by Fanny Finch
The women moved excitedly from the room, hurrying down the hall to get in the coach outside.
Lavinia’s heart pounded through the whole serene ceremony. The only people in attendance were Katherine, he mother, Anna, and Lord Federline. But she knew outside, it was a different story. The blade knights were waiting to salute the Marquess and hold their swords up above their heads as they walked out of the chapel. Many people of the ton were waiting to give them their best wishes and to watch and cheer for them as they walked to the Bronson estate on foot.
She wondered how many would join them in the procession and how many would stand to the sides, calling out their good wishes for the couple. She knew quite a few were waiting. They had already expressed their happiness for her when she met them randomly on the street.
She did not really hear what was being said during the ceremony. Her eyes were on her husband and she could only think how blessed she was to have him, to finally have the man her father wanted her with as her life-long partner.
As expected, when the ceremony was over, the couple and their witnesses walked through the double doors of the parish to be greeted by many cheers. She was covered with graffiti and rice within moments. The cheers were nearly deafening.
She felt like the Queen of England. It was not until that moment that she realized how happy she really was, how blessed she was.
She held on to the Marquess’ arm tightly as they walked down the few steps under the blades held up by the King’s Navy. She looked up at him as they walked, delighting in the huge smile on his face and the look of pride he had when he looked at her.
She had never felt more special in her life.
“I am so blessed to have you as my husband, my lord,” she said quietly, sure that he would be the only one who heard her. He grinned down at her, leaned to the side slightly and spoke out of the corner of his mouth.
“I must warn you, my lady. I am a bit of a snorer. Or so I have been told by countless servants who complained that I woke them up.”
Lavinia laughed, lifting her head to the bright sun above.
“I will put cotton in my ears if necessary,” she said back. “And I thank you for the warning.”
She glanced over her shoulder, casting a bright smile at Anna, who was already smiling. She had one hand wrapped gently over Lord Federline’s elbow and looked as pretty as a picture. Lavinia was as pleased for her good friend as Anna had been for her.
When she turned her eyes back up to the Marquess, he was looking at her out of the corner of his eye. She could see humor and happiness on his face. When he saw she had caught him side-glancing, he looked directly at her.
“I will make you happy, my lady,” he said, placing his hand over hers. “I will do everything in my power to see that you are never unhappy again.”
Lavinia nodded. “I know you will, my lord. You have already shown that. And I will be a good wife for you. The best wife I can be. You are a blessing I will never give up.”
They walked the rest of the way waving at the crowd gathered along the street. Several children had brought ribbons on sticks and were running around, flying the ribbons above their heads, laughing and cheering for the couple.
Lavinia was happier than she had ever been.
Chapter 34
Lavinia walked beside her husband through the field near the Federline country estate, holding on to his arm as tightly as ever.
“It was so nice of Lord Federline to allow us to vacation here for our honeymoon, my lord,” she said happily, looking around. A gentle breeze swept past her, causing the hem of her dress to brush against her legs.
“He is a good man,” Myles said, thinking about his best friend. Federline’s eyes had worsened in the last month but his happiness at being introduced to, and falling in love with, Anna Astor, made his demeanor much more pleasant than it had been. There was a noticeable change in the man’s attitude since the first day of meeting Anna, which had been the day of their wedding.
“I am so happy that you had the thought of introducing him to Anna. What a wonderful couple they make!” she exclaimed.
The Marquess nodded. “I knew they would as soon as Miss Astor came to my home to tell me what a fool I was being for not listening to you.”
“That was when she explained to you what was going on?” Lavinia asked.
He nodded again. “Yes. She truly cares for you. She told me everything and that is rare for a woman who does not know the man she is talking to.”
“She does know you.”
Myles shook his head. “Correction, she knew of me. She did not know me. Perhaps she does now, which is why she accepted the idea of coming here with us. There are few people who do.”
“I know you,” Lavinia said proudly.
Myles delighted in the sound of her voice, so happy that she was with him.
“I am proud that you are my wife, my dear. I do hope to make you happy the rest of your life.”
“I feel the same, my lord.”
“Let us turn back. I do believe lunch will be served soon and I find myself quite hungry.”
“You have had quite an appetite, my lord,” Lavinia giggled as they turned around. She put her other hand around his arm as they walked back to the mansion.
“Yes, and that is to be expected.” He patted his stomach. “My father always said that once a man gets married, he should expect to gain at least twenty pounds.”
“Why ever is that?” Lavinia asked curiously. Myles looked down at her.
“I could not tell you. But I will let you know if this should occur.”
They both laughed.
