A Kiss In The Dark (41 page)

Once she was gone, Deirdre turned back to Tristan as he settled himself on the sofa next to her.

“I’m not sure what I think about her spending so much time with those boys,” he said in concern.

“I don’t think you need to be worried,” Deirdre assured him. “They wouldn’t ever do anything that might cause her harm. They’re very protective of her. Especially Peter.” She paused for a moment, uncertain about how to approach what was uppermost on her mind. Finally, she took a deep breath and plunged ahead. “Tristan, I want you to know that I won’t hold you to it.”

“Hold me to what?”

“Your marriage announcement. I realize it was meant mostly for your aunt’s benefit and—”

He stopped the flow of her words with the simple touch of a finger to her lips. “Deirdre, I assure you I meant every word. I would have asked you before, but I wanted to wait until you were well on the mend before I brought it up. Aunt Rue’s visit merely pushed up the timetable a little.”

When she didn’t speak, just looked down at her hands in her lap, he frowned uncertainly. “Is there something wrong, Deirdre? Do you not want to marry me? Because we don’t have to if—”

“No, it’s not that. It’s just …” Her voice trailed off. How could she possibly make him understand?

“Ahh. You wanted a proper proposal. Is that it? I should have known. I’ve been told females take that sort of thing seriously.” To her shock, he suddenly went down on one knee in front of her and clasped her hand in his, the look in his eyes bringing a lump to her throat.

“Lady Rotherby, I know I can be difficult and stubborn, that I’m blustery and hotheaded and tend to let my temper get the better of me. I also know that it might be hard to believe after knowing each other for such a short time, but I am completely, head over heels in love with you. You hold my heart in your hands, and it would make my life complete if you would do me the very great honor of becoming my wife.”

His eloquence brought tears to her eyes. Never had she dreamed to hear such words from a man. The fact that they came from the man she’d been dreaming of for years only made them all the sweeter.

“You are all those things, it’s true,” she said, unable to hold back a beatific smile of pure happiness. “But you are also strong and brave and unselfish. You love children, and with them you are unfailingly patient and kind. You saw through the rumors about me to the real woman I was underneath, and I will be forever grateful to you for that. I love you and nothing would make me happier than to be your wife.” The smile faded from her face. “But—”

“But?”

“What about you and Emily, Tristan? Your aunt is right. While society won’t exactly ostracize you if you wed me, they certainly won’t welcome us with open arms. I don’t want you and your sister to suffer because of me.”

“We won’t. I promise you. As far as I’m concerned, I’d be quite happy to stay at Knighthaven for most of the year and avoid London and the
ton
altogether. Now, come, woman,” he growled at her with mock ferocity. “Put this impatient beast out of his misery. Will you marry me?”

Dear God, this was really happening. Her fondest wish was coming true. Reaching up, she wrapped her arms around his shoulders, resting her forehead against his. “Yes. Yes, I’ll marry you.”

He groaned and took her lips with his own, and for a moment they were swept up in a world of their own making, full of all the passion and promise of a new life together.

After a moment, however, Tristan drew away, breathing heavily. “Deirdre, we have to stop. Your wound—”

“Blast my wound!” she husked impatiently, trying to pull him back down to her.

Her vehemence startled a laugh from him, though it was a bit shaky. “No, Deirdre. We have to stop. There is something I need to discuss with you anyway.”

The seriousness of his tone had her pulling back to look up at him with worried eyes. “What is it?”

He raked a hand through his hair and began to pace in front of her. “I’ve been thinking about the Rag-Tag Bunch, Deirdre. As much as Mrs. Godfrey seems to enjoy having them, we both know they can’t stay at your town house forever.”

“I know. I’ve been thinking about that, as well. I hate the idea of them going back to some tenement slum in the Fields, but as of yet I haven’t been able to hit upon a workable solution.”

He stopped and faced her. “Actually, I have a suggestion. As part of my inheritance from my mother, I was left a house in the country, not far from Knighthaven. It’s large and drafty, and I’m afraid it’s been rather neglected over the years, but with some work it could make a perfect location for that children’s shelter you spoke of before.”

