Passionate Kisses

by Various

  Cam wasn’t paying attention. “The scotch mints are me, obviously. Scottish, and cool. With a hard exterior and a soft core.” He grinned sheepishly. “Corny, right?”

  She shook her head. Far from it, really.

  “The ring and necklace are jewellery, obviously. And the chocolate is you. A treat to be savoured. Nibbled on before devouring. Each taste a gift. Sweet, yet subtle. Sinful and delicate.”

  Okay. Now he had her. If he wanted to propose with a candy ring, go for it. With those words she was game for anything. If he wanted to play it cute, she could do that. It took the edge off her nerves this way.

  “So this is you?” She pulled a mint out of the chest and licked it slowly. “Mmmm. Cool mint.” She closed her eyes and slowly caressed it with her tongue before taking it into her mouth. “It’s sweet, too. Like you.” She leaned forward and kissed him, transferring the candy to his mouth.

  “Thank you for my present. I love it.”

  “There’s more,” he said. He opened the candy ring. She hadn’t had a ring pop since she was a child. Didn’t even know they were still made. It didn’t seem like a candy kids today would like, but then again, little girls loved rings no matter what decade they lived in.

  “That’s much more impressive than this old thing,” she said, removing the plastic diamond from her finger. She’d meant to take it off earlier but had forgotten. She reached to take the ring pop from him.

  “Not yet,” he said. “There’s something else.”

  “Licorice? I love licorice, you know. For future reference. The red kind. Not black.”

  “Sorry, I’m all out of candy. But I’ll make a note.”

  “And I also love nerds. The candy. Not actual nerds. Clearly. Or you wouldn’t stand a chance.”

  “Duly noted. Now may I continue?”

  “Certainly. Sorry. You’re the one pumping me full of sugar here. So you get what you give.”

  “I can’t speak with this thing in my mouth,” he said, spitting the candy into the fire.

  He reached out and took her hand. “Do you think we’re crazy?”

  She felt a serious conversation coming on. Her heart started to beat faster, and she felt all the moisture in her mouth drying up.

  “Yes. But I’ve come to love crazy.”

  “I didn’t come here looking for you, for this, for my life to change. Had someone told me you were waiting for me on the other side of the Atlantic, I don’t even know if I would have dared come in search of you. I would have been terrified of this exact thing happening. There’s a lot of pressure having someone as wonderful as you love me. What if I screw up and hurt you? What if I’m not who you need me to be? These are questions that kept me up last night.”

  He shifted a little, as if getting comfortable would allow the words to come out easier.

  “Loving you is easy. You just have to be you, and it’s up to me to show you how special you are. It’s up to me to be your friend, your partner, your protector, even if I know you’re perfectly capable of protecting yourself.”

  He took a deep breath, and she felt his hand shake. “Being loved, that’s the hard part, I think. Because I need to prove myself worthy of your love.”

  One thing was certain. Campbell Scott had a way of turning Elsie Walsh into a cry baby.

  “You have nothing to prove to me,” she said, water welling in her eyes. “Nothing. I might not know all the details of your life, but I know you. I know who you are at the core, and that’s a man worth loving. And being loved by. You think you’re worried? Try being me. I’m the world’s biggest worrier. I over-think everything. Plan everything. Debate everything. Set crazy rules for myself, and judge myself all the time. I’m always trying to live up to my own expectations of myself. And now here I am, opening myself to you, taking a risk. And you know what?” She kissed his hand. “It feels incredible. Liberating. Like I’m free to just be myself because of you.”

  “God, you’re amazing,” he said, kissing her. “No wonder I’ve lost my head. And my heart.”

  Why were they sitting so close to the fire? There was enough warmth spreading through her body to warm the cottage on her own.

  “So, there’s just one more thing to say then,” he said, rubbing his back and shifting yet again.

  “There’s always more than one thing left to say between us, Cam.”

  “Well, at this moment, only one important thing.” He cleared his throat. Twice.

