by Abigail Agar
Epilogue
The wedding had gone as perfectly as either of them might have hoped. Reginald and Victoria Fairfax were finally married and Marian had been enthusiastic throughout the full ceremony.
When all had arrived from the church to the reception that had been set up outside the Earl’s estate, Victoria wondered how much more joy she could possibly find in her life.
After all, she had seen the best and the worst of society, and experienced life’s highest highs and lowest lows. She had gone from being a child who used her wit to outsmart governesses to struggling to manage her own charge. And she had gone from seeing the man she loved preparing to wed another to being the bride that he chose in the end.
All of it had come together and all of it seemed as though it would drift easily into the next phase of their life together.
Victoria looked about the reception, enjoying every sight that her eyes came across. From the women in their finery to the maids enjoying their own inside jokes at the expense of those society ladies, she was amazed that she could straddle both worlds and be able to indulge in each.
Miss Franklin had been her constant companion getting ready that morning and she could not have been more thankful for that. After all, she had become a dear friend and exactly the woman who was needed for the tasks of preparing herself for such a momentous occasion.
But now the housekeeper was laughing with other maids, allowing Victoria to float between guests and voice her gratitude to all who came. She was able to dance with her new husband and speak with her mother and father. She was able to watch as Marian entertained guests and kept them busy.
One of the best moments for Victoria was when she turned to see Marian and Mr. Jamison dancing together during a rather upbeat tune. The girl giggled with joy as Mr. Jamison spun her about and took her this way and that upon the floor.
“Am I going too fast for you?” her father laughed, knowing that he was going slower than necessary, but quickly enough to entertain a child.
Marian giggled, “No! Spin me faster! Faster!”
The demand in her voice tempered by the delight that she felt was something that Victoria had been seeing more and more of over the previous month, and it was a change that had been welcomed within the house where the child had once been nothing but angry and hurt.
There was such a thrill in the eyes of both, and Victoria admired how her father had taken to being a grandfather. She remembered once more the sort of father he had been when she was young, before all of his mistakes were exposed.
She had been the child he spun around and she was thrilled to see that passed on to another. It could not have been more wonderful to watch.
It could not have felt more complete to see Marian delighted by Mr. Jamison and tempered with sweetness as opposed to her former attitudes which had been born out of loss. So much had changed just in the short season of engagement in which she had learned that Miss Jamison would truly never leave them and was going to be her new mother.
It had not been a mere ploy of her father when he woke her that night to ask the governess to be his wife. It had not been an effort or attempt to trick the woman into staying at the house.
No, Miss Jamison was truly to become Lady Hanover and was going to be her stepmother. Once Marian had grown to understand that, she and Victoria had only become closer, making it more difficult than ever for her to shift out of the role of governess. And yet, both knew that the true role to which she belonged was this new one she was soon to enter into.
But as Victoria turned, she saw another joy.
She had been anxious to meet her husband’s mother, who had been living far out of London for a number of years and hated to come into town. Numerous times they had tried to arrange a meeting, but it had never seemed to happen. Not when they tried to get her to London or when Victoria and Reginald had tried to make plans for a trip out to the countryside.
But when she had arrived the evening before, it was as though they had known one another all their lives and had always been the best of friends.
Mrs. Fairfax, the Dowager Countess of Hanover, was a kind woman, just the sort that one might expect to have raised the Earl.
Not only had she instantly been kind to Victoria, but she and Mrs. Jamison had become fast and intimate friends. They seemed to bond with a kinship as though they were sisters. Victoria could not quite understand such a sudden friendship and how it might sprout, but she hoped that one day she would know it.
She hoped that one day, she would be the sort of woman who could instantly connect with others through her kindness and humility. Until that day, she would simply admire Mrs. Fairfax and hope for more time with her while she was in town.
“My dear, shall we dance again?” Reginald asked, his blue eyes bright with happiness.
“Yes, my love. We must,” she agreed with glee of her own.
He swept her onto the open space where couples danced to the tunes played by the musicians who sat in the gazebo. All around them, colours swirled and the world came to life as they remained in one another’s arms.
