Her breath caught. Nestled on a bed of velvet was a gold tiara with a dozen tiny gemstones embedded above the lower arch. It was relatively small, but it still glittered like stars in the night sky.
“It’s beautiful,” she breathed. “Thank you.”
Lord Carlisle removed it from the box. “May I?”
She nodded and bent her knees so he could position the tiara in the front of her hair, where she now realized that Betsy had intentionally left room for it. Her mother must have discussed the gift with the maid before now.
“Now you look like a proper Carlisle bride,” he declared proudly. “Are you ready to join the gathering in the garden?”
“I am.”
He looped his arm through hers and walked her through Blackwell Hall and out the back entrance into the gardens.Roses stretched in all directions, an array of blooms in every color of the rainbow, some just opening while others were fully on display.
As she stepped down onto the grass, her mother took her other arm, and together, they walked her past the assembled guests.
She smiled at Lady Drake holding baby Oliver, practically beaming, with Kate and Theodore beside her and Lady Blackwell slightly farther back.
There was her sister Emma, who was clapping as her tall, dark husband gazed down at her with utter adoration. Their daughter Lillian stood in a pretty dress at their feet.
The Earl and Countess of Longley, with little George.
Violet and Mr. Mayhew, with their daughter Annabella.
And at the end, waiting for her, was Nicholas.
He looked so handsome in a blue waistcoat trimmed with gold and a cravat the same shade as her dress, his hair tied neatly back, and his beard trimmed close to his angular jaw.
As she closed the distance between them, he winked at her, and she couldn’t help thinking that he reminded her of a highwayman or a pirate from one of Amelia’s novels.
The way he was looking at her…
It made her weak and strong at the same time.
Her parents released her arms, and each kissed her cheek, then ushered her toward her husband. They took each other’s hands, and she smiled up at him as the minister began to speak.
Their elopement had been exciting in a scandalous sort of way, but this was the wedding she’d wanted. One with friends and family present—here to celebrate them as they started their new life together.
“I love you,” she mouthed.
He grinned wider, his dark eyes glinting in the sun. “Love you too.”
The minister paused, obviously unsure how to handle this unusual interjection, but after a moment, he carried on.
“It’s time to exchange vows,” he said. “Mr. Blackwell, would you begin?”
Nicholas gazed down at Sophie, the corners of his mouth softening as he readied himself to speak. “I, Nicholas Blackwell, take you, Sophie Blackwell, to be my lawful wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do us part.”
The minister turned to Sophie, but she shook her head, silently letting him know that Nicholas wasn’t yet done.
Sophie had heard of some couples personalizing the wedding vows. It wasn’t popular, but she and Nicholas had decided they wanted to add their own twist to the traditional vows.
He lifted her hands and kissed the back of each. “I vow to make you laugh, to join you on your adventures, and to remind you each day of why you’re special. I promise to treat you with respect and to support you with my every breath.”
The minister paused until he was sure that Nicholas had finished before prompting Sophie to recite her vows.
She couldn’t hold back her smile and she said, “I, Sophie Blackwell, take you, Nicholas Blackwell, to be my lawful husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do us part.”
Somewhere in the garden, a bird burst into song.
