The Gentleman Who Loved Me (Heart of Enquiry Book 6)(103)
While that did happen occasionally, it never created a stir like this one.
Andrew pushed through to the front of the crowd—and stopped short.
His disbelieving eyes took in Primrose standing by the pianoforte. No longer dressed in widow’s weeds, she wore a vibrant yellow gown the color of her namesake. The diamond necklace he’d given her sparkled like dew around her throat. She was so beautiful that he ached just looking at her. Her eyes met his, and the expression in those jade orbs jammed his breath.
She said to Sally, who was seated at the piano (fully dressed—thank God), “I’m ready.”
Sally played the opening bars of a ballad.
Primrose began to sing, and the room fell silent as her voice floated into the air.
What's this dull town to me
When you’re not near….
Where all the joy and mirth
Made this town heaven on earth
Oh, they're all fled with thee
My own true love…
His throat clogged as she sang the words to him, her gaze never leaving his. He couldn’t believe that she was doing this. Couldn’t believe what she was sacrificing in doing so. All she’d ever wanted was respectability and now—
A part of him knew he should put a stop to this, salvage whatever part of her reputation he could… but he couldn’t move. Couldn’t fight his love for her any more. This glorious woman whose song reached his soul, chasing away the darkness and filling it with her own bright, unique light.
His Primrose. His love. His.
What when the play was o'er
What made my heart so sore
Oh, it was parting with
My own true love…
She devastated his self-control, and for once he didn’t care if the world knew what he was feeling. He saw the answering love on her face, and the rest of the room disappeared. It was just the two of them, the way it had always been and was meant to be.
But now thou'rt cold to me
My own true love
Yet he I loved so well
Still in my heart shall dwell
Oh, I can ne'er forget my own true love
The last note lingered in the air. An instant later, thunderous applause broke out. Amidst the shouts, whistles, and foot stomping, he went to Primrose. Her arms looped around his neck as he carried her away from the mayhem—and past Grier and Fanny, who stood side by side, grinning.
In the privacy of the hidden corridor, he said hoarsely, “I wasn’t being cold to you. I wanted you to have a better man than me.”
“Oh, Andrew, don’t you know?” Her eyes glimmered. “There is no better man than you.”
“Even though… I didn’t tell you about Kitty?” He swallowed over the razors in his throat. “I wanted to, but I was ashamed. It was never good, never right. I tried to end it—”
“I understand.” The tenderness in her expression told him that somehow, miraculously, she did. “You were just a boy when you got tangled in her web. And, trust me, I know a thing or two about repeating mistakes. I won’t judge your past any more than you judge mine.”
“What about the fact that I left you with her?” he said with roiling self-recrimination. “I wanted to take you, but I didn’t have the money. Or the courage.”
“Andrew, you were scarcely more than a boy yourself. How could you be expected to take care of another child?” The compassion in her eyes made his own heat. “It was wrong of me to blame you, and I’m so, so sorry that I did. But don’t you dare question your own courage. You’ve survived more than I can even imagine, and I admire you more than I can say. I love you so much.”
“I love you,” he said fiercely. “It’s been hell without you.”
Her dimples peeped out. “Does that mean you’re going to marry me?”
“I’ll challenge any man who dares to stop me.” He paused. “Er, unless that man happens to be your father. Or another of your kin.”
“My family adores you,” she said.
He was certain she was lying, and he didn’t even care. He would win her family over. With her by his side, he knew he could do anything… but did she feel the same way about him? Was it fair of him to ask her to give up everything to be his wife?
He forced himself to remind her of the consequences.
“If you marry me, you won’t be marrying a gentleman. You’ll lose your position, title, and fortune,” he said. “Are you certain that’s what you want?”
“You are a gentleman, Andrew Corbett.” Her hands clenched his lapels in emphasis. “And none of the rest matters. I don’t want anything but you.”
He strode into his suite, didn’t stop until he had her in his bed. He followed her down, her soft curves swamping him with pleasure. With love and lust and joy beyond imagining. Looking into her precious face, he knew there was one last thing he needed to say.
“Thank you for the song, sunshine,” he murmured. “It is a gift I’ll treasure forever.”
“You know my fondness for the dramatic.” She touched his jaw, her eyes smiling at him. “I hope you don’t mind a lifetime of this.”
“A lifetime with you won’t nearly be enough,” he said, “but I’ll take what I can get.”