Victoria had grown not only to appreciate, but to love the way his scar melted against his face when he smiled at her like this. She sometimes had to fight the urge to kiss along his cheek there. But now that they were wed, she would be allowed to give him any affection she wished and his scar would be kissed daily.
She dreamt of the riding they would do in the future and promised herself that if he ever declined to go out, she would agree to it, particularly if there was a storm.
But things had become quite settled at the estate and fear was now a stranger. The constant companion they knew now was always joy and Victoria felt that this was exactly how it ought to be.
When the dance came to an end, Victoria saw that her father was preparing to take her mother for the next dance, perhaps giving Marian the opportunity to sit with her grandmother for a time.
But Victoria was overjoyed all over again when she saw the former Lady Ingles and her husband Mr. Smith coming towards them as they departed from the dance floor.
“Forgive us for intruding,” Mrs. Smith said as she tried to pull the newlyweds aside so she and her husband could speak with them.
“Do not be silly, we are always delighted to see you,” Victoria replied.
“Well, we know that you have a great many guests, but we simply had to thank you once more. So much of our happiness, we owe to the both of you,” Mrs. Smith declared.
“It is true. You two were so kind and generous with us when most would not have been. We deserved nothing, but you gave us everything,” Mr. Smith added.
Victoria glanced at her husband, thankful that he had been brave enough to end the engagement when he did and choose to pursue her instead. It had been a risk, but it had been one that he was willing to take and had brought two couples together in the unions that they ought to have been in from the start.
“I think that we shall always be friends and I cannot be more grateful for the bravery which you showed,” Victoria said to Mrs. Smith. “Were it not for your honesty and confession, I would not have the happiness that I do now. So I think it is I who must be grateful.”
“Perhaps we all must be grateful,” Reginald laughed, seeing that they could easily try to compare who had done the most for the other or to whom the credit belonged.
Victoria read this in his tone and laughed along with him.
“Yes, my love, that is the wise decision. We shall all be glad for the life that we now have. For we have all ended up with the one that we love most in this world and that is a fortune afforded to few,” she remarked.
“And it is a bond of friendship that has formed between us as a result of it,” Mrs. Smith agreed.
“Absolutely.”
Mrs. Smith leaned in and embraced Victoria with an eagerness that left her humbled.
“Thank you for keeping my secret for as long as you did. While I know that it was wrong of me to ever ask it and I was a te
rrible woman for even having such a secret against your husband, I needed your silence at the time,” she said.
“I understand. And I am glad that you chose to tell him in the end,” Victoria replied.
“Yes, but as you know, my reputation would have been ruined had you not kept your silence. You gave me time to figure things out, to learn how to share the truth. Were it not for you, I might never have had that,” she pointed out.
“We all need a bit of privacy at times. We all have things to figure out. And it all worked out in the end,” Victoria reminded her.
Mrs. Smith moved to speak with Reginald and thank him for all that he had done as well. The two spoke kindly to one another and Victoria observed them with admiration.
It would have been easy for her husband to be resentful of a woman who had been unfaithful to him. And it would have been easy for Mrs. Smith to have been bitter that he had let her go so readily.
But the two showed to be dear friends and that was the part that mattered most. Now that they had no pressure to love one another, they could easily be the sort of friends that they were, perhaps, always meant to be.
After a bit more conversation, Mr. and Mrs. Smith took their leave of Lord and Lady Hanover and made their way to dance with one another.
“I think that our life has turned out just as it was always meant to,” Reginald declared with satisfaction.
“I believe you are right, my darling husband,” Victoria replied.
“And whatever the future holds for us, I am quite certain that you shall never again find yourself a governess,” he added.
Victoria glanced over to where Miss Ridge chatted away with Miss Franklin and the maids. A small part of her was already missing the position and wondering what she was meant to do with her time now that she was to be a simple wife in a grand home with servants to do all the work.
“I think I would not mind if I ever had to return to such a position, but I am glad to know that you will be taking care of me and it should never be a necessity,” she laughed.
“Yes, well you have caused one very dire problem for which I am unable to find a solution,” Reginald complained.
“And what is that?” Victoria asked, turning her head to him and lifting a hand to ensure that her hair was not coming undone.
“You have given me such high hopes for a governess for our daughter that none shall ever manage to live up to the former young woman who filled the role,” he laughed.
