The Desires of a Countess (29 page)

Was that glimmer of hope in her voice just in his
imagination?

“No.” He sat down in the chair next to hers and
looked in to her eyes. She’d tried to cloak her emotions, but deep
within he could see her struggling. “I don’t want to live in a
different place. I don’t want to watch you from afar. I don’t want
to make arrangements to see my own children.”

He let out his breath as he brushed her cheek with
the back of his hand. “You told me to make a life, and I want to
make it with you.”

“Simon,” she interrupted, but he continued.

“I want to spend my days getting to know you. I want
to help you raise your son into the kind of man we’ll both be proud
of. I want to go to bed with you each night and wake up with you
beside me.”

She shook her head, but her eyes misted. Her voice
was very quiet when she whispered, “For now, you want that.”

“For always.” He leaned closer. “I’ve fallen in love
with you, Virginia Blanchard. I’m in love with you.”

He held his breath as he waited for her response,
but she said nothing. Instead, she stared at him as if he’d
suggested something outrageous or spoken in some foreign
language.

“Ginny?” He swallowed against the dryness of his
mouth. “Did you hear me?”

Slowly she nodded. “Yes. Yes, I heard you. Simon, I
need to tell you something.”

“Yes?” Somehow he’d hoped she launch herself into
his arms and tell him she returned his love and that they could be
happy, not this strange reaction.

“It’s something very difficult for me,” she said as
she pulled away. Her face turned to the floor to examine the carpet
in detail. “So it may take me a moment to get it all out.”

He cocked his head as curiosity tempered his
disappointment. “Take your time. Just tell me what it is.”

“It’s about Henry,” she whispered. “The night that
he-”

“Ginny, Mother said you were in here with-”

Both Simon and Ginny pivoted to see Noah standing at
the door. When he saw the two were alone together, sitting with
heads close together in a deep conversation, his eyes narrowed.

“Haven’t you learned a damn thing?” he snarled.

But this time Simon was ready and just as angry as
Ginny’s brother. Here she’d been about to tell him something,
presumably something that would relate to his own confession of
love, and Noah disrupted it.

He came up to his feet with fists
balled and his face filled with angry heat. “Don’t
you
know how to
knock?”

“You little…”

But before Noah could finish or come a step closer,
Ginny threw herself between the two men. “Enough!” She placed a
hand on each one’s chest and pushed them back. Simon felt her touch
all the way to his soul. “My goodness, Noah, I’m perfectly capable
of taking care of myself. Simon and I were having an important
discussion and I’d like for you to leave so we can finish it.”

Noah finally broke stares with Simon to glance down
at his youngest sister. “No.”

Simon groaned. Noah’s voice was completely
unwavering.

“Please.”

From her desperate tone, Simon could tell Ginny was
just as interested in finishing what they’d started as he was. It
gave him a flicker of hope that what she would say would be in his
favor.

But Noah gave a determined shake of his head and it
was clear there would be no negotiating on this point. Normally
Simon would have accepted his protectiveness and understood it, but
now it infuriated him.

“No, Ginny,” Noah snarled. “I’m not leaving you
alone with this man so you two can do things you shouldn’t be
doing.”

Ginny let out a loud sigh. “Oh for the love of God,
Noah. You and Marion got caught alone in her bedroom and then she
sneaked out a window to be with you. And Audrey and Griffin carried
on a passionate affair under your very nose. Can’t you allow that
I’m at least as intelligent as all of you? And that I have as much
a right to my privacy as you did? Frankly, you’re becoming a bore
in your old age.”

Noah’s eyes widened but his frown only deepened.
“I’m not a bore. Ask Marion, she’ll tell you.”

“I need to talk to Simon!” Ginny said, her voice
just a half a level below a very unladylike yell. “Right now.”

“No.” Noah’s eyes came over to
Simon. “Simon needs to leave.” He gave the Simon a warning glare.
“You two will have plenty of time to talk and do anything else you
want to do
after
the wedding.”

“Look here,” Simon began.