“My lord, you never told me what became of Sir Franklin. How did you dispel the rumors about me? I have heard some things being said about me… and you, my husband. Most of what is being said is positive. But there are some who say you were only trying to save my reputation after I behaved badly.”
Myles could not help but frown. He did not want to involve Lavinia in the details of how he had taken care of Sir Franklin. It would only cloud her mind with negative things. But he knew she was a curious woman and if he did not tell her himself, someone might make something up and there would be more to explain.
Reluctantly, he said, “It was not as difficult as you might think. Sir Franklin is a rake when it comes to the ladies of the ton. But he is quite fearful of other men. As you know, he had been threatening Federline. So my friend challenged him to a duel, which Sir Franklin refused.”
Lavinia’s eyebrows shot up.
Thinking about the unaccepted challenge brought Myles a great deal of satisfaction. Jasper had not told Myles what he planned. He just did it anyway, knowing that if the challenge was accepted, he would likely lose his life because his vision was so poor.
But as both men expected, Sir Franklin was not a brave man. There was no reason for worry.
“I am not surprised the Sir Franklin did not accept the challenge,” she said. “He does not seem to be a very courageous man.”
“That, he is not.” Myles nodded his confirmation. He was glad Lavinia had not been entangled with either Sir Franklin or Sir Henry. He was glad their love had made it before that. He would do anything to protect her from now on.
“I am glad,” Lavinia said, quietly. Myles wondered if she knew about Federline’s poor eyesight. It seemed him that if Federline was going to tell Lavinia, he would have told her before she and Myles were married.
“Why is that?” he questioned, curious to know whether his friend had revealed his secret to Lavinia.
Lavinia sighed softly. He looked down at her. She looked back with eyes filled with sympathy and compassion.
“Anna told me that his vision is failing. I do not want to think what might have happened should the duel have been accepted.”
Myles felt like a fool for a moment. Of course, Anna would tell Lavinia. And knowing Anna, she had gotten permission from Lord Federline to expose his difficulty. Soon it would be common knowledge anyway. Hi
s good friend no longer had to seek a companion or hide his affliction from the ton.
They were approaching the house when Lavinia asked him a question he did not expect. His heart did a bit of a jump when she asked and he tried not to feel hurt by it.
“My lord, you did not change your mind about me because of the money, did you?”
He stopped walking and turned to her, his heart thumping. He was surprised to feel the tingle of tears in his throat. “My lady, how can you ask me such a thing? Do you not know how much I love you?”
Lavinia dropped her head, looking ashamed. He immediately felt bad that he had said something harsh and touched her chin with two fingers, lifting her face to him.
“No, my dear. I changed my mind because I found out the truth. That truth being that I was a complete fool. I should never have questioned your loyalty and faithfulness. It was…” He looked up at the sky, trying to find the right words as quickly as he could. The right words rarely came easily to him. But he seemed to be doing better about that since he found the love of his life.
“It was as though I was being hit from all sides with new information about you and Sir Franklin. All I could see in my head was you in his arms, embracing him, smiling at him. It infuriated me.”
Lavinia gave him a soft look, the corners of her pretty lips lifting slightly. “You were jealous.”
Mules grunted. “Yes. I was jealous. You were supposed to be mine. I did not want to let you go, even though it looked as though you had been playing games with me the entire time.”
Lavinia’s look of amusement vanished. Myles immediately felt bad for his words. He chided himself silently for never saying the right thing. Lavinia must have realized what he was thinking because she lifted her small hand and placed it on his cheek.
“My lord, I am so glad you came to your senses.”
The look she was giving him made him burst out in laughter.
“Oh, Lavinia. You are such a delight. Would you like to know what will be done with the dowry Sir Edward left for you?”
Lavinia raised her eyebrows. “I would like to know, yes.”
Myles grinned. “I have decided that the moment it becomes mine… or rather, ours, it will be used to renovate Oakmere Abbey. I have already contacted a contractor who is waiting to do the renovations as we speak.”
Lavinia’s face lit up. Myles was almost knocked back when she jumped at him, throwing her arms around him.
“Oh, my lord! How wonderful of you! How could I have ever been irritated with you? I will love you for the rest of your life and mine!”
Myles laughed, enjoying her body so close to his. He circled his arms around her and lifted her off her feet. She squealed with delight and he took a few seconds to tickle her side.
“Oh, stop, stop!” Lavinia cried out with laughter.
He set her back down and gazed into her loving eyes.
