She clutched the handkerchief in her hand, ashamed of looking at him. “Can you ever forgive me for not trusting you?” she whispered.
He covered her hand with his own. “If you can forgive me for not trusting your feelings for me enough to confide in you.”
“Oh, Nicholas, I was so afraid you would choose your business concerns over me.”
He looked down, and for a moment she was worried she had offended him again. Then he said, “I love you and Austen more than any material thing I own. When my mother died, and I couldn’t be here in time to say farewell, I realized how futile everything I’d striven for was without having someone to love.”
She drew away enough to say, “I love you.”
“I’ll never replace Julian.”
She placed her hand against his cheek wanting to erase the bleak look in his eyes. “You never will because you have no need to. You were in my heart first.”
A smile began to warm the dark depths of his gaze. “Does this mean you will marry me?”
“If you’ll have me, and Austen.”
He nodded. “I love both of you and hope I can be the husband you want me to be, and the father Austen needs.”
“Oh, Nicholas, will you promise to always tell me what is closest to your heart?”
He drew her toward him and she came willingly, at long last feeling she was in the right place. “I will trust you with my deepest dreams and fears,” he whispered against her hair, “and never fear your love won’t be strong enough to bear it.”
She leaned toward him, her fingers tunneling his short hair, and he drew forward, his lips finding hers.
Long minutes later, she asked, “Are you still leaving for America?”
“Not immediately—unless you want to go. When I came back to England, I meant to come for good.”
She smiled. “I’m glad you’ve come home, although it would be nice to see America.”
“You shall.”
Some time after, he murmured against her cheek, “I hope you’ll get rid of Victor as your solicitor now.”
“Of course.”
“I’ll take care of the matter if you wish.”
She laughed against his chin. “That’s all right. I’ve known him all my life. I’ll do it.”
“Only if I’m present,” he growled, his lips nibbling her earlobe.
She smiled in gratitude and understanding. “Thank you. I hope I shall always have you around to face all unpleasantness.”
“Your wish is my command,” he chuckled.
“You are indeed a man most worthy.”
Epilogue
September 1891
Nick breathed in the sharp tang of sea breeze and watched the view of the harbor coming in sight. Soon they’d be home again. Home.
He put his arm around Alice’s shoulder and whispered in her ear, “Excited?”
She turned to him with a smile. “Yes. But it was worth crossing the Atlantic. I loved every minute of it.”
“Especially the fact that we’re not coming back empty-handed.”
They both looked down at the bundle she held in her arms. “We’re bringing home our own little Yankee,” she said, her voice filled with tenderness.
“How’s our little princess doing?” he asked softly, gazing down at their three-month-old daughter.
“Sleeping peacefully.” Jean Anne Tennent, named for his mother, lay swathed in pink blankets, her shock of hair as dark as his. At that moment she stirred and stared up at them, her eyes as blue as Alice’s. She yawned, her little bud of a mouth opening wide.
Nick felt a mixture of pride, deep humility and overwhelming love well up inside him, as it did each time he looked at the perfect little creature. He could still scarcely fathom this outcome of his and Alice’s love.
When Alice had told him she was expecting, he’d gone past the hope of ever knowing the joys of fatherhood and was grateful just being able to share in Austen’s upbringing. Alice had confided that after her first husband’s death, she too had never thought to be blessed with more offspring.
Little Jeannie was truly a gift from God and they both thanked Him every day for her.
Austen’s clear voice rang out, “Papa, look at all the ships!”
The name on the eight-year-old’s lips still filled him with another sense of awe. Only a few weeks ago, the boy had taken him by surprise during their nightly bedtime story to ask permission to call him Papa.
“Of course you may…son,” Nick had answered in a quiet tone, trying to mask the catch in his throat.
“Dear, be careful!” Alice’s voice warned as she glanced at the boy, who leaned out far over the rail.
Nick reached for his daughter. “Here, let me take our Yankee while you grab our son before he falls overboard.”
Alice chuckled as she relinquished her precious baby to her husband. She watched for a second as he cooed over his daughter. Alice never worried about Nick with either child anymore. He was an extraordinary father.
“Mama, look, we’re getting closer!”
Alice moved to stand behind Austen and hold him by his suspenders. He’d grown a couple of inches in the last year.
His bond with Nick had only deepened over their year in America. When Alice had discovered her pregnancy, Nick had insisted they remain in San Francisco until the baby was old enough to travel. She hadn’t let her confinement stop her activities, however. She’d seen and toured many benevolent societies and Nick had named her chairman of his entire charitable trust.
She took a deep breath, as they drew near the harbor. She was looking forward to their new life back in London and Richmond, and wherever the Lord would lead her with her beloved companion.
She turned to glance at her husband once again and caught his eyes. The warmth grew in them, as she returned the smile of the man whom the Lord had brought back to her life. The man who’d been her first—and last—love.
Dear Reader,
Sometimes life offers a second chance at love with an old flame. I had an enjoyable time imagining what it would be like for a young girl on the brink of womanhood to fall in love with a man who enters her life for only a few days. The timing and circumstances are all wrong then, but fifteen years later the two are given a new opportunity. Will they be brave enough to take it, or has life taught them caution?
Perhaps this story was inspired by my 30th high school reunion (which alas, I was unable to attend), but seeing pictures on the Internet of some of my former classmates convinced me I’d probably not be attracted to former boyfriends if we met again!
Wishing you all a happy read,
QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION
What is it about Alice’s home life that makes her vulnerable to falling in love with a virtual stranger at the tender age of sixteen?
How is Nicholas Tennent different from the other men in Alice’s life?
What makes Nick throw aside his usual caution around Alice when he first meets her?
When they meet again fifteen years later, their roles are reversed. Why has Alice now become the fearful and cautious one, emotionally speaking? How is this reflected in her attitude toward her only son?
Despite her caution, what attracts Alice to Nick again after so many years? What repels her?
What has made Nick return to England? Although on the surface Nick seems to have forgiven (and even been thankful to) Alice’s late father for having dismissed him, has Nick truly overcome this past slight?
What about Nick resembles Alice’s late father? How is he different? What does he have in common with Alice’s late husband, Julian?
How has Alice’s faith over the years helped her come to terms with her feelings for her father?
Why is it that sometimes when one has matured spiritually in an area, the emergence of a situation or person will reveal there is still a weakness to overcome in this area? How does Nick’s reappearance in Alice’s life reveal this in her case?
Why is it so important to Nick that Alice trust him unconditionally?
How did his past treatment by her father contribute to this? Is this fair to ask of Alice?
When Nick and Alice meet fifteen years later, both are older and wiser. How does this make them less willing to take chances with their hearts?
How does the testimony of his handkerchief (kept by Alice all these years) soften Nick’s heart toward Alice when she proves she cannot trust him unconditionally, and enable him to forgive her?
ISBN: 978-1-4268-2345-9
A MAN MOST WORTHY
Copyright © 2008 by Ruth Axtell
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This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
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A Man Most Worthy Page 24