He liked Noah, he really did. He’d always admired
the man, and the more he got to know him the more that feeling
grew. He was looking forward to being his brother-in-law. But at
that moment Simon was ready to put a fist through Noah’s nose and
damn the consequences for the future.

“I have a right to a few moments alone with my
fiancée.”

Noah’s face softened. “Judging from the look on both
your faces, what you’ve been talking about is an upsetting topic. I
think what my sister needs is some time to compose herself. Perhaps
you do, too.”

“There’s no arguing with him,” Ginny said with a
shrug that couldn’t hide her frustration. “You should go for
now.”

“Walk me to the door,” Simon said with an icy glare
for Noah.

“I assume that would be acceptable to you, my
unwanted protector?” she asked with a glare of her own for her
brother.

“Fine.”

Ginny grasped Simon’s arm and a shot of pleasure
went through him. It momentarily dulled his anger and his anxiety.
When they’d reached the door, he whispered, “Come to my townhouse
tonight. We need to finish this conversation.”

She searched his face for a long moment and her eyes
softened. “Yes, we do.”

He turned to go, but she caught his arm. With a
smile, she rose to her tiptoes and kissed him. It was a deep kiss,
one that warmed him to his very center. Then she pulled away and
closed the door.

Simon stared at the barrier between them with
unseeing eyes. She loved him. Ginny hadn’t said the words yet but
he knew it. She loved him.

***

“Your note was a little hysterical, so I did as you
asked and stayed right here,” Harriet said as Ginny burst into her
London home. She shrugged off her wrap and tossed it to a footman,
then grasped Harriet by the sleeve of her gown to drag her into the
closest room. She slammed the door and began to pace.

“What happened?”

“Simon cornered me at Audrey and Griffin’s,” she
explained. “We were alone.”

Her friend’s eyes widened. “Thank goodness. I was
hoping you’d get past your ridiculous need to push him away.”

“I was confused. I needed time to compose myself,”
Ginny snapped. Then the heat left her voice. “Or I did. But now
everything is different.”

“How?”

She turned back to her friend and the grin on her
face nearly split her cheeks. “He loves me.”

“I know.”

Ginny let out an exasperated sigh.
“No, he
told
me he
loves me.” She dropped into a chair. “He said he wants our marriage
to be a real one because he’s fallen in love with me.”

She looked up to see her friend’s eyes full of
tears. “How very romantic.”

“Yes, it was. The look in his eyes, Harriet. Oh, I
never thought I’d see a man look at me like that. I nearly burst
into tears right then and there.”

“Why didn’t you?”

She bit her lip. “Because of Henry. He doesn’t know
the truth.”

In response, Harriet’s face fell into a deep frown.
“Please don’t tell me you’re going to turn him away because of your
blasted secret.”

“No!” Ginny shook her head. That thought hadn’t even
crossed her mind. “I’m going to tell him the truth. I tried to tell
him right then, but Noah had to storm in and ruin it with his
stupid over-protectiveness. I don’t understand why he’s so hard on
Simon. It’s obvious he likes him.”

“Probably because he didn’t protect you from your
first husband. He feels like he has to compensate for that failure
now,” Harriet reasoned. “But all that doesn’t matter. You’re really
going to tell Simon?”

“Yes. He asked me to come to his townhouse tonight
where we won’t be interrupted. I’m going to tell him the truth and
I’m going to tell him I love him.”

She could only hope he’d understand the position
she’d been in that terrible night. But if he didn’t, then at least
she could leave knowing she’d given their love every chance it
deserved. And she could carry on with her life knowing she’d been
loved by a man like Simon Webber.

“Are you still concerned he might tell the
authorities?”

Ginny shook her head. “The moment I looked into his
eyes and saw his feelings there, I knew he wouldn’t tell anyone,
even if he becomes angry and doesn’t want anything to do with me.
He wouldn’t do that to me and he wouldn’t do it to Jack.”

Harriet nodded. “He’s a very good man.” She hugged
her friend. “And you’ll be happy. Good luck.”

