Page 45 of A Translation of Desire (The Brazen Curators #2)

R ose had never been so excited to see the excavation camp, and she was equally determined to leave it as soon as possible.

Perhaps she could stay three or four days at the most. She suspected her father would want to return to London with her if only to gloat that he was right about her going to the city.

She briskly walked to her father’s tent with Thomas on her heels. She looked over her shoulder. “You don’t have to join me.”

He snickered. “I wouldn’t miss your father’s screech of victory for anything.”

She snorted but pulled the net meshing back to find her father scribbling on a piece of paper. He looked up, and his eyes filled with delight. She’d missed him, even though he drove her crazy. Rose raced to him and threw her arms around his neck.

He squeezed her tight and gruffly said, “It has been too long.”

“It has,” she agreed.

A smile broke across his face. “But I’m glad you are here. There is much to do. A parchment just came in that I need you to decipher, and I have a lead on a few more after that one.”

Her smile dipped. “Father, we don’t have time for that. I need to tell you something.”

He shuffled through the paperwork on his desk, distracted, and Thomas snickered behind her. Sighing, she grabbed her father’s hands and pulled him to the sitting area. His brows drew together in confusion. “Is something amiss?”

“I need to share something with you.”

He leaned back, unbothered. “I’m listening.”

Amusement danced in her father’s eyes, and she didn’t understand why. You don’t have time for this , Rose reminded herself. She took a deep breath. “I fell in love in London.”

He nodded as if there was nothing strange about her declaration. What was wrong with him? The thought of her saying such words would have seemed outlandish to her father and Thomas only a few months ago. She glanced at Thomas, and he seemed just as puzzled by his reaction.

She continued, “I did something ridiculous. I was afraid I wouldn’t be a good wife for this man, so I let him go, but the farther away I was from England, the more I realized how idiotic my decision was.

I need to return to England immediately, and I want you to accompany me.

He is a good man. I don’t care about this, but he is a duke, so you can spend the rest of your life gloating. ”

Her father rose and strode to his desk, remaining quiet. Rose held her breath, waiting for him to say something. Thomas shrugged at his strangeness. Finally, he returned and held an old document out to her. “I thought we might spend the next few days deciphering this.”

Rose didn’t take the paper but flew to her feet. “Did you hear what I said? I’m in love, and I need to return to England.”

The room fell into silence, and then, shockingly, her father roared with laughter. She and Thomas looked at each other. Finally, he said, “I understand what you are saying, but I’m confused why we need to go to England when your duke is with Youssef at one of the dig sites.”

What? Was Augustus here? She looked at him, and he grinned back at her. “He showed up a few days ago looking for you.”

Rose rushed out of the tent, followed by her father and Thomas.

Her eyes roamed over to a site where several men congregated.

A man moved, and she spotted Augustus speaking with Youseff, one of their historians.

He was here. Augustus, the duke who had never left England, had come for her. Tears welled in her eyes.

He looked amazing. Well, truthfully, Augustus was sunburned. A pink color tinted his nose and cheeks, but besides that, the duke looked just as she remembered.

Her father leaned forward and whispered. “Your mother’s wish is about to come true.”

She nodded and rushed towards Augustus. He was immersed in a conversation and didn’t see her until she was almost upon him, and then their eyes connected.

*

Augustus blinked rapidly as Rose raced to him. She was here. Youseff, noticing that he’d lost his attention, turned to see what he was staring at. He grinned at Augustus. “We will talk at a later time.”

He wrapped Rose in his arms, not caring how improper it was. Augustus pressed his lips to hers as her arms snaked around his neck. Their mouths brushed, pressed, and tasted until they were both breathless.

“I love you, Rose Calvert. I was a bloody fool to let you leave. You are my perfect match and the only woman I want as my wife. Marry me.”

She cupped his face in her hands and brushed another kiss on his lips. “Yes! Yes, a million times over! I can’t believe you came all the way out here.”

“How could you think Catherine was my perfect match? You, woman, are perfect for me. Only you.”

“I know that now. I had so much time during my travels to think. The farther the ship was away from England, the more I realized what a mistake I had made by not telling you my true feelings.”

He hugged her again. “I should have made you understand how much I love you. We will figure out the duchess thing and the traveling. I don’t want to change you.”

“I want to be supportive of you, too,” she insisted.

Still, Augustus knew he would never take any of this away from her.

He’d only been here a few days and realized that as much as she was willing to make England home, sites like this would always have her heart.

“We will find a way to do both. My family has already offered their assistance. We do need to return to London to have a wedding.”

She grimaced, and he continued. “I promised my mother we would have a ridiculously grand one in London.”

Rose shook her head, amused. “I don’t care as long as I marry you.”

He laughed and brushed a kiss across her pouty lips. “My mother would very much appreciate you obliging her.”

“A wedding in London will be months away, and since you decided to kiss my daughter in front of all of Syria, we need a solution now. I have asked one of the priests from a nearby military garrison to assist. He is on his way.”

Rose blushed. “Father, you must be jesting. I only just arrived.”

Augustus laughed. “He is serious, and I already agreed to wed you in Syria the day I arrived.”

Rose frowned at her father and turned back. “You don’t have to marry me today.”

He smiled at her, happier than he could ever remember being. “I’ve already made my decision. It is you who has to decide if you will marry me when the priest arrives.”

“Is this crazy?”

Augustus shrugged. “No crazier than anything else that has happened when we’ve been together. It is your choice, Rose.”

He felt a twinge of uncertainty that she hadn’t immediately said yes. As if she could read his thoughts, she giggled. “You can’t really believe I would say no.”

“I would like to hear the words.”

She smiled and pulled him closer. “Yes, Augustus, the Duke of Sinclair, I will marry you today. I love you, and you are my forever.”

He started to dip his head down, but her father shocked them both by squeezing in between them. “That is enough of that. You must wait until after the I Dos.”

They both laughed but didn’t argue.