A Risk Worth Taking (36 page)

“He was my younger brother. Do you know what his last words were to me?”

Griff waited.

“He told me he couldn’t compete with me any longer, that I cast too large a shadow. What did I do, Griff? What is wrong with me that my own brother hated me so much that every choice he made was to defy the principles I upheld? Every choice he made was to destroy me?”

“There was nothing you could have done, Jack. He forged his own path.”

“And I am forced to live with his death.”

“Don’t let your doubts destroy you. I learned that lesson the hard way. For years, I tried to blame myself for my
wife and child’s deaths. I thought they died because of something I did, but that wasn’t true.

“Then, I thought I was responsible for Freddie’s death, and for Anne nearly being run over. Do you know what Anne told me once? She said we humans often feel the need to assign blame when something tragic happens, and sometimes there is no one to blame.” Griff smiled. “She said she thought I would like to blame God, but that I was not brave enough, so I blamed myself instead.”

“Perhaps she’s right.”

“I have no doubt she is.” Griff smiled down at Anne, then turned to his friend. “Get some rest, Jack. If you’re half as tired as I am, you’re probably dead on your feet.”

“You’re a lucky man, Griff,” Jack said, looking at Anne’s sleeping form.

“I know I am. And I’ll never forget it.” Griff pulled her closer into his arms.

Anne was fighting the rising water and losing the battle. She was suffocating. Water rose to her chin, then covered her mouth and her nose. She took in huge gulps until she couldn’t see. Couldn’t breathe. She was going to die.

She tried to scream but couldn’t. The water covering her face only muffled her sound. Ropes held her tight, and she struggled harder but could not get free.

“Anne,” a voice whispered in her ear, and two strong arms wrapped around her and held her. She was safe. When she finally woke up enough to realize she’d been
dreaming, every muscle in her body ached. At first she wasn’t sure where she was. The minute she remembered, her heart skipped a beat and she jolted in fear.

“Everything’s all right, Anne,” Griff whispered again, touching her, holding her. Kissing her.

“I couldn’t breathe. The water was too high.”

“It’s all right. You’re safe now.”

“I was so scared, Griff.”

“I know.”

“How did you know to come here for me?”

“Hawkins figured it out. He found out Brentwood was using this cave to hide his opium shipments.”

“Did Brentwood really kill Freddie, Griff?”

“Yes, then he tried to kill you when you refused to marry him. If I hadn’t been so blind, I would have figured it out long before now. But I was so convinced I was the one the killer was after. I didn’t think anyone could want Freddie dead. Or you. If it hadn’t been for Hawkins…”

Anne looked over to where Jack Hawkins slept in the corner on the other side of the cave. His ebony hair shone in the firelight, and the flickering flames cast shadows over his face.

“He saved my life,” she whispered in case Jack was awake. “How can I ever repay him?”

Griff lowered his head to whisper in her ear. “Perhaps someday he’ll need our help, and we’ll go to him.”

Before he lifted his head, Anne turned until her face was next to his. She raised her hand and cupped his cheek, then traced her fingers over his jaw. “Please, kiss me,” she whispered, and he smiled.

“I’d be glad to, my love.”

He lowered his head and covered her mouth. His kiss was warm and gentle. His lips touched her lips, tasted her, drank from her, worshipped her.

Anne wrapped her arms around his neck and held him to her while he deepened his kisses. His mouth opened above hers.

“I love you,” he said. He lifted his head and cupped her cheek in the palm of one hand. “I love you more than I thought it was possible to ever love another person again. I know the risk you took in marrying me. You were afraid I would end up like your father. That I’d want a drink more than I wanted you or the children we will have. But that won’t happen, Anne. Nothing will ever be more important to me than you are.”

“Oh, Griff.” Anne wrapped her arm around his neck and brought his lips down to hers again. She kissed him hard, with enough desperation to show him how much she wanted him.

“I love you,” she said when they broke apart, each of them gasping for air. “And I will love you until the day I die, and beyond. Loving you was a risk worth taking.”

“And I intend to prove that to you every day of our lives,” he whispered, then kissed her again. “I’ll make sure you never regret the risk you took.”

L
aura Landon taught high school for ten years before leaving the classroom to open her very own ice-cream shop. As much as she loved serving up sundaes and malts from behind the counter, she closed up shop after penning her first novel. Now she spends nearly every waking minute writing, guiding her heroes and heroines to happily ever after. The author of more than a dozen historical novels, her books are enjoyed by readers around the world. She lives with her family in the rural Midwest, where she devotes what free time she has to volunteering in her community.