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Page 361
against him once more. "Oh, yes, Mariah. And me. I love you. I will always love you."

Mariah pulled back just a little to study his face. There was an earnestness in the depths of his brown eyes, and she reached up to smooth the furrow that dimpled between his dark, knitted brows and to smooth away the lock of chestnut hair that had fallen upon his forehead.
He'd said it again. He loved her.
"I love you too, Thorn," she whispered. And she'd earned the right to stay here.
Even Pierce had agreed.
She'd fought so hard against falling unconscious again that Pierce had finally quit. "Do you actually want to stay in this primitive time?" he'd asked her. "Not even meet this brandnew, wonderful family of yours?"
"Yes," she'd said with no hesitation.
"Fascinating!" he'd said with unabashed glee. "I'd no idea that a modern woman like you could fall in love with an outcast woodsman when I wrote that into Matilda's role. I just thought it might intrigue you more with the story."
She'd been intrigued. She still was.
Pierce had insisted that he bring her here to the inn rather than leaving her in Pittsburgh in the middle of the chaos of Ainsley's shooting. He had even promised to go back to her time to tie up whatever loose ends would be caused by her disappearance. She'd no idea how, but she had no doubt that, with everything else he had done, he could accomplish this as well.
She'd been waiting here for Thorn since the previous day. Hoping he, too, remained intrigued with her.
And he did. Thank heavens, he did!
"Mariah? Are you all right?" He peered questioningly into her eyes. "You have grown so quiet."
"Just thinking about Pierce and the favor he did by bringing me to this time, even though it was for his own selfish purpose."
"He did me even more of a favor, you realize. He cleared my nameand, most important, brought you to me." He

 
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