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Beautiful laughter spilled from her lips, her hands holding his even tighter. “I kept having these odd reactions whenever I was near you. My heart would feel strange, I would feel all feverish, my breathing became uneven, and my head would get all foggy. I truly thought there was something horribly wrong with me; I even searched my pharmacopoeia and my stores for heart remedies!”

She was truly laughing now, her head thrown back, glittering tears watering her eyes.

“Oh, my love…” Anthony could not help chuckling along with her, trying to imagine how alarming that feeling must have been to someone who had no notion of what it was.

“It was not until I told my uncle that it was made clear to me,” she said. “I was not dying of a weak heart; I had fallen in love.”

His chuckle became a laugh, his shoulders shaking as he envisioned such a conversation. Perhaps, on the wedding night, he should have sat her down and gone through all of the things that one might feel when they are married. But, of course, all he had known of marriage back then was misery and doubt.

“You poor thing,” he said, bringing her hand to his lips, kissing it gently.

“Do not pity me,” she said with a grin. “Like my uncle said, I should have taken the time to read more poetry. I left a gaping hole in my education; I have only myself to blame.”

He smiled back at her. “Then, perhaps, there are some things that I can teach you, to ensure you have a more balanced education.”

“You know I am always eager to learn,” she replied, blushing.

Leaning in, he heard her breath fall silent, felt the nervous anticipation make her go still. Her eyelashes fluttered as he brushed aside the wavy drape of hair that always covered the left side of her face and tucked it behind her ear.

Tilting his head, he pressed a tender kiss to the scars that marked her cheek and slowly kissed his way down the burned skin to her jaw. He did not stop there, following her old injuries down the slender curve of her neck and, lightly pulling aside the collar of her dress, he kissed along her shoulder.

Her breathing quickened, her body trembling, and when he glanced up at her, he saw a shining tear escape her eye. With a gentle brush of his thumb, he wiped it away and pressed a soft kiss to the spot where it had been.

“I love you,” she murmured.

“I love you too,” he whispered, as his hand traced the texture of her scars and caressed upward until he cradled her cheek. “How I love you, my darling.”

He caught her mouth with his in a soft, slow kiss, his other arm sliding around her waist, pulling her closer to him.

At first, she did not respond, but as he kissed her again, a guiding ebb and flow, her trembling lips kissed him in return. Tentative, uncertain, but, as she had declared, eager to learn.

He smiled against her mouth, encouraging, as her hands smoothed up the muscle of his chest and over his shoulders, her arms looping around his neck. She held onto him as if she never planned to let him go, her confidence rising as she kissed him, over and over, until both were breathless.

Panting to catch her breath, Marina pulled back, her eyes shining. A bright, radiant smile curved her lips, igniting that glow from within that made her the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. Completely unparalleled, and completely and utterly his.

“What made you come here?” she asked, her arms still around his neck.

He smiled. “William.”

“Is he here?”

Anthony nodded. “He is being spoiled with cakes in the kitchen.”

“Then, I should thank him,” she said, suddenly trying to stand.

Anthony pulled her back down, into his arms, not yet ready to let go. “In a minute,” he murmured. “I have a lot of missed time to make up for.”

She chuckled as he leaned in and kissed her again, feeling like the luckiest man in the world as she melted into him, meeting his kisses in kind, needing no further tuition… not in this, at least.

“I love you,” he whispered, as he kissed away from her lips and traced his kisses down her neck once more.

She took hold of his face, urging him to look at her.

“I love you too,” she whispered back, smiling.

With that, they kissed slowly, holding onto one another, bound together by a love that neither had expected but both, it seemed, had needed. A love built on trust. A love that, Anthony was certain, would only continue to grow.

And though he was not in the habit of encouraging any of his grandmother’s sneaky schemes, he was grateful beyond belief that she had sent out an audition invitation to one Miss Marina Longman.