Darius: Lord of Pleasures (29 page)

He stopped and kissed her fingers one by one, and she waited for him to sort himself out.

“I cannot be the man I am supposed to be without you, Vivian. Unless I can love you, I will remain lost. I tried making my way on my own, relying solely on my own wits and wiles, and it was… you saw what I became. Please, Vivvie, let me love you. Let me be the one to love you as your husband, as your friend, as your lover, as anything—” He stopped and swallowed, closed his eyes, then opened them and looked straight at her. “I love you. I’m begging you to marry me because I love you and only because I love you.”

This time, his thumb brushed a tear from Vivian’s cheek. She scooted across the mattress, into his arms, and addressed the muscular expanse of his chest.

“I married William because he was my only option, and I was his best hope of companionship in his declining years. I married for duty and expedience. I could not bear another such marriage, Darius, not even with you. I was a biddable, unpaid nurse-companion in an ugly dress. I am not… I am not the woman I am supposed to be, unless I am with you. I had no courage. I had no fortitude. I had no trust. I was nobody’s mother, nobody’s lioness, nobody’s lover.”

She had to pause while he used the edge of the sheet to wipe her tears. “I want to marry you, Mr. Lindsey, desperately, to be all those things you showed me how to be, and to be your friend too, but mostly”—another pause, while she forced herself to look up and meet his gaze—“mostly, I want to marry you—I
need
to marry you—because you are the man I love, and the man who loves me.”

His embrace was fierce and cherishing as he shifted over her. “I do love you. I love you past all reason, to madness and past madness to unshakable sanity.” He kissed her forehead and her eyebrows. “I love you until I want to shout with it, until I could beat my chest for all to see.” He kissed her mouth, her nose, and again, more lingeringly, her mouth. “I love you until I could weep with it, Vivvie. I love you, I love—”

She kissed him, tenderly, using means other than words to match his verbal effusions.

In the hours, days, and years to follow, they resorted to words, and to those other means frequently, until the baron had three sisters and four brothers, until both Averett Hill and Longchamps were known for their generous hospitality and comfort, until even young people who thought themselves quite expert on the subject declared that The Honorable Darius Lindsey and his Lady Vivian carried on well into their golden years like a pair of newly besotted lovers.

Which, in fact, they did, each day and night of their marriage—exactly like a pair of newly besotted lovers.

Darius’s story is something of a departure from my usual path, though like all my books, it deals with reclaiming parts of the soul thought lost. My editor, Deb Werksman, spotted this story lurking in the shadows of my personal slush pile, yanked it into the light, and let me know early in our dealings that this tale merited further attention. If you’ve enjoyed the read at all, Deb should get the credit.

Thanks go as well—as always—to the wonderful people at Sourcebooks, Inc., who treat each of my books as if their name went on the cover: Skye, Cat, Susie, Danielle, and our fearless leader, Dominique Raccah. Writing books with the support of a team like this is a pleasure and a privilege.

New
York
Times
and
USA
Today
bestselling author Grace Burrowes hit the bestseller lists with her debut,
The
Heir
, followed by
The
Soldier
and
Lady
Maggie’s Secret Scandal
.
The
Heir
was a
Publishers
Weekly
Best Book of 2010,
The
Soldier
was a
Publishers
Weekly
Best Spring Romance of 2011, and
Lady
Sophie’s Christmas Wish
won Best Historical Romance of the Year in 2011 from
RT
Reviewers’ Choice Awards. All of her Regency romances have received extensive praise, including starred reviews from
Publishers
Weekly
and
Booklist
. Grace is branching out into novellas, and her first Scottish Victorian romance,
The Bridegroom Wore Plaid
, was named a
Publishers Weekly
Best Book for 2012.

Grace is a practicing attorney specializing in family law and lives in rural Maryland. She loves to hear from her readers and can be reached through her website at
graceburrowes.com
.