Page 38 of Lord Carlisle's Enticing Lure
“Age and time are qualifiers of desire?”
More than that is my niggling sense that something is very wrong with those paintings of hers.“I don’t know. I cannot believe I spent the night…” He left off the rest. It would be indelicate to indicate the hours he’d spent making love to Giselle Laurant three times.
Terese chuckled. “Clive, really. You are not the first person to celebrate the honeymoon before the wedding.”
“You assume I will marry her?”
His sister, two years his senior, was educated, temperate, and just the finest, jolliest person. She saw wise men for what they offered the world…and called out all fools for what they assumed was theirs to command.
“I leave that to your discretion, my dear. I’d say to be careful. If she is for you, then each time you meet, the love will grow and never falter.”
“No matter logic or doubts.”
“No matter.”
*
They walked toa park west of the pavilion, Terese and Giselle arm in arm. Bella had her father’s hand and chattered about the kite and the sweets she knew were in the hamper that Clive carried. Langley carried another smaller filled with juices. Along the path, Giselle noticed her new guard lingered not far off. As they chose a spot on a grassy knoll, the man took up a spot in the foliage of an old fir tree.
She shook off the feeling that someone else followed them. Her ugly stalker again? With so many around her, anyone would be foolish to try to harm her.
Langley was discussing marriage, and suddenly, Giselle realized he meant that he and Terese were about to be wed.
“Congratulations to you both,” she offered. “I gather from your words that your plans are recently made?”
“Yesterday, Terese did me the honor of accepting my proposal. I’ll return to London tomorrow to acquire a special license for us to marry soon.” Langley lifted Terese’s hand and kissed her fingers. “I’d say next week would be good, don’t you?”
“You don’t mind, do you, Clive, that the wedding will be so soon?” Terese asked.
“Not at all, my dear. You must please yourself,” Clive replied.
“But you wanted to stay for another week here so that you and Bella would have a proper holiday.”
“Terese, you have done so much for me, taking Bella every day so that I could work. Coming with me here to help with her. I could not refuse you anything in this world. All I ask is that you two do not wed without me there.” Clive smiled with the affection of years of loving his kind sister.
“I can continue to be her loving aunt. I hope you will allow me to take her each day.”
“Dearest,” Clive said with a kind smile to Langley, “you will be assuming the role of wife to your new husband, ordering his house and becoming mother to his eight-year-old son. You will have so many new responsibilities, I cannot ask you to keep on with Bella.”
“But I am not a young bride, Clive.” Terese had an edge to her retort. “I know how to run a house, surely. I do not wish to give up the joy of Bella.”
“I did not mean to anger you, Terese. I would not tear you two apart.”
Langley reached over to take his fiancée’s hand. “Neither would I. You come to me as my wife, Terese, I do hope, with all your desires assured. I would welcome Bella to come to us each day.”
Terese shrugged her shoulders. “Very well. As long as we each understand that I am not abandoning who I was for who I will become.”
Both men agreed.
“Forgive us, Giselle, as we settle our family issues in front of you,” Terese added.
Giselle smiled at each in turn. “I am pleased to see a family who can solve their problems.”
The warm regard that Giselle saw in each person’s attitude toward the other inspired her anew. So few of her husband and her challengeswere ever solved so quickly and without malice.
As she got to her feet and brushed off blades of grass from her skirts, Clive rose to help her up. “I think it is time to put this kite into the air. Bella!” he called to his daughter, who talked to herself as she plucked petals from wildflowers. “Come fly this new kite!”
*
