The kiss had been… Emery still struggled to find the words to describe it. She’d never been kissed before, of course, so she had little to compare it to, but it was hard to imagine a better kiss. Not least of all because of the feelings that seemed to bubble up inside of her whenever she was near Lucien. It was exactly how she had always imagined romance might feel, and she couldn’t believe it was happening to her--with the man she’d been forced into marrying! It was too good to be true.
“Henry is being a good chaperone,” she remarked lightly, as she also tried to hide the smile on her face. He’s smiling because he is with me. I just have to be calm.But it was hard to stay calm when her heart was hammering so rapidly inside her chest. “He has stepped up in every way these past few weeks, hasn’t he? You must be very proud.”
“Mmm,” her husband said in agreement. “In fact, I am particularly thankful to him this afternoon.”
“Oh?” Emery glanced at him curiously. “And why is that?”
“Because he offered to be the main chaperone for Leah tonight even though we would be here.”
This surprised Emery. She knew Henry had been taking a more active role in the family ever since leaving Emery at the altar, but this seemed above and beyond. “Why would he do that?” she asked.
And there it was: the smile on Lucien’s lips. He couldn’t keep it from his lips even though he was trying. “Well…” he leanedhis head closer to hers, his lips dangerously close to her ears--scandalously close, if they were not already married. “I may have mentioned that I was looking forward to spending more time with my wife in public. And when he asked how I would be able to focus on you while chaperoning Leah, and I responded that I would make do, he offered to step in as Leah’s chaperone.”
“Did he now?” Emery was smiling again as well. She felt so pleased, so touched by her husband’s words, that pink flooded her cheeks. It meant the world to her that not only would Lucien try to carve out time with her, but that he would confess as much to his brother. He wasn’t the kind of man who shared his feelings with others, so it told her his feelings about her were serious if he would reveal them to Henry. “And what did Henry say about you and I spending more time together in public?”
“He said that he’d seen it coming.” Lucien laughed and shook his head. “Personally, I don’t believe him. He just likes to be right about things.”
“Perhaps he did see it coming,” Emery teased, a little breathless at the thought of others being able to sense the chemistry between her and Lucien. “Maybe that’s why he left me at the altar.”
Lucien snorted. “Let’s not give him that much credit.”
“Perhaps we should even thank him.”
“Careful now,” Lucien said, but he was laughing. “I haven’t forgiven him that much yet.”
“Well, I have,” Emery said, smiling up at him. “If his leaving me at the altar is at all responsible for whatever this is…” she gestured with her free hand at the two of them. “Then I have no choice but to be thankful to him.”
“I have much to learn from you,” Lucien said, and his hand touched hers. “I have a feeling that you will make me a better person.”
It was such a kind thing to say that Emery found herself momentarily speechless. She knew that the romance between them was still tentative, but every time he paid her these kinds of compliments, she felt more and more certain that what was blossoming between them would bloom into something permanent.
Although whenever she remembered the way he used to rail against romantic love, she couldn’t be sure. She hadn’t yet had the courage to ask him whether or not he had changed his mind about love, and she didn’t know how to bring up such a sensitive subject.
“Right now, however,” Lucien added in a low voice that made the hairs on the back of Emery’s neck stand up, “I do not feel like a particularly good person.”
“What do you mean?” she whispered, instinctively knowing that the words they were about to exchange should be done so in whispers.
“I would rather like to go for a walk with you in the hedges…”
“But the hedges are where the most scandalous of acts take place,” Emery whispered, her eyes widening. “Surely we shouldn’t--”
“We are married,” Lucien said, the wickedness in his grin growing. “It will not be scandalous for a married couple to go for a stroll through the hedges.”
“I don’t know if that’s strictly true,” Emery said, but she knew already that she wouldn’t be able to resist him. “After all, we are on our honeymoon still.”
“Then let’s go. We can slip away for a few moments. Leah is safe with Henry.”
The two of them glanced over at her. She was still engaged in conversation with the other young ladies. To Emery’s delight, Georgina had also arrived, and she had joined the group. As Emery watched, she and Henry exchanged shy smiles, and Emery felt her heart swell.
Perhaps my best friend will also soon be my sister!
The thought made her brim with happiness. To think that everything was working out so well!
“Alright,” she murmured, turning back to Lucien. “Let us go.”
He smiled, then began to lead her away from the group. As they left, no one seemed to notice or care, which gave Emery a large measure of reassurance.
“You know, we never really got a honeymoon,” Lucien said thoughtfully, as they headed down one of the beautiful, winding paths that led to the hedge maze. “Perhaps, after this Season is over, and Leah is either married or back in the country, we should think about having a real honeymoon.”
