Page 69 of Dare it all for Love

“Thank you, my lord,” she said, which Jasper scowled at.

“No, no, call me Jasper. We’re practically family, you know. He’s like a brother to me, so you must be a sister.”

They laughed and waved the carriage off, and finally, blessedly, they were alone.

“Goodness,” Florence said, feeling dazed and suddenly rather shy.

“Come along,” Henry said, and towed her towards the house.

Florence hurried to keep up, inexplicably nervous. She wondered if she ought to have been in such a hurry to get rid of everyone.

“Must we run?” she panted, as they got to the top of the stairs.

“Yes,” Henry replied. “I have a surprise for you, and I’ll burst if you don’t see it now.”

Florence laughed at the obvious excitement in his voice; he seemed like a boy on Christmas morning. They entered his bedroom, and he went at once to a large, red leather box on his bedside table.

“I had it sent down from London. It’s been there since I returned. It was being held by my bank for safekeeping, you see.”

He gave her a rather sheepish smile and passed the box to her.

“For me?” she asked, wondering what on earth he had locked up so carefully.

He nodded. “It was hidden away safely, where no one could see it or touch it, and it couldn’t come to any harm. Rather like my heart. But what is the point, Florence? Why have something so astonishingly beautiful, if you cannot see it and touch it and love it? It’s a risk, having it here, but I’d rather know that seeing it makes you happy, even if we lose it, and I’d rather give my heart to you than anyone else, for I know you’ll take care of it.”

“I will, Henry, I promise,” she said, her own heart beating very hard as she clutched the box to her chest. Suddenly it didn’t matter a whit what was in the box, only that Henry had trusted her with it.

“Open it, then.”

Florence unlatched the clasp of the box and lifted the lid. A gasp escaped her, the shock so profound she almost dropped it.

“Oh, my!”

Inside, nestled on a bed of white silk like blood upon snow, was the biggest gemstone she’d ever seen in her life.

Henry laughed, delighted by her reaction.

“A ruby, almost as big as a hen’s egg,” she said, remembering the description he’d given when they’d gone for the ill-fated picnic where he’d berated her for worrying about him. “The Indian prince gave it to you?”

Henry nodded. “We were friends and, like I said, to him it was a mere trifle.”

“Oh, my word, Henry, and you said you’d not be able to buy me jewels!”

“Well, strictly speaking, I didn’t buy it. It was given to me.”

Florence stared at it, awestruck.

“I’m too terrified to touch it,” she admitted. “I don’t want to damage it.”

“It’s not so fragile as all that, love. But it is yours, all yours.”

She looked up at Henry, knowing he was not merely speaking of the ruby. “You have my heart too, Henry. You know that, don’t you? I knew the moment I saw you that you were the one, though I couldn’t have told you why at the time. I can now. You are everything I want, everything I have ever wanted, because you see me, Henry. You love me, even when I’m being irrational or difficult, or behaving badly. You’re kind and honest, and I know I can always depend on you, and that you will never belittle me or dismiss my opinions.”

He frowned at that and shook his head. “I never will again. I was the biggest fool alive not to listen to you. The stupid thing was… I wanted to.”

“You did?” she smiled at him, wondering what he meant by that.

“I was terrified of you, of how you made me feel. I couldn’t take my eyes off you, wanted to be near you constantly, and… I rather hated you for making me want you so badly. That’s why I was so abominably rude. I’m sorry.”