A Rose in No-Man's Land Read Online Free PDF Page B

muttered. “Sophie is in matchmaking mode. She’s frightened I’ll be left an old maid.”
    “Not much chance of that.”
    “Isn’t there?”
    “You have such a fragile beauty it makes a man want to protect you forever. I only wish things could be different.”
    “Don’t you want to get married, Mark? Have a home and children? I mean, when the war is over.”
    “No, it could never work for me. It’s too late. I’m a loner now.” The flat, bleak statement filled her with an overwhelming sadness.
    “Can you play anything other than Australian ballads?” He asked, in an obvious change of subject.
    “A couple of hymns. I’m self-taught and can only play by ear. How about ‘Rock of Ages’? Do you know it?”
    “Yes.” He reached across and pushed back a tendril of hair where it fell across her cheek. “I even remember some of the words,” he whispered, and his breath warmed her skin.
    As she played she sang the words softly. Surprisingly, he joined in. His deep voice had a husky quality that made it soulful.
    With the glowing embers of the fire, the intimate warmth of the room, and Mark squatting beside her chair, the words sounded more poignant than ever before.
    The last notes of the violin throbbed mournfully before falling away, leaving only silence. Amy realized she was falling in love with Mark. It defied logic, as they barely knew each other. “When the war is over, do you think we’ll meet again?” She fought to keep the tremor out of her voice.
    He picked up her hand and raised it to his lips. “Pretty Amy. My ways are alien to yours, my lovely girl. You need a man who can love and cherish you, give you children and a stable home.”
    “After the war you could give me those things.” She stared into his eyes, drawn by their fierce blue, unchartered depths. “I…I love you,” she whispered, knowing full well the words were better left unsaid.
    “My lovely Amy. I have nothing to offer. The first time we met, you were like a ray of sunshine brightening up my dull, jaded existence. The more I saw of you, the bigger the danger you posed to my peace of mind—that’s why I treated you harshly. I’ve fought my feelings for you,” he went on passionately. “Kept telling myself it was only lust I felt, but—my God! A man going to war shouldn’t tempt fate by lying to himself.”
    He pulled her into his arms and held her close for a moment, then lowered his head, as if he couldn’t help himself. “Open your mouth, my lovely girl,” he whispered. “I want to sleep tonight with the taste of your lips on mine.”
    Her arms slipped around his neck.
    He feathered tiny kisses all over her face, until their lips finally clung together for one heart-stopping, sweet moment.
    “Enough. I don’t have the right.” He dragged his mouth away. “Oh, God, why are you so beautiful? I shouldn’t have kissed you, but I wanted to, more than anything else in the world. It might be best if I leave in the morning. I’ll get the train back, and Guy can have the car.”
    “We’ve only got this short time together. Can’t we forget everything else? We’ll be off to the war soon.” Tears glistened on her eyelashes. “I may never see you again. There is something special between us; even Guy noticed it. For the time we’ve got together, there’s no outside world for us.” Her voice broke, and tears burned at the back of her eyes. “No future, no past, just now.”
    “I love you more than life itself,” he confessed brokenly. “I haven’t uttered those words or even thought about them in years. I wish we had a future. I’d die for you, but I can never make you my wife.”
    In the flickering firelight, Amy watched all animation drain from his face. Only his eyes remained alive, burning fever bright, vividly blue.
    “I’m tied to a dead woman who rules me more ruthlessly from the grave than she ever did in life.”
    “Why?” The word ripped from her throat, harsh, broken, and full of despair. A