Page 41 of The Marquess Match (Love’s a Game #3)

CHAPTER FORTY-ONE

T he carriage rattled over the uneven road, the rhythmic clatter of wheels on cobblestones a steady reminder that she was leaving .

London was behind her. Ash was behind her. And soon, she would be in Paris.

Alone…well, nearly alone.

She glanced at her maid who sat across from her, her head propped against the side of the coach, gently snoring. Then she pressed a hand to her stomach, still flat, still unchanged, but no less real. Her secret. Her future.

Meredith had tried to talk her out of leaving, of course. For a moment Clare had worried her friend might try to lock her in her bedchamber. But in the end, Clare had convinced Mere that she was a grown woman who had made her decision.

She probably shouldn’t have told Meredith she suspected she was with child. Meredith was rubbish at keeping secrets. But she’d had to tell someone , and if she was honest with herself, some small part of her realized that Ash deserved to know.

Then she’d gone, with her maid, and her trunk, and her valise. Griffin had insisted on hiring a coach to take them safely to Calais. And with each rotation of the wagon’s wheels, Clare had told herself this was the only way. That she had done the right thing.

So why did it feel like she had left a piece of herself behind?

She sighed. There was no way she could sleep. Perhaps she would read by the candlelight. She leaned down to rummage in the valise at her feet and found…a letter.

It was folded and sealed and addressed to her. Frowning, she sat back in the seat and opened it.

It was from Meredith.

Dearest Clare,

We have been friends for over a decade, so I do hope you will not take offense when I tell you that you are being an idiot.

Honestly, for someone as intelligent as you are, you’re proving to be a true mess when it comes to love. But then again, I suppose we all are. Including my fool of a brother.

Clare bit her lip. Meredith knew? What else did she know? She eagerly continued reading.

I know you both thought you were fooling me, but I’ve had my suspicions ever since Ash asked you to dance at the house party. And, by the by, if anything more than that went on between you, ahem, suffice it to say, I don’t care to know the details.

Regardless of how you got here, it is obvious to Griffin and myself that you and Ash have fallen in love. And I know you well enough to know that you are going to think all sorts of outlandish thoughts about it because that is your nature.

Had you seen fit to ask my counsel, I wouldn’t have to write this letter and send it off with you in the middle of the night. Yet here we are. And it’s time for me to tell you some rather difficult truths.

Clare held her breath. Did she dare continue reading? Of course she had to.

Marsden was an ass who never deserved you. And as far as I’m concerned, your hideous mother was to blame for making you so desperate to leave her house, you made a huge mistake that changed the course of your life.

But don’t you see?

You have another chance now. You have a chance at true love. A love based on shared interests, shared history, a shared sense of humor, and—dare I say it?— shared wounds.

Because as much as I love my brother, I know his faults. Due to his treatment at the hands of our father, Ash turned off his emotions at a young age. He substituted charming smiles and delightful jests for anything of real substance. It’s truly broken my heart all these years to watch him flit from one meaningless affair to the next, never allowing his heart to become involved.

But with you it’s different, Clare. I’ve never seen Ash act the way he does around you. I’ve never seen him look at anyone the way he looks at you. You and Ash have the chance for a love that is rarely written about in sonnets. It’s not the kind of love that merely brings you flowers or kisses you softly on the cheek. It’s the kind of love that knows what you’ve been through and loves you all the more for it.

Tears streamed down Clare’s face, and she wiped them away with her fingers. She sucked in a breath. She had to finish reading.

By now, I hope I’ve made my point and that you’re prepared to stop your flight, turn around and come back, and live the life you are clearly meant to. I am about to go downstairs and say very similar things to my idiot brother, and if I am any sort of persuasive speaker, he may arrive at any moment…

Your future sister-in-law and current closest friend,

Meredith

Tears continued to stream down Clare’s face, plopping onto the pages and smearing the ink. She understood what Meredith was saying, the part of her letter that wasn’t even there. Fear. It was fear keeping Clare from opening up her heart to Ash. Fear of being rejected again and fear of being too happy because happiness was such an unfamiliar emotion to her.

But Meredith was perfectly right, of course. She and Ash had a shared history, a shared sense of humor, shared interests, and shared desires. Soon, they would even share a child.

It was safe. It was safe to be loved and to love and to accept a life filled with happiness. That’s what Meredith was saying. And Clare needed to get back immediately and begin her future.

She knocked on the carriage roof just as it was beginning to slow. She frowned, sitting forward as the driver called out in frustration. There was something in the road ahead.

Or rather— someone .

The door flung open, and before Clare could react, a familiar figure climbed inside.

Ash.

Breathless. Wild-eyed. Gorgeous .

Her heart stopped.

Sparing a quick glance at the still sleeping maid, he dropped onto the seat next to Clare, his chest rising and falling, his cravat loose, his hair mussed. The man looked as if he had been riding for hours.

“What— What are you doing?” she gasped, searching his beloved face.

He threw something onto her lap, still attempting to catch his breath.

She glanced down at it. A diamond.

The biggest, most ridiculous, obscene diamond ring she had ever seen. She hadn’t looked at it earlier. She’d been too focused on refusing him.

“Marry me,” he said, voice hoarse, urgent. “Please.”

Clare stared at him, stunned.

“Ash—”

“I don’t care where we live,” he went on, rushing the words, as if afraid she would bolt out the other side of the carriage. “Paris, London, the bloody countryside—it doesn’t matter. I just need you.”

Her throat tightened.

“I know you’re pregnant,” he admitted, softer now. “But that’s not why I’m here.” His voice turned raw. “I love you, Clare. Not because of duty. Not because of obligation. Just because you’re you. I love you beyond all reason and all measure, and I think I have since the night you stole into Southbury’s study in search of brandy.”

Tears blurred her vision. For so long, she had convinced herself that no one would ever love her like this. That she wasn’t meant for happy endings.

But here he was.

Begging.

Loving her regardless.

She covered her mouth with her hands, overwhelmed.

“Say something,” Ash murmured, still searching her face, almost pleading.

Clare launched herself forward, wrapped her arms around his neck, and kissed him. It wasn’t graceful. It wasn’t soft. It was desperate, wild, and full of every emotion she had buried since the moment she had walked away. “I love you too,” she breathed against his lips.

“Does that mean you’ll marry me?”

“Yes,” she said, crying tears of joy this time. “Yes, I shall marry you.”

“Finally,” he groaned, pulling her closer, one hand tangled in her hair, the other settling against her hip.

When they pulled apart, she pressed her forehead to his, breathless. How in the world was her maid sleeping through all of this? She suspected the girl was merely pretending at this point, but she was too happy to care.

“I have been miserable without you,” he whispered.

“All two hours of it?” she said with a wry smile.

“All two,” he replied, nodding.

“Meredith is rubbish at keeping secrets,” she added next.

“She’s also not the most careful speaker. She called me an idiot more than once.”

Clare giggled. “She called me an idiot too.”

He pressed his head to her forehead again. “You’re not an idiot, love, but you are so damn stubborn .” He chuckled, though his voice was thick with emotion.

She smiled. “But you like that about me, don’t you?” She gave him a saucy wink.

“I like everything about you,” he said before pulling her close again for another kiss.