Halwell cleared his throat, drawing Alec’s attention to the trio, still standing together at the opening in the hedge.
“My lord,” Alec began. “I don’t know what to say. That Poppy was in such danger, I…”
She squeezed his hand, sending magical warmth rushing through him.
“That you risked your own life to protect her speaks louder than any words could ever say,” Halwell said, his gaze drifting to Alec and Poppy’s entwined hands. “I expect you’ll want to ask something of me very soon, Galbraith.”
A great many things, indeed. Alec thought it best to start with, “I would like your permission to court Poppy, my lord.”
The man smiled. “Permission granted. I will want some assurances about your mother, however.”
So would Alec. The mention of his mother was the perfect time to shift his focus, once again, to Rhys. “I owe you my life. I owe you Poppy’s.”
“Something has to be done about her. I found a place…” His brother raked a hand through his dark hair, angst and worry evident in the lines on his face.
“A place?” Alec echoed.
“A sanitarium,” Rhys clarified. “Shadowynds, in The Orkneys. Specifically designed for those withabilities.”
A sanitarium for the magically mad? Alec had no idea such a place existed. He wondered, briefly, who else might be housed there. What the others might have done. And how dangerous they all might be. An island north of Scotland was probably a good place to keep such witches and warlocks.
“I’m simply lacking the small fortune needed for…”
Even now, Rhys’ pride wouldn’t allow him to finish the sentence aloud. Writing that letter to Alec had probably taken its toll on his brother. But the point, now, was perfectly clear. Rhys needed funds to have Mother sent somewhere safe. Safe for her. Safe for others. The need for such a solution was long overdue. In fact, their father should have seen to that when they were boys. But as he had not, the duty now belonged to Rhys and Alec.
“I am in your debt,” Alec told his brother, wondering what horrors Rhys had been subjected to, living on his own with Mother for all these years. Alec didn’t even want to imagine it. A bit of guilt pricked his heart. “We will handle her together.”
His brother’s shoulders lifted a bit as though the weight he’d been carrying had lightened.
“Well,” Halwell said, reminding Alec that there were others present. “I believe we should all return to the Whartons’ ballroom, don’t you think?”
Everyone agreed, but as the others started back down the garden path to do that very thing, Alec held Poppy back for just a moment. He still couldn’t believe she was there, holding his hand, that they were both unharmed. Good fortune, all around. “Ever since that day in the attic, I’ve regretted not kissing you.”
Her pretty lips parted sightly, which Alec took as an invitation.
He dipped his head lower and pressed his lips to hers. If her touch was magical, her kiss was spellbinding. Her sweet breath tasted of honey, tea, and of promises yet to be made. The plumpness of her lips drove him to distraction. And the softness of her touch as she brushed her fingers against his cheek took Alec to another time, another place where only happiness reigned.
After a lifetime, he broke their kiss, grinned down at her and said, “More than worth the wait.”
EPILOGUE
Private Sitting Room
Halwell Chase - Devon
December 1814
Frost hungin air and a light dusting of snow covered The Chase as Poppy glanced out the window for the hundredth time that morning. Still no sign of…No, wait.
There on the horizon. Even from this distance, she knew Alec’s form like she knew her own name.
She turned away from the window and would have raced down the corridor, then the stairs in her haste to greet him at the stables, but an obstacle stood firmly in her path. A wicked glint flickered in Georgie’s eyes.
“Is hefinally here?” A smug smile tipped the corners of her sister’s lips.
Poppy groaned, but she refused to let even her most annoying sister ruin her mood. Alec was finally here. It had been the longest fortnight of her life, waiting for his return. He’d spent all of November at The Chase, but had been called back to London in early December to meet with his brother and the Ravensdale solicitor. Now that he was back, she didn’t plan to ever let him leave.
“The best Christmas present there could possibly be,” she told her sister.
