“Good idea.” He caught her hand, lacing his fingers with hers. “I’ll let you take care of me.”
She led him back to the bed, and he leaned back against the pillows. “Come and lie beside me so I’ll feel better.”
Amelia obeyed. For a moment, he lay on his uninjured side, watching her. She grew self-conscious under his gaze. “I’m so sorry this happened to you.”
“I would take another bullet for you without question, Amelia.” He reached out to touch her face. She heard the truth in his voice and saw the honesty in his eyes.
His palm moved down to join with hers. “And you can’t leave me now, can you?”
“No,” she whispered. “I won’t leave you. I never really wanted to.” She raised his hand to her lips, so thankful that he was alive. If anything had happened to David, she didn’t know how she could go on.
She understood, now, why he had grieved for his first wife for so long. It would be like ripping her spirit in half.
“And you won’t leave me, either, unless you take me along,” she insisted.
David threaded one hand in her hair. “I love you, Amelia.” The warmth in his voice washed over her, pressing back her fear of losing him. “And even if I’m not the kind of husband you imagined marrying, that will always be true.”
She leaned in and touched her mouth to his. “It’s true, that you aren’t the man I dreamed of.” With a smile, she added, “You’re so much more.”
Epilogue
TWOWEEKSLATER
Hold your shoulders back,” Amelia instructed Christine. “Curtsy and hold up your hand as we go in a circle.”
David stood back, watching his wife and daughter dance together. Christine was wearing a gown that he didn’t entirely approve of. While Amelia reassured him that lilac was perfectly acceptable for her to wear, it struck him to see his little girl growing up. It felt as if a dozen more years had slipped away in a single moment.
“When can we go to London, Amelia? Next spring?” Christine’s voice held the excitement of a girl eager for her first Season.
“Yes, we will.” His wife shot her an amused look. “You must endure the hardships I endured when I had to watch my sisters while they danced and enjoyed themselves. I was escorted away, just as all the fun was beginning.”
David couldn’t help but smile. “Or you could wait a few more years, Christine. There’s no harm in that.”
“Margaret would agree with you on that point,” Amelia said. At the mention of her sister, David didn’t miss the relieved look in her eyes. The young woman had returned unharmed, and all of them were grateful for it.
“I had to learn proper manners at a young age,” Amelia continued. “Our mother taught us how to walk, how to behave, and how to dance. Just as Christine will learn what she needs to know, to manage an earl of her own.”
He reached to take her by the waist, and Amelia tapped him lightly with her fan. “If a rogue tries to accost you, Christine, be sure to strike him with your fan.”
He leaned in to her ear. “You like it when I accost you.”
“Sometimes.” She beamed up at him, and he took her through the steps of the country dance she’d been trying to teach their daughter.
“I’ve received some news,” he said, turning serious. “Cain Sinclair’s younger brother was arrested for the murder of Lord Strathland.”
Amelia paled. “He’s just a boy. I can’t believe he could have done such a thing.”
“He didn’t, so Sinclair claims. Margaret and he are trying to find who really did kill the earl.” He spun her in a circle before taking her hand to walk forward.
“I’m glad Strathland is dead,” Amelia admitted. “And I’m thankful that your wound is nearly healed.”
He leaned in again. “You only say that because you want to accost me later.”
“You’re right.” Amelia stole a swift kiss, and he ended the dance. To his daughter, he signaled for her to go and bring the gift he’d arranged earlier.
“I have something for you,” he said. “It’s for your birthday.”
“But my birthday isn’t until December,” Amelia teased.