“When I was in the King’s Army with your father, he told me many things about you, my dear. I fell in love with you from afar and did not even realize it. When I was tasked with protecting you, I thought I was doing it simply out of duty to your father. I did not realize…”
He stopped, choking a little with emotion. He cleared his throat and swallowed the tears that were threatening to clog his throat. Myles might cry in front of his wife someday.
But today was not that day.
“I did not realize that it was you, the woman I loved, the woman I would someday marry. I should have realized it sooner. I am a fool.”
“You must stop saying that,” Lavinia’s voice was hard, causing him to blink rapidly at her. Had he angered her again? “You are insulting my husband and I simply will not have that.”
A warm feeling of relief flooded through him. His tears disappeared and he found himself chuckling with delight once again.
He shook his head. “I will stop, my lady. I apologize.”
Lavinia pretended to be stern, pursing her lips and nodding soberly. “Good. I will not hear of it again. You are not now and have never been a fool.”
“Now there you are wrong, my lady. But I will stop saying it. Shall we go in?”
Lavinia gave him the softest, warmest smile he had ever seen. It was the kind that reached into her eyes and he felt as if he was looking into her soul. Unable to resist the temptation, and without a reason to resist in the first place, Myles lowered his head to press his lips against hers.
She wrapped her arms around his neck, lifting up on her tip-toes. His heart hammered in his chest. He picked her up with his arms around her small waist and lifted her, so she did not need to be on her tip-toes.
The passion in her kiss nearly overwhelmed him. He never wanted to let her go.
And he never would.
The sound of clapping nearby made Lavinia and Myles detach themselves from one another.
They both looked over and Myles nearly broke out in laughter when he saw Lord Federline standing there, Anna at his side, his hands lifted in a slow clap.
“You two need to come inside where the entire world cannot see you.”
“Oh?” Myles responded in a challenging voice. “And why should the entire world not see us, my lord?”
“Because it just makes them all sick to their stomachs that they do not have the kind of love you two share. It is all right for us…” He looked down at Anna Astor, who returned his gaze with a smile attached. “Because we feel it, too.”
The two men turned to walk together with Lavinia and Anna directly behind them, giggling like school girls. Myles was delighted by the sound of their giggles and low chatting about how happy they were now. It made him proud to know he had made a match.
He and his wife had shared a laugh about that. She asked him if he was sure he did not want to make more matches.
“Absolutely not,” he had responded hotly. “Never again. Federline is my only true friend. This is the only match I know will be good. I do not want to deal with anyone else. Ever again.”
They had both laughed heartily at that.
When they reached the parlor, Federline was the first person to take a seat. He waved his hand at Anna, indicating he wanted her to come close to him. He patted the thick, flat arm of the chair he was sitting in.
Myles watched as Anna and Lavinia exchanged happy looks before Anna sat prettily on the side of the chair next to her future husband.
Federline stretched his legs out in front of him, which he was fond of doing, and narrowed his eyes at his friend.
Myles braced himself for whatever sarcastic remark his friend was about to make.
“You know,” Federline began in a tone Myles recognized and knew very well. “I was a little offended I was not present to see you announce your engagement to your lovely bride.” He flipped his index finger between Myles and Lavinia, not pointing but indicating the two of them. “You’re lucky I let you come here for your honeymoon.”
Myles laughed. His friend was a true delight and he was glad to see Federline in such fine spirits after the months of doom and gloom.
“It was a bit spur of the moment, my friend,” he responded. “Otherwise, you know you would have been invited.”
“It does not surprise me that Sir Henry did not invite me,” Federline continued. He moved his eyes to Lavinia. “I do hope I have not brought up something that makes you uncomfortable, my lady. I am not known for my subtlety.”
Lavinia shook her head. Myles felt a touch of pride when she spoke.
“No. Nothing about what happened bothers me anymore. I am curious to know what has happened to these characters who tried to ruin my life. I know that Sir Franklin has left London. I know that I have not heard from Sir Henry since the engagement party and Anna has been kind enough not to mention it to me while I was preparing to marry my husband.”
“I am glad to hear that,” Federline said. “Because I was supposed to be involved with you, too, you know. That was the talk of the ton.”
Lavinia smiled at her old friend. Myles lis
tened to the exchange with a calm, happy heart.
“I remember. I was apparently linked to many men during this troublesome last season. And I am happy that it is, in fact, my last season.”
When Lavinia looked down at him, Myles knew he had made the best decision of his life when he took her as his wife.
Epilogue
Lavinia rested one hand on her belly. She could already see a small bump and therefore she had chosen a looser dress today in order to feel more comfortable. At four months, she knew her belly would be expanding and she had no intention of squeezing her dear child, not even for the sake of appearances.
