Dragon Warrior (Midnight Bay) (38 page)

She suddenly scrambled off his lap—making him grunt when she nearly unmanned him—and gestured toward the door. “You might as well go to bed, William. I’m feeling crampy again, which just reminded me that we can’t make love even if we wanted to. The doctor said I shouldn’t have intercourse for a couple of days.”

William leaped to his feet. “Ye went to see a doctor today? Are ye sick, Madeline? Did we . . . did I hurt you the other night at the cabin?”

“No! I had an IUD put in so we don’t have to mess with condoms anymore.”

“What’s an IUD?” he asked, grasping her shoulders. “And what do ye mean, ye had it . . . put in?”

She looked momentarily startled and then laughed. “It’s a tiny little plastic device that the doctor placed inside my ute—my womb, so your little boys can’t get to my little girls and make a baby.”

William stepped away in horror and looked down at her stomach. “Ye let them put something
inside
you? Isn’t it going to hurt when we . . . whenever you and I . . .”

“In another day I won’t even know it’s there.” She stepped into his arms and grinned up at him. “And neither will you.” She patted his chest. “So the only thing that’s going to be
hanging
is your stockings, Mr. Killkenny, when they get stuck on a nearby tree.”

Not even daring to kiss her again for fear he would scandalize
himself
, he turned away and walked to the door.

“William.”

He stopped but didn’t turn around.

“I love you.”

He nodded without looking back, and quietly opened the door and walked down the stairs. He went outside and climbed the knoll, then sat down and stared at Maddy’s bedroom window, watching her silhouette as she undressed for bed. When her room finally went dark, he lifted the medal she’d given him up to the moonlight and read the inscription engraved on one side.

Mine; until the end of time
.

He turned it over, but instead of a knight on a warhorse, he saw a large heart bulging out from the flat medal, the ancient symbol of a strong arm carved into it.

And that was when William decided he had made it to hell after all, which turned out to be the unwavering love of a beautiful, lusty, courageous woman he was incapable of loving in return.

Chapter Twenty-five

M
addy stole a loaf of olive bread from the display table, grabbed a container of goat cheese and two oatmeal cookies, and sat on the stool across the counter from Eve. “Men,” she scoffed. “And they call us women complicated. They even have their own secret language. I’ve seen them have entire conversations where they just nod and grunt at each other. And really, what’s up with their idea that the less we women know, the better off we are?”

Eve opened the cheese and drove her knife into it rather forcefully. “They think they’re being protective. I practically talked myself hoarse trying to persuade Kenzie that you weren’t going to run through town screaming, ‘Hide the children, the monsters are coming!’” She smiled sheepishly. “Are you sure you forgive me for not telling you about the magic?”

“For the tenth time, there is nothing to forgive. I would have done the same thing if William had asked me to keep a secret—even from my very best friend.”

Eve broke off a chunk of bread and slathered it with cheese. “I wish I could have met Maximilian Oceanus. Did he really show up dressed like a wizard?”

“Right out of a fairy tale, only he didn’t have a pointy hat.”

“Is he cute?” Eve asked just before she took a bite of bread.

“I can’t really say; I never saw his sleeves rolled up.”

Eve started choking and actually spat the bread back into her hand. “You are so bad.” She arched a brow. “Did you honestly call him pond scum to his face?”

Maddy nodded. “I took it back, though. Mac really is a nice guy. Did I tell you he gave Hiram a beautiful cake before he died?”

“I’m sorry about Hiram, Maddy. I know he was special to you.”

“Thank you. But since meeting William and Mac and realizing there’s all this . . . stuff going on behind the scenes, I don’t feel so sad. Hiram actually seemed to be looking forward to dying, once he saw everyone waiting for him.” She leaned forward on the counter. “The old sap left me two hundred dollars in a sentimental card and said I should buy myself something pretty.” She laughed. “But not one of those skimpy bras like he picked up off the floor that William had dropped. He actually wrote that in the card!”

