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No one said anything for a while. No one believed it was necessary. Lady Susan had realized what she had done.
“I…” she started, but her voice was on the verge of breaking. “I truly believed that it was you who started the fire.”
“But you know I would have never done that on purpose,” Arthur told her, sounding incredulous that anyone could ever think something heinous of him.
“I…” Lady Susan was overwhelmed by the power of the truth. There was nothing else for Arthur and Amelie to do or say. Their job was done, at least as far as Lady Susan was concerned.
“Just… try to think before you act next time you plan to accuse someone of something you haven’t actually seen them do,” Amelia advised Lady Susan as she and Arthur turned around and headed towards the door.
“Arthur?” Lady Susan called out desperately. They stopped. Amelia didn’t turn around. She expected that Arthur would, but neither did he. Silence filled the void around them, heavy silence unlike any other Amelia had ever felt. It was the void of distrust and of lies. “I trulyamsorry for all the hurt I’ve caused you.”
Amelia could hear that her voice was on the verge of breaking. Probably, if she turned around, she would see Lady Susan with tears streaming down her fact, crying in that dignified, silent manner without any sobbing, just tears. But Amelia didn’t turn around. Neither did Arthur.
He merely nodded indifferently because he truly did not care anymore. The only woman whose opinion mattered was standing right by his side. The knowledge made Amelia proud. It made her feel precious and cherished. Most importantly, it made her feel beloved.
Together, they walked out of that house, and Amelia knew that she would never step foot in it again. She didn’t need to. Whatever Lady Susan had left to say, she doubted that anyone would take her word for it. Not with her fiancé in prison for a very long time.
Finally, she felt that all the pieces of the puzzle were fitting well together. Arthur took her hand into his and pressed it to his heart as they rode back home in the carriage.
“Can you feel it?” he asked, referring to his heart.
She nodded. It was a quick, heavy heartbeat. This whole thing must have affected him greatly, but he refused to let it show.
“Telling you that I love you feels somehow… incomplete,” he admitted. “Although that is truly how I feel about you, but I need to tell you more than that, and the only fitting thing is this. My heart belongs to you. It has slowly become yours over the course of time, and now, I cannot even remember a time when it wasn’t yours.”
“Oh, darling,” she gushed, feeling overwhelmed by this onslaught of words and emotions.
“My heart could not have chosen a more befitting woman to belong to,” he continued. “I love the way you always speak your mind. I love the way you fight for what you think is right. I love the way you show kindness even to those who might not deserve much of it. I consider myself truly fortunate that I will get to sleep by your side every night and that your face will be the first thing I see every morning.”
She pulled her hand from his, only to cup his face and bring it closer to hers. “My heart belongs to you as well.”
Their lips locked in a kiss, and she knew that there would never be anyone else for her ever again. No kiss had ever been sweeter than this one, the kiss of promise and of forever after.
CHAPTER29
Amelia looked breath-taking. Arthur had never seen her look more beautiful than she did this very evening at the ball in the home of Lord and Lady Kensington. She separated from him, joined by her sister, and the two strolled through the crowd like two suns amidst a dark, cloudy night.
He could not take his eyes off of Amelia. Holding onto his glass, he still felt like an outcast in the middle of these people. He could still feel their inquisitive gazes on the back of his neck, drilling into him. Although, it was somehow different.
When Amelia and he arrived, they were greeted with warmth and kindness, and he knew that he had her to thank for this sudden change in everyone’s behavior. He never thought that he would live to see the day whenthe tonwould start warming up to him. He never thought he would care. Even now, he could not say that he cared that much, but not being shunned like a pariah did have its benefits.
He glanced over at Amelia from across the room. She and Jane were discussing some things with a small group of other ladies, and all of them seemed immersed in the conversation. He waved back quickly then looked about the room. He could recognize a few faces. Some of them nodded when their eyes met. Others looked away.
At that moment, Arthur felt someone pat him on the back. He turned around and saw Timothy Lillard, the Earl of Oxridge. They used to be good friends during their school days then Timothy turned ill and had to spend most summers and winters in Spain or Italy or another country with a warmer climate. As a result, their friendship suffered, and when Timothy returned, Arthur’s parents had already died. Timothy extended his condolences, but Arthur always felt that Timothy was keeping his distance as a result of all the rumors that started to circlethe ton.
Arthur never blamed him for it. By that point, he had started to get used to people disappearing from his life and turning their backs to him. Timothy had never done anything hurtful directly, he simply slowly removed himself from Arthur’s life. Now, he was back, standing right in front of Arthur, smiling in greeting.
“Arthur, old boy,” Timothy said cheerfully as if nothing had ever happened, and their friendship managed to bear all the storms. “I haven’t seen you in such a long time.”
Arthur didn’t know what to say at first. But the moment Timothy offered his hand, Arthur immediately shook it. The touch of his friend’s hand felt familiar. It brought him back to a much simpler time when the future seemed so bright. Then, he was enveloped in darkness, and only Amelia managed to bring him back out into the light.
“Yes, a long time indeed,” Arthur nodded, thinking that Timothy was probably simply being polite, and that he would move onto the next person he knew. But to his surprise, Timothy remained standing by his side, obviously planning on doing some more talking.
“I’ve heard you got married,” Timothy continued curiously.
“Yes,” Arthur nodded again, slightly flabbergasted that someone was taking such an obvious interest in his life. This had not happened in such a long time. He couldn’t say that he missed it. He stopped attending balls after those horrible rumors and became somewhat of a hermit. Even attending that first ball with Amelia was an odd event because people still thought him a monster. Now, they all knew the truth.
It was so strange to be liberated by the truth yet so welcome. He didn’t feel like he needed to hide any longer. Even before, he felt like this was imposed upon him, all this hatred, all this fear, and he had to live in the shadow of it. Now, he was free. Completely and utterly free.