Deirdre’s breath caught. She was scarcely able to credit what she was hearing. “Tristan, are you quite serious?”

“I would hardly joke about something like that, Deirdre.”

Her face flushed crimson. “I know. It’s just that it seems too good to be true. I never dreamed that it could ever be possible.”

“It’s not going to be easy,” he warned her. “I haven’t visited recently to make a list of what repairs are needed, and the roof was in a sorry state the last time I was there, but once it all comes together I’m sure it will suffice for our purposes. It’s far enough away from any neighbors that it won’t be a problem, and the children will have plenty of freedom to roam.”

“Freedom.” Deirdre savored the word on her tongue, certain her face must be glowing. “Thank you, Tristan. Thank you so much.”

“Something else. We’ll need someone there to be on hand to look after things. I thought perhaps—” He paused for a moment, then continued, a tide of red coloring his cheekbones. “After the part I played in bringing Barnaby to justice, the authorities are quite eager to make amends for their lack of cooperation when I first came to them for help in finding Emily. I used a bit of that newfound sway to get them to free Angus McLean.”

Deirdre was stunned. “Jenna and Gracie’s father?”

He nodded. “I spoke to him and Rachel yesterday about a position as caretaker of the house. Of course, it will be quite a while before the place is habitable, but he was grateful for the opportunity, and it might be a good thing for him to be able to get his family away from the city and the temptation of so many … pockets.” He returned to his place beside her on the sofa, reaching out to capture her hand in his. “I thought Lilah might want to come along, as well. She’d be able to see Cullen more often that way.”

Her heart so full she almost couldn’t speak, Deirdre reached out to wrap her arms around his shoulders, burying her head under his chin. Dear God, he’d done all of this for her. “Do you have any idea how wonderful you are?” she murmured.

She felt him shift uncomfortably. “Well, I don’t know about that, but I’m glad you believe it. And I think Mother would be happy to know that the house was being used for such a cause.”

Pushing a little away from him, Deirdre looked up to capture his gaze with her own, cupping his lean cheek with her hand. “You do realize now that none of that was your fault, don’t you? Your mother would never blame you for any of it.”

He turned his head to brush a kiss against her palm. “I don’t know, Deirdre. I’m trying, but it’s hard to let go of it all.”

She caressed his lips with her thumb. “Oh, darling, what do you think would have happened if you had refused to go with her that day? From what you’ve told me about her, she wasn’t the sort of person to simply give up and stay home. And Barnaby had apparently been stalking her from her first visit to the Fields. Sooner or later, he was bound to catch her alone.”

“Perhaps. Regardless, I don’t think I’ll ever be able to look back at what happened without some small measure of guilt. But now that her killer has been stopped for good and I have Emily back, maybe I can begin to put it behind me.” His eyes warmed as he gazed at her. “And with you at my side to believe in me, maybe I’ll finally prove to myself once and for all that I’m worthy of a person’s love and trust again.”

She snuggled back into his arms. “You are, you know. Never doubt it.”

“If I am, it’s because of you.” He buried his face in the fragrant fall of her hair, holding her close. “You are the best thing that ever happened to me. Who could have believed when this adventure first started that you’d wind up stealing my heart?”

A small, secret smile curved Deirdre’s lips. “Why, my lord, that’s what happens when you fall in love with a thief!”

KIMBERLY LOGAN
has been writing since the young age of seven, when her mother gifted her with her very first Trixie Belden book as a birthday present and ignited her love of the written word. Her pencil has rarely left her hand since, and she spends her days dreaming up new stories of romance and adventure to share with readers. A 2004 Golden Heart winner, a member of Kentucky Romance Writers, and a fan of all things Disney, Kimberly was born and raised in smalltown Indiana, where she still lives with her beloved Yorkshire terrier, Skittle. For more information about her and her upcoming books, she invites you to visit her website at www.kimberlylogan.net.

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This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

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