His regard was tender as it traveled over her face. “From this moment on, when you run, run to me, my love. I will be waiting for you with open arms.”
Her heart gave a pang at his words. At the love for her plainly written on his face.
“How do you do that?” she asked.
“How do I do what, darling?” He cupped her face then, his thumb stroking gently over her cheekbone.
“How do you always know what to say?”
He gave her a half grin. “If you will recall, I do not always know what to say.”
He was referring to his nervous sallies, of course.
“I love your dreadful jokes, Neville.” And she meant that. He was a wonderful man. Unique and sweet and funny and awkward and handsome and wicked when she wanted him to be.
He was her heart.
“How many peas are there in a pint?” he asked.
She mulled it over. “There is one letterpin a pint.”
“Yes.” He chuckled. “Let me guess. You have heard that one before as well?”
“No.” She smiled as a sheen of tears misted her eyes. Different tears this time—happy tears instead of angry and sad. “I do believe you are starting to influence me. One of the girls inadvertently made a pun earlier, and I thought of you.”
“I hope you think of me often.” He leaned in and kissed the tip of her nose.
“I do.” She took his hand in hers and pressed a kiss to the palm. “Are you certain you want to marry a scandalous lady like me?”
He did not hesitate. “Utterly. I love you, Charity. I will always love you.”
“I shall always love you, too,” she promised, her heart buoyed by his words and his presence both. “Thank you for finding me.”
“Thank you for findingmein the alcove in the picture gallery,” he said. “If you had not, Lord knows what would have become of me.”
She could not suppress her smile. “The moment I spied you eying the naughty tapestries, you had my heart.”
“Now that I have your heart, might I also have your lips?” he teased.
“I thought you would never ask.” She wrapped her arms around his neck and tugged his mouth to hers, a feeling of rightness settling in her heart.
Epilogue
“What do you think of it, my love?” Neville asked from behind Charity as he slid his arms around her waist and drew her against him.
Charity melted into her husband’s beloved, familiar form, surveying the vibrant oil painting in its gilt frame.Venus at Her Bathhad been hung in a place of honor in Neville’s chamber following his purchase of the artwork. A golden-haired goddess stared back at her, all creamy skin and bountiful hips and breasts. Charity did not fool herself that she possessed a fraction of the loveliness the Venus possessed, despite her husband’s firm avowal that she was far more beautiful than the picture.
“I think it is fortunate indeed that you have chosen to hang it here instead of in the drawing room where my mother would see it,” she said.
The wordmotherstill felt a bit strange on her lips in relation to the woman she had spent her entire life knowing as Auntie Louise. But in the weeks following the revelation, Charity had come to understand her mother’s choice. Unwed and carrying the child of the man she loved, her options had not been plentiful. She had hidden her condition and given birth to Charity in secret, and then her brother, the Earl of Sandrington, had taken Charity into his home and raised her as his own daughter. Thus, her mother had been able to remain a part of Charity’s life, and Charity had not suffered the stigma of illegitimate birth.
Her mother had explained that she had always intended to tell Charity the truth, but that as the years had gone on, she had feared the revelation would cause a divide between them. Unexpectedly falling in love with Neville had taught Charity that life was unpredictable. Forgiveness had come easily, and following her wedding and honeymoon, Charity’s mother had come to visit them at his country seat in Wiltshire.
“Hanging it in the drawing room would be terribly improper,” Neville said, nuzzling her neck. “And we both know that I am a seriously staid killjoy who would never do something like that.”
Charity winced at the reminder of her unkind words and former opinion of him. “You do realize I knew you were listening that day.”
He chuckled and kissed the sensitive hollow behind her ear. “You did not.”
