The Lodestone (52 page)

Gently smoothing his eyebrows with her fingertip, she considered it all as objectively as possible. She would remain her own entity, separate from him for the time being in such trivial details as a ring and a common surname, but joined with him in all the ways that mattered—in heart and mind, soul and flesh. She could not marry him until she was absolutely sure he wouldn’t attempt to dictate her life. But giving him up, after discovering the many delights into which he led her so expertly, was completely out of the question.

She burrowed deeply under the covers and snuggled against him, finding comfort in his warmth. He was so amazingly sure of himself, so masculine in his determination to direct her future—else he would not have presumed to remove her from London by force. She smothered her laughter in the pillow. Her determination, feminine in origin and thus not easily defeated, was going to be a daily shock to him.

But he would have the rest of their lives together to adjust to her headstrong ways. It should prove a most interesting and unique experiment.