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"I'm sorry, Leah. I was desperate to take away yer suffering. Abby says I was a noble idiot, and she's right. I made a terrible mistake. "
"I think I was the one who made a mistake. " Leah walked slowly toward him. "We were there at the harbor, and you were begging me to go with you, and I refused. I didn't want to bring shame on my family. " She snorted. "I guess I was a noble idiot, too. "
His heart stilled. "Y-ye remember that?"
She smiled, lifting her hands in the air. "I remember everything. "
"Ye remember Li Lei?"
She nodded. "I would say your kissing has vastly improved over the years. "
He stiffened. "Ye were my first. "
"You were my first, too. "
"Can ye forgive me?"
"For what? I was the one who refused to run away with you. "
"I promised to find you again, and I was too late. I saw yer boat capsize in the storm. "
She sighed. "I don't think I fought very hard to survive. I had realized my mistake, and I didn't want to live without you. " She wiped her eyes. "Can you forgive me?"
"For what? Ye came back to me. Ye gave me another chance. "
She frowned at him. "And then you tried to erase it all. Were you going to wait another three hundred years, hoping that I would reincarnate and find you again?"
He winced.
She huffed. "That's all fine and dandy for you. But what about me? Was I supposed to miss out on this lifetime? Don't you dare mess with my head again!"
"I dinna think ye would miss me if ye couldna remember. Now I realize I was punishing myself. I couldna forgive myself for failing to protect you. "
"How could you have protected me? Dougal, there was nothing you could do. And when the demon bit me, there was nothing I could do. We just have to live with it. "
He nodded. "I am trying to forgive myself. "
She smiled sadly. "I'm trying, too. "
He stepped closer. "So . . . am I still at a hundred percent?"
"Yes. "
He took her hand. "And ye still want to marry me?"
She nodded. "Yes. "
"Ye agreed to have five children. "
Her eyes widened. "I did? I don't remember that. "
His mouth twitched. "Nay. Ye dinna. I was just testing. "
She swatted his shoulder.
He pulled her into his arms. "Did ye want to molest me in my room over there?"
She splayed her hands over his chest. "Yes. And I want my dragon back. "
"The one in my kilt?"
She snorted. "The one you're hiding under your sweater. " She found the chain and tugged the jade dragon out. "I can't believe you stole my necklace. "
"It kept me from going insane. I missed you something fierce. " He kissed her brow.
She wrapped her arms around his neck. "I love you, Dougal. I have always loved you. "
He hugged her tight. "I love you, too. "
With a playful shove, she pushed him back, then scooped up his pipes and ran for the guesthouse.
He followed her. "Och, lass, I see ye're in a hurry to get under my kilt. "
She laughed. "You wish. "
"I do wish. "
The Vampire With the Dragon Tattoo Page 38
