Desert Devil Page 17

  He had the decency to flush slightly. "I'm sorry about that. I was…" He hesitated, then finished slowly: "I guess I was disappointed. I thought you were different, and then it appeared that you were as scheming and devious as Nicole."

  "So, if you believed that, and you evidently believed it before we left the trailer that night, why did you bring me here? Why didn't you just walk off and leave me?"

  He scowled. "Because I couldn't. Because I wanted you even if you were scheming."

  "And so you behaved like a… a savage! Throwing me into a bedroom and practically holding me captive, just like you're doing now." Juli's lips compressed as she blinked back tears, because she knew that in spite of all that had happened, it was more than her body that was captive here. It was her heart. And though her body might soon be released, her heart would never be free because she loved him still.

  "I know I behaved… badly," he growled in reluctant admission. "But you made me furious and frustrated. I didn't want to want you—but I did. I didn't want to be in love with you, but I was. I am in love with you…" He spoke the words with an odd helplessness, as if they were unfamiliar and beyond his usual iron self-control.

  They were staring at each other, Juli's eyes wide with wonder, when Estelle tapped on the doorframe and then peered inside.

  "Your clothes are ready."

  "Thank you," Juli said. Estelle came in and handed Juli the dress on a hanger. She placed the other items, discreetly folded into a neat bundle, on the coffee table. When Estelle was gone, Thorne looked at Juli.

  "So, you have your clothes. You're free now," he said. "I can't hold you captive if you want to go."

  "Are you asking me to stay—longer?" Her eyes, dark with emotion, lifted to meet his again.

  He took one long stride toward her and flung the dress toward the sofa with a rough gesture. "I'm asking you to stay for today—tomorrow—forever! As my wife," he finished huskily.

  Juli's hands left the folds of the silky robe and crept toward his neck, heedless of the way the silky material of the robe threatened to slither open. With hands that had an uncharacteristic tremble, Thorne removed her arms from around his neck and placed them in control of the robe again.

  "You'd better keep yourself covered, or—"

  "Or what?" Juli's eyes danced.

  "I might not be able to live up to my promise not to behave the way I did the other night. And you'd better not wait too long to set the date for our wedding day," he warned.

  "I was under the impression you made all the important decisions," Juli teased.

  The light in his eyes suddenly changed. "Sometimes I try to. But there's one decision I can't make, because you have to make it. I'm talking about our getting married, but you've never said yes—or no—"

  Juli lifted her mouth to his, but he stopped her.

  "No, you have to say it!" he demanded imperiously.

  "I love you. I want to marry you."

  He smiled, satisfied, and his arms closed around her, capturing her, as her heart was already his captive forever.