Victoria giggled with him, loving the simplicity and charm of his wit.
As the day wore on and the guests began to dwindle, the two went back into the estate and to Reginald’s balcony. They stared out at the stars beyond the gardens and far away from the lights of the city and allowed themselves to dream about the future and everything that it might hold.
“I think we shall find ourselves very happy,” Reginald whispered, his cheek resting upon the hair of Victoria’s head.
“I expect the same. And I think we shall find our home filled with children,” she added, sighing at the dream.
“And I believe that you shall be the most ideal of mothers,” he concluded.
Victoria turned her face upward to look directly into his blue eyes. Reginald met her with his own gaze and the two allowed their lips to meet once more.
It was the sort of kiss that held a gentle promise. It was a commitment to the dreams they had for the future and the guarantee that their love would never fade.
In the glow of the stars, it was the only silent word that ever needed to be spoken.
THE END
Can't get enough of Victoria and Reginald? Then make sure to check out the Extended Epilogue to find out…
How will our couple's relationship with the Smiths evolve as time goes by? Will there be any hard feelings left?
What could little Marian possibly be asking persistently from Victoria and her father?
How will Reginald overcome his guilt and start riding again?
Click the link or enter it into your browser
http://abigailagar.com/victoria
(After reading the Extended Epilogue, turn the page to read the first chapters from “A Lady's Fairytale Come True”, my Amazon Best-Selling novel!)
A Lady's Fairytale Come True
Introduction
Olivia Digby has always lived a simple life, without much concern for society’s rules. She grew up uncertain of the existence of true love and has always wondered if she would ever meet her own Prince Charming. But everything changed when a wealthy heiress mysteriously calls her to her mansion with a unique request... Will Olivia give a chance to the old Lady’s impolite grandson and let him show her his real self? Or will she be discouraged by their differences?
Nathaniel Norton is a young Earl, who is more interested in studying medicine than marrying a girl of good family and class. Especially after the loss of his beloved father, any plan to pursue love is aborted. When he hears his grandmother’s plan to unite him in courtship with a young woman he has never heard of, he will not sit by. But what if that lady turns out to be different from all the others he had met before?
Olivia and Nathaniel will have a chance to approach each other and start feeling beautiful things they never thought they would. But when a long-kept secret is revealed, will their emotions be strong enough to handle it? Or will their class differences eventually stand in their way?
Chapter 1
Olivia leaned back in her chair in the small parlour of her family home. She looked out of the window, grey-blue eyes peering through the dirty glass at the crowded streets beyond. She wished they could have a nice home out in the country, like the ones she often read about.
But Olivia couldn’t deny that this was far from the idyllic life she would ever have, so instead she continued braiding and unbraiding the dark brown locks of her hair. She was bored. But she could handle boring. She didn’t mind it too much.
Listening to the voices in the nearby kitchen, Olivia knew that her sister was trying to wrestle up something for dinner. Louise had called for Gemma to get a few things from the small family garden that was at the back of the house. Louise always tried to prepare decent meals, but lately it was mostly vegetable soup.
It wasn’t that their father didn’t try to provide well. He always did his best. But middle class in London was still far from an easy life. That was all, beside the fact that their parents had never been what one might expect for two people in love. No, they had generally been caught up in their own, separate interests.
Whenever Olivia had watched Mr. and Mrs. Digby communicate, she was left with an emptiness. There had to be more to life than this. There had to be something better than marrying for the sake of convenience and then raising children one couldn’t quite provide for.
And all of it had shifted to an even darker place when Mrs. Digby passed away. Now, more than ever, it was difficult for her father to provide.
Perhaps the imaginings she had was why Olivia was always labelled as a dreamer. From an early age, she would make up stories in her head and share them with her sisters. Stories about poor girls marrying nobility, about a life filled with love, the stuff of fairytales. Her younger sisters, Gemma and Louise, loved to listen, but her mother would scoff and tell her that it was a nice sentiment, but the world simply didn’t work that way.
But when she stole away an ink pen and paper at night, sometimes Olivia would write down these fantastic stories. And when she did, the sense of excitement would always be marvellous within her. She loved to see the words forming the life she wished she could have.