Ginny pushed back with a laugh. “Why are you talking
as if you’re saying goodbye? You’ll be here when I return tonight.”
She gave a wicked smile. “Or maybe tomorrow morning. And then
you’ll help me plan the rest of my wedding.”

Her friend’s face softened. “I’m sure it will all
work out.”

Ginny studied her friend. She knew Harriet so well
that normally she could tell what was troubling her. Now, it was
different. She couldn’t determine what was going on. “You’ve been
acting very strangely lately. Is there something you want to tell
me?”

“Later.” Harriet smiled. “It will all make sense
later. And now I have an appointment I must get ready for. And you
probably want to gather yourself together for your meeting with
Simon. But come to my room before you leave so I can say
goodbye.”

Ginny put her questions about Harriet’s strange
behavior aside as she nodded to her friend. One way or another, her
own little drama would be resolved in a short time, and then she
could focus on figuring out what was going on with Harriet. She and
Simon could work on it together, and perhaps even get his friend
Adam’s help.

She smiled. Together. If she were lucky, she and
Simon would be together for the rest of their lives.

Her smile fell. Unless Robert Dennison followed
through on the threats he’d made in Westdale.

Chapter Twenty-Two

Taking one last glance in the
mirror, Ginny smiled. Tonight was one of the most important of her
life and she wanted to look her best. In fact, it had taken her the
better part of an hour to decide on the pale blue dress she now
wore. The color accentuated her eyes and made her hair a warm
auburn in the lamplight. And the navy ribbon around the bodice
enhanced her breasts, which she
knew
Simon would
appreciate.

More importantly, the dress
had
color. It wasn’t a
mourning gown she had chosen to make a point to Simon. The dress
said she wasn’t grieving, but living her life. A life she wanted to
share with Simon, no matter what the cost.

She drew in a shuttering breath. Never had she been
more nervous. What would he say? What would he do? And would he
still love her when everything she’d done in the past was
revealed?

He had to.

She shook her head as she slipped from her room and
down the hall. At Jack’s nursery door, she paused, then crept in.
Her little boy lay in his bed with his thumb wedged in his small
mouth. He was deep in sleep, all curled up on his side with his
dark hair covering his forehead.

Doing her best not to wake him, she tiptoed to his
side to push back a few baby-soft locks from his eyes. “My little
angel,” she whispered.

Many times she’d thought her marriage to Henry had
been worth everything if it had brought her Jack. And now she had
to add Simon to that equation, too. If he hadn’t been named trustee
of the estate, she doubted she ever would have met him. And if she
hadn’t been so driven to fight him, perhaps they wouldn’t have
fallen in love. It was odd how life worked out.

Jack rolled over on his back and flopped his little
arm over his eyes. She couldn’t help the greedy grin that curved
her lips. He was hers. All hers. And she loved him beyond reason.
Simon would be a good father to him, and already Jack loved
him.

“My lady?” came the harsh whisper of a footman at
the door.

She waved the young man back into the hallway before
she leaned down and kissed her son’s forehead. He smelled like
bathwater and sweet baby skin. Why couldn’t she bottle that scent
and keep it forever?

Tiptoeing from the room, she shut the door behind
her quietly. “What is it?”

“You received this message.” He held out a folded
note.

She took it with a curious glance. “Who is it
from?”

The young man shrugged. “I don’t know, my lady. It
was given to us very mysteriously at the kitchen door by a man who
stayed hidden. But he behaved as if it were imperative to give to
you before you departed this evening.”

“Thank you,” she said over her shoulder as she
slowly walked down the hall to her dressing room. It had to be from
Simon. A tease for her before she came, or perhaps a message to
meet him elsewhere.

But as she broke the wax seal on the missive and
opened it, she saw immediately that the hand wasn’t Simon’s. And
the words were most definitely not his.

My lady, you will find that your secret is not so
very private. In fact, I’ve known about it for a long time. If it
is made public that your husband died by your hand, you know you
will find a very uncomfortable end. Transportation or the hangman’s
noose are no place for a lady.