Page 9
“W hat happened to end your betrothal?” Jonas repeated when she hesitated to respond. He was not certain why Ailis’s having a beau should affect him as it did. Nor did he understand how she could have had a beau and still never been kissed.
He was merely curious and not judging her.
After all, his two kisses would not have been nearly as special if others had come before them. But having been the first and only man to kiss her had left a searing impression on his heart.
“It was a mistake,” Ailis said with a hint of defiance in her otherwise gentle voice.
“One I’ll readily admit was partly my fault.
I thought if I accepted one of the gentlemen who offered for my hand, my parents might be cheered in the planning of the wedding or the prospect of their having grandchildren. ”
“But?”
She crumbled before him. “They did not care at all. It was at that moment I realized how irrelevant I had become to them. They did not love me enough to want to live for me.”
Jonas suppressed the urge to reach out and put his arms around her, although he dearly ached to do so.
How could anyone not appreciate Ailis?
“They must have been in so much pain after losing your brothers,” he said, noting the hurt she was still feeling after all these years, “that it just blinded them.”
“I was in pain, too.”
“But you never lost hope. That is the difference, I think. They had lost the will to live, yet you retained your hope throughout your struggle. In truth, you shine with your lovely strength. Why do you think everyone smiles when they see you? You are a ray of sunlight to brighten their day.”
“I am going to swoon if you continue to pay me compliments,” she said with a sweet but fragile smile.
“Ah, then I shall make every effort to remain cantankerous,” he teased.
“You are the nicest cantankerous person I have ever met.”
He laughed.
“And I shall forgive you even though you never smile when you see me. I suppose it is because I only ever approach you to ask for donations. But I’ve never dared come up to you simply to start a casual conversation.”
“Nor do I ever encourage anyone to approach me. Perhaps this is something I ought to work on, but I am far more comfortable being left alone.” He paused to study her, stifling yet another urge to take her into his arms.
She was wrong about his not smiling whenever he saw her.
It was often an inward smile. Still a smile, and one he felt in his heart but dared not show to others. And was he not inwardly smiling right now? The girl was irresistible with her bright eyes and soft lips that were a temptation for any man.
“Temple, how could you have been betrothed and yet never been kissed?”
She blushed. “It was not a love match, merely a matter of convenience. My beau was a young solicitor fairly new to our village who wished to consolidate ties with my father.”
“And hopefully take over his practice?”
She nodded. “He’d moved to the village a year earlier and was eager to establish himself in our small community.”
“What went wrong?” Jonas shifted closer, eager to hear. For the life of him, he could not imagine anyone breaking a betrothal to this girl.
She cleared her throat. “Turns out he was having relations with the blacksmith’s daughter and got her with child.”
“What?”
Her eyes widened. “Oh, I did not blame him. Truly, we had no feelings for each other, and it was becoming painfully evident that we each wanted out of this poorly conceived arrangement. I had only done it for my parents.”
“To give them hope.”
“Yes, but there was not a glimmer of it from either of them. This is what hurt most. I did not care that the young solicitor preferred the blacksmith’s daughter over me. Nor did I care that he got her with child, although I strongly urged him to do the right thing and marry her.”
“Did he?”
“Oh, yes. Her father would have come after him with his hunting rifle otherwise.”
“As any good father should to protect his daughter. Although she was quite the fool to give herself to a man who was already betrothed to another.”
“I suppose people do stupid things when they are in love.”
“I wouldn’t know,” he grumbled.
“She did love him, truly and sincerely. They are married now, and I hope he cares for her as much as she does him. As for me, I was relieved to end it. What I found harder to accept was that I no longer mattered to my parents.”
She took a deep breath and then let it out in a ragged sigh. “I had always dreamed of marrying for love. But I let go of that dream in the hope I could restore my family to a semblance of what it once had been. Feeling their sudden lack of love made me aware of how important love is in one’s life.”
“I can see that it is vital for you,” Jonas said, but he knew that he could live without it. He was better off on his own, with only his demons to keep him company.
“I had no objection to ending the betrothal, and sincerely wished them every happiness. The blacksmith’s daughter was certainly in love with him. I could see it in her face. And I think he cared for her, too. They won’t do so badly together.”
“This is what you want for yourself,” Jonas remarked.
She winced. “I think it is too late for me to fall in love now. Hence, this ridiculous bargain of ten kisses with you. I plan to take full enjoyment, because this is likely to be the last exciting thing ever to happen to me.”
