“Becky!” He removed his hat before striding forward to stand before her.
“Adrian, I m-must tell you something,” she began somewhat nervously. “I have recently made a very surprising discovery about myself.”
“And what is that, my dear?” Adrian prompted with an engaging grin.
As Rebecca studied him, she suddenly shed her feelings of hesitancy. Adrian was her childhood companion and her dear friend. Even if he was incapable of returning her devotion, he would never chastise her for revealing her love for him.
“I love you, Adrian,” she whispered, at the last moment becoming timid.
Adrian rushed forward and clasped his arms around her waist, allowing his hat to fall forgotten onto the step behind her. “I have waited so long to hear you say those words, my darling!” He bent forward and placed his warm, full lips upon her mouth. A wrenching sound came from between their compressed torsos.
“Oh, I forgot the painting!” Rebecca gasped as she regretfully moved backward, effectively halting Adrian’s wondrous and dizzying kiss. “It is my Christmas gift to you.”
Adrian reached down to grip the slightly damaged piece of art in his hand. He studied it intently. “Where did you find this painting? I saw one very like it at Douglas & Sons Jewelry Store. I considered purchasing the landscape because it reminded me of our adventures in the meadow.”
“It is the same picture. I noticed the painting not long after you were in the shop. Young Mr. Douglas said you had also expressed an interest in it. I purchased the painting for you as a Christmas gift for that same reason—happy childhood memories.”
Adrian turned and carefully placed the picture on the step next to his discarded hat. He then moved to face Rebecca once again. He reached inside his coat and brought out a gaily wrapped, oblong box. “This is my gift for you, Becky,” he said softly as he placed the item in her hand.
Rebecca smiled shyly up at her companion. “It appears that I was not the only one who found an appropriate gift for the festive season”
“This is something I have had for a long time, my dear. I decided it was the right time to present it to you,” he answered her somewhat mysteriously.
Rebecca bent over the package once more and eagerly removed the wrapping. She pulled the lid off the box and gently moved the paper away from the contents. “Oh, my goodness, it is my long-lost treasure! How did you find it, Adrian?”
“You put it inside my shoe for safe keeping one day during one of our picnics. We both forgot about it, I wore the shoes home and never found the coin when I went back to look for it. I discovered it on the floor of my closet a few months later. I decided to keep it and surprise you with it sometime in the future.” He reached inside the box and gingerly lifted a necklace out. A slightly tarnished shilling was encircled with silver and a tiny clasp on the edge then attached to a delicate chain. Adrian placed the empty box upon the step and then moved to face Rebecca once more.
“Turn around, my dear; I will put the necklace on for you. I waited a little longer than I had originally intended, but now we both have items that will bring us happy memories of our childhood.”
Rebecca enjoyed the feeling of Adrian’s warm hands at her nape before twisting around to allow him to admire the trinket. “Thank you so much for my gift.”
Adrian reached forward to clasp both of her hands in his. “You have made me incredibly happy, Rebecca. I will treasure the picture that you gave me, my dear.” He moved forward to place another warm kiss upon her lips.
Too quickly, Adrian raised his head, sighed, and dropped her hands. He then got down upon his knee, heedless of her protests. “We must return to the main house momentarily, my dear. I have spoken to your father for permission to pay my addresses to you. Both your parents were delighted with my request and Lord Winton graciously gave his consent. However, Lady Winton only gave me ten minutes alone with you before she threatened to send Miss Frost to join us. So I assure you of my total and complete love and devotion for you. And I wish to formally request that you, Rebecca, my one and only love, become my wife.”
“Yes, of course, I will marry you, Adrian. I love you so very much.” Rebecca placed her hands upon his shoulders. “Now please stand up. I want another kiss.”
****
Christmas Eve morning
Rebecca left her horse in Jacob’s care and walked to the churchyard gate. Once inside she moved to stand at the foot of James’ grave. She studied the inscription intently again before reaching for the locket. She placed it at her feet. The token began to glow as soon as it came in contact with the ground.
“Rebecca, you have returned.” The unearthly sound of James’ voice reached her ears as she felt the now familiar blast of cold air against the side of her face. “I was hoping to speak with you today.”
“I promised that I would return Christmas Eve morning, James,” she replied suddenly hesitant to relate her joyous tidings to the spirit.
“Have you broken free of the sorrow which has surrounded you since my death?” the specter sighed into her ear.
“James, I have discovered that I love Adrian,” she admitted breathlessly.
Silence greeted her pronouncement. Several moments passed before the sound of the spirit’s hushed voice became apparent once again. “I’m very pleased to hear this. Have you told Adrian?”
