Both Kate and Dan watched as the boy ran happily back to his friends. Then Kate said, ‘I imagine that, as well as visiting the school, you will have come about the sale of your house.’
‘My house? Yes, there are decisions to be made. But neither the house nor the school are the main reasons why I’m back in Brighton.’
‘No?’ She looked up at him, surprised. ‘Then why…?’
‘Kate,’ he said, ‘There’s only really one reason why I’m here—and that reason is you.’
He saw both the shock and the doubt that clouded her eyes, and he thought,what now? How did he tell this unique woman what she meant to him, and how desperately he regretted hurting her as he had?
There was a marquee nearby where all the food was set out, so he took her hand and drew her around the side of it to give them a little more privacy. ‘I wanted,’ he said, ‘to tell you that I’ve been thinking hard about my future—and about my past.’ He could tell from her expression that she didn’t trust him. Most likely she would never trust him again, but he pressed onwards. ‘My brother, Oliver, you see, has discovered some information about our mother.’
Instantly her expression changed to one of concern. ‘Then was what Cecily told you a lie?’
‘Cecily was right to tell me that our mother died long ago in Le Havre. But I know now that she wanted to get home, Kate.’
‘Home to England? To her family?’
‘Yes. You see, in our London house, Oliver found some old letters she had written to my father. In them, she begged him to let her see her sons and also told him she regretted terribly what she had done.’
Kate was listening intently. ‘Do you know if your father replied?’
Dan tried his utmost to keep the bitterness from his voice. ‘I can guess from her final letter that my father basically informed her that if she returned to England, she would be branded a harlot and would bring shame on the family. That must have allbut destroyed her.’ He paused, finding his voice constricted, but after a moment he carried on. ‘There were no letters after that. Perhaps she didn’t write anymore because she realised by then that there was no hope at all of a return. I imagine that she stayed in Le Havre and maybe spent the remainder of her days near the harbourside there, watching every ship that set sail for England.’
He saw tears shining in Kate’s eyes.This woman,he thought. How could he ever have imagined that he could live without her? Why, after that disastrous day at the races, hadn’t he begged her on his knees to forgive his many mistakes?
‘I am so very sorry,’ she was whispering. ‘How terrible for her, to die alone like that, in a foreign country.’
Her hand had strayed towards his, and he clasped it hard, gaining strength and an illusion of hope even. ‘It’s sad, yes,’ he said. ‘But those letters are proof that she loved us, Kate! She would have returned if she could. But she stayed away because my father warned her that she would bring continual disgrace on Oliver and myself.’
‘That may have been so, for a while. But many noble families have survived far worse, haven’t they? Your father must have been a harsh man, Dan.’
‘Indeed. And I fear I was set to follow exactly in his footsteps—until I met you.’
‘I’m not sure I understand.’ She spoke in little more than a whisper. ‘What are you saying?’
He held both of her hands in his now. ‘Kate,’ he said, ‘oh, Kate, I have a great deal to say to you—things I should have said far earlier. I should have told you, for example, that I spoke to Gascoyne that day at the races directly after you’d gone, and I warned him that if he said a single word about the wager, I would ruin his standing in Society. His reputation is not good anyway, so just a few words from me could finish him off and heknows it. He’s back in London now, and whenever he sees me, he practically grovels. Besides, even if he should one day be mad or drunk enough to mention that incident, it will hold no weight whatsoever—because I’m hoping that by then, you might have agreed to be my wife.’
She looked stunned. ‘But you always said that when you eventually married—as, of course, you must—you would let your choice be guided entirely by the appropriateness of your bride! Society expects you to choose a woman who matches you in rank and wealth, and I can offer you neither. Surely you realise that if you chose me as your wife, it would be the cause of bewilderment and even laughter?’
‘Listen.’ He took her hand and tenderly kissed it. ‘No one will laugh. You will be the talk of London, certainly, but that is because the Prince has returned to the capital and is telling everyone about the beautiful mystery lady I brought to his party at the Pavilion. Everyone wants to meet you, but I won’t let them.’ Just a hint of a smile curled up the corners of his mouth. ‘Not, that is, until you promise to be my Countess.’
He stopped smiling then. His voice was still tender, but it was serious too. ‘You see, I’m a jealous man. I don’t want anyone else stealing you from me, and that’s why I’ve come here today. I wanted to see the children enjoying themselves, of course—but it was chiefly because I heard you might be here.’ He drew a deep breath as he prepared to ask the most important question of his life. ‘Kate Summerby, I love you. Will you do me the very great honour of agreeing to marry me?’
There was silence and for a moment Dan existed in a state of mental agony. He thought,I have left it too late. I have made too many mistakes, and I have destroyed any feelings she might have had for me.
But at last, she began to speak. She was ever the thoughtful one, his Kate, and each one of her words resonated with honestyand integrity. She said, ‘You once told me that ever since your mother left and your damaged father closed his heart to his sons, you were incapable of love. How can I be sure you are capable of it now? Think, Dan. This is your whole future you are talking about.’
Dan spoke then as if his life depended on it, which it did in many ways. ‘I can remember when everything began to change for me. It happened one evening quite close to here, when a beautiful woman emerged like a woodland nymph from the trees that adjoined my garden. It didn’t take her long to begin scolding me roundly for my scandalous way of life—oh, yes, she did! There’s no denying it!’ Smiling, he held up one hand to silence Kate’s protests. ‘And slowly, far too slowly, I began to realise that perhaps I had found at last what I didn’t even know I was looking for. Someone to love. Someone to share my life and to have a family with one day.’
She gazed up at him wonderingly, and as he waited for her reply, he knew that his whole life hung in the balance. Then she said, with a little smile on her face, ‘Shall I tell you what I thought of you that first night? Of the words that sprang into my mind as you climbed out of the lake all dripping wet, in just your breeches?’
‘Dear God,’ he said, ‘perhaps you’d better not.’
She laughed, and it was perhaps the most delicious sound he’d ever heard. ‘I thought,’ she murmured, drawing closer to him and blushing quite charmingly, ‘that I had never seen such a glorious sight in all my life. I also suspected you must be hideously conceited, self-centred, arrogant—’
He groaned, putting one hand to his temple. ‘And?’
‘And I was wrong. Gradually, I realised that all your life you’d had to be strong, Dan, because not only had you received no love in your childhood, but you’d grown to mistrust the people who pursued you for your money and your rank. Beneath all that,though, I could see that you were truly a good person. My aunt realised it as well.’
