The Midwife's Marriage Proposal (13 page)

‘I've never been more serious in my life. I know I hurt you, Sally, and I regret that more than you will ever know, but I'm going to make it up to you.'

She shook her head and stood staring at him, her fists clenched by her sides, her knuckles white. ‘No.'

His eyes searched hers and he saw the pain and confusion. ‘I want you to trust me, Sally, and I'm going to show you that you can.'

Her chin lifted. ‘No.'

Her strength and determination was amazing and he was just thankful that his determination exceeded hers.

She was going to marry him.

He played his final card and brought his mouth down on hers again, the kiss brief but devastating.

The flames licked and burned, and when he lifted his head his voice was rough with barely restrained passion. ‘Can you live without it, Sally? Can you honestly live without what we have?'

‘What we share is physical.' She gave what she obviously thought was a casual shrug, but it didn't convince either of them. ‘I'm prepared to have an affair.'

‘That's not enough. And, Sally …' He spoke the words softly. ‘What we share is love.'

She stared at him for a long moment, denial and confusion in her eyes, and then she turned and fumbled with
the key, unlocking his office door and almost stumbling in her speed to get away from him.

He stopped himself from going after her, taking comfort from the fact that he'd never expected to win the war with the first battle.

His plan was only just beginning.

* * *

Love?

Sally stood in the toilet and took several deep breaths.

Her body was screaming with a sexual frustration that she hadn't known she was capable of feeling, and she leaned her head against the wall and cursed Tom.

How dared he?

How dared he use the passion between them to push for something more when he knew she wasn't willing to take that risk?

The man was so arrogant!

She straightened up and stared at herself in the mirror, her green eyes flashing fire.

He obviously believed that she couldn't live without him.

Without his touch.

For a brief moment her body tingled, but she clenched her fists and forced herself to ignore the sensation.

She'd lived without Tom's touch, without his love, for seven long years. She could do it again.

But that had been before she'd been given a taste of what she was missing.

Memories of that night in the cottage flooded through her and she gave a groan of denial, wishing now that it had never happened.

It would have been so much easier to turn her back on something that was only a distant memory. But to
reject a passion that was so fierce,
so alive
, was almost asking the impossible.

Almost, but not quite.

Turning on the cold tap, she leaned forward and splashed her face, feeling the water cool her flushed cheeks.

She couldn't give her love to him again. Couldn't risk the rejection that had almost destroyed her seven years before.

She wouldn't make herself that vulnerable again.

She was going to resist him.

* * *

But it was easier said than done.

Wherever she was, Tom seemed to be there.

Even when she was doing a normal delivery that had no need for the presence of an obstetrician, he seemed to find a reason to pop in and ask her something.

And their awareness of each other was rising to such an intensity that Sally could hardly breathe.

Even in her social life there was no escape. If she went for a drink with the mountain rescue team, he was there. If she went for supper with Bryony and Jack, he was there.

Even when she spent an evening at Helen's, discussing the wedding, he was there, sharing a beer with Oliver.

Finally she cornered Bryony at the final fitting of their bridesmaids' dresses.

‘The wedding's on Saturday,' Bryony said cheerfully, doing a twirl and trying to see her back in the mirror. ‘If they don't fit now, we're in trouble.'

‘They fit beautifully,' Helen said, smiling from the depths of a comfortable sofa. ‘Try them with the shoes.'

Sally winced. ‘I don't think I can walk in those shoes.'

Helen laughed. ‘I'll give you lessons. And if you struggle you can always hold Tom's arm. He is the best man after all.'

Sally gritted her teeth. She didn't need reminding that he was the best man. Oliver and Helen's wedding was just another occasion where she was going to have to avoid him.

Twice during the day he'd cornered her.

Twice he'd kissed her until her body had been one big screaming ache.

And then he'd walked away.

If she hadn't seen the tension in his wide shoulders and heard the uncharacteristic snap in his voice when he spoke, she'd have thought that he was finding the whole thing amusing.

