Page 16 of The Lyon and His Promise
A gasp escaped her when she felt the warmth of his mouth touch her knuckles through the glove she wore. She attempted to snatch her hand away, but he continued to hold onto her fingertips and for the life of her, she couldn’t seem to pull away. “That was a bit forward, don’t you think?” she managed to say.
“Call me mad, but I could swear I know you,” he whispered but reluctantly let go of her hand. “Tell me… who is the lady behind the mask?”
“What difference does it make who I might be?” she asked, wondering just how long she could possibly delay revealing her identity. Since Mrs. Dove-Lyon had set up this meeting, clearly, she felt she was performing a service to bring them together to possibly wed. But how could she have known of their past association?
He sat back on the bench and became thoughtful for a moment or two before he answered. “You know who I am and what my title entails. Therefore, you must surely be aware that I simply cannot marry a woman who is not in good standing within theton.”
And there it was… Further proof that she would never again fit in or be a part of a world that had rejected her when she made a foolish decision to marry a man decidedly beneath her. And if marrying without her brother’s permission hadn’t been bad enough, then what she did after she became a widow sealed her fate shut. She was tarnished goods after her affair with Adrian de Courtenay. Gyles would never marry her no matter what feelings she still had for him.
She hung her head in shame until her chin was gently lifted by the man seated next to her. A tear ran down her right cheek that wasn’t covered with the golden mask and his thumb wiped it away.
“Why the tears, my lady?” he quietly asked taking off his mask before he continued. “Or maybe I should ask… why the tears, Josephine?”
Her mouth opened in anOof surprise that Gyles had somehow managed to recognize her. There was no reason to further her charade and she reached behind her to untie the ribbons of her mask. The golden frame slid from her face, and she stared into the eyes of a man whom she would never have.
“Hello, Gyles,” she murmured afraid to say more while her heart began beating rapidly inside her chest.
His hand cupped her cheek. “I knew it was you.”
She nodded before tearing her eyes away from his. “Well… I’m not certain how you knew. I am surprised you recognized me after all these years. But regardless, you can report back to Mrs. Dove-Lyon that we met but would never suit.” She returned her gaze back to him as her curiosity got the better of her. “How did you know?”
“You whispered my given name when you revived from your faint.”
“I did?”
“Yes. You did. There were only two people who ever called me anything other than my title no matter how many years has passed,” he replied with a slight smile. “Obviously, you weren’t your brother—and even he calls me Wickes now.”
She nodded her head. “I see. This still changes nothing. There is no reason for this…” she waved her finger back and forth between them, “whateverthiswas… to continue between us. Actually, there is nous. Whatever could have been ended years ago and was only my foolish imagination.”
“You didn’t imagine my affection for you, Josephine,” Gyles confessed. “You just didn’t understand the predicament I was in and the reason I couldn’t offer for you.”
She narrowed her eyes. “What predicament?”
“It was foolish, really. A vow made to your brother that I was bound to honor,” he said while raking his hand through his hair.
“What did Simon make you promise?” she asked afraid of what Gyles’s answer might be.
“We were young…”
She stood, impatient to learn about the promise that had caused her life to be turned upside down. “What did you promise my brother?” she said angrily.
He came to stand before her. “That I would never consider you for my wife. He thought it would be wrong since he thought I regarded you like a sister.”
Her heart shattered. All this because of a silly promise two young lords made to one another in their youth.
“I suppose if there’s any consolation in all this, then it’s that before now, I didn’t imagine you held any kind of affection for me beyond the feelings for a younger sister. But that still doesn’t change anything. I cannot blame you for the choices I made that ruined my life but that doesn’t mean I will continue to make mistakes that cost me everything,” she lashed out with a sob.
“I should have gone after you,” he began.
“Yes! You should have,” she yelled out before she turned away from him. She felt him step close and she did everything in her power not to lean into the man who had broken her heart. He was doing it all over again and he didn’t even know it.
“Josephine… let me make it up to you,” he said placing his hands upon her waist and turning her to face him. How she wished she could take him up on his offer…
“You can’t,” she sobbed. There was no way she could trust him again with her heart. She felt certain she couldn’t survive another disappointment—and more importantly, she wasn’t sure she could become that vulnerable again.
“Let me try. I know I can’t take away the pain you have suffered for all these years but maybe we can begin again,” he replied with what sounded like a sincere heart.
She shook her head trying to hold back her tears. “You can’t beseenwith me, Gyles. I’m tarnished goods and my reputation will ruin your good name if you’re associated with me.”
