Then Came You: A Prequel to The McPhee Clan by Jillian Hart

long for this world, the doctor said she has days at best. And while I'm sorry for that, may her passing be an easy one, I intend to make an offer to her heir. Then you'll be free to let me court you the right way. Free to marry me when the time is right."
    "Oh, Gil." The burn behind her eyes became unbearable, but it was nothing compared to the agony in her heart. The agony from his kindness, from his love. She smiled through her tears. Why couldn't she resist teasing him? "Well, what if when I'm free, I don't want you to court me?"
    "Then I'm in big trouble." He moved in, took her hands in his. Big, strong, male-hot. In that instant, with his sweet touch, her heart belonged to him, no longer hers. The corners of his mouth quirked upward into a mischievous grin. "Don't tell me after all this that I might lose out to Lawrence?"
    "It's a close one, a real tough choice. Right now I can't say how this will turn out." Sure, she was joking, but only to hide what he meant to her. The depth of his love for her, for his sacrifice for her, it just blew her away. "You know I have nothing to give you, Gil. Not like what you've given me."
    "Oh, yes you do." He tugged her against him, wrapped her in his arms, gazed down at her with infinite affection. She could read forever in his eyes, forever and a day. He smiled, slanting his lips over hers. "I'll settle for your love. Sunshine, you are worth anything, any sacrifice I have to make."
    As if to prove it, his lips grazed hers, settled in and claimed. She placed her hands along his powerful jaw, felt the faint texture of his skin and whiskers, felt the punch of guilt in her heart. The firm, velvet-soft caress of his kiss sizzled along her lips and she clung to him, barely able to breathe, unable to move, mesmerized by the sensation of her heart coming alive in ways it had never been before. Of the depth of commitment she felt, the devotion knitting into her soul.
    When he lifted his lips from hers, they stood in silence gazing into each other's eyes, surrounded by sunlight as spring returned to the world around them. She drew in a slow breath, never wanting this moment to end.
    "Come here, Sunshine." He pulled her snug against him, folding her against his powerful chest. "I just want to hold you."
    "I know the feeling." She sighed, burrowing into him, never wanting to let him go. Nothing was sweeter than being in his arms, her cheek pressed against his coat, listening to the reliable thump of his heart. Yes, this is how she wanted to spend forever.
    Not that it was possible, so she held him while she could. Holding on, when she should be letting go.
    * * *
    Aumaleigh took the empty tea cup from Doc Hartwell and carried it over to the wash basin. Those few steps gave her a moment to compose herself. One look at the physician's weathered face told her exactly what she feared. Not a surprise, as this day had been a long time coming, Mother had been suffering from her wasting disease for two decades now, but still. It would be hard to take. She set the saucer down with a clink, took a moment to breathe in the silence of the still house, fortified herself with as much strength as she could.
    "You were right to have me come and check her again. Often small strokes are a precursor to something worse." The doc's boots knelled slowly on the hardwood, coming closer. Voice low, so his words wouldn’t carry upstairs where Mother lay resting. The older gentleman's face wreathed in compassion. "You must prepare for the end, I'm afraid. I wish I had better news."
    "Me, too. Mother has fought so hard for so long." Her throat choked closed, cutting off her words. A surge of raw, horrible grief rolled up, flooding her chest, driving out every other feeling. It didn't matter that her mother had been impossible to deal with, she still loved the woman—the woman who had cost her so much. She closed her eyes against the hot seep of tears. Now was not the time to give into them. She held herself upright,