But there was no laughter in those sexy blue eyes.

Only determination.

And a raw masculine need that almost took her breath away.

‘He loves you, Sally.' Bryony spoke in a quiet voice and she and Helen exchanged glances. ‘And you know you love him.'

Sally adjusted the neck of her dress. ‘Do you think this is too revealing?'

Bryony frowned. ‘Sally …'

‘Look.' Sally turned to face her, her breathing rapid. ‘I don't want to talk about this, all right? I really,
really
don't want to talk about it.'

As far as she was concerned, it was a problem that couldn't be solved by talking so she wanted to just try to ignore it.

Eventually it would go away.

It had to.

‘I was angry with him, too, you know that,' Bryony
said quietly, ‘but he thought he was doing the right thing and he regrets it so much, Sally. I've never seen my brother doubt himself before—never seen him admit that he was wrong, but he's admitting it now. He used to be everything to you. Can't you forgive him?'

Sally paused. ‘Yes, I can forgive him.' She stared at her reflection in the mirror, thankful that the glass only reflected what was on the outside.
If people could see what was going on inside, she'd be in big trouble.
‘But I can't let him be everything to me any more. I can't take that chance.'

Bryony opened her mouth again but Helen lifted a hand to silence her and stood up.

‘Surely love always means taking a chance,' she said quietly. ‘There are never any guarantees for any one of us. All we can do is make the best decision we can at the time and take any chance of happiness that comes our way.'

Sally's face was stony. ‘And learn from our mistakes.'

‘But what if Tom has learned from his?' Helen's voice was soft. ‘What if he truly does believe that he was wrong? Are you going to risk letting that chance of happiness slip away?' She gave a rueful smile. ‘Look at me. Oliver asked me to marry him within about three seconds of meeting him. I just couldn't believe that he could possibly mean it. How could I trust that something so new could last?'

Sally stared at her. ‘So why did you?'

Helen gave a soft smile. ‘Because the alternative—losing Oliver—was more than I could bear. Tom made a mistake, Sally, but, if anything, that mistake will make your relationship stronger. Everyone can see how much he loves you and how much you love him. He's a proud guy and yet he's willing to humble himself in public in
his attempt to persuade you to forgive him. That's got to tell you something about the way he feels. Take a leap of faith.'

Sally was silent, her fingers playing with the silky fabric of her dress. ‘I don't think I can do that.'

It was asking too much.

Bryony gave a short laugh and exchanged a satisfied glance with Helen. ‘Well, if you're not going to, you'd better brace yourself for a siege,' she said lightly, ‘because, judging from the set of his shoulders, my brother isn't about to take no for an answer.'

* * *

The next day Sally walked into the storeroom to collect some equipment and gave a soft gasp as Tom walked in behind her and closed the door.

The room was small and presented absolutely no opportunities for escape.

There was no need for build-up.

The sexual tension between them had reached flash point.

Taking refuge in defence, she gritted her teeth and glared at him. ‘Don't you have anything better to do than corner me in the storeroom? You're becoming boring, Tom.'

And she wanted him so badly the ache was becoming intolerable.

His firm mouth curved into a smile. ‘Boring?' His voice was husky and very, very male. ‘Is that right?' He slid a hand behind her neck and drew her closer.

She felt her knees weaken. ‘Tom, for goodness' sake …'

‘You look tired.' His mouth hovered wickedly close to hers. ‘Are you sleeping at night, sweetheart? Or is something keeping you awake?'

The soft endearment made her heart turn over and she had to bite back the sob of need that rose in her throat.

‘I'm sleeping perfectly.'

She wanted him to kiss her.

She needed him to kiss her so badly.

Without even knowing that she was doing it, she rose on tiptoe and tried to close the distance between her mouth and his, but he drew back just enough to prevent the ultimate contact but not enough to ease the frantic throb that tortured her pelvis.

