Page 38

TWO MONTHS LATER

“ E veryone is in the sitting room,” Arabella said to her sisters as they crossed the threshold. “Mother and Father didn’t want to attend, I take it?”

“Oh, but you knew they wouldn’t.” Prudence kissed her cheek. “They never want to do anything fun.” She turned to William. “Your Grace. What a delight to see you again.”

William laughed. Prudence never failed to amuse him. “I’ve told you, Prudence, that you may call me by my name. We’re family!”

“Yes, and you know how I like to keep you on your toes.” She laughed.

“Do you expect me to tire of the fact that my brother-in-law is a duke? That isn’t going to happen.

And my sister, the Duchess of Redmayne! What a joy that is.

Why, when I make my debut in society, I’m sure I’ll be the center of attention at every party.

Everyone will want a dance with the Duchess’ sister. ”

“That has proven to be true,” Caroline commented. “I’ve had plenty of offers from gentlemen lately—though I suspect the fine clothes have something to do with it.”

“Nonsense,” William told her. “Was your sister wearing fine clothes when she first caught my eye?”

“She wasn’t wearing much of anything, the way I remember hearing it,” Prudence laughed.

“Oh, Prudence, you’re too much,” Arabella scolded. “Go into the sitting room and socialize with the others. Dinner will be served soon, and you don’t want to miss the opportunity.”

“We don’t want to miss the opportunity for Caroline to spend time with her beloved before dinner, you mean,” Prudence laughed, linking arms with Caroline. “Is Jeffrey here?”

“He’s waiting in there with the others,” William said.

“He isn’t my beloved!” Caroline insisted. “We aren’t even courting one another. We’ve danced a few times, that’s all.”

“I think he loves you.”

“Even if he does,” Arabella interjected, “Caroline might not have made up her mind how she feels about him yet. And she shouldn’t feel rushed to do so.” She glanced up at William and smiled. “There’s plenty of time to make that sort of decision.”

“Go on in,” William urged them. “I know everyone is excited to see you both.”

The sisters looked at one another then turned and headed for the sitting room.

“We ought to go in as well,” Arabella murmured. “We need to be good hosts.”

“So worried about being the perfect duchess,” William said, grinning at her.

It seemed beyond comprehension that her desire to play her role to the best of her ability had once bothered him so much.

These days he found it perfectly charming.

He loved watching her step into the life of a duchess.

He loved the knowledge that she was doing it as well as anyone could possibly have expected.

He’d married her thinking that she would be a disappointment to his father.

She wouldn’t have been. He knew that now.

But she would have forced his father to confront the fact that a duchess could be found anywhere, could come from any upbringing.

He would have had to admit that Arabella was exactly what he’d wanted for his son and for the dukedom, even though at first glance he would certainly have passed her over in favor of someone he had considered more worthy of the role.

That knowledge was enough to make William feel gratified in the choice he had made. But even if it hadn’t been true—even if she had turned out to be as ill-fitted for the role of duchess as he’d expected her to be—he would have felt nothing but glad for their marriage.

Because he loved her.

And more than that, she loved him .

He would never forget the night of their picnic in the conservatory.

He’d never forget the way his heart had felt like it was about to burst with nerves and agitation as he had confessed his feelings and the rush of relief and joy he’d felt when she had responded in kind.

It was difficult to imagine that anything could have brought him more joy—and yet, every day, she seemed to do exactly that.

Standing with her now on the night of their dinner party with all their friends here in the house, he felt happier than he had dreamed he could.

“We should go in,” he agreed. “But before we do, there’s something I would like to show you.”

“Is it to do with the dinner?” she asked, eyebrows furrowing. “I went over the menu many times—I’m sure I approved everything. You didn’t make any changes, did you?”

William laughed. “Would it be so dreadful if I had?”

“It’s just that I planned everything out, right down to?—”

He held up a hand. “You don’t need to tell me,” he assured her. “I was there as you were planning it, remember. I know how hard you worked, and I would never think to intervene or make changes. I think your dinner is going to be magnificent.”

“Well, thank you.” She smiled. “But then… what did you want to show me?”

“Will you step into the ballroom with me?”

“The ballroom?” She frowned. “I suppose so, yes, but what is this about?”

“Just come.” The excitement was like a gust of wind within him. He couldn’t wait for her to see what he had planned. He had thought this moment might make him nervous—what if she thought it was foolish? But to his surprise and pleasure, he wasn’t nervous at all. He just wanted to see her reaction.

They went into the ballroom, and William closed the door behind them.

Arabella turned to face him. “You know, if our guests come looking for us, they aren’t going to be able to find us,” she pointed out. “It’s not very courteous, hiding ourselves from them like this.”

