Taken By Storm Part 29

He wanted to feast his eyes over every inch of her, become familiar with every little detail until he knew her as no one had ever known her before him.

He whispered in her ear, "I want to kiss every part of you, claim every nook and cranny and make you mine."

He moved his lips to her mouth, and the palm of her hand greeted him.

He didn't like the sadness he saw in her eyes. "What's wrong?"

"I thought I made it clear that I could never be yours. This is but a brief interlude, no more."

Why did the idea disturb him? He had had interludes before, and it had never bothered him to say

good-bye to the women. Why did the thought of bidding Storm farewell weigh so heavily on his mind?

He could tell her he had meant just for this night, for this time they would spend together, and yet he couldn't bring himself to say it.

"I can't give you more, Burke."

He thought, or perhaps he imagined it because he wanted to, that she sounded regretful, almost as if she

were on the verge of tears. Did she want more herself but know it wasn't possible? Did it hurt her to believe so?

"Nothing has to be decided tonight," he a.s.sured her, leaving possibilities open to them both.

"Yes, yes it does," she said, pushing him gently off her.

He reluctantly moved away and she reached for a pillow to shield her naked b.r.e.a.s.t.s as she sat up.

"Why?" he demanded a bit more forcefully than he had intended.

"Because it is the way of things, and nothing will change that. You will return to America and I will remain

in Scotland.""What if we fell in love?"Storm's blue eyes widened considerably. "We cannot.""What if we did?" he asked, the force of his query remaining adamant."It's not a possibility. We barely know each other.""If I remember correctly, you and Daniel hadn't known each other long before you fell in love.""That was different," she said."Why?"She looked puzzled, as if the answer hadn't come as easily as she had expected."No answer, Storm? That's because there is no answer. Love is love, and it comes in its own good time to unsuspecting people."

She bounced off the bed holding the pillow to her chest. "Are you claiming to love me?"

"No," he said, though the thought plagued him. Why fight her on this if he wasn't in love? "I just feel we

should leave fate to deal with it, not throw obstacles in its path."

"I know my fate and I know my feelings. I will not love again."

"You are a stubborn one," he said on a laugh and shook his head.

"Much like you," Storm said with a toss of her chin.

He folded his arms across his chest. "So where does this leave us?"

Storm sighed softly, and Burke could see her shoulders droop along with her guard.

"You look for something I cannot give."

Burke raked his fingers through his hair and came close to muttering an oath. "I don't know what I lookfor, but..." He paused and stepped closer to her. "I'd like to find out.""I don't know, perhaps..."He pressed a finger to her lips, preventing her from objecting. "We owe it to ourselves."She gently pushed his finger aside. "Why?""We're attracted to each other and have a small time frame of opportunity here, which"-he emphasized -"if we ignore, we will live to regret.""You can't be sure of that.""You can't be sure we won't, so why take the chance? Why not see what awaits us? Why not delve into the unknown and let fate deal with us? But then you know your fate," he said. "So what have you got to

lose?"

He didn't wait for an answer. Instead he walked over to the chest near the chair and pulled out a white silk nightgown and handed it to Storm.

"Here, for you. Tonight I want nothing more than to hold you in my arms as we sleep. Can you give me that much?"

She looked bewildered and took a moment to answer him. "I would like to sleep in your arms tonight." "Good, then change while I disrobe and join me beneath the blankets." He turned his back to give her privacy, and then shed his clothes and climbed beneath the covers naked.

It took only a few minutes for Storm to join him. He held back the blankets for her to slip beneath, and when she did, he took her in his arms and rested her body against his.

She cushioned her head on his chest and rested her arm across his midriff.

He rested his chin on top of her head and held her snugly against him and whispered, "Good night, Mrs.

Longton."

Chapter 23.

S torm led the way through the woods, the sky overcast and the air chilled. She and Burke had left the ship before dawn and had traveled by horseback until late morning, when they once again returned to journeying by foot.

They had maintained silence throughout most of their travel, though not due to necessity. It seemed they both favored their thoughts, for which Storm was grateful.

Her day of rescue and fun had turned out upsetting. Not only had she tasted a day of freedom, but for a brief time she had experienced the joy of being Mrs. Longton, and she had liked it.

She had discovered Burke was a considerate husband, catering to her, wanting to make her happy, and placing her needs above his own. That he had simply held her in his arms and not attempted to make love with her surprised her and touched her heart.

She had woken on and off during the night and always found him wrapped around her or she around him. It was as if each of them needed to keep hold of the other. He had kissed her awake, informing her that dawn would soon greet them and they had best be on their way.