Her body was on fire.

‘Marry me, Sally.' His mouth was so close to hers that she could almost taste him and her eyes closed and she swayed towards him.

‘Tom, please—'

‘Marry me.'

Through the fog of sexual need, a question formed in her brain.

How was it that he was so controlled?

How was he able to resist what she needed so badly?

And then she felt the brush of his arousal through the thin fabric of her scrub suit and realized that he was struggling as much as she was.

The knowledge gave her satisfaction.

‘You want marriage, Tom.' Her voice was smoky soft and all temptress. ‘And I'm prepared to have an affair. Are you going to refuse that?'

She ran the tip of her tongue over her lower lip and heard his sharp intake of breath, saw his eyes fix hungrily on her mouth.

The atmosphere froze.

And then his mouth claimed hers with a violence that drew a sob of relief from her.

One hand held her head still for his kiss and the other
curved over her bottom, drawing her against him, letting her feel what she did to him.

‘Tom …' Frantic with haste, forgetting where they were, she pulled her mouth away from his just enough to gasp his name and then yanked his shirt out of his trousers. Breathing rapidly, she let her fingers slide over the sleek muscle of his back, loving the feel of his body. ‘Please, I—'

He brought his mouth back down on hers and she felt his hand slide inside the loose bottoms of her scrub suit, felt the sure, knowing touch of his fingers driving her mindless while his mouth teased and tormented.

She wriggled and arched, the intimacy of his skilled caress releasing an almost intolerable excitement deep within her.

‘No …' He groaned the word against her mouth and suddenly she was deprived of both his touch and his kiss.

She leaned towards him, desperate for him to finish what he'd started. Her whole body was throbbing. ‘If this is your idea of a joke …'

‘Do I look as though I'm laughing?' His breathing was unsteady and all traces of humour had gone from his tone. ‘I don't want an affair with you, Sally. It isn't enough. I want everything.'

She stared at him in disbelief, wondering how he could manage conversation when she could barely stand upright. But then she looked closer and saw the lines of tension and the storm in his blue eyes.

He was struggling, too.

‘Tom—'

‘Marry me.' His voice was hoarse. ‘Marry me and I'm going to take you to bed and make love to you until neither of us has the energy to move.'

‘I can't marry you.' Her reply was little more than a whisper and she saw his hard jaw tighten.

‘I can't do this any more.' His eyes blazed into hers. ‘I don't trust myself around you. When you change your mind, come to me. Until then, I'm keeping my distance.'

* * *

The day before the wedding the mountain rescue team was called out.

Since their encounter in the storeroom, Sally had spent more sleepless nights and was feeling tense and on edge.

When you change your mind, come to me.

Well, she wasn't going to change her mind.

And she wasn't going to go to him.

She gritted her teeth as she pulled on her warm clothes and prepared for the rescue, facing the fact that she was going to be working shoulder to shoulder with Tom.

She considered asking if she could be partnered with someone else and then decided that a request like that would attract too much unwanted attention from the rest of the team and they were already the subject of considerable speculation.

And a request like that would also let Tom know that his campaign to drive her slowly mad from frustration was working.

And she didn't want him to know.

Didn't want him to know that she couldn't sleep at night because her dreams were haunted by visions of him.

Didn't want him to know that she couldn't concentrate at work because her days were punctuated by tantalizing glimpses of him in the distance.

Didn't want him to know that she could no longer enjoy the mountains or her work on the team because she was so aware of his presence next to her.

Pulling on her jacket and the rest of her gear, she forced herself to concentrate on the briefing.

‘A woman's dog has gone over the edge—and she can't see it. She's been wandering for ages, trying to track it down, and now has no idea where she is or where the dog might be.' Sean gave a sigh and shook his head. ‘One day someone is going to make it mandatory to learn to use a map and compass before a person sets foot on the fells. OK, folks. We've got a lot of ground to cover. This is the plan.'