His hand moved to her stomach. It was a possessive action and one that sent shivers down her legs. 'You'll be a very beautiful mother.'
'I'll be fat.'
'I like fat.'
'Don't leave.'
'I have to leave. You'll come to me, sweetheart. We won't be apart long.'
'What if something happens and I can't join you?'
'I said before I'll come back here and get you.'
'And then?'
'I'll drag you to England if I have to,' he promised. 'Dooley told me Judge Burns is on his way to Blue Belle. He's escorting Belle back home. It seems he's smitten with her.'
'Smitten?'
'Dooley's words, not mine,' he explained with a yawn. 'I think maybe we should make it official before I leave. Want to get married tomorrow, sweetheart?'
'I would rather wait and be married by a preacher or a priest or a rabbi. It doesn't seem very romantic to be married by a hanging judge.'
'I don't want to wait.'
'Are you worried I'll change my mind while you're away?'
'It's too late for you to change your mind. You made your commitment to me when you walked through the doorway last night. Why did you go back to your room after we made love?'
'Because of my brothers.' She trailed her fingers down his chest. 'I don't wish to do anything further to disgrace them.'
'Further disgrace them?'
He hadn't meant to raise his voice, but her words so infuriated him, he couldn't control his reaction. 'Is that how you feel, damn it? Do you think you disgraced yourself by sleeping with me?'
She tried to calm him. 'Please understand, Harrison. I know it isn't possible to marry now, but we aren't truly married yet, and I must consider my brothers' feelings. If they'd found us in bed together, their hearts would have been broken.'
He didn't understand. Before she had time to blink, he'd gotten out of bed and was reaching for his pants. 'Get dressed.'
He gave the command in a hard, don't-give-me-any-argument tone of voice. She ignored it. 'Come back to bed. Let me try to explain so you…'
'Get dressed, Mary Rose, or I swear to God I'll carry you back to the house in a blanket. Do you want your brothers to see you…' He didn't have to go on. She jumped out of the bed and started to get dressed.
He was ready before she was. He helped her put on her blouse and thoughtfully handed her her skirt.
'Will you please explain why you're in such a hurry?' she asked. She believed her question was reasonable. He acted as though she'd just shouted an insult at him, however.
'The word disgrace doesn't sit well with me,' he snapped. 'We're going to have a little talk with your brothers. Hurry up, damn it.'
She turned to find her shoes. She noticed the sheets on his bed then and let out a loud gasp. Even from across the room she could see the splattering of blood.
Her face turned crimson in less than a heartbeat. She forgot all about finding her shoes then and ran over to strip the sheets.
He stood with his hands on his hips and a look on his face that told her he thought she'd lost her mind.
'You made me bleed.'
'You were supposed to bleed.'
'You don't have to sound so callous about it. What if my brothers had come in here? They would have shot you before they listened to any explanation.'
'They knew what my intentions were. Leave the damned sheets alone, Mary Rose. I want to talk to Adam before he goes to bed.'
She wadded the sheets up into a ball and turned around to frown at Harrison.
'We are not going to talk to Adam. I'm going home alone. If you think you're going to tell my brother what we just did, you can just forget it. I will not be embarrassed or humiliated, Harrison. Do you understand me?'
She dropped the sheets on the floor, then put on her shoes. She couldn't believe the evening was ending this way. Harrison had been such a thoughtful, gentle lover. Now he was acting like an arrogant brute. She didn't know what had come over him, but she wasn't in the mood to placate him. The mere thought of letting Adam know she'd given herself to Harrison made her stomach lurch. She wouldn't allow anyone to shame her that way, not even the horrid man she loved.
She tried to walk past him. He grabbed hold of her hand and wouldn't let go. Then he dragged her after him, all the way across the yard, up the stairs, and into the house.
They passed Cole in the entryway. The brother gave Mary Rose a double glance, then said, 'What the hell happened to you?'
He was staring at her hair. She used her free hand to try to calm the curls.
'Nothing happened,' she called out when Harrison pulled her along.
He didn't knock on the library door. He threw it open and gently shoved Mary Rose inside. He stood right behind her, and when she tried to back away, she found his solid frame blocking her retreat.
Adam was startled by the interruption. He closed the book he'd been reading and started to stand up.
Harrison told him to stay seated. While Adam watched, Mary Rose was prodded to the other easy chair and told to sit down.
She shook her head. 'This is outrageous, Harrison,' she whispered. 'If you say one word, I swear I'll do something horrible.'
He draped his arm around her shoulders and kept his gaze on her brother.
'Adam, Mary Rose and I need to get married as soon as possible. Judge Burns should be in Blue Belle tomorrow. I think we should all ride into town and…'
'I will not be married by a hanging judge. It goes against my principles,' she interjected.
' Harrison, close the door,' Adam suggested. 'And both of you please lower your voices. What's all this talk about needing to get married?'
' Harrison 's having a spell,' Mary Rose announced. She folded her arms across her chest and stared over Adam's shoulder. She couldn't quite bring herself to look into his eyes. 'Don't pay any attention to anything he says. He just feels bad because he has to leave.'
His arm went around her shoulder again. It felt much heavier this time. She thought he was deliberately applying pressure so she'd quit talking.
She tried to ignore him. 'We seem to have gotten into an argument. We should work it out together and not involve you, Adam. Do excuse us now.'
It was a very proper dismissal, but it was thoroughly ruined because Harrison wouldn't let her leave.
'Adam, I thought Mary Rose understood, but now I realize she didn't. She seems to think she might have disgraced her brothers by sleeping with me. Since she feels that way, I suggest we get married with all possible haste. I'll be damned if I'll let her feel ashamed of what happened between us. I've given myself all the reasons why I should wait until after you've explained everything to her, but what I wanted to do lost out to what I did do, and hell, none of the timing matters to me now. I love her and she loves me.'
Adam nodded to let Harrison know he understood, but his gaze was centered on his little sister. She certainly didn't look like a woman in love at the moment. In truth, she looked like she wanted to kill her intended groom.
'Judge Burns will be happy to perform the ceremony tomorrow.'
'Adam, I don't…'
'Do you feel disgraced, Mary Rose?'
She closed her mouth. She knew if she answered yes she'd be married tomorrow, and if she answered no, she'd be lying to her brother.
'She told me she wished she could be as cosmopolitan as I am.'