“So what pretty thing are you going to buy yourself?” Eve asked. She bobbed her eyebrows. “Some really short shorts?”

“I used the money to buy William a medal.” Maddy felt her cheeks heat up. “I had the jeweler engrave
Mine; until the end of time
on the back of it. And on the front it used to have a knight in shining armor, but Mac changed it to a heart with some sort of symbol carved into it.” She hesitated. “And last night, I told William I loved him.”

“And?” Eve whispered. “Did he say he loved you back?”

“No. But only because he doesn’t know he loves me.”

“Excuse me?”

Maddy set down her piece of bread. “William believes he’s still an ugly monster who’s incapable of loving anyone. I think it has something to do with what happened to his family back in the ninth century. Apparently William’s home was raided and everyone was killed, and he went a little . . . crazy. At least that’s what Mac told me. That’s why William drove that old witch off his land—because he thought she could have done something to stop the massacre or at least warned him. And after she turned him into a dragon, he spent the next four years lashing out at everyone. But then he found some symbol Kenzie had left on a rock and spent the next two years fighting his way through time to get here.”

Her jaw slack, Eve continued to stare at Maddy in disbelief.

Maddy nodded. “So, because he believes he lost his soul seeking revenge for his family, and because he spent six years acting and feeling like a monster, William assumes that he doesn’t have a heart left to give me.”

“But you believe he
does
love you?” Eve asked. “You’re not worried that he might only be in lust with you?”

“Oh, it’s love, all right,” Maddy said, rolling her eyes. “The man’s got it so bad he doesn’t know if he’s coming or going most of the time. One minute he’s chasing me down with the desperation of a starving lion, and the next minute he’s doing any devious thing he can think of to push me away.” She leaned forward again. “Do you know he stole the diary I kept all through my teens? He snooped through my hope chest, found out my most intimate desires, and now he’s planning to use them against me.”

“Use them against you how?”

“By giving me every last one of them.”

Eve was back to staring at her in disbelief—or maybe confusion.

Maddy sighed. “William is having a small cottage delivered for him to live in while they’re building his house, and I will bet you a manicure, a pedicure,
and
a facial that a white picket fence goes up around it in less than a week.” She grinned. “And the stone on the engagement ring he’s going to give me will be so huge I probably won’t be able to lift my hand.”

“He asked you to marry him?” Eve squeaked.

“Not yet. But every time I walked into a room at work this morning, everyone suddenly stopped talking. I think William has already enlisted my residents to help him plan a romantic evening to propose to me.”

“So what are you going to do about his stealing your diary?”

“Absolutely nothing. If it makes him feel all smart and devious to grant my every desire, who am I to spoil his fun? Can you imagine having every one of your childhood dreams come true, including having a man get down on his knees and ask you to marry him?” She straightened with a laugh. “My God, if I remember correctly, I actually wrote down exactly what my dream guy would say. Talk about making it easy for him; William won’t even have to come up with the right words.”

“And when he finally asks, will you say yes?”

“Are you kidding? I’ve already started looking at bridal magazines!”

“But Maddy, you can’t marry a man who can never love you.”

“Haven’t you been listening to me? He
does
love me; he just doesn’t know it.”

“And he’ll never be able to say it,” Eve snapped.

“Hell, Billy said he loved me all the time when we were first married, and he didn’t have a clue what love was. William says he loves me a hundred times a day in a hundred different ways without uttering a word.”

Eve jumped up from her stool and ran around the counter, nearly knocking Maddy over when she threw her arms around her. “I knew there was a reason I love you,” Eve said, hugging her fiercely. “You are such a wise woman.”

Maddy hugged her back even as she sighed. “If I’m so wise, then why can’t I come up with a plan to make William
realize
he loves me?” She leaned away. “I can’t just
tell
him he does; he’ll never believe me. So help me figure out how to get him to figure it out for himself.”

