She sniffed as she nodded. “Yes. I just . . . I cannot believe this is real. I’m afraid I may wake up at any moment and find this has only been a dream.”
A smile lifted his lips as he put his cheek to her hair, wrapping his arms tightly around her. “It had better be real. I will be sorely disappointed if it’s not.” He sighed. “I find I cannot stop holding you, Miss Gibbons.”
He heard a soft laugh and then another sniffle. “I do not mind in the least.” She laid her head on his shoulder, and he kept one hand tightly about her waist as his other stroked her hair. He kissed the crown of her head.
She nestled into him, making a soft, contented hum in her throat. “I imagined this is what it would be like.”
“Hmmm?” he murmured, tracing his fingers along her scalp.
“To be the object of your attention.”
He pulled back, trailing his hands down to her cheeks and caressing her face with his thumbs. “You shall never have to wonder again, Hannah.” He pressed a gentle kiss to her lips, then sighed. “And, while it is the last thing I desire at the moment, you should probably go back to bed. I will call on you tomorrow.”
Her back stiffened.
“What?” he asked.
“I forgot you do not know.”
“Know what?” He took her shoulders, pulling her back enough that he could see her face.
“We are leaving. Mother and I, anyway. Father is staying behind to—”
“Wait.” Noah’s hands tightened. “What do you mean you are leaving?” He just realized he loved her, and now she was telling him that she was leaving?
Hannah shook her head, her eyes hazy as if trying to gather her thoughts. “Mr. Swinton stopped visiting because he did not approve of my actions the night of the ball. When I explained why to my mother, she decided the best chance we had to recover socially was to move again.”
Noah’s mind scrambled to keep up. So Swinton did not intend to propose after all. “That is nonsense. You cannot leave, Hannah. Why did you not tell me?”
Her face fell, those lips he had just kissed forming a flat line across her face. “Why did you not come?”
“I have,” he sputtered. Though he was almost too late. “I know I should have come earlier, but I was trying to figure out my life. Tonight, I told Margaret to leave me alone for good, and I informed my father I have no intention of marrying her, even to keep our families together. I told him I couldn’t. Because I love—”
Hannah’s eyes widened, her chin tilting up as she waited for his next words.
Noah swallowed, taking a deep breath. He reached up, holding her face in his hands again. He needed to be closer—to touch her. “I love the way you laugh when you should not,” he said, a smile spreading across his lips. Hannah’s eyes grew bright with tears, but her smile had finally returned to her beautiful face. “I love the way your hair catches every person’s gaze.” He traced a thumb above her ear. “I love your heart. I love your spirit. But most of all—” He stopped, taking a breath as his voice caught. “I loveyou.”
Hannah put a hand over her mouth, shaking her head.
“What?” he asked, cupping her cheek with his palm.
She sniffed and lifted her eyes as tears streamed down her cheeks. “I just cannot believe you are saying these things to me. I’m just me.”
“Being you is precisely what makes me love you so.” He pressed his head to her brow and kissed the tip of her nose. “Please do not leave. I could not bear it.”
“I am not sure what I can do to stop it. I have tried everything I can think of.”
Him proposing would likely be a quick fix. But Hannah wouldn’t be so bold as to make the assumption he would. Not after the confusion of his actions toward her. “I believe I can convince your mother. Let me handle that.”
Hannah closed her eyes. “This is the first moment in a week I feel as if I can actually breathe. Like there is hope ahead and not—” She laid her face onto his shoulder once more. “And not having to start all over again.”
All that time he was in tumult, Hannah had been here suffering. While he could not undo what she had already gone through, he could forge a new path for them going forward.
Noah ran his hands along her back, holding her and gently swaying as they listened to the wind in the leaves above them. He could have stayed there all night. “As much as I am enjoying this, you should probably get some sleep. I plan to be over as soon as guests are allowed tomorrow.”
She pulled back, a small smile forming as she looked him up and down. “And you as well. You look as if you haven’t slept in weeks.”
Because he hadn’t.
