by Cat Schield
A sob bloomed in her chest, making her breath erratic. While the words she’d longed to speak stuck in her throat, Claire grappled with fear. If she opened her heart and told him the truth—that she couldn’t bear the thought of living without him—he would never let her go. And then what if all his friends and family opposed their relationship? How could she hope to make Linc happy?
“I love you,” she confessed, her strong emotions refusing to remain bottled up any longer.
“That’s my girl.” He cupped her face in his palms and leaned down to graze her lips with his. “It feels like I’ve been waiting forever to hear those words from you.”
“But, Linc, we can’t—”
He stopped her words with another kiss, this one longer and deeper. She was light-headed and giddy by the time he lifted his head.
“Let’s just focus on you, me and Honey. No one else matters.”
“But they do. Maybe in a thousand other cities things would be different. But in Charleston, everyone’s opinion matters.”
“So we’ll live in Texas or California or wherever you want. What matters is that we’re together.”
She couldn’t believe what he was saying. “But your family and friends are here. And say what you want, but the fact is they are important to you.”
“So what will it take?”
“For what?”
“For you to marry me in a huge ceremony in front of all our friends and family? I want to shout my love for you from the rooftops.”
His question overwhelmed her, but she recognized that running was impossible now. Even if it was the smartest thing for everyone, hope had seized control. What if she and Linc could make a go of things? She loved him. Could she really turn her back on a chance for happiness?
“I can’t honestly say what would change my mind,” she said, but in fact, she knew. If by some miracle the family origin legend was true and she was descended from an old Charleston family...
“You underestimate how persuasive I can be.” A wicked grin lit up his expression.
“Well, there’s a welcome sight.”
Claire glanced toward the back door and spied Sawyer standing just inside the kitchen.
“What are you doing here?” Linc demanded.
“Interrupting something, obviously.” Wearing an unrepentant grin, Sawyer strode toward them and snagged Claire by the arm, tugging her away from Linc. “Excuse us, brother dear. I need to speak with Claire.”
“What’s going on?”
“Give Mom a call. She wants to know if you’re interested in coming by for dinner. Claire and I will be right back.”
Claire bit her lip as Sawyer led her toward the front of the house. Her stomach, still unsettled by the day’s events, began churning in earnest as Sawyer directed her into the living room and onto the tufted cobalt sofa.
“What’s going on?” she asked, echoing Linc’s earlier question. “Did something happen after I left the polo event today? Does everyone know what’s been going on between Linc and me? Is that why your mother wants him to come over for dinner? So she can tell him to send me packing?”
And yet, wasn’t that what she’d been all ready to do mere minutes earlier? To disappear out of Linc’s life? What was so different now that he’d told her he loved her and wanted to marry her?
“Nothing like that,” Sawyer assured her. “As for Mother, she’s delighted that Linc has found someone who makes him as happy as you do.”
“She knows about me? About us? How did she find out?” Claire sagged back against the sofa and closed her eyes. “I’m so embarrassed.”
“Linc told her the day after the party. I don’t think he went into any great detail about what you two have been up to, but she knows he loves you.”
Claire sat up and stared at Sawyer. “Then what is it you needed to tell me?”
“What I found out from my friend at the historical society about your ancestor James Robbins.”
“What you found out?” Claire regarded Sawyer in confusion. “I don’t understand. How did you know about him?”
“Linc told me your story, so I went to the historical society and did some digging to find out about the Robbins family.”
Claire couldn’t believe Sawyer’s excitement over what she’d found and noticed her own pulse picking up speed. Although her great-aunt had believed the stories of James Robbins leaving behind his Charleston family to chase his fortune in the California gold rush, part of Claire hadn’t quite believed that there was anything more to the tales than family legend.
“So there’s a Robbins family in Charleston?”
Sawyer shook her head. “Not anymore. They died out when their first son was killed during the Civil War.”
“Oh.” Claire struggled to contain her rising disappointment. What a fool she was to think maybe she had a connection to a family that might impress Bettina. “Well, thanks for looking.”
“Not so fast. Just because the Robbins name died out doesn’t mean they weren’t an important Charleston family. There was a daughter. Penelope. She married well and had lots of descendants.”
It hadn’t occurred to Claire that after all this time she might actually have family living in Charleston. She’d been focused on the members of her great-great-grandfather’s generation and determining if James Robbins had been telling the truth. “What would they be? My distant cousins?”
“It will take a while to sort out all the genealogies and how everyone connects to you, but I know for sure that you’re related to the Haskells. As in my friend Shelby Haskell.” Sawyer beamed at Claire.
“Really?”
