“But—”
“Tut-tut.” He wagged his finger. “Smiles, or I will not tell you what else I have come to say.”
She tried to push her lips into a curve—though it probably looked more like a grimace. She would make things right for him. With this banknote in her hands, the first thing she’d do would be to track down that timepiece and redeem it for this thoughtful man.
“A little weak, but a good effort.” He brushed his thumb across her mouth.
Which tickled—and she couldn’t help but smile.
“That is better. Now, what I was trying to tell you is that those wax tablets paid off exactly as I had hoped. The headmaster reinstated my uncle’s positionandhis pension.”
Her smile spread into a full-fledged grin. “That is wonderful! I am so happy for him.”
“My job was reinstated as well.”
“Oh, I...” She worked her jaw, willing congratulatory words to her tongue. None came. In fact, every single word she ever knew flew from her head. He’d go back to his world now. For good. Live in Cambridge. Take up his old life and forget all about her. A banknote fluttered from her lax fingers, slowly flapping to the floor.
Bram retrieved it, his brows cinching as he laid it on the tea table. “But this is good news. I shall be returning to finish the dig here, and once the semester ends, why, apparently the curator position for the new Royston Museum has not yet been filled. Someone whispered to Mr. Toffit that he ought to keepthe job open for me to claim at the end of the school year. I do not suppose you know anything about that, do you?”
She shot to her feet, palms slapping against her heart. “You mean...?”
“I thought as much.” He grinned like a pirate as he rose, all swagger and bluster. “Once my uncle retires and I officially resign from Trinity in May, you will be looking at the new curator. My uncle shall be a paid consultant, leveraging his expertise to provide guidance on exhibits, acquisitions, and research projects, all where I can still keep an eye on him.”
“How perfect!”
“And you are to have new neighbours, that is if you do not mind letting out the cottage to Uncle Pendleton and I until the building for the museum is outfitted with living quarters.”
A dashing young neighbor over the way.
Well, well. Penny would be over the moon with this news ... as was she. First an exorbitant amount of money, now the man she loved most in the world was to live in her own backyard? Eva grinned in full. “Of course I do not mind, but...” Once again her smile faltered. “I still do not understand. Why would you leave an esteemed academic position for a small-town museum?”
“The salary is good. The work is a dream, plus I will be close enough to continue working on your dig if you will allow it. Both my uncle and I are weary of academic politics, and most importantly...” He collected both her hands, his skin feverishly warm against hers.
“What?” she breathed—barely.
His gaze burned into hers, the grey in his eyes liquid silver. “I could not very well leave you without a heart—that is, if your sentiments have not changed.”
“They have not,” she whispered.
“Neither have mine.”
His lips touched hers with the heat of a thousand suns, making her, breaking her, filling her with a love so pure, the worlddidn’t exist. There was only this man, this moment, this beautiful joining of two hearts into a new thing, a bold thing. Something she never wanted to end.
And yet he pulled away and cupped her face with his hand that smelled of leather and horse and so many promises of gentle cherishing. “I have loved you since you were a girl, Eva Inman. No, longer than that, for somehow you have always been a part of me. I see you when I close my eyes. I breathe you in the night. I hear your voice in the wind and feel your touch on my cheek.” With his free hand, he guided her palm to his face. “I have loved none but you—nor ever shall. I do not know how I ever lived so long and so far away from you, and I find I can do it no more. Would you be my wife?”
“Oh, Bram.” Her throat closed, but that didn’t stop her from furiously nodding her head.
“Is that a yes?” He laughed.
She grinned. “It is. And you were right.”
“About what?” He angled his head, curiosity rife in the lift of his brows.
“This is a day for smiling!”
32
Six months later, Eva beamed wider than ever as she stood before the new museum alongside her husband, his uncle—who was now hers too—and the members of the historical society. Ahead, a vibrant red ribbon stretched across the entrance, drawing the gazes of eager onlookers. Though Mr. Toffit delivered a meticulously prepared speech, capturing the crowd’s attention, Eva’s thoughts were consumed by the handsome man beside her and his selfless dedication to his role as curator. Silently, she prayed for God to richly bless her husband.
