He wanted Evangeline to wake up. She didn’t have to love him, she just had to live.
* * *
I think I’m alive, said the voice in her head. If I was dead, would my head be aching like this?
I suppose it could, if I’ve somehow managed to land myself in Hell. Or purgatory. Maybe I have to redeem myself for being such an awful girl. I wasn’t very nice, was I?
Oh, but I do wish I could have seen Jonathan again! He liked me, didn’t he? Even if I was a bad girl, I think he cared about me. I had so much to tell him. I…
“Evangeline?”
What was that? I swear I heard his voice.
“Evangeline, are you awake? Yes, she moved her head! It’s the first time I’ve seen her move since I brought her here!”
“Brought… me… here?” Somewhere between the drumming of her temples, she thought she heard her own voice.
“Evangeline! Thank God, you’re coming to! Can you open your eyes?”
She opened one eye, but she wished she hadn’t. She’d never seen such bright lights. The room was so bright, it was downright painful.
Jonathan was hovering over her. He had to use every ounce of restraint to hold himself back. At the very least, he wanted to throw his arms around her. “Evangeline… you’re alright.” He hoped she didn’t see the tear in his eye.
“J-Jonathan.” She could barely see his face in the burning white light. “What happened? Where am I? Why am I here?”
“You don’t remember?” he asked. “Well… I can’t say for sure why you’re here, but I can tell you what happened. I found you on the side of the road, covered in snow. You almost caught your death. You’ve been unconscious for an entire night.”
“All night?” She groaned. “And it’s morning now?”
Jonathan took her hand, damp from fever, in his. “Yes, it’s morning. And I’ve been sick with worry! I’ve been watching over you the entire time, ever since you’ve been ill. I haven’t slept at all.”
All at once, Evangeline’s emotions came rushing back. She remembered why she ran out in the snow. She remembered what she wanted to say to the man sitting beside her. “Jonathan…”
He raised her hand to his lips, kissing it gently. When he spoke, his breath was warm against her skin. “I’ve been a fool, Evangeline. I shouldn't have left like I did. I was on my way back to Penworth Park when I found you. I was going to go back and give you my blessing. You should marry Lord Trevelan, if that’s what you want to do. I'm happy for you.”
As she listened to him speak, Evangeline was overcome with emotion. She thought she could feel her heart inching toward her throat. “I don’t want your blessing,” she said.
“I know you don’t need my blessing. But I’m going to give it to you… for my own peace of mind. Seeing you in the snow, wondering if you’d ever wake up... it made me realize something. I’d rather see you happy with someone else than to never see you at all. If you died, I don’t know what I would have done. And if I left, I would be depriving myself of your company, and that wouldn't be good at all!”
“Jonathan…”
“Even after you’re married, we can still spend time together. We can still have our chats, can’t we? When I’m in your company, I’ve never been happier. I need to see you. I need to see your shining eyes and your smiling face. Whether you want them or not, you have my affections. I love you.”
Her vision was further impaired by the threat of tears, wavering in her eyes. “You misunderstand me, Jonathan. I don’t want your blessing,” she repeated. “I want you.”
“And you’ll have me. You will. I promise,” he said, gently placing her hand on the bed. “Now, I’ve already sent for your mother and your fiancé. The snow’s melted a bit since last night, and--”
“Jonathan!” This time, Evangeline shouted his name. She wanted to wring his neck for failing to understand her. How could he be so dense? With a grunt, she pulled herself into a sitting position. “I don’t want Lord Trevelan! I want you.”
His eyes widened. “You do?”
“Yes!” she exclaimed. “When I found out you left, I went chasing after you! I couldn’t let you leave until I told you I love you and I can’t live without you!”
Jonathan laid a hand on her forehead. “Are you sure? Are you still feverish?”
She smacked his hand away. “Of course I’m not! I’ve got all my wits, thank you very much!”
“And you love me?”
“Yes. I love you!”
A smile crept onto his face. “If angels started singing hymns in this room, they wouldn’t sound as lovely as those three words.”
“I love you?”
“Yes. Those words,” he whispered. Jonathan bent over her, cupping her cheek in his hand. “I've never heard lovelier words.”
