Page 120

“Ava,” he called as he approached her.

“Edwin!” Her eyes lit up when she saw him.

She closed the distance between them in an instant and enveloped him in a hug, her warm body pressed against his.

Edwin was stunned at first. His wife had just hugged him in full view of the servants outside.

“I am just happy you are all right,” she murmured, her voice muffled against his chest.

Edwin’s resolve shattered right there and then.

Who cared if his servants could see them? All that mattered was his wife.

He wrapped his arms around her, cradling her against his chest.

“I was afraid something had happened to you,” he said, before planting a kiss on the crown of her head.

Ava looked up at him. “I am safe, I assure you.”

Edwin could not help but smile as he regarded her radiant face. His heart swelled, and he was suddenly overwhelmed with gratitude.

“Now, let us go inside,” Ava said, glancing at the servants.

With that, she took him by the hand and led him back to the house.

“Where were you?” Edwin asked, just as they stepped into his chamber.

Ava averted her gaze as she sat on his bed. “I paid a visit to a certain dowager duchess.”

Edwin’s heart thudded. “You paid a visit to my mother?”

His mother was bad news.

“You do not have to worry,” Ava reassured him.

“You should not have,” he sighed. “My mother can be quite… caustic. Moreover, she is convinced I am a monster.”

Ava glanced at him, her lips twitching. “She certainly did not hesitate to voice her thoughts. However, I only warned her to stay far away from us.”

Edwin’s heart warmed.

“Now, I do not want to be in the dark anymore,” Ava added earnestly. “I need you to tell me everything that has been happening. It hurts me that you have kept secrets from me.”

Edwin rushed to her side and took her hands. “I know, and I am sorry my actions hurt you so much. I promise to never keep a secret from you ever again.”

Ava swallowed. “I know that our marriage isn’t conventional, and as such, I do not deserve to make such demands. You married me to make yourself look more reliable and responsible to your business partners, while I married you because I did not want my sister to marry you. However, I do not want to be in the dark anymore. Especially because I am in love with you.”

Edwin sucked in a sharp breath, his eyes widening in shock. “You are in love with me?”

He simply could not believe his ears.

Ava blinked rapidly at his shock, and her face reddened.

“I suppose you may not feel the same way about me at the moment,” she mumbled, lowering her gaze.

Edwin chuckled in disbelief. “Ava, I certainly feel the same way about you.”

Ava’s breath caught, and she looked up at him.