Claire recalled a brief exchange she’d had with Shelby at Bettina’s party and something clicked in her heart. A missing fragment of her identity slipped into place and made her feel whole for the first time in what felt like forever. She belonged here in Charleston in a way that had nothing to do with Linc.
“Yes, really,” Sawyer exclaimed. “Isn’t that exciting?”
“You have no idea.” All at once, Claire burst into tears. For a long moment, she couldn’t breathe and her throat hurt too much to get out a word, but she managed to find her voice again. “I can’t believe this is real.”
“It sure is. Even before you two figured out that you loved each other, I could see that you were special to him. He told me how important this was to you and I’m so glad I was able to help.”
“Have you told Linc?” Claire wondered if this was what had caused him to propose. Maybe he’d decided she was suitable after all.
Sawyer shook her head. “I just found out myself not more than half an hour ago. I thought maybe you’d like to be the one to share your news.”
“And your mother?”
“Stop worrying about things that don’t matter,” Sawyer counseled, clearly recognizing what Claire feared. “Linc loves you and that’s all there is to it. Neither he nor my mother care where you came from.”
Since when?
Claire repressed the thought. If she had any chance of making things work with Linc, she simply had to stop using the gap in their social stations as an excuse to guard herself from getting hurt.
“I know,” she said, expelling her breath in a long sigh. “It’s just that it’s been so long since anyone has made me feel safe and I’m a little skittish.”
“Linc is the best guy around.”
“You should listen to her,” Linc said from the wide arch that led to the hall. He’d followed Honey, who now raced into the room in Claire’s direction. “Are you ready to go tell my mother that I’ve chosen my future bride?” he asked as she scooped her daughter onto her lap and hugged her.
“Are you sure that’s what you want?”
“Do you really need to ask?”
Claire glanced down at her jeans and cotton sweater. “I should change my clothes.”
“You are beautiful no matter what you’re wearing.” He took her hand and grazed his lips across her palm, making Claire shiver. “I’ll give you ten minutes to change.”
While Sawyer entertained Honey, Claire rummaged through her suitcase. She’d bought a beautiful floral dress a week earlier. It wasn’t an expensive designer original, but the soft pastel tones brought out the gold highlights in her hair and the wrap style flattered her slim figure.
Claire slipped into the first-floor bathroom and, within the allotted ten minutes, transformed herself from a fearful runaway to a woman ready to face the upcoming challenges and grab the brass ring.
“You look beautiful,” Linc said as she reentered the kitchen.
Sawyer had left moments earlier, leaving Claire and Honey alone with Linc once again. Claire smoothed her palms down the skirt as he approached, keenly aware as he scrutinized every inch of her appearance.
“Do you think your mother will approve?” In truth, she already knew the answer, but her confidence grew beneath Linc’s possessive regard.
“Yes.”
“Then I guess we’d better go.”
“One thing before we do,” he said, reaching into his coat pocket. “I have something for you.” He displayed a ring box and popped the top. Framed in black velvet was a huge oval-cut diamond set on a thin rose gold band of micropave-set diamonds. “Claire Robbins, will you marry me?”
This time she didn’t have to think about the answer. “Linc Thurston, I love you with all my heart and want to be your wife.”
She took his face in her hands as he leaned down to kiss her. Distantly, she heard Honey’s sweet giggle. Then she was swept into the heat and wonder of the connection she always felt with him and all her fears melted away.
Both of them were breathing a little unsteadily when they broke off the kiss. Honey was growing impatient, her calls penetrating the fog of passion that had enveloped them. Claire watched while Linc slid the diamond ring onto her left hand, her heart stopping at the joy glinting in his eyes.
How had she gotten so lucky to win this man’s heart?
On the way to his mother’s house, Claire sat paralyzed, fearing that if she moved a single muscle, the whole thing would vanish like a beautiful dream.
Yet with each block they traversed, alarm zinged with ever-increasing speed along Claire’s nerves until by the time they pulled into his mother’s driveway she was buzzing with tension.
“Relax,” Linc murmured as he turned off the car. “No one is going to eat you alive.”
“That’s easy for you to say,” she retorted more sharply than she intended. “You’re wealthy and socially prominent. I’m a nobody who cleans your house.”
His eyebrows rose at her vehemence, but then he nodded. “Thanks for reminding me. There’s something I forgot to do.” He flashed her a mischievous grin. “You’re fired.”
Taking his dismissal in the manner he intended, she smiled in return. “I’ve never been fired from a job before.”
“Never?”
“I’m an exceptional employee. Every boss I’ve ever worked for has given me glowing performance reviews.”
