Morgan's Legacy: Morgan's Wife\Morgan's Son by Lindsay McKenna

Author:Lindsay McKenna
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Silhouette
Published: 2004-01-15T00:00:00+00:00

Much later Pepper sat staring down at the ring box, its lid open. Everyone had gone to bed, and it was past midnight. Jim sat with her on the couch closest to the fireplace, his arm around her shoulders. The house was filled now with a wonderful, peaceful silence. The satisfaction and contentment she felt in Jim’s arms had no comparison, Pepper decided. She was dressed in her pink velour robe, her feet bare, though Jim still wore his clothes from the day. She lay back, resting her head on his broad shoulder, and closed her eyes.

“I never thought I could be so happy,” she murmured.

“I didn’t, either,” Jim admitted quietly, looking down at her firelit profile. The house was dark, just the fire offering subtle warmth and light. The shadows dancing across Pepper’s face underscored her strength and shouted of her vulnerability. His mouth pulled into a slight, tender smile as he saw her continue to caress the rings in the box. “So you like them?”

“Like them?” She roused herself and faced him, her knees drawn up against his thigh. “I love them.” Reaching out, she touched his strong jaw. “And I love you, too.”

He met and held her somber gaze. “I didn’t expect that from you, you know.”

“What?”

“You didn’t have to say you loved me earlier this evening. I didn’t really expect it, Pepper. I know how you felt about the past. About John and never falling in love again. I gave you the rings because I wanted to let you know the depth of my love for you—the commitment I wanted to work toward, hoping you would want the same thing someday.”

With a sigh, Pepper rested her brow against his temple. “I saw how scared you were when you handed me the gift. I couldn’t figure out why.” Kissing his cheek, she murmured, “Now I know. That was a hell of a risk you took with me. When I saw the rings, I understood.”

“You had every right to say no. To give them back to me,” Jim agreed, tunneling his fingers through her loose, dark hair.

Pepper eased from him to meet his serious eyes. “With that group hanging around me oohing and ahhing? I thought Maggie, Dana and Molly were going to grab them right out of my hand. Did you see the wistful looks on their faces?”

“Yes,” Jim said, “I did. They were happy for you. For us. I saw it in their eyes and the way they looked at us after seeing my grandmother’s rings.”

“I know,” Pepper said with a sigh, sliding her arm around his neck and placing her hand in his lap. In the light from the flames, the rings sparkled like their own barely contained blaze. “They are gorgeous. Prettier than any I’ve ever seen.”

“I had a hell of a time getting them out here,” Jim groused good-naturedly. “You remember I left the cabin that one morning and didn’t get back until late that evening?”

“Yes.”

“I made a call the day before, after you’d gone to the grocery store, to a friend of mine who’s keeping an eye on my condo.

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