  “Elsie, there are a lot of things we can do to get to know each other better. And we will. But I’d love to discover everything about you, and share myself with you as your husband.”

  “Yes,” she said, reaching for the ring pop.

  “You can’t say yes yet. I haven’t asked you a question.”

  “Well, ask already. So I can say yes.”

  “Elsie Walsh, would you like to be my wife?”

  “I’d love to be your wife.” And cue the tears. “Now give me that damn ring pop. I’ll wear it until it melts. Or I eat it. I can’t guarantee which.”

  “Close your eyes,” he said.

  She shut them as tight as she could, hoping to stem the tears. And she felt the ring slide onto her finger, warm and not nearly as rough as she’d expected.

  “You honestly didn’t think I was proposing to you with a candy ring, did you?” he said.

  Her eyes shot open wide. The stone on her ring was indeed green, but it was a square cut emerald set in a band of white gold and diamonds.

  “Oh my God,” she exclaimed. “Cam, it’s...I don’t own anything...Oh my God.” She nearly tackled him to the floor, kissing him as she exclaimed, “I know it’s not supposed to be about the ring, but I love it. And it’s not candy. It’s amazing.”

  “So, you like it then?”

  “So much so that I’m willing to let you have this one. Campbell Duncan Alistair Scott, would you like to be my husband?” she said, handing him the ring pop.

  “Love to,” he said, popping it into his mouth.

  ——

  It was three o’clock. Cam was stretched out on the bed, Elsie wrapped beside him.

  “I like this look,” he said, stroking her back. “I think when we’re alone you should only wear this ring and nothing else.”

  “I’d say the same of you but you ate your ring. Barbarian.”

  He glanced at the clock, wondering what was happening up at the inn.

  “So, what would you like to do for the rest of the day?”

  She was also looking at the clock. “We can do this, if you like. That is, if there’s nothing else you’d like to do.”

  “Nope, I’m at your mercy. What we do today is entirely dependent on your wishes.”

  “Perfect, then. Let’s stay in bed.” Was he reading too much into it, or did she sound slightly breathless?

  “Fantastic.” He nibbled on her ear. “I’m sure there are some parts of you that I haven’t kissed yet. It could take all day to make sure I get to them all.”

  Yes, she was panicking. He could tell. Her eyes were shifting, and he could feel her heart pounding.

  “Elsie,” he said, trying to calm her. “We don’t have to stay here. We can do whatever you want. I am yours to command.”

  “Uh huh,” she said. “That’s fine. We can stay here. I’m a newly engaged woman. Of course I want to stay in bed with my fiancé. Where else would I want to be?” She kissed him, but it lacked the passion they’d shared over the last hour.

  They should be heading to the house. Or at least one of them should. And there should be a wedding waiting for them. But how was he going to get her up there?

  The next ten minutes were some of the most excruciating of his life. Why wasn’t she moving? Was she really content to just stay there all afternoon? Hadn’t he dropped enough hints? Or did she think the proposal was the highlight of the day? If so, then he’d made a grave miscalculation.

  He had to get her up to the inn.

  “You know, I haven’t had lunch. And I�
�m starving. How about we head up and get something to eat?”

  She practically jumped out of bed. “That sounds fantastic,” she said, pulling on her clothes as if the hounds of hell were chasing her.

  He started to get dressed, but she laid a hand on his chest. “Let’s dress for supper. Dress nice. I don’t know about you, but I’m only getting engaged this once. We should do something to celebrate, don’t you think?”

  “Absolutely.”

  “I’ll need some time. I’m covered in chocolate, for some unknown reason,” she smiled. “How about I have someone send you down a snack to tide you over and we’ll have an early supper. Say four thirty?”

  “I was going to suggest five, but that's good too.”

  “Great,” she beamed. “You relax. And I’ll see you then. For supper.”

  She was almost out the door before he caught her. “Elsie?”

  “Yes?”

  “I love you.”

