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Prologue
Louisa waited for a moment before placing her own hand on Lucas’ arm, causing him to look down at her. “Please don’t give up so easily, Lord Huntington,” she said softly. “The clock has not yet struck midnight.”
Lucas finally rewarded her with a wry smile as he shook his head. “As your husband just said, this isn’t a battle nor is it a fairy-tale.” Taking her into his arms, he stepped out onto the floor not wishing to ruin the evening for this very special woman. “Edward is an incredibly lucky man to have found his own princess who is not only beautiful and wise, but may have the one thing that I need.”
“What would that be?” Louisa asked.
“You know Lucy better than anyone. I’ve watched you two communicate without even speaking, I’ve seen the awareness of each other you have before the other even steps into the room. As much as I concede that Edward is right, I am as well. I’d rather walk away if that means Lucy is happy even—”
“For such a huge man, you are acting like some inexperienced little boy,” Louisa said, ignoring Lucas’ look of disbelief at her audacity in cutting him off. The music ended but they still stood face to face as she shook her head and sighed. “Lucas, Lucy was happy when you gave her a kitten. She was happy when she enjoyed a walk in the park with Charles. She is happy when we play with our dolls or when she gets lost in a good book. My sister is very happy when Mrs. Bremmer allows her to drink anything but milk with her meals. What I’m trying to explain is that happiness is something that can be found in so many things both big and small, Lucas.” She paused to look across the dance floor and Lucas followed her gaze to where Edward was listening to something Eleanor was saying, but as he caught his wife’s eyes, his entire face lit up as did the small woman’s standing beside him as she returned her gaze to him.
“I’m not saying it’s not wonderful to be happy, it is. But to settle for happiness would be to deprive yourself of so much more. The feeling you have when you wake up beside the one person on earth who has not only claimed your heart but your very soul? That, Lucas, is pure joy. Did it never occur to you even once that perhaps no matter how happy Lucy is, she is waiting for therightprince to find her?”
This feeling was a new experience for Lucas. Though he had never lacked for female attention, he had also never been scolded in such a polite manner. Looking from one sister to the other, he felt a surge of hope and realized that he’d been about to surrender far too soon. “Thank you, Louisa,” he said. “You’re absolutely right. Let me take you back to Edward—”
“I can find my own way to Papa,” Louisa said, pressing her hand against his chest to give him a shove. “You, sir, have a princess to claim.”
* * *
He’d only partneredwith Lucy for a few dances out of the dozens she had enjoyed. On the first dance, she had still been a bit unsure of herself and he had made every effort to offer her support and encouragement. Another had seen her smiling and happy, her nervousness forgotten as she enjoyed the ball. Every dance had been memorable, but this one was the most important dance of his life.
“I told you that you would be the belle of the ball, Lucy,” Lucas said, before pulling her into his arms for this dance. She blushed which he found charming and Charles’ eyