Marianne laughed through her tears, wrapping her arms around him.
“I love you,” Lucien murmured into her hair. “So very much.”
“I love you too,” Marianne said.
And then he kissed her. All the fear and loneliness that had consumed her melted away, replaced only by the warmth of his body against hers.
When they pulled apart, they looked at one another, beaming.
“Shall we go home?” Lucien asked.
Marianne looked up at him and nodded.
“Yes,” she said. “I think we shall.”
And thus, the two of them locked hands and made their way out of the chamber. She would collect Juliet, and together, they’d return to the home she had left behind, knowing that this time around, she would never leave it again.
EPILOGUE
THREE MONTHS LATER
“Look at the great ship!” Henry said, his eyes wide as he pointed at the Mary Elizabeth, the large steam ship that was going to take them across the English Channel to the continent.
“It is majestic, is it not?” Mrs. Greaves said, her own eyes just as wide.
“Oh, goodness gracious,” Juliet mumbled beside Marianne. “I shall be ill, I am certain of it.”
“You do not know that,” Marianne said. “You have never been on a big ship. Besides, I have it on good authority that it is Mrs. Greaves who is most likely to run afoul of the might of the waves. Lucien told me.”
Juliet sighed. “Well, I suppose that means I must be on my best behavior. And even if I do feel queasy, I must swallow it down because someone will have to look after the old bird.”
“Do not call her that,” Marianne said with a chuckle.
“But she is. A lovable old bird, but an old bird nonetheless.”
Marianne and Juliet snickered, although the moment Mrs. Greaves turned their way, they both pressed their lips together to keep her from noticing.
The last three months had been most odd, one could say. Juliet and Marianne had left the convent the same day Lucien had arrived to bring them back. Well, to bring Marianne back.
Juliet had not been pleased. Her friend's fierce loyalty had made it so that she could not quite allow herself to believe Lucien's remorse the way that Marianne had.
But still, in due course, she too had decided to give him another chance. Not that she had much choice. If she hadn't found it in her heart to look at Lucien the way that Marianne did, perhaps she would now not be standing here next to Marianne—not as her lady's maid, but as her companion and friend.
Juliet’s reluctance had not been the only difficulty. The first fortnight back had been difficult for both Marianne and Juliet. The adjustment had taken time. Henry had been confused about her sudden return after taking her leave just a few weeks earlier. It had taken several days for him to trust that she was not going to leave again.
Juliet, likewise, had struggled with the sudden change in their lives. Guilt had also troubled her friend's conscience, because it had been because of Juliet, at least in part, that Marianne had decided to leave. It had been Juliet's encouragement that had brought her back to the convent.
And yet in the end, Marianne had managed to convince her friend that yes, Juliet had filled Marianne's head with doubt based on things she had learned below stairs, but she had acted out of genuine worry for her friend. Marianne had been wrong to run away and not give Lucien one more chance to explain, and Lucien had been wrong to let the demons of his past influence his present.
They had all grown, and they had all learned.
And now, to celebrate this new life, they were embarking on an adventure together just as they’d promised at the convent.
Mrs. Greaves had been reluctant to join them due to her notorious tendency to get rather ill on sea voyages, but in the end, she had agreed. She couldn't let Juliet be the only one to go along, after all, given how little experience she had in being a lady's maid.
Although, of course, Juliet was no longer a lady's maid. The role hadn't suited her, and Marianne had not enjoyed the difference in station between herself and her friend. And thus they had decided that Juliet should no longer be a lady's maid, but instead her companion. The arrangement suited them both much better. Marianne had decided not to fill the position of lady’s maid,comfortable with tending to her own needs as she was. Lucien likewise had decided not to bring his valet on their journey, desiring to be as regular as possible.
“I can scarcely believe that we are leaving,” Juliet said now. “And all the places we shall see. All the excitement.”