  ——

  She tried her best not to let him see her dash up the hill, but she had to find out what was going on. Had she so totally misjudged what he had planned today? If she got to the house and found out he hadn’t planned a wedding for today, she was going to die. What other reason was there for how at ease he was. The man would have stayed in bed all day if she’d played along. She had intended to, in the hope of getting him to make his move. She hoped his plea of hunger was just that: A ploy to get them to the house.

  She had to find her mother. She burst into the kitchen, where her mother was adding vegetables to the stew. The smell of moose and onions was heavenly. Her father was taking blueberry cake out of the oven.

  “Dad! I need to know. Was Cam planning on getting married today?”

  “Yes.”

  She sighed with relief and sank into a chair. “Thank God.”

  She spotted her parents smiling at each other.

  “That man is some actor. I was about convinced that he had nothing planned and that I had jumped right past the obvious conclusion and into the realm of insanity.”

  “And what would the obvious conclusion be?”

  “That he was going to propose.” She jumped up. “I swear, I don’t know if I’m coming or going. How could I have forgotten to show you. Look!”

  She extended her arm so her mother could see the ring. Noreen’s exclamations drew other women into the kitchen, including Ida, who vowed she’d never seen anything like it in all her days.

  By the time she’d finished showing the ring, it was almost half past three. A quick peek into the ballroom to ensure everything was still in one piece, and another poke around the house to see if there were any clues to what Cam had planned, which revealed nothing, and she went in search of Cam’s sister. There was just one last detail to take care of before she could get ready.

  ——

  She found Daphne hanging out with Asher in the games room. The instant Cam’s sister spotted Elsie, she let out a loud squeal of delight.

  “Is it true? You’ve planned a wedding? For today? Oh, this is marvelous. You’re a marvelous, marvelous woman.” She enveloped Elsie in such an embrace that Elsie could barely breathe.

  Once she finally broke her grip, Daphne grasped Elsie’s hand. “Let me see the ring. He wouldn’t let me see it, the bugger. If I wasn’t so confident that he’d know the right thing to get, I would have gone shopping with him. However, I was put in charge of the best surprise.”

  “Whatever Cam might have planned,” Elsie said, “I’m doing this my way.”

  “Oh hush. Of course you are. But there’s no harm in looking, is there? Please, I worked so hard on it, at least look.”

  Elsie felt ashamed. People had worked hard on Cam’s surprise. The least she could do was be a sport about it. She apologized to Daphne and was quickly chastised for doing so.

  “And what’s my role?” Asher asked, sitting in the corner looking every inch the rock star in an eggplant velvet sports coat, purple paisley shirt, and slim grey trousers.

  “You just be there for Cam,” Elsie said. “Whatever he needs, you take care of it.”

  “Already taken care of, my luv.”

  “But don’t tell him what’s happening. That’s my surprise.”

  She and Daphne headed upstairs to Daphne’s room.

  “Okay. So no pressure. Your Mom told me you have this all under control, but you never know, right.” Daphne opened the door to reveal two racks of wedding gowns, and at least two dozen different flower bouquets. Everything from a traditional rose clutch, to a sweeping spray of orchids.

  Elsie was overwhelmed. “Daphne, these gowns beautiful, but they’ll all have to be altered.”

  “Well, if you find one you like, and it needs some slight fixes, we’ve got that covered too. Just so happens I know one of the best seamstresses in Scotland, and she’s here.”

  A tall, stately woman with thick salt and pepper hair tied up in a loose bun stepped out from behind one of the racks.

  “So, you’re the wee one that managed to get that rabble-rouser of mine to come to his senses, are you?”

  Was this Cam’s mother? He’d flown in his family?

  “Mrs. Scott. You have no idea how glad I am that you could make it.”

  “Och, Campbell knows better than to come to me after the fact and tell me he deprived me of witnessing a miracle. Now come here I get a look at you. My gracious, you’re the size of a fairy.”

  After a bit of scrutinization, Mrs. Scott grunted what Elsie thought might be approval. She felt like she had been measured and found worthy.