“Of course they have,” he murmured in a fond tone.
Linc opened his car door and started to get out but then noticed that she hadn’t moved. He reached out and caught her hand, giving her fingers a gentle squeeze. “Come on.”
She slipped from the car and went to stand on the brick walkway that stretched from the driveway to the front door while Linc got Honey from her car seat. He moved with confidence and care, having done this dozens of times.
Claire then realized how long this moment had been coming. She just hadn’t seen it. Linc had never been just her employer. He’d been her friend. Someone who cared about her and Honey, who’d invited himself into her life.
This flash of insight bolstered her courage. She would face his mother with her head high, confident in the knowledge that she was the woman he loved and intended to marry.
“It’s about time you arrived,” Bettina called from the living room. “Sawyer tells me you two are engaged.”
Claire glanced at Linc as the three of them crossed the threshold and entered the room. The next ten minutes would tell her how the rest of her life would play out. Linc gave her a reassuring smile before answering his mother.
“We are, indeed,” Linc said, his satisfaction bolstering Claire.
If this amazing man loved her, she could face whatever the future held.
“Wonderful.” Bettina got to her feet as they neared and her gaze met Claire’s. She held out her arms and Claire hesitated only a second before stepping into the older woman’s embrace. “I just know you and Linc will be so very happy together,” she whispered, giving Claire a hard hug before letting her go.
“Thank you,” Claire murmured, overwhelmed by a flood of emotions.
Bettina sat down as Dolly appeared with a bottle of champagne and crystal flutes.
“We are going to plan the most lavish wedding this town has seen in years,” Linc’s mother stated. “Claire will have a dozen bridesmaids and the most expensive gown we can find.”
While Bettina began mulling over ideas for the venue and potential wedding planners, Claire sipped her champagne and held Linc’s hand. A surge of fondness and belonging flooded her as she realized the acceptance and family she’d craved for so long were going to be hers.
“Thank you,” she murmured, resting her head on his arm.
“For what?”
“Making me a part of your family. I love you so much.” She tilted her head back and met his gaze. “I never thought I could be as happy as I am right now.”
“I’m the lucky one. We belong together. You and Honey make my life complete.” He leaned down and placed a soft kiss on her lips.
“I like belonging with you,” she agreed, thinking how the Robbins family had come full circle now that she’d returned to Charleston.
She couldn’t wait until she and Linc were alone so she could share with him what Sawyer had found out. Yet as excited as she was by the news that she had a connection to the Charleston elite, it no longer determined who she was. For that, all she needed to do was gaze into Linc’s blue eyes to see her true self reflected there. His love was all she needed to accept that she was exactly where she should be.
* * * * *
If you liked this story of passion
and scandal from Cat Schield,
don’t miss her LAS VEGAS NIGHTS series!
AT ODDS WITH THE HEIRESS
A MERGER BY MARRIAGE
A TASTE OF TEMPTATION
A GAME OF SEDUCTION
LITTLE SECRET, RED HOT SCANDAL
THE HEIR AFFAIR
Available now from Harlequin Desire!
* * *
And don’t miss the next
BILLIONAIRES AND BABIES story:
THE ILLEGITIMATE BILLIONAIRE
by USA TODAY bestselling author
Barbara Dunlop
Available May 2018!
* * *
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Keep reading for an excerpt from THE TEXAN’S WEDDING ESCAPE by Charlene Sands.
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The Texan's Wedding Escape
by Charlene Sands
One
He hit Delete on his laptop, wiping out names and phone numbers of the women he’d dated, wanted to date or just plain thought were freaking gorgeous. Instantly, Cooper Stone’s fun-loving, party-till-you-drop days were over, ended by a finger stroke on the keyboard. It was equivalent to burning his little black book, only nobody carried a little black book anymore. Things had gotten too damn sophisticated, but the end result was the same. Cooper Stone was out of the running. It was a long time coming, six months to be exact.
He wouldn’t miss those names.
Not like he missed his buddy, Tony Abbott.
One minute he was laughing alongside him in the car, their heads thrown back, enjoying life to the fullest, and the next, he was silenced by the stony sound of death. The quiet in that moment still rang in Cooper’s head, still tormented him. Everything had stopped, everything had gone numbingly cold. Tony had died instantly and the drunken driver behind the wheel of the car that had plowed into them had escaped without injury. So had Cooper. And he’d never forgiven himself for that.
Deleting those names was only a formality. He hadn’t been a party animal since that night. And he never would be again. Some things just left a mark and the imprint of that horrible crash brought him full circle. He now lived quietly on his ranch at Stone Ridge and poured himself into his entrepreneurial businesses.