She smiled up at him. “You should teach me how to dance.”
Acknowledging that the moment had passed, Alexander began to spin her around. Beatrice picked it up quickly, proving once again that there was little she couldn’t do.
After only a few short dances, Alexander felt confident that she would handle their wedding dance with ease.
“I don’t suppose you have any other friends who might show up at inopportune moments?” he asked as they paused, letting her go reluctantly.
“I think Dietrich is it,” Beatrice said, her eyes twinkling. “I’m sorry he has such a knack for interrupting moments.”
“At least he’s protective of you,” Alexander said. “I’m glad you have someone on your side.”
“But I already have someone on my side,” Beatrice replied. “I have you.”
Her words filled him with a warmth he hadn’t felt before. His heart seemed to understand what his mind hadn’t yet accepted: he loved Beatrice.
Now, he just had to find a way to show her how much.
Chapter twenty-two
Beatrice
Beatrice watched in amazementas Mrs. Jenkins bustled around the library. She had been excited to prepare a proper wedding for Lord Alexander, even if it wasn’t under the happiest of circumstances, and she was doing an incredible job. Details were coming together overnight, and she was making this the wedding of Beatrice’s dreams.
Now, none of Beatrice’s dreams had included a sorcerer trying to marry her husband off to someone else, but that was a small detail. If she overlooked that, everything was practically perfect.
Beatrice took a deep breath and began to sort through the list of invitations once again. Dietrich had promised to deliver the invitations by hand if she had them ready within the hour. If she hadn’t known better, she would have said he simply needed to get out and do something different. He was never very good at staying in one place for long.
She was hoping Sophia would still be in town, but Dietrich was unsure whether she and Caspian had gone back to Riyel before the storm hit.
She hoped they hadn’t, and her friend could attend her wedding.
She took a deep breath and reached for the next list after checking off everyone on the invitation list. Mrs. Jenkins was remarkably thorough, and she’d had to change very little.
The big question…would her father be in attendance?
Would he even see the invitation?
Part of her hoped that Dietrich wouldn’t give it to him, that he’d give in to the part of himself that hated her father and avoid him entirely.
But she had to send an invitation. It was his fault if he didn’t come.
The thought was rather depressing, but she could no longer pretend that she didn’t notice how little he cared. Alexander had learned more about her in the past week than her father knew after her entire life.
She’d always thought that marriage was not for her after seeing the way her mother had disappeared and her father had, too, in his own way. But after being Alexander’s wife for a week, she could almost believe that their marriage would be different.
It was a terrifying thought, but she couldn’t pretend otherwise. She was falling for her husband, and it was only a matter of time before he realized it.
She had no idea how he would respond after everything he’d been through. Would he be willing to give in to love, or would he be more inclined to act as if it didn’t exist?
He seemed particularly determined to pretend that he had no hope. But Beatrice had seen it often enough over the past week to know that instead of his life turning him bitter, it had simply turned him into a man unwilling to let anyone get close to him.
But she’d seen the thorns around his heart beginning to disappear.
Not to mention the fact that he’d almost kissed her twice last night.
“What do you think? Anything else I’m missing?” Mrs. Jenkins asked, coming back in with a handful of tablecloths and napkins. “Tell me which of these you like best, my dear.”
Beatrice grinned. “I think they all look lovely, Mrs. Jenkins, and whichever of those options you pick, I would be thrilled.”