Rebecca raised her head to gaze at the gray clouds above her. “Yes, I have told him. He said he loved me too and proposed to me. I-I have agreed, James.”
“I’m delighted. Not only have you freed yourself from the intense sorrow which choked all life and vitality from you since my death, you have also come to acknowledge your love for Adrian which, but for my presence in your life, you would have recognized a long time ago.”
Rebecca lowered her head and stared at the ground once again. She’d heard James’ words but she was confused by them. “I don’t understand what you’re telling me. You believe that I loved Adrian when I was promised to you?”
“You loved him, but you didn’t recognize the emotion for what it was. You felt you cared for him like a sister. Soon after I asked your father for permission to pay my addresses to you, I sensed the closeness between you and Adrian. I realized that we could never experience that kind of intense emotion together.
“I loved you with a superficial emotion. You are beautiful, intelligent, and we had common interests. I cared for you but the love Adrian had for you went far deeper and was much more lasting than any emotion I was capable of feeling for you.”
“At first, when Adrian approached me and insisted that I give him my word that I would always care for you, I assured him that he had no cause to worry. I even became angry when he continued to push me for my pledge.”
Rebecca started in surprise when she heard this comment. “I remember coming upon the two of you when you were arguing.”
“Yes, I recall that day. He mentioned something about my trying to control his life for him when we sensed your presence and you appeared satisfied with his explanation and placed no importance on our disagreements at that early stage of our friendship. Soon after, Adrian and I came to an understanding about our various attempts to advise or control the other man’s life. We agreed to allow each other to live our lives as we saw fit. We became very close friends.
“Meanwhile, I used the fact that I had joined my regiment and was expected to join the fighting against Napoleon in France any day as a way to postpone our nuptials.”
Rebecca gasped in surprise when she heard this comment. “I thought we were waiting to become man and wife because you were concerned you might die in battle and leave me behind with few memories of our married life together to comfort me.”
“That was what I intended you to believe. In reality, I knew that I could never give you the deep-seated love and devotion that Adrian had for you, and I was postponing the inevitable, I suppose, telling you that we could never be married.”
“I’m sorry that you felt that way, James
. I never experienced any qualms about marrying you while we were betrothed.”
“Which in a way, shows that something good has come out of my death. You have discovered your intense affection for Adrian. He obtains the woman for his wife who he has loved deeply since childhood.”
The spirit suddenly made a noise that sounded like a grunt. “Are you still with me, James?” she asked with concern.
“I must leave you quite soon. Before I go I must thank you. Your happiness is my salvation. I can now rest in peace. But I want you to know, in my own way, I did love you, Rebecca.”
“Goodbye. Goodbye, James,” she called out as the locket shone brightly for a moment more before returning to its normal state.
“Rebecca, my dear, who are you talking to?” Adrian walked to her side and gently grasped her arm.
Rebecca turned to her betrothed and studied Adrian’s concerned expression. She had no doubt that he loved and trusted her. Would he believe her tale? She quickly decided to take the chance.
“Adrian, I have spoken with James’ spirit here at his graveside for the past few days. His specter was restless and unable to find peace. He said this was because I had broken my promise to him that I would not waste my life lamenting his loss. Also, my friends and family were concerned about my continued mournful manner.”
“You actually heard James’ voice?”
“Yes, I did. At first, I was afraid. I stood here and pleaded with the spirit to convince me that what was happening was real and important.”
“The apparition was able to convince you to believe?”
“Yes. The specter soon persuaded me of its existence and advised me to break free of the shadow which covered my deeper emotions since James’ death. It counseled me to allow my heart to beat freely once more.”
“You hadn’t been yourself for a long time.”
“I realized how much I had held myself back since James’ death. How controlled my emotions and my day-to-day life had become. It was when I made a promise to change the melancholy and downcast person I had become to someone who enjoyed life again, that I came to recognize my love for you, Adrian.”
He wrapped his arms around Rebecca. “What did you discuss with the specter today, my love?”
“James knew something that I never realized. He cared for me but understood that the love you had for me went far deeper than any emotion he was capable of feeling. He also said that something good had come from his death—my recognition of my love for you and your ability to win the woman who you have loved deeply since childhood.”
Adrian bent down to kiss her lips. “James’ spirit has given us the greatest Christmas gift of all, the gift of love.”
A word from the author…
I am a native Southern Californian. When I was very young, I discovered my local library and the exciting potential of escaping the real world inside the pages of a good book. As a teenager, I became a huge fan of British literature. After reading most of the Victorian classics, I came upon Regency period novels in 1987. It was love at first read. Since my chance introduction to this wonderful era in time, I have read over three thousand fiction novels, and I own a large collection of research books on the period.
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