Shane turned onto his back and settled Faith against his side with her head pillowed on his good shoulder. He was exhausted, spent, which was to be expected, but there were other feelings he hadn’t expected. Rightness, comfort, and a fullness in his chest he refused to name.

He had sought physical release in Faith’s arms. He had told himself this would be only to ease the restless ache in his gut and to give Faith a few hours of escape from her worries. He hadn’t expected the sweetness, the warmth this completion had brought. In giving him her body, Faith had given him much more. In her arms he had felt peace and tenderness and understanding.

For one unguarded moment he let himself wonder what it would be like to take what she offered-a haven, salvation, a place to rest and heal a world-weary heart. The thought of it was so beautiful, so tempting, it was frightening.

“I never knew,” Faith whispered, her breath warm against his cooling skin. “In twelve years of marriage, I never knew anything like this.”

Silently Shane cursed the bastard who had married this gentle, giving woman only to further his career. William Gerrard deserved to be imprisoned for that alone.

His hand came up to stroke her hair possessively. “Why did you stay with him?” he asked, fighting to keep the harsh edge from his voice. “Did you love him?”

“At first,” she said with a sad smile. “William can be very charming when it suits him. He swept me off my feet. Then, after he won his Senate seat and we moved to Washington, his interest in me waned. I blamed his job. I blamed myself. Eventually I got around to blaming William, but I made the mistake of believing he could change, that I could change him. I couldn’t.”

“Twelve years is a long time to spend trying to change somebody.”

“Oh, I’d given up hope on him long before that.”

“Then why did you stay with the bastard?” At one time he might have suspected her of marrying Gerrard for his money or for the glamour or power, but no such suspicions surfaced now. He had come to trust Faith as he trusted very few people.

“Because I’d taken a vow,” she said, feeling both foolish and defensive. “I’d pledged to be his wife for better or worse. I believe in those vows. I know that sounds old-fashioned, but I do.”

Shane wrapped his arms around her and pressed a kiss to her forehead. The cynic in him labeled her naive, but if she had been naive, she was also good and honest and sincere. Those were qualities he’d seen precious little of in the last few years. It made him feel old and jaded now to lie there with this treasure of a woman in his arms. He didn’t deserve the chance to touch her, but damned if he could stay away from her.

The only thing he could offer her was protection from the man who had so callously used her. And that Shane pledged to her and to himself. “He’ll never hurt you again, Faith. I’ll see to it.”

FAITH STUDIED SHANE’S face in the soft light of predawn. He frowned even in his sleep. She reached out and gently rubbed at the line between his dark eyebrows with the pad of her thumb, and a wave of love swept through her as he grumbled and tried to snuggle closer.

He’d been such a tender lover. Insatiable but tender, and considerate of their difference in size and of her lack of experience. She imagined Shane had been called many things in his time, and tender was probably not at the head of the list; but he had been tender with her, and she loved him for it.

Carefully, skillfully he had shown her fulfillment as she had never known it. He’d coaxed her away from inhibitions and uncertainties. He’d made her acutely aware of her femininity and her potential for sensuality. As they had made love, the cynical man had faded away, leaving a man she wanted to give her heart to, a sensitive man with musician’s hands and the soul of a poet.

When he opened his eyes and looked across the pillow at her, Faith knew she had to tell him. It might have been safer to say nothing. Shane would no doubt have preferred she say nothing. But she couldn’t keep this love to herself. Her heart was overflowing with it. There was every chance he wouldn’t accept it, but Faith knew she had to offer it to him nevertheless.

“I want to tell you something,” she whispered, lifting her hand to touch his beard-roughened cheek.

Shane turned his head and pressed a kiss to her palm. “What?”

“I love you.”

Nothing had prepared Shane for the feelings that rushed through him at those words. The power of it was stunning… and terrifying. He raised up on one elbow and looked down at Faith, his ready argument against emotional entanglement sticking in his throat like a tennis ball.

Lord, she was so pretty, so sweet, and everything that was in her heart was in her eyes as well.

Longing surged within him to battle with logic. He couldn’t let this happen. He had drawn the line, set the rules of their relationship for a reason. They couldn’t step across that line. It wasn’t safe.

“Faith, no-”

She silenced his denial with two slender fingers pressed to his lips. “I know it’s not something you wanted to hear, Shane. I don’t expect you to respond in kind. But you said you wanted us to be honest about our feelings up front, so that’s what I’m doing.”

“Faith, I-we-damn.” He bit back a sigh. This was certainly proving his point. His emotions were short-circuiting his brain. All he wanted to do was look down at her. She was so lovely, so fragile, like something made of fine porcelain. He touched her cheek as if to assure himself she was indeed real. Then his fingers trailed down to her throat to brush across the gold heart she wore. When he spoke again, he chose his words carefully. The last thing he wanted was to hurt her. “Honey, you’re in a high-stress situation. I’m here to protect you. We’re attracted to each other. What you’re feeling-”

“Is love,” Faith said, heading him off at the pass.

“It’s-”

“Love,” she insisted, her delicate brows lowering over her eyes. The hardheaded man. He may not have appreciated the sentiment, but she wasn’t about to let him talk her out of it either. “I know what’s in my own heart, Shane. I can’t say I was very happy about it when I first figured it out, but I can’t deny it either. I love you whether we like it or not.”

A ghost of a smile turned up the corners of Faith’s lips as she took in Shane’s dark expression. She’d been right in thinking he wouldn’t want the love she offered, the love he needed, the love she needed to give. Being right was small consolation, but the struggle he seemed to be waging within himself gave life to a spark of hope. Maybe, if they could just have a little time together, maybe…

Maybe what, Faith, she asked herself. Maybe Shane would change, the way she had believed William would change? Maybe they could live happily ever after? Maybe she was being a fool.

“I have to go back to my room,” she whispered as tears filled her eyes. She blinked them back determinedly. “Lindy will be getting up soon. I just wanted you to know how I feel. We can have a few weeks together; I’ll take whatever you’re willing to give me. But if you decide you want more, we can have more.”

We can have forever, she added silently.

She started to turn away from him to slide out of bed, but Shane’s big hand on her shoulder stopped her. Without saying a word, he bent down and settled his mouth against hers in a hot, deep kiss, a kiss of raw, primitive possession. He swept a hand down her side to her hip to steady her as he kneed her thighs apart and eased into her with one slow thrust. Faith moaned at the feel of him filling her. Automatically her hips lifted to make his entrance easier.

“This is what I can give you, Faith,” he murmured darkly against her lips as his body moved against her and within her, seeking the mind-numbing solace he found only with her.