Page 121 of A Fearless Heart
“What, frown?”
“No,” he said with a chuckle. “I love that you bother to fix me. There’s something very… intimate about it.”
His eyes were as blue as the sky, and he regarded her with such affection that she felt her cheeks heating a little and she had to look down or be ensnared in that gaze. There were too many times that she’d been caught by it over the past several weeks—which tended to result in a tryst in whatever location happened to be nearby: the bedroom, a closet, the library couch, the gardening shed, a corner of the hedge maze…the list went on.
Gabe must have been thinking along the same lines. “There’s a nice spot near the lily pond, very private,” he murmured, moving to kiss her neck.
Cady’s eyes slid closed as she reveled in the touch of his lips against her skin. “Gabe, we can’t. I’m expecting guests this afternoon!”
“That’s later. This is now.”
Cady’s body wasn’t going to argue with that logic.
A short while later, Cady lay in a shaded, green nook in the trees by the pond, her heart pounding in the aftermath of yet another passionate encounter. Gabe stretched beside her, an expression of peace on his face. Their formerly tidy outfits were in considerable disarray, but Cady couldn’t bring herself to care.
Gabe reached over and pushed a few curls away from her face. “Suppose we have to go back to the house and spruce ourselves up.”
“Unless you’d like to announce to the world that you’ve just ravished me under the willows.”
“I’d love to,” he said, with a sly smile. “Maybe then you’d be forced to move the wedding up.”
“Nonsense. I will be married on the day I choose, and not a moment before. Besides, I think the wedding will be much nicer if it takes place in a garden that’s planned for the purpose. By next June, we’ll have the perfect setting, and that gives us plenty of time to settle on all the other little details, such as whether your brother gets invited or not.”
“He’s not.”
“You see? We don’t agree on everything. And that means you’ll just have to wait, Mr Courtenay.”
“But you do still want to marry me, yes?” he asked, with mock worry.
“You’ll do,” Cady replied haughtily. “I mean, I find you quite…”
“Dashing? Handsome? Alluring? Impressive? Irresistible?”
“I was going to say acceptable.”
“Hmm. I can see I’ll have to keep you here a bit longer, until I can change your mind.”
Cady giggled, and then sighed as his persuasions grew decidedly more intense. Yes, there was a lot to be said for a long, leisurely courtship. And even though he hadn’t said it out loud, she knew he was grateful for it as well. Gabe needed time to leave his old life behind, and prepare himself for the life ahead.
Eventually, they emerged from their hiding spot, walking hand in hand toward the house. Cady had finally admitted, between desperate sighs, that he was more thanacceptable.
When they crossed the lawn, where the traces of the collapsed tunnels were still evident, Gabe squeezed her hand lightly, reminding her that the worst days were over.
“Where is he now?” she asked softly.
“Somewhere safe. Where he can’t hurt anyone, and no one can hurt him. The Zodiac has the resources for that.”
“Have they given you your next assignment?” she asked, keeping her tone light even while fighting a little sadness in her heart.
“Vienna,” he said. “Accompanying a diplomatic mission meeting to discuss the European situation. I’ll be back before you know it.”
“Ha.” Cady didn’t like the idea of being parted from Gabe, but she liked the idea of caging him in even less. Initially, after the whole fiasco, he’d declared that he was leaving the Zodiac, that he never wanted to work as an agent again. Only Cady mattered.
That was lovely to hear. But Cady knew that Gabe needed the Zodiac as much as the Zodiac needed him. He craved the excitement it offered, the chance to change the world. So she told him that she would not accept his decision. He was to march back to the mysterious Mr Neville and Miss Chattan and tell them that he was resuming his work. All that she asked was he not seek out certain peril.
“I’m being very brave,” she’d said, “telling you to continue this. But don’t die on me, Gabe. I won’t allow that.”
“Yes, my lady,” he’d replied. “I am yours to command.”