She hadn't wanted to leave the safety of his arms, the warmth of his bed, the solitude of his cabin, but she had had no choice; she left them all.

It was time to return to who she was and who she would always be-an outlaw.

It was crazy to think she could be anything else. This was her life, and all she could do was accept it. After all, she had chosen it and she had no one to blame but herself.

She had to start thinking of Burke as simply a man who hired her to help find his brother. Once done, he would be gone for good. The fee would provide handsomely for her small band of people. They would have sufficient food for some time and warm clothes to guard against the winter, not to mention the necessary bribes that helped secure rescues.

As far as sharing intimacy with Burke was concerned, she would need to give it more thought. At first, it had just been a way of appeasing her loneliness, but now she wondered if perhaps her emotions were becoming entangled in ways she had not thought possible. Until she could make more sense of her feelings, she thought it best to keep her distance.

"You can't run away from me."

Storm skidded to a halt and spun around, for a moment believing he had read her mind. She reined in her nonsensical thought and said, "We need to keep a good pace to arrive at our destination on time."

"I'd say we're going to arrive early at the rate we're going. Can't we take a brief reprieve? Enjoy the food."

"I suppose a brief repose won't hurt," she agreed reluctantly.

They found a secluded spot, though one that gave them the advantage of seeing if anyone approached, and settled down to enjoy bread, cheese, and apples.

Storm had thought Burke's attire yesterday had defined him, but she had been wrong. The way he looked today truly defined the man. He wore dark brown trousers, tan shirt, black jacket, and a long black coat he called a duster. He explained that it kept the dust off the cowboys when they traveled the range in America.

The image it evoked of a faraway land made her realize just how different Burke and she were and made her even more determined to remain aloof until she could sort through her feelings.

"You can't avoid us, Storm. Why try?"

Why did he have to be so astute? She took a bite of an apple, hoping to do just as he warned and avoid the issue.

Burke laughed. "Nice try, but eventually your mouth won't be full and you'll be able to answer."

She could explain there was no us, but that wasn't truthful. She could be honest and tell him she was concerned about her feelings, but that could prove dangerous. She could attempt to ignore him, but he would be persistent.

She decided to buy herself time. "Now isn't a good time to discuss this.""It's the best time. There's no one around, just the two of us. We couldn't ask for a more perfect time.""Tonight," she let slip and bit her bottom lip too late.Burke laughed. "Afraid?"Yes! Yes! she wanted to scream, but instead she smiled. "Not at all.""Then why not just talk now? We've discussed endlessly what we have learned so far about my brother, so there is no more to be said where that is concerned. There is, however, the matter of us that does need further discussion."

"There really is no us," she argued.

"I tried believing that too." He shook his head. "It didn't work."

"Mr. Longton-"

"I love when you address me that way, so formal and yet so intimate. It gives me the shivers." He shook his body to demonstrate.

Storm couldn't keep from smiling. The man was a charmer, a delightful charmer who managed to make her smile even when they disagreed.

He took hold of her hand. "Give us a chance, that's all I ask of you."

The snap of a branch had them both bolting up on their feet and searching the area. A deer stood poised not far from them, and once it caught their scent, it took off in a rustle of leaves and snapping twigs.

"We shouldn't linger," Storm said, wrapping up the food and returning it to the pouch. "The sky promises rain, and if we pick up our pace we can make it to a small farm that has long been abandoned but will provide sufficient shelter."

They hurried off, Storm grateful Burke didn't pursue the issue of them. With so much to consider, Burke and she should be the last thing on her mind. She reminded herself of that each and every time Burke popped into her thoughts and she chased him away, only to have him return again and again.

They made it to what remained of the farmhouse, though the old lean-to that looked to have sheltered the

animals was in better shape, so they decided to seek refuge there.

They found a dry corner without leaks, and with the s.p.a.ce being small, they had no choice but to huddle together to remain dry and warm.

"This is cozy," Burke said, wrapping his arm around Storm.

Storm made herself comfortable in the crook of his arm. It wasn't hard. Actually, it was quite naturalsince she had done it many times and found the fit perfect."I've been meaning to tell you how much I enjoyed spending the day with you," Burke said."You've spent days with me," she reminded, not wanting to talk about them but knowing that he probably wasn't going to give her a choice.

"Not as my wife. I must say I did enjoy showing you off."

"Showing me off?" she asked, startled.

"Of course. With you on my arm, men looked at me with envy."