He pushed himself to a sitting position and smiled. “I’m afraid if I fall asleep in your bed, I’ll never want to leave it.”
She pouted a bit. “I don’t think I care if we’re caught. We’re to be married. Does it really matter?”
“Of course, it matters.” He gave her a chiding glance before standing up and beginning to dress. “I want to do this right. I want you to have an engagement party, a big wedding, everything that you deserve. The last thing I want is any rumors or ugliness to ruin it.”
She bit her lip, happiness swelling within her. He really had changed, and though she wished for nothing more than for him to stay, she knew he was right. She loved that he was protecting her reputation, and she decided to let him do everything he’d said for her. She sensed he needed to.
Then a horrible thought occurred to her. “Does this mean that we have to wait until we are wed to be together like this again?” She now understood completely why Michael and Emma had risked their passionate embrace.
He gave her a sinful smile and came back and dropped a searing kiss on her lips. “We’ll find a way,” he assured her. “And in a few months, we’ll be together every night.”
He finished dressing, and then he went back out the window the way he’d come. With a happy sigh, she sank back against her pillow. Earlier this evening, she’d thought that all was lost, that she’d be a spinster forever, untouched and unloved.
But Julian had touched and loved her well, and now the future looked brighter than she’d ever imagined it could be.
Epilogue
Three weeks later...
Julian had always told himself that he didn’t need a family, but as he gazed around his drawing room on the night of his engagement party, he realized that over the years, he’d slowly built one of his own. Dylan and Natalia sat on the sofa, their dark heads bent together, her hand resting lightly on the imperceptible rise of her belly where their first child nestled. Michael and Emma were laughing near the fireplace, obviously deeply in love with each other. Michael had been cleared of all charges relating to his father’s death, and Julian had never seen his friend so happy.
Best of all, the woman he’d loved most of his life stood beside him, even after everything he’d done. They’d officially announced their engagement to their friends half an hour ago, and they would be wed at Christmastime, at Basingstoke Castle.
This was not the family God had given him, but they were his just the same, and he was grateful for every one of them. His only regret was that Ethan remained half a world away, still convinced that Julian didn’t want him in his life.
Something of his sudden melancholy must have shown in his face, because Jane stepped closer, a concerned look in her eyes. “Is something wrong?”
He sighed. “I was just thinking about Ethan. Ever since Harding approached me about bringing him home, I’ve been trying to think of what I could possibly say that would convince him to do so. I regret what I did to him nearly as much as I regret my actions regarding you.”
She grabbed his hand and squeezed it tightly. “You’ll never truly be at peace until you reach out to him. I think you should write to him. Tell him you’re sorry and ask him if he’ll come home for our wedding.”
He stared at her, then smiled. “Do you truly think it could be that easy?”
She shrugged. “I can’t say what his reaction will be. But all you can do is try. You can apologize and ask him to be a part of your life once again. Even if he refuses, you’ll have done what you could to make things right.”
Impulsively, he reached out and hugged her tightly, uncaring that everyone in the room could see them. It wasn’t as if any of them would be scandalized, and he just really needed to hold this incredible woman for a moment. She’d made his life better than he’d ever thought it could be, and he couldn’t wait to make her his bride.
