Claire covered her eyes with her hands, blocking out his earnest expression. Immediately, her other senses took over. She inhaled his familiar cologne and listened to the rough cadence of his breathing.
“You were happy with London,” she reminded him, “and that didn’t improve Bettina’s opinion of her.”
“I never should’ve proposed to London.” Linc tugged her hands down so he could meet her gaze. “She wasn’t the love of my life. You are.”
Her chest tightened at his words. “We haven’t known each other long enough for you to believe that.” What would it take for him to realize this was crazy? How could he possibly love her? She’d made so many mistakes. “And I lied to you.”
“All that is true, but it doesn’t change that I love you.”
Claire hunched her shoulders. With her head and her heart locked in a fierce battle, all she could do was keep trying to make him see reason.
“It won’t work,” she said. “You’ll see.”
“It can and it will. All you need to do is trust me.”
She shook her head. “I do trust you, but there are greater forces at work in your life than how we feel about each other.”
“How do we feel about each other?” he asked, taking her by the shoulders. The pressure of his warm fingers brought her close to tears. “I love you. I want to marry you and for us to be a family.”
“Damn it, Linc. Be reasonable.”
He ignored her objection. “How do you feel about me?”
A sob bloomed in her chest, making her breath erratic. While the words she’d longed to speak stuck in her throat, Claire grappled with fear. If she opened her heart and told him the truth—that she couldn’t bear the thought of living without him—he would never let her go. And then what if all his friends and family opposed their relationship? How could she hope to make Linc happy?
“I love you,” she confessed, her strong emotions refusing to remain bottled up any longer.
“That’s my girl.” He cupped her face in his palms and leaned down to graze her lips with his. “It feels like I’ve been waiting forever to hear those words from you.”
“But, Linc, we can’t—”
He stopped her words with another kiss, this one longer and deeper. She was light-headed and giddy by the time he lifted his head.
“Let’s just focus on you, me and Honey. No one else matters.”
“But they do. Maybe in a thousand other cities things would be different. But in Charleston, everyone’s opinion matters.”
“So we’ll live in Texas or California or wherever you want. What matters is that we’re together.”
She couldn’t believe what he was saying. “But your family and friends are here. And say what you want, but the fact is they are important to you.”
“So what will it take?”
“For what?”
“For you to marry me in a huge ceremony in front of all our friends and family? I want to shout my love for you from the rooftops.”
His question overwhelmed her, but she recognized that running was impossible now. Even if it was the smartest thing for everyone, hope had seized control. What if she and Linc could make a go of things? She loved him. Could she really turn her back on a chance for happiness?
“I can’t honestly say what would change my mind,” she said, but in fact, she knew. If by some miracle the family origin legend was true and she was descended from an old Charleston family...
“You underestimate how persuasive I can be.” A wicked grin lit up his expression.
“Well, there’s a welcome sight.”
Claire glanced toward the back door and spied Sawyer standing just inside the kitchen.
“What are you doing here?” Linc demanded.
“Interrupting something, obviously.” Wearing an unrepentant grin, Sawyer strode toward them and snagged Claire by the arm, tugging her away from Linc. “Excuse us, brother dear. I need to speak with Claire.”
“What’s going on?”
“Give Mom a call. She wants to know if you’re interested in coming by for dinner. Claire and I will be right back.”
Claire bit her lip as Sawyer led her toward the front of the house. Her stomach, still unsettled by the day’s events, began churning in earnest as Sawyer directed her into the living room and onto the tufted cobalt sofa.
“What’s going on?” she asked, echoing Linc’s earlier question. “Did something happen after I left the polo event today? Does everyone know what’s been going on between Linc and me? Is that why your mother wants him to come over for dinner? So she can tell him to send me packing?”
And yet, wasn’t that what she’d been all ready to do mere minutes earlier? To disappear out of Linc’s life? What was so different now that he’d told her he loved her and wanted to marry her?
“Nothing like that,” Sawyer assured her. “As for Mother, she’s delighted that Linc has found someone who makes him as happy as you do.”
“She knows about me? About us? How did she find out?” Claire sagged back against the sofa and closed her eyes. “I’m so embarrassed.”
“Linc told her the day after the party. I don’t think he went into any great detail about what you two have been up to, but she knows he loves you.”
Claire sat up and stared at Sawyer. “Then what is it you needed to tell me?”
“What I found out from my friend at the historical society about your ancestor James Robbins.”
“What you found out?” Claire regarded Sawyer in confusion. “I don’t understand. How did you know about him?”
“Linc told me your story, so I went to the historical society and did some digging to find out about the Robbins family.”
Claire couldn’t believe Sawyer’s excitement over what she’d found and noticed her own pulse picking up speed. Although her great-aunt had believed the stories of James Robbins leaving behind his Charleston family to chase his fortune in the California gold rush, part of Claire hadn’t quite believed that there was anything more to the tales than family
