If it was that good, then where is he?
She hated when that nasty little voice of reason popped up with one of those unanswerable questions. She had been terribly disappointed to wake up and find him gone and his side of the bed already cold.
There’s a difference between sex and love, Sam. You’re old enough to know that.
Or was she? The line had blurred for her last night, making her feel more vulnerable than she ever had in her life. She was glad the party was today. With a crowd around and lots of music and dancing, there wouldn’t be time to think. She reached for her sundress and slipped it over her head.
“Lassie?”
She spun around, the dress sliding down her body, and saw Duncan standing in the doorway. For a second she thought she was dreaming or that somehow, some way, she’d managed to step through some portal in time to the days of warriors and lairds. If she’d ever harbored the notion that there was anything remotely humorous or effeminate about a man in a kilt, the sight of her husband in Stewart plaid put that idea to rest.
He was, in a word, magnificent.
“Duncan!” she said, letting her surprise mask the wild rush of desire. “I didn’t hear you come in.”
“I didn’t mean to frighten you.”
“You didn’t frighten me,” she said, struggling with the zipper of her sundress. “You surprised me, that’s all.”
He motioned for her to come closer to him. She didn’t move.
“Come here, lassie,” he said, his voice a rough caress. “I’ll zip your dress.”
She’d spent many years zipping up her own dresses but still she went to him like a docile child. “Have you been up a long time?” she asked as she felt his hands against her spine.
“Since before dawn.” His fingers brushed lightly against her skin and her breath caught “Lift your hair. I don’t want to catch it in the zipper.”
She reached back and lifted the braid. The metallic rasp of the zipper sounded very loud to her ears. “There’s a little hook at the top,” she said.
“Aye. It’s done.”
She let the braid fall between her shoulder blades and stepped away from him, feeling terribly disappointed. If last night had meant anything at all to him, you wouldn’t know it by his manner. “How’s everything going?” she asked. “Are the tables set up?”
“The staff is very efficient,” he said. “Robby supervised the outdoor crew and they had everything ready an hour ago.”
“I’m sure Mag is keeping a close eye on the kitchen help.”
“You’ll have to find out for yourself, Samantha. No man would dare invade her territory today.”
Sam laughed. “She is protective of her kitchen, isn’t she?”
“Aye. I couldn’t believe she allowed you to use it.”
“Mag and I have reached an accommodation.”
“She likes you.”
“I wouldn’t go that far,” Sam said, pleased despite herself.
“I saw her sampling your potato salad.”
“You’re joking!”
“Ask her,” he said.
“I will.”
Sam loved the banter but she had the sense that he was using it to avoid what they’d shared the night before. Which told Sam much more than she wanted to know about the real state of their marriage.
Better to know where you stand, Sam. That way you won’t get hurt.
She could enjoy making love with him, raising their child together.
But if she was looking for a real marriage, the kind that was based on love—well, that was the one thing she’d never have.
THERE WAS SO MUCH Duncan wanted to say to his bride, but it would have to wait until after the party. Their neighbors had begun to arrive an hour ago and Robby said they’d been asking for the newlyweds. Tonight, after the dancing and the music, would be time enough for him to show her how he felt. How he’d always felt.
“Does this dress look okay?” his beautiful wife asked as she stood before him. She had changed from the yellow dress to a blue one then back again to the yellow.
“You’re a bonny lass,” he said, knowing how far short of reality his meager words fell.
“The dress,” she said again, placing her hands on her belly. “Maybe I should change into something else.”
“It’s perfect,” he said. As perfect as you are. “Our guests are waiting for us, Samantha.”
She took another long look at herself in the mirror then shuddered. “This is terrible.”
“You’ll outshine the sun.”
She met his eyes and started to laugh. “You’ll say anything to keep me from changing my clothes again, won’t you?”
“Aye,” he said. “I will.”
“All right,” she said, smoothing the skirt of her soft yellow dress, “let it be on your head when your friends whisper about your poor choice in wives.”
She said it lightly but he thought he caught the slightest hint of real insecurity. It baffled him. How could she look in the mirror and see less than the goddess he saw?
They went downstairs and through the kitchen. The yard out back had been set up with tables and chairs, tents, grills, all manner of things necessary for party giving.
“It looks like the entire town is out there,” Sam said.
“You invited them,” he reminded her. “This was your idea.”
“Tell me again why I thought it was such a good one,” Sam said as they approached the door.
“Don’t be nervous. Half the town already knows and loves you. Once the other half meets you, they’ll love you, too.”
She cupped the swell of her belly with her hands and he knew what she was thinking. This is for the baby.
And it was. He wouldn’t deny that. But it was also about the two of them. She would know that tonight when he gave her the ring.
SAM’S NERVOUSNESS vanished the second they stepped outside. The warmth of their welcome far surpassed the late July sunshine as they were greeted by their happy, laughing neighbors. Sam was swept off in a crowd of women and girls, all of whom
