“I vow to dance with you, to laugh with you, and to beat you in horseback races whenever you give me the opportunity. I promise to remind you that you deserve to be happy and to always be your friend.”
Since she was already wearing her ring, Sophie expected to skip past that part of the ceremony, so she was surprised when Nicholas pulled a small black box from his pocket andopened it. When she caught sight of the sapphire sparkling within, her breath hitched.
“You’re always surprising me with rings,” she murmured.
“I sent word to the family jeweler to design this one before we departed for Gretna Green.” He plucked it up between his finger and thumb and slid it onto her finger. It fit perfectly. “The sapphires match your eyes.”
Her gaze crashed into his, and if not for the audience, she’d have jumped into his arms. “Thank you, Nicholas. I love it.”
The sapphire was large and oval, set in a gold band with delicate clasps in each corner to hold it in place and ornate swirls carved into the underside of the stone’s setting.
Her eyes darted between Nicholas and the ring as the ceremony concluded. When it was finished and they were announced husband and wife for the second time, piano music spilled from an open window, someone playing one of Beethoven’s pieces.
Sophie looked around and realized that Kate was missing. She must have disappeared inside during the last few minutes to prepare to play.
Sophie’s heart filled. Kate was a decent pianist, but it wasn’t her favorite occupation, which meant that she’d probably learned this song purely for the wedding.
She had the best of friends.
Nicholas offered Sophie his hand, and when she took it, he danced her down the aisle between the guests, who clapped and congratulated them. Sophie didn’t have a clue what they were actually saying, though. She was too wrapped up in her husband.
She spun in Nicholas’s arms and laughed as he twirled her back and caught her again. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted Emma and Vaughan dancing with them, and even her parents joined in the fun.
When the song ended, the garden fell quiet once more,filled only with the gentle hum of conversation and the chirps of the birds searching for worms and seeds.
Kate emerged from the manor, and Sophie embraced her.
“That was lovely!” she exclaimed.
Kate shrugged delicately. “I know you could have done better, but I hoped you’d enjoy it anyway.”
“I did.”
Theo wandered over, carrying Ollie, and Sophie cooed at him and touched a fingertip to the end of his nose as he giggled.
Nicholas’s arm came around her, and she relaxed into his side.
“Are you hoping for children?” he asked quietly enough that only Theo might be able to hear.
She looked up at him, searching his face for hints of his own thoughts on the matter. It wasn’t something they’d discussed, although perhaps they should have.
Generally, people assumed that children were a given within a marriage, but since Nicholas was a second son and Theodore and Kate already had an heir, there was no pressure on them to have a child of their own.
“I like children.” She glanced at the adorable Ollie and grinned. “They’re sweet and fun. But I won’t be upset if we aren’t blessed with them either.”
Nicholas urged her farther away from Theo, putting space between them and everyone else. He waggled his eyebrows. “We could go and practice how to make babies. I’ve heard it can be difficult.”
She muffled a snort with her hand and peeked around, hoping no one had overheard him. “Now?”
He smirked. “Why not?”
“Everyone is around!”
He laughed and drew her into his arms. “We’re newlyweds and in love. It’s practically expected that we behave a little scandalously.”
“No!”
He sighed. “Well, it was worth trying.”
