“And I would have found you regardless.” He smelled of horses, sweat, and wind. And of Jasper.
All that she’d ever want.
“Say it,” he whispered, and she knew what he meant.
“I love you.” She lost herself in another kiss. “I love you. I love you. I love you.” And then she laughed a little. “We need to add something to our marriage agreement.”
“What’s that?” Jasper’s fingertips traced her cheek and then captured a few tears of happiness… of relief.
“Not to assume we know what the other is thinking.”
“Done.” As though starved, he captured her mouth again. “First thing in the morning? We’ll return to the blacksmith’s?”
“Yes.”
“And Nia?”
“Yes?”
“For our wedding, you will make it through the entire ceremony. There will be no running whatsoever.”
She laughed out loud this time. Because she was happy. Because she was relieved beyond belief. And because in the end, she would have her own happily ever after. And because she got to share it with her very own Piccadilly Player.
“No running,” she promised. “Unless you’re there to catch me.”
“I’ll always catch you.” Jasper pulled Nia onto his lap, and although he’d ridden for over fourteen hours that day, he wasn’t too tired to make love to this woman—his fiancée and soon-to-be wife.
But before he could do anything about it, they were interrupted by more knocking on her door. This time followed by her sister’s voice. “Nia, open up.”
“I’m fine,” Nia answered.
“Open up.” More forceful this time.
Nia dropped her forehead onto Jasper’s shoulder and then exhaled before wiggling off his lap. With the candles lighting the room, Jasper found a pillow for his lap while he hungrily watched Nia skip across the room to speak to her sister.
“I’m fine. I promise,” Nia whispered. “You’re going to wake everyone up again.”
Nia had only opened the door partially, but a moment later, it pushed inward, opening all the way, and the young Lady Standish padded inside wearing a dressing gown and slippers, followed by Standish, who was looking more than a little sheepish.
“Everything is resolved, then?” She glanced between the two of them, pointedly noticing Jasper’s pillow, which apparently wasn’t as discreet as he’d expected it to be.
“Yes.” Nia turned to hold Jasper’s gaze.
“We are officially betrothed,” he asserted. “And we will marry first thing in the morning.”
“In that case…” Lady Standish swept inside. “You must find a separate chamber for what remains of the night. It’s bad luck for the groom to see his bride on their wedding day. Look what happened last time.” She cocked an eyebrow.
“Oh, Goldie, no!” Even under the soft glow of the flickering candles, Jasper noticed the blush creep into Nia’s cheeks.
But Jasper had been raised to be a gentleman, after all. So, reining himself in, he forced himself to imagine jumping into a freezing lake so he could walk out of Nia’s room without embarrassing her.
His betrothed. And tomorrow, his wife.
It would be the last time either of them would sleep alone for a very long time.
“Just a few hours until sunup.” Standish’s mouth quirked and Jasper had no doubt that his old friend was secretly laughing at him. Jasper had been sitting on Nia’s unmade bed. Of course, the other man knew what they’d interrupted.
Bastard.