“No, Temple. Do not ever give up on the hope of love.”
“Why not? Have you not done the very same thing?”
He tensed, not wanting to discuss his situation. “It is different.”
And it was different. He had come to a truce with his demons and was comfortable with his isolated existence.
“No, it is completely the same,” she insisted.
“Ailis, leave it alone,” he warned.
Of course, his ire was not with her but with himself.
With the ugly things he had seen and experienced, horrors and hardships he could not get out of his mind.
She was the town’s angel of light—sometimes an annoyingly persistent angel, but he found her quite delightful even when she was being irritating.
That he could tolerate her was a good thing, he supposed.
There was no question she needed to stay at Langford Hall these next few days, something he would have found intolerable had he not found her company so pleasant.
In truth, he liked being around her more than was wise.
This troubled him, for he would miss her when the moment came for her to leave. She would return to the vicarage. Not so far away.
Still, not here with him .
Mrs. Fitch bustled in with their meal, bringing an end to their private conversation and his wayward thoughts.
Ailis insisted on getting out of bed to dine while seated at the small table. He often took his meals alone in his bedchamber, but having her company felt nice.
“You cannot sit here in nothing but your chemise and shawl,” Mrs. Fitch insisted, and turned to him. “She needs a proper covering.”
“All right,” Jonas muttered, allowing his housekeeper to assist Ailis into one of his woolen robes that was much too big for her. She was drowning in it.
He did not see the point of all the fuss when she could not place her injured arm into the sleeve because her shoulder dislocation was too fresh and best left untouched to nestle in the sling.
The end result of properly dressing Ailis was a mess, an utterly adorable mess that had him silently laughing and had his heart in a roil.
Gad, she was delicious.
Ailis’s hair was unbound and loose curls fluttered about her pixie ears. She had on a pair of borrowed woolen stockings that were too big for her small feet and would trip her if he did not keep hold of her.
The sleeve of his robe had to be rolled up and clipped in place to hold it firm. Atop the robe, she had wrapped the woolen shawl that also had to be held in place with one of her hair clips.
The garments were a clash of colors—red stockings, and he had no idea who had chosen this garish color or where Mrs. Fitch had ever found them stored. Black wool robe, under which lay hidden Ailis’s white chemise and sinfully luscious body.
Atop the robe, she had a plaid shawl in light earth tones. The robe dragged along the carpet as he helped her into her chair.
One would think she had just scaled the Alps for all the pride she showed in her accomplishment in getting out of bed and walking across the room.
Ailis was an utter fashion mess.
And Jonas had never beheld a more fetching sight.
Ah, this vicar’s niece could be a danger to his heart if he weren’t careful.
He took the seat across from hers, but dismissed Mrs. Fitch when she offered to serve them. “I’ll take care of myself and Miss Temple. Go about your duties, but send one of the maids up here to chaperone the naughty Miss Temple.”
Ailis choked on the tea he had just poured for her and laughed. “Naughty? Me?”
He grinned. “All right. Perhaps I have it backward. It is possible I am the naughty devil from whom you need to be protected. Leave the door open, Mrs. Fitch.”
“Of course, Your Grace.” The housekeeper nodded and bustled out, leaving him once again alone with Ailis.
He should not have been left alone with her even for these few minutes, but where was the harm? Circumstances had already placed her in a compromising position. The mere fact of her spending the night in his home was enough to set tongues wagging.
If word ever got out she had spent it in his bedchamber… Dear heaven, what had he been thinking ?
His staff could have managed caring for her in any of the guest bedchambers. Knowing Ailis, she would have liked staring at butterflies and flowers on the East Room’s papered walls.
But no. He’d had to put her in his bed.
Fortunately, his household staff consisted of reliable, longtime retainers who had been in service to his family for generations and could be trusted to keep their mouths shut.
Table of Contents
- Page 1
- Page 2
- Page 3
- Page 4
- Page 5
- Page 6
- Page 7
- Page 8
- Page 9 (Reading here)
- Page 10
- Page 11
- Page 12
- Page 13
- Page 14
- Page 15
- Page 16
- Page 17
- Page 18
- Page 19
- Page 20
- Page 21
- Page 22
- Page 23
- Page 24
- Page 25
- Page 26
- Page 27
- Page 28
- Page 29
- Page 30
- Page 31
- Page 32
- Page 33
- Page 34
- Page 35
- Page 36
- Page 37
- Page 38
- Page 39