“It is the face of a beast.”
“No, Alexander. It is the face of the man I love.” She put her hand on his chest, and his heart pounded against his ribs. “I love you, and I want you to know that I’m not afraid.”
He struggled to believe her pretty protestations. His faith in all things just and equal having deserted him. Still, he longed to hold her close, to kiss away his fears.
Alexander raised his head, and her hand moved up to caress his cheek. Her fingers trembled against his skin, and he found he admired her all the more for her courage. Blinking back a torrent of emotion, he covered her hand.
Desire, love and longing pulsed through him.
Eve looked tenderly into his eyes. “Please say something. Say you forgive me.”
He was suddenly overcome with the urge to release all his pent-up emotion.
“I … I love you,” he said softly. “You are everything to me, which is why I want you to forget you ever met me. Let your life be free of this hideous burden.”
He watched a tear trickle down her cheek and guilt flared.
“I have something to ask of you,” she said lifting her chin.
“Ask what you will. But know I only desire your happiness.”
“Good,” she said, her voice sounding strong, more confident, “because I want you to marry me. I want you to be my husband, my lover, my friend and companion. Let me live here with you. We shall spend the nights together. During the days, you may sketch me whilst I sleep.”
Marriage?
The sense of remorse that always accompanied unobtainable dreams burst through him. In his wild and vivid imagination, he could almost picture the blissful scene.
“There’s more to this affliction than my strange countenance.” His voice sounded more natural as his features returned to their human form. “Things beyond your comprehension.”
She smiled up at him. “You don’t like the sun, and you drink blood.”
“Elliot told you?”
“He also told me about the golden-haired lady.”
Alexander sucked in a breath. “She’s no lady. But those things are not what trouble me most.”
“Tell me. Tell me everything.”
Unable to resist the urge clawing away inside, he took her face in his hands and caressed the soft skin. “What if I can’t control the beast inside? What if you grow more frightened of me each day? I couldn’t bear to see fear in your eyes.”
“I’m not afraid anymore.”
Alexander snorted, recalling the harrowing image of her fleeing through the chamber door in terror. “You may say that now, but what if the episodes become more frequent? In a year, things might be different.”
She put her hands on his chest and all of his fears melted away. “What if you tire of me, Alexander?”
He pulled her into his arms and held her tight. “My love for you has no limits,” he said stroking her hair.
Eve looked up to gaze into his eyes. “I would rather spend every day loving you than spend a lifetime alone. And I would be alone, Alexander, for there will never be another. Not for me.”
At some point in his life, he must have done something wonderful to deserve the love of an angel. Struggling to contain his raging emotions, he brushed his lips across hers, the brief touch causing their passion to flame.
“Let us make each night we spend together more precious than the last,” he said, his voice brimming with desire as he surrendered to the light.
She stepped away from him, a coy smile playing on her lips. “Then let us begin right now, with a swim.”
Alexander scanned her dress. “We’ll need to be less encumbered.”