Page 79 of A Lady's Heart Deceived
“I think you have already said yes to whatever I might wish to ask. The moment you let me touch you in the barn that night, you agreed to a future with me. To becoming Lady Woodford,” he replied.
She mewed with feigned disappointment.
Piers pulled her hard against him. “Be mine forever, Maggie. My lover. My life. My wedded wife.”
Maggie fell silent for a moment. To Piers’s utter relief, so did the cathedral bells. He waited with bated breath for her answer.
Then, from out of the still darkness, came the word he had longed to hear her say.
“Yes.”
Piers bent his head and kissed his fiancée one more time. “Come. Let’s go and find your father. I want to be able to announce our engagement tonight.”
He also had in mind to set the wedding date. The sooner, the better.
“If we can arrange one, how do you feel about an early December wedding? It could be just after your birthday. I know it will have to be quickly organized and a common license secured, but I want you to be Lady Woodford as soon as possible.”
Maggie sighed happily. “Yes, let’s not wait. And if you speak nicely to my father, he may even agree to waive the bond for a license.”
Piers softly laughed and took hold of her hand. “I think my own pockets are deep enough to pay for one, if need be, but since I am going to ask his grace to marry us, we should be fine.”
The sooner he and Maggie were able to begin a new life together, the better. As they walked arm in arm back into the cathedral, there was a lightness in his heart. The warmth of hope and the promise of happiness pushed his dark days firmly into the past.
Maggie glanced up at him and smiled. “Don’t forget you promised me a birthday cake. I shall hold you to that, Piers Denford. I mean Lord Woodford.”
“I expect you shall. Future Lady Woodford.”
“It’s beautiful. And I am so happy for the both of you. I still can’t believe that you are getting married,” said Claire.
Maggie continued to stare at the ruby which sat on her finger. After Piers had spoken to her father and received his blessing for their future marriage, her new fiancé had suddenly produced a stunning ring from the depths of his coat pocket and placed it on her finger.
Piers was a man full of wonderful surprises. Even now, every time she glanced over at him, tears threatened. Seeing him dressed in a dark gray jacket with light beige trousers instead of his usual officer’s uniform was an odd sight. It would take some getting used to, but she approved of his new look. She’d had her fill of army uniforms—enough to last a lifetime.
The most significant change of all in Piers was the constant smile on his face.
“Papa says he can fit us into the wedding schedule next week. My fiancé is keen for us to be wed as soon as possible,” Maggie said.
Her sister took her by the hand. “I am so glad that you met Piers. After all you have been through, you deserved to find happiness again.”
A little while earlier, Maggie had shared the truth of Robert with Claire. It was a secret too big to keep from her best friend. And while Claire had been all for heading straight to Coventry and giving the lying cad a piece of her mind, she had also agreed that it was something that should never be mentioned again.
“Now we just need to find you a suitable husband,” Maggie said.
Claire shook her head. “All the so-called suitable bachelors are boring. They haven’t done anything in their lives. I am going to wait to find a gentleman with something interesting to say.” She leaned in close. “I’m seriously considering stowing away onboard the ship that our cousin Gideon is taking after Christmas when he is due to sail to Italy.”
“Don’t you dare. He is going after his mother and sister to bring them back to England. He wouldn’t appreciate you suddenly popping up in his luggage.”
Maggie would be having a quiet word with her uncle, the Duke of Mowbray, and warning him against inviting Claire to his home anytime soon. Her sister had a way of talking people into things that were not always in her or their best interests.
“It was just a thought. A fanciful notion—nothing more,” replied Claire.
Thank heavens. This family has had enough drama of late. Anymore and we shall have to take up the stage.
Maggie turned, smiling when she caught a glimpse of her father leading Piers into his study and closing the door behind him. A private chat. She hoped there would be many more moments that the two most important men in her life would be able to share.
“I am getting married. And this time, it’s for real. And forever.”
Chapter Forty-Seven