  It was nearing four and Elsie still hadn’t had a shower, and now there were wedding dresses everywhere. It was time to get serious. She sent Asher to delay Cam until five thirty, if possible, and had her mother join her.

  There were a couple of dresses that demanded her attention, regardless of her intentions to wear a dress she’d bought for a hundred and twenty three dollars. Daphne had flown in gowns by several high-end designers. Vera Wang’s fall collection was amazingly similar in colour scheme to the dress Elsie had intended to wear. Daphne was useful to have around in times of a fashion crisis, it seemed.

  Elsie had her princess moment, trying on some of the most expensive, and exquisite gowns of her life, but in the end, opted to go with her own. Her mother, Daphne and Mrs. Scott all followed her to her room, where she tried on her dress.

  “It’s perfect. Simply perfect.” Daphne dabbed at her eyes. Elsie believed she meant it.

  Even Mrs. Scott agreed.

  “Those other dresses just swallowed you up. Now we see you.”

  She felt the same way. It was a high-waist straight chiffon skirt in ivory, with a brown halter. The skirt had a thick belt that was the same colour as the halter. She looked tall and slender. Well, taller, at least.

  Now that the dress issue was settled to everyone’s satisfaction, it was time to get ready.

  I’m getting married today!

  FIFTEEN

  She was nervous. Whatever Cam might have planned, she’d only used two things he’d selected, that she knew of. She’d chosen the blush pink orchid spray for her bouquet, and agreed whole heartedly that Asher play the music during the ceremony. Cam had already thought of an alternate best man, his brother, Colin.

  Cam was waiting for her in the dining room.

  “I guess the secret is out?” she said as she walked in.

  “Well, I didn’t try very hard to keep it a secret, now did I?” Cam said. “You are spectacular.”

  “As are you. I hadn’t even pictured you wearing a kilt.”

  “Well, it was a bit of a fight between my parents about whether I wore the red Clan Scott tartan, or the green and blue Clan Campbell. But I chose the Scott in the end.”

  It felt like she’d walked in on someone else’s wedding. Why else would there be a sexy Scotsman in her house, decked out in full formal Scottish dress?

  “I thought I’d be the only one wearing a skirt.”

  “Well, g
et used to a life full of the unexpected, my love.”

  “You went through a lot of work to plan this wedding, didn’t you?” She ran her hand down his tie.

  “Not at all. Very little actually.” Cam chuckled.

  “Don’t be modest. I’ve seen the dresses, none of which I’m wearing by the way. This is my own dress. And I’ve seen the flowers. And the band. And your family. I admire your confidence that I’d agree to marry you so quickly, by the way.”

  He laughed. “My confidence? My darling, I wasn’t that confident at all. It took your Dad to help me figure it all out.”

  She took hold of his hand. “Cam, I really appreciate everything you’ve done. And I’m more than willing to marry you today. Obviously, since I’m standing here talking to you, and not hiding in my room in tears. But you need to know something about me. I like to plan my events. I like to have my own touches. It’s part of what I do. I have a vision, and I need to see it to completion. Yesterday, when you sent those images, I was livid. There was no way I was getting married today. And then I thought about it. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to marry you. It was that I didn’t want just any wedding. I wanted my wedding.” Damn it all again, but she was tearing up.

  “Elsie, it’s okay.”

  “No, let me finish. I know you put a lot of thought into planning something too, and maybe you feel the same way. Maybe you want your wedding a certain way. But...well, it’s stupid, I know, but Cam, I’m a girl. And I’m a pretty girlie girl for all that. I wanted to have a say.”

  “Elsie, it’s okay,” he said, hugging her. “You think I don’t know that? I couldn’t care less if we were married wearing paper bags in a parade officiated by a clown. The only thing I care about is that at the end of the day—this day—we’re together. I had three goals to achieve. Get engaged. Convince you to marry me today. And give you anything you might need to help plan our wedding.”