Page 37 of Entertaining the Earl (Vows in Vauxhall Gardens #2)
F eeling comfortably full of sandwiches and ratafia, Susannah and Colin found a spot to watch the fireworks, surrounded by other members of the ton.
“Are you pleased we came tonight?” Colin asked as they waited in the dark.
“I am, actually,” Susannah said with a smile. “I did not think I would be, but it has been very pleasant. And it’s amazing how much more enjoyable such events are without the pressure to find a husband.”
“It is certainly easier to relax without expecting some marriage-minded mama to jump out from any corner, ready to entrap me,” he said with a laugh.
“Well, that was the point of our arrangement, was it not?”
To this, Colin nodded and then took her gloved hand, pressing it to his lips and lingering rather longer than was appropriate. “It was. But I must say the arrangement is remarkably better now there is no pretense. Now you are mine…in every way.”
Susannah could not suppress a shiver at his words and at what he was hinting at, here in Vauxhall Gardens, surrounded by so many people.
She could feel her cheeks reddening and hoped the dark would hide them.
When she did not answer, he prompted her, “Do you not agree, my love?”
Susannah nodded and was rather pleased that the fireworks began at that moment, saving her from having to try to answer his words, which were laced with desire. She struggled to think of anything but him, even with the beautiful colors exploding across the sky above them.
*
Colin enjoyed teasing her, seeing the color rise in her cheeks, knowing he could affect her in such a way with just his words.
And yet, just because he enjoyed the reaction they provoked did not mean the words were not real.
The arrangement had been a good idea and had certainly made his Season in London more bearable. But this, now—being married to a woman he loved, who loved him too—was infinitely better.
“Who is that, with Lord Bourne?” Colin heard a female voice say behind him, and he stiffened slightly, not knowing if Susannah had heard it and hoping they were not about to spill hurtful words.
“She’s rather striking, isn’t she?”
Colin smiled to himself and strained his ears to hear the rest of the conversation. Beside him, Susannah did not seem to react, and he wondered if she was just too engrossed in the fireworks to pay attention to the gossips around her.
“That’s his new wife,” another voice said. “Did you not hear? It was quite the event—they courted, he left, and then returned, and they were married within a week.”
“No, I must have missed that entirely,” the first voice said, and then a rather loud firework muffled her next words.
“She was Miss Susannah Lyttleton,” the other said, presumably in answer to a question.
“Goodness, that plain girl, the daughter of that merchant? ”
“The very same.”
Colin was about to turn around and inform the ladies that he could hear their conversation, to call them out on their rude comments, when the second said, “Well, marriage certainly seems to agree with her. She looks like a different woman.”
“A love match, I heard. She certainly looks happy—although I think I’d look very happy if I had secured the hand of one of the most eligible, and the most handsome of the bachelors of the Season.”
When the fireworks finished, Colin turned to see which women had been commenting on their marriage, but he could not make them out among the crowd. But it did not matter. He had wanted the ton to see that Susannah was a much-loved wife and a worthy countess—and he thought he had achieved his goal.
“Are you ready to go, my love?” he asked, offering his arm to her. “We have an early start in the morning. And I find I am rather eager to enjoy your company alone…”
He was close enough to her that he saw the blood rise in her cheeks and heard her shocked giggle—but she took his arm enthusiastically, and together they left Vauxhall Gardens, and the London Season, behind them.
*
Susannah had never particularly enjoyed traveling, but that was because it usually meant several days cramped in a coach with her mother and father, usually heading to London—a place where she knew she never really sparkled.
But this time was different. This time, she was alone with her husband, and they were on their way to start the first adventure of their married lives—a trip to Scotland, somewhere she had never been but always wanted to go.
From there, they would sail to France and then decide where they would travel next .
The freedom to decide their future on a whim was rather heady.
She had spent her entire life conforming to society’s expectations, following the rules—perhaps with the exception of her mother’s rule about not reading by candlelight—and knowing her days followed a predictable rhythm, dictated by the Season and the inevitable hunt for a husband.
But now that she was married, everything was different. With a husband like Colin, who wanted to see her happy and was keen to escape normal life himself, there weren’t really any rules or firm plans.
“I have something for you,” he said, presenting her with a parcel wrapped in tissue.
“You must stop spending money on me, Colin,” Susannah said, blushing with embarrassment. He had showered her with gifts and opportunities to spend money ever since they had wed. And although she had come from a wealthy family, she had never been so spoiled.
“It is our money, and if I think it will make you happy, I will happily spend it.”
“Well, I am certainly happy,” Susannah said, taking the gift from him without further argument. She carefully opened the tissue and found the most beautifully bound copy of Shakespeare’s First Folio she had ever seen.
“Colin, I do not know what to say. It is so difficult to find a copy—any copy—let alone one so exquisite as this.”
“Well, it is long overdue.”
Susannah frowned. “What do you mean?”
“Well, as part of our deal in Vauxhall Gardens, I promised to furnish your library with any book you desired. You have not requested one, so I used my own initiative.”
“Oh, Colin,” Susannah said, as tears welled up in her eyes. “You must know that you owe me nothing. That our plan in Vauxhall Gardens led us to this marriage, and for that, I could not be more content. ”
He smiled broadly and said, “I am glad to hear it. But I still do not like my debts to remain unpaid. And although you will not have a permanent library while we are traveling, I am sure you will acquire books…and let this be the first.”
“Is there a large library at your home in Kent?” Susannah asked. They had not discussed where they would live permanently whenever they did return to England. It was another of those details that could be decided later.
“Yes. But it is not a place where I enjoy spending time. Although I am sure you could make it more enjoyable…or perhaps we will simply live elsewhere and ensure that you have the greatest library possible in our new home.”
*
Colin loved to make Susannah smile, and he found it was surprisingly easy to do so.
She was not materialistic, other than her love for books, and yet she always seemed so pleased with any trinket he bought her.
He loved her, and she loved him, and that seemed to him a solid basis for a happy marriage.
One day, he was sure, they would settle in England more permanently. Perhaps once they had children—which, if their compatibility in the bedroom was anything to go by, might not be in the distant future.
He could picture himself and Susannah surrounded by a brood of children, filling a house with love, happiness, and laughter. She said she was happy, and he believed her—and he would do everything in his power to ensure she remained so until his dying day.
He had never thought that pretending to love someone could lead to the real thing, and yet here was the evidence. Of course, no one else would ever know that their courtship that Season had been false, that feelings had only become involved—well, his feelings, at least—further down the line.
And when they returned to London, he was sure gossip about the two of them would start again—about how the match had been unexpected, about how remarkable it was that Mr. Lyttleton now had a countess as a daughter.
But Colin was certain that everyone would see the love between them, for he did not think either of them could hide it—and that would surely be enough to silence their cruel tongues once and for all. It seemed to have worked in Vauxhall Gardens, after all.
And who could argue with true love, no matter where or when it struck?