“I love you,” she repeated. “I love you, I love you, I love you.”
He lightly kissed her lips. “And you promise not to change your mind?”
“Even if you didn’t love me, I would never change my mind,” she said. “I need you, I love you, and I want you in my life. Even if you are a penniless valet.”
He kissed her again. “But I do love you,” he assured her. “Even if you are the most spoiled little minx I’ve ever encountered.” He kissed her a third time, longer and deeper. “I came so close to losing you. It better not happen again. I don’t think my heart could take it.”
Evangeline wrapped her arms around him, squeezing him so tightly that he nearly lost his breath. For a girl who was recently bedridden, her strength was impressive. “I’m so sorry, Jonathan! I’ve been such a stubborn fool! I don’t know why I didn’t realize it sooner! I’d give up everything to be with you. Even if you were a pig farmer, I’d still love you.”
“A pig farmer!?”
She nodded.
“Well, that’s good to hear. Have I ever told you that pig farming is one of my favorite pastimes?”
“You're the most terrible man in the world, for teasing a gullible girl like me!” When Evangeline slid back into the covers, her arms were still locked around his neck. He had no choice but to descend on top of her.
“Gullible? You?” he laughed. “That’s the last word I’d use to describe you!”
“I love you, Jonathan Winters,” Evangeline said. “I don’t know why, but I do.”
“And I love you, Evangeline Fremont,” he whispered, gently caressing her cheek. “If I had all the time in the world, I couldn’t name all my reasons for loving you.”
“Name one,” she challenged him, holding out her chin.
Jonathan didn’t say a word. Instead, he kissed her with such passion, he would have shocked any of the maids, had they been unlucky enough to enter at that moment.
That kiss was the only answer she needed.
Epilogue
The double wedding at Penworth Park was very poorly attended. It was, however, a prime source of scandalbroth for years to come. Lady Penworth married her husband’s heir, a man nine years her junior? And Evangeline, once a promising young lady, married her cousin’s valet? It was completely unheard of!
Those facts, shocking to the outside world, were trivial to the ones in love. For the first time in her life, Anne had a reason to smile. Nicholas filled her life with so much joy, it was impossible to care what anyone else thought. And Evangeline would never think twice about her choice of husband. The happiness she had with Jonathan couldn’t be bought with money or titles. As long as she was with him, she would never want for anything.
Happy as they were, they couldn’t spare a thought for Lord Trevelan, who was determined to remain a bachelor for the rest of his life. And they certainly didn’t spare a thought for Eldrinn Fairweather. He escaped to London with his tail between his legs, his pride completely intact.
But justice has a way of serving itself to those who deserve it—even those whose crimes were all but forgotten.
Eldrinn woke up in a narrow alleyway, his memory hazy, his pockets picked clean. W
ith a grimace, he remembered what happened the previous night. The opera dancer he had been wooing, Miss Rebecca, was actually a man named Robert. He should have seen it coming. After all, Rebecca had a very strong grip, and some abnormally large biceps.
Eldrinn ran a hand across his mouth, thoroughly disgusted. He could have forgotten that Robert deceived him, knocked him over the head, and robbed him blind. But he would never forget kissing Robert—or Rebecca—for as long as he lived.
Gathering the remains of his dignity, Eldrinn sauntered home, dragging his feet. His day couldn’t get any worse. At least he could be sure of that.
Eldrinn arrived at his townhouse at noon, looking like he had been run over by a carriage. His butler warned him that his father was visiting—and a warning it most certainly was!
“You look awful!” Eldrinn’s father exclaimed, catching his son by the arm. “What happened to you, boy?”
“Give me a moment, Father, if you would,” Eldrinn grumbled, trying to shuffle past the older man.
“That’s probably a good idea, son. You wouldn’t want to meet your future bride, looking like that.”
Eldrinn was frozen in his tracks. “My… future bride?”
“Yes. It’s about time you settled down, don’t you think? And I’ve found you the perfect bride! You remember Miss Jeffries, don’t you?”
Summoned by the mention of her name, Miss Jeffries appeared in the doorway. And Eldrinn nearly fainted.
In comparison to Miss Jeffries, Rebecca was a goddess.
Senseless Sensibilities Page 22
