To Marry McKenzie

He drew in a deeply controlling breath. Til try that again,' he said

sheepishly. 'Darcy, would you care to walk outside for a breath of fresh air?'

She smiled that shy smile at him. 'Thank you, Logan. Yes, I would like that.'

He held out his arm for her to take, giving the hovering young actor a

withering glare as they strolled past him, on their way to the French doors

that led out onto the terrace scented with the roses his grandfather grew near

the castle.

It was a beautiful moonlit evening outside, the noise of the deer close by,

and nocturnal animals calling to each other in the distance, the sound of the

bullfrogs nearby in the lily-pond.

'What a beautiful place this is,' Darcy murmured dreamily as she looked out

over the wall, the castle, and grounds beyond, bathed in moonlight.

It was a light that seemed to reflect off the silver grey of her dress, giving the

woman herself an ethereal quality. Logan found himself transfixed by her

the moment they were alone outside.

Darcy turned to give him a searching glance. 'What is it?' she breathed.

'Logan...?'

It was purely instinctive, something he had been wanting to do since the last

time he had seen her, something he found himself wanting to do every time

he saw her!

His arms moved about the slenderness of her waist, moulding her gently

against him as his head lowered and his lips found and captured hers.

Perfect pleasure. It was the first time he had felt complete, any peace of

mind, any gentleness of spirit, since the last time he had held her like this.

She fitted so perfectly against him, breathed the same air, and—he

hoped!—knew the same pleasure at his closeness that he did at hers.

He wanted this never to stop, wanted to carry on kissing her, touching her,

holding her—

'No!' She wrenched her mouth from his, pulling away from him, her face

stricken in the moonlight. 'We can't do this, Logan,' she told him

breathlessly, tears glistening in her eyes.

He was stunned for a moment, had been totally lost in the sheer pleasure of

holding her close to him.

'Please let me go, Logan,' she choked, his arms having instinctively

tightened like steel bands about her as she attempted to move away. 'Please!'

she said again tearfully.

His hold slackened, but he still didn't release her. 'I'm not going to hurt you,

Darcy,' he whispered. 'You should know by now, I would never do that.'

Even under extreme provocation, all the times she had done something to

him that might have resulted in retaliation, he had never so much as taken an

angry step in her direction.

She became suddenly still in his arms, deliberately not looking at him. 'Then

let me go,' she said woodenly.

'Why?' he groaned. 'We don't have to go back into the salon. We can get in

through one of the side doors, up to my suite of rooms—'

'No!' She wrenched out of his grasp this time, even though Logan knew it

must have physically hurt her to do so. 'No, Logan...!' she choked again

before turning to let herself back into the salon, the door closing softly

behind her.

Logan stood there stunned for several long, dazed minutes. What had he

done? What had he said? What...?

He turned sharply as he sensed a movement behind him, his disappointment

acute when he saw it was Brice and not Darcy who had come outside to join

him.

'Darcy came back in alone, looking nothing like her usual, calm self,' Brice

informed him, 'so I thought I had better come outside and make sure she

hadn't thrown you in the lily-pond!'

No, she hadn't done that. But in the last few minutes Logan knew she had

done something to him much worse than that. Much, much worse than that!

How could he? How could Logan hold her, kiss her, talk of the two of them

going up to his rooms together, when all the time the woman in his life,

Francesca, was in the salon with all the other engagement party guests?

She had always known Logan was arrogant, a law unto himself, that he

didn't believe in love, let alone marriage. But even so, she had never thought

he would behave in such a cavalier fashion. In his grandfather's house, too!

What was she to do now? She couldn't stay down here, when Logan might

return to the party at any moment, that was for sure. She simply couldn't face

him again so soon after what had happened outside on the terrace. But

neither did she want to upset her father or Meg by retiring early.

Surprisingly, it was Hugh McDonald who came to herrescue, standing up to

announce it was almost midnight, that he was going to have the last waltz

with the most beautiful woman in the room, and then it was time they all

went to their beds or their homes.

Although Darcy wasn't so sure she had been rescued at all when his choice

of the most beautiful woman in the room turned out to be her, suddenly

finding herself swung expertly into his arms as the band began to play!