’ ye from the window. One of yer sisters was teasin’ ye and ended up it rippin’ from yer dress and throwin’ it across the room. I saw how upset ye were over such a small thin’.”
“It was a present from my faither,” Elena said.
“I ken, but do ye remember how sad ye were? Ye moped about the castle for weeks. Because it was a keepsake yer faither gave ye before he left ye and yer sisters here.”
“How did ye even find it though?”
“When I came back from my travels. I started lookin’ around, rememberin’ everythin’ that happened within the walls of the castle. When I got to the study, I noticed something shinin’ through the crack of the floor boards. But wit’ each board I pulled up, the pendant would shift and drop and I had to keep pullin’ them up till I got it. When I saw it, I immediately thought of ye. And that was the first night I stayed in the castle after my return.”
“Ye thought of me?”
“Aye. There’s nae a single room in this castle that I daenae have a memory of ye in, save for one. But after I ruined the study huntin’ for that thin’, I realized I had to repair it. And so I began the process of renovatin’ the entire place. Soon, there wasnae a room that didnae have somethin’ of ye in it.”
“The paintings, they’re times we spent together,” she said. Gabriel smiled as she glanced at the pendant.
“Thank ye,” Elena said, throwing her arms around Gabriel’s neck.
He held her tight savoring her body against his. She pulled away and stared at him. Her eyes had never shone so bright. Inhaling, he leaned closer, feeling her breath on his face. Every ounce of him throbbed for her. It ached him to be so close and not be connected to her. His body craved her like it craved food or air.
“I love ye,” he said as his hand drifted to her head and held her from the nape of her neck. His lips tingled to be on hers.
“I love ye, too,” she whispered breathlessly.
Chapter 15
With her heart quickening,Elena pulled in a deep breath and held it. She stared at Gabriel as he inched closer to her. As if the lightest breeze fluttered over her lips, Gabriel kissed her. A fire kindled within her as he pulled away a moment. She could feel his eyes on her, boring into her very soul.
Without warning, Gabriel crushed his lips to hers once more. Her mouth moved with his as the fire he fed grew to a full-blown inferno. She curled her arms around his neck, pulling him closer to her. Passion gave way to desire. Desire shifted to lust. Elena couldn’t tell what she wanted more, to seep into Gabriel and become one with him, or remain separate so that she wouldn’t lose herself in him.
Gabriel’s fingers tightened in her hair, pulling at the roots as he shifted closer. With no more room on the bed between them, she felt Gabriel’s body pressing against hers. The heat that rolled off him was stifling. For a moment she wondered what would be left of her after he consumed all she was.
She clung to him as he shifted her. With her head now on the pillow, she knew Gabriel used his body like a blanket. He released his grip on her hair. The path his fingertips took down her body made her skin tingle. Bumps rose under her skin making her quiver under his touch.
Gabriel’s hand stopped shy of her breast. With her heart pounding in her ears, she pushed him off her. Every bit of her wanted him. She wanted to merge with him and experience everything a married couple should. Gabriel dropped his head, panting. He reached for the blanket to keep himself from crushing her as he looked at her. She cupped his face with her hands and craned her neck to reach his face with her lips.
“I’m sorry,” he mumbled breathlessly.
“I daenae want ye to stop,” she said.
“Now is nae the right time,” he said. “I will nae have ye in this way.”
“I daenae understand,” she said as he straightened himself. Slowly he rose and stepped back from the bed. The look on his face bothered Elena. She could see he was struggling with his desires as much as she was. Scrambling to the edge, she reached out for him, shaking her head.
“Daenae go, please. I want ye.”