Eve walked back to her stool with a thoughtful look. “Why not try using
his
tactics?”

“How?”

“You said William is sneaky and devious, so why don’t you get sneaky and devious, too? You just have to find out
his
secret desires and give them to him.”

“But
how
? He doesn’t exactly have a hope chest I can snoop through. And I’ve already given him everything I have, including my heart.”

“You haven’t given William
his
heart, have you?” Eve asked softly.

Maddy blinked at her. “Huh?”

“You said he thinks he doesn’t have a heart anymore, so give him one.”

“
But how?
”

When Eve merely shrugged, Maddy jumped off her stool, grabbed her purse, and started to leave.

Eve ran around the counter and dragged her to a stop. “You can do this,” she said sternly. “You just have to think like the man. And you have your residents. If he can enlist their help, why can’t you? And don’t forget Sarah; you can’t tell me William isn’t already in love with her, too, and that he doesn’t already care for your mom and Rick. You sort of all come as a package, Maddy. The family he lost can’t ever be replaced, but there’s no reason all of you can’t become his new family.”

“But what if that only scares him even more?” Maddy whispered, clutching her purse to her chest. “He’s having a hard time believing he loves
me
. What will happen if he starts feeling responsible for everyone else’s happiness as well?”

“Maybe he’ll find out he’s got so much heart that his chest just might burst.”

“Or he might run off and marry Carolina Oceanus.”

“William Killkenny is a lot of things, but he’s not a chicken,” Eve said. “I believe he is in love with you, and I’m confident you’ll find a way to prove it to him.” She nodded at Maddy’s purse. “Just point your gun at him, and make him admit he loves you.”

“I can’t. Mac turned it into tiger fur.”

“He what?”

“Speaking of turning things into something, how is Fiona doing?” Maddy asked softly. “What little bit I saw of her . . . well, she looked terrified. William told me some guy had raped her in the eleventh century, but then she died giving birth to her son and came to this century as a hawk. He said Fiona hates men and was quite happy as a hawk, and now everyone is upset that Mac made her human again.”

“I don’t think Kenzie’s all that upset to have his sister back. And Matt arrived at our house around midnight last night, and he was so overjoyed that he couldn’t stop hugging her.” Eve’s eyes turned pained. “It’s just that they can’t stand seeing her so distressed. I don’t think Fiona hates men anywhere near as much as she’s afraid of them. She felt safe being a hawk, but now that she’s a young woman again . . . well, last night she acted sort of . . . ashamed in front of them.”

“Ashamed? But being raped wasn’t her fault!”

Eve shrugged. “I know that, and you know that, but you have to remember what century she’s from. Back then, a woman’s chastity was a strong part of her identity.” She shook her head. “Nobody knows exactly what happened to her. Both Matt and Kenzie had already left home, and when they finally returned their mother and sister and nephew were dead, and their father had gone quite mad. And Fiona certainly isn’t going to tell them any of the details. Personally, I think the guy did more than rape her.”

“Maybe being thrust into this century is as overwhelming for her as being alive again is,” Maddy suggested. “And once she gets used to everything, she might confide in you or her other sister-in-law, Winter.”

“That’s our hope. And being around modern women should help.” Eve smiled. “Fiona did perk up when she realized that she was going to meet her niece and namesake. Remember, Winter and Matt named their new baby after her.”

“Oh, that’s right! And there’s nothing like a newborn to get a person’s mind off their own problems.”

“So, did I hear that your cousin wasn’t interested in having a drùidh for a brother-in-law?” Eve asked.

“Omigod, are you kidding?” Maddy said with a laugh. “I honestly thought Trace was going to faint when Carolina said she intended to marry him and have lots and lots of babies, and they would live happily ever after for a thousand years.” She sobered. “I’m afraid Trace might be just as bad as William when it comes to matters of the heart, and that like Fiona, he has a few secrets of his own he’s hiding.” She gave Eve a hug. “Okay, I really have to get back to work now.”