‘So you’re sure you did the right thing by not marrying him?’
‘Completely sure.’
‘Good.’ He kissed her on the mouth, showing her just how much that meant to him. Heather was trembling when he drew back and he smiled at her, his eyes filled with love. ‘I love you so much, Heather Thompson. You’ve turned my life around in the past few weeks. After we talked about the accident, I felt so much better, as though I could move on with my life. Guilt was eating me up before but now I can see that I wasn’t solely to blame for what happened.’
‘I’m glad,’ she said simply. ‘You deserve to be happy, Archie. You deserve to make the choices you want, and not base them on a need to make amends.’
‘And that’s exactly what I’m going to do from now on.’ He kissed the tip of her nose then smiled at her. ‘You’re such a wise woman for your tender years.’
‘Wise?’ She snorted with laughter. ‘I don’t think so!’
‘Well, I do. Wise and beautiful.’
Another lingering kiss followed. Heather was drifting blissfully away on a sea of happiness when he raised his head again.
‘I intend to reassess what I want from life in the future,’ he told her huskily, obviously as affected as she was. ‘I’ll make sure the estate is being run properly, but I no longer feel that I have to sacrifice my career to achieve that. Hopefully, in a few months’ time I shall be able to go back to what I enjoy most of all.’
‘It would be such a shame if you gave up medicine, Archie. You have so much to offer the children in your care. They need you.’
‘Thank you. I only hope you feel the same way and need me, too.’ He looked deep into her eyes. ‘I don’t want us to be apart, Heather, so do you think you could move to Scotland with me? I know it’s a lot to ask. Giving up your life here will be a wrench and—’
She stopped him the most expedient way she knew—with a kiss. ‘I don’t care where I live so long as we’re together.’
‘You really mean that?’ He gave a whoop of delight when she nodded. Gathering her into his arms, he held her close. ‘How soon can you get packed?’
‘As soon as you like. I can start now if that’s what you want.’
Archie shook his head. ‘I think we can wait a couple more hours.’
‘Is that right? Why? Have you something better planned for the rest of the evening?’
‘I most certainly have.’ He stood up and lifted her in his arms then headed for the bedroom. ‘I have plans for the rest of the evening and the night!’
EPILOGUE
Scotland: August
HEATHER stood by the window, looking out at the view over the loch. Evening was drawing in and the mountains had taken on a purplish haze. In another half an hour it would be completely dark.
Excitement unfurled inside her as she thought about what was going to happen then. She and Archie were getting married that night in the tiny chapel in the grounds of the estate. It was a tradition that all Carew weddings took place after the sun had set, Archie had explained to her, and she’d been more than happy to agree their wedding should take place then, too. Everything was ready and now she was waiting for the time when she would become his wife.
A smile curved her mouth as she thought about how wonderful the past few months had been. Moving to Scotland had given them time to cement their relationship and every day they had been together they had grown closer. Archie was the man she would love until her dying day and she was just so relieved that she had realised it. When the drawing-room door opened and he came in, she smiled at him with a wealth of love in her eyes.
‘It’s nearly time, isn’t it?’
‘Just another few minutes and then we can set off to the chapel.’ He took her in his arms and kissed her. ‘Has anyone told you how gorgeous you look?’ he murmured.
‘Nobody who matters,’ she replied, smiling up at him.
She’d been delighted with her dress but it was good to know that Archie liked it, too. Made from pure white silk, it was simply cut with a fitted bodice and a long flowing skirt that swept the ground. Over her shoulder, she had pinned a length of tartan plaid in the Carew family colours. The gardener’s wife had made her a hand-tied bouquet of white roses and heather, and she had more heather woven into her hair. She felt like a fairy-tale princess about to be claimed by her prince, especially when Archie looked so dashing in his kilt.
‘You look gorgeous.’ He kissed her again, then put his arm around her as they looked out of the window. ‘It’s beautiful here, isn’t it? I’m going to miss it when we move to Edinburgh.’
‘I will, too, but we’ll be able to pop back for weekends.’ She turned to him. ‘You’re not sorry that you agreed to take this new job, are you, Archie?’
‘Definitely not. The past few months have been wonderful. I’ve enjoyed being here and getting everything running properly again. It’s something I needed to do, but now that I’ve found a manager capable of taking over, it leaves me free to pick up my career again.’ He hugged her to his side and she could hear the excitement in his voice as he continued. ‘Being given the chance to set up this new paediatric unit is more than I could have dreamed of, and I have you to thank for it, Heather. I would never have reached this point without you.’
‘We’re good for each other, Archie,’ she said simply.
‘We are. Very good indeed.’ He kissed her again then held out his hand. ‘It’s time we set off for the chapel. We don’t want to keep everyone waiting, do we?’
‘Definitely not.’
Heather slipped her hand into his and let him lead her out of the house. Torches had been lit along the route they had to take, lighting their path. Most of the estate workers were there to watch them getting married, and they clapped as she and Archie walked past. When they reached the tiny chapel, she discovered that it was lit by hundreds of candles. The flickering glow from their flames cast a magical beauty over the place.
She turned to Archie and smiled. ‘Thank you so much for doing all this for me. It’s just like a fairy tale.’
‘It’s what you deserve, my darling.’
He kissed her softly on the lips then handed her over to her father, who was waiting by the door to escort her up the aisle. Heather’s heart swelled with happiness as she walked towards her future husband. She felt so lucky and so blessed to have found Archie. She would never take their love for granted but cherish it every single day.
When Archie turned and held out his hand, she didn’t hesitate. There were no second thoughts this time, no doubts, just a lifetime of happiness to look forward to. She placed her hand in his and knew that from this moment on they would be together for ever.
ISBN: 978-1-4603-5624-1
MARRYING THE RUNAWAY BRIDE
First published in Great Britain 2008
© Jennifer Taylor 2008
All Rights Reserved including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. This edition is published by arrangement with Harlequin Enterprises II BV/S.à.r.l. The text of this publication or any part thereof may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, storage in an information retrieval system, or otherwise, without the written permission of the publisher.
All the characters in this book have no existence outside the imagination of the author, and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names. They are not even distantly inspired by any individual known or unknown to the author, and all the incidents are pure invention.
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