“I’m sure they can keep one another company for a few minutes,” William said.

“Your sisters are a delight to everyone, and you know that between the two of them, Prudence and Edwina could keep a room entertained for hours. I’m sure everyone is just sitting around laughing at everything they have to say. ”

“You’re probably right,” Arabella said with a laugh. “I’m sure they haven’t even noticed we’re gone with those two to keep things lively.”

“And I won’t be long,” William said. “There’s something I wanted to ask you.”

He reached into his pocket and took out the ring.

It was modest compared to the one she already wore—the one he’d given her on their wedding day. That ring had several diamonds and sapphires. This one had no diamonds to speak of, just a simple emerald set in a gold band. He held it out to her.

She looked down at it then back up at him. “What is this?”

“A ring,” he said.

“I can see that it’s a ring, but… well, this looks to me like a wedding ring,” she said.

William nodded. “It is one,” he said.

“You’ve already given me a wedding ring,” she pointed out. She held out her hand to display it.

“I’m aware,” he told her. “But I think we might benefit from doing it again.”

“Really? Why?”

“When I married you the first time, I did it for all the wrong reasons,” he told her.

“I did it because we wanted to save your reputation. I did it because I thought it was what would make my father the angriest. I did it, in part, out of a desire to end the speculation over who I would marry. The one thing I can’t claim is to have married you for love.

And in the end, I found myself loving you more than I could ever have anticipated.

I didn’t know that it was possible to feel this strongly for someone. I didn’t know this was what love was .”

“Neither did I,” she told him softly.

“When my friends told me that I would find love one day—all I could hear was them warning me that I would lose my sense of reason,” William said.

“It was as if they were telling me that I would forget how to think logically, and I swore that would never happen. But that’s not what love is at all.

My faculties are intact. It’s just that logic is telling me now how miserable I would be without you, what a fool I would be to let you go. ”

“You’ve always been a bit of a fool when it comes to affairs of the heart,” Arabella said fondly. “But I don’t mind. You’re my fool, after all, and I love you in all your foolishness.”

“I love you as well,” William said. “And that’s why I’m giving you this ring—why I’m asking you to marry me.”

She laughed. “William, for heaven’s sake.”

“I know we’re married already,” he said.

“But I want to do it for the right reasons this time. Even if it’s only a formality.

Even if we don’t stand up at the head of a church, invite all our friends, have a big breakfast—even if it’s only you and me, here in this room.

Even then, I ask you to marry me. I ask you to marry me for love.

And when I put this ring on your finger, my intention is to leave the past behind us.

Ours will be a love marriage from this moment forward, and we’ll forget about the way we began. What do you say? Can you agree to it?”

She shook her head slowly. “I don’t want to forget our beginnings,” she told him.

“I like the rest of it. I want to declare our love, and I want to move forward together—but everything you and I have been through is a part of our story, and I don’t want to let go of that, William.

I want us to remember the whole thing because if we hadn’t gone through all of it, we wouldn’t be where we are today.

I will never let go of our past. I will treasure it, always. ”

William took her hand. “Will you wear this ring?” he asked.

“Instead of the other one?”

“Whichever one you like best, I suppose. But this one means more to me.”

“It means more to me too,” Arabella murmured.

She removed the first ring, the one he had given her for their wedding, and held it out to him.

“No,” he said. “Don’t give that back to me. It’s still yours. It was a gift. You can wear it any time you’d like.”

“Special occasions, maybe,” she said, beaming. “When I’d like to dress up and look especially nice.”

“Well, you don’t need a ring for that,” he said. “You always look especially nice. I fell in love with you when you were wearing old rags, remember.”

“Oh, you didn’t fall in love with me then .”

“No, I think I did,” he said. “I certainly didn’t know it at the time.

That much is true. But from the moment I first met you in the library, I don’t think I ever looked away.

There was something about you that made me take notice, and from that moment on, I knew I’d do whatever it took to have you in my life.

I knew I wanted you. I just didn’t know exactly how far it would go.

I understand now. There was never anything that would have kept me away from you.

Eventually, we were always going to end up here—together. ”

He slid the new ring onto her finger and pulled her close, relishing in the softness of her body against his, wishing that the moment could have gone on forever.

There were guests waiting in the other room, and they needed to get back to their party.

But first, there was enough time to steal a brief kiss and to allow it to linger.

He wrapped his fingers around the back of her neck, held her close, and inhaled the scent of her—the fresh, sweet smell of hydrangeas.

I can’t believe I almost let this slip away from me , he thought, and he allowed himself to get utterly lost in the kiss.