Page 72 of Unmasked By a Captivating Lady
“It is done,” he whispered. “Stalk is in custody, my love.” He hesitated, staring at her almost shyly. “And I have asked your father for your hand in marriage. He said yes.”
She gasped, gripping him tightly. “I cannot believe it,” she whispered back. “After all that has happened….”
He nodded. “I can barely believe it myself, but it is true.” He hesitated. “Are you happy?”
She gazed at him, her smile widening. “Do you need to ask, my love?” she whispered. “It would be my honour to call myself your wife….”
He couldn’t help himself, then. He bent his head, kissing her ardently. She responded with alacrity, twisting her arms around his neck, pulling him closer towards her. He felt her heartbeat drumming in her chest as the kiss deepened.
He pulled away, staring down at her with shining eyes. “My love. My one and only love. I promise you that I shall worship you forever.”
Chapter 33
Ara gazed over the fields, spread out around them like blankets of vibrant green. In the distance, she saw wild daffodils, sprouting with abandon, their golden heads swaying slightly in the breeze.
She bent down, over the horse’s neck, stroking it gently.
“It is beautiful, is it not, Pem?” she whispered, into the horse’s ear. He neighed softly, as if in agreement. She laughed, hugging his neck tightly.
“Happy, my love?” Miles’ voice was deep and husky.
She whipped her head around, gazing back at him. He was atop the grey Arabian stallion, staring at her with dark, shining eyes. She shivered slightly, knowing that it wasn’t the soft breeze that was causing goose bumps to suddenly spring to life over her body.
“Deliriously happy,” she said, staring him straight in the eye. “I still have to pinch myself, that everything has happened the way that it has.” Her eyes filled with sudden tears. “Stalk is in custody. He can no longer hurt anyone…and I am going to become yourwife.”
The word sounded strange, almost foreign, to her. She had never imagined that she would one day be someone’s wife, never mind be proud of the fact, eagerly anticipating it. She had fought so hard against even the idea of marriage. And now, she simply could not wait until he slipped that ring upon her finger, and made her his own, forever.
She smiled. Ruth had been right. It had all fallen into place, once the right man had come along.
She took a deep breath, gazing over the fields again. They had managed to convince her parents to let them ride out together, unchaperoned, but she had faithfully promised that they would not be long. Her mother had insisted on an hour. It had already taken them fifteen minutes to get to this high point, where the wild daffodils bloomed.
Pem stomped his hooves, impatiently. She reached down again to stroke his neck. Her beloved horse had been found, wandering down a country lane, and returned to the house. Her father had sent out five men to search for him and told her immediately when he had returned.
She stared at Miles. He looked well, atop the Arabian stallion. He had told her about the raging fever that had consumed him on the journey to London. Her father’s man Bryson had saved him, finding a plant to apply to the festering wound. Whatever it was, it had worked. Miles was full of energy now, eager to ride and spend time with her. The wound had been freshly bandaged back at the house. And now, he barely glanced at it.
She sighed, feeling a deep happiness spread through her. He was well, and safe. So was she. They had endured the worst of it, and now it was their time. Only a small pocket of time to spend alone together, but it would have to suffice until they were wed.
“I have made a decision,” she said slowly.
He smiled. “What is it, my love?”
“I have decided on the Arabian stallion’s name,” she said, staring at the grey horse. “His name is Hero.”
“Hero?”
“Yes, Hero,” she continued. “In honour of you, my love. Because you are my hero, and always will be.”
***
She watched him spread out a picnic blanket underneath an old oak tree. They were on the edge of a meadow, on the hilltop. From this point, she could see for miles beyond. To the west, she could even catch a glimpse of the sea, shimmering like silk. The wild daffodils bloomed around them.
He grinned, laying down upon the blanket, beckoning to her. She smiled in return. The horses were tethered side by side a slight distance away, gazing around, sometimes bending their heads to graze on the tufts of green grass beneath them.
She hesitated, staring down at him, her heart quickening. They had ridden all this way to be alone, but now that they were here, she felt nervous. She knew, by the intent look in his dark eyes, what he was intending. He wanted her to lie with him, and maybe do the things that they had done together previously, or…. more. She shivered, with fear, as well as anticipation.
He held out a hand to her. “Come, my love. I cannot wait a second longer to hold you in my arms.”
She took a deep breath. She no longer felt any ambivalence about what they had done together. She knew that it was a natural, normal expression of passion, between two people who were deeply in love, as they were. But that knowledge didn’t stop the nerves that had sprung to life in the pit of her belly, nipping at her like terrier dogs that were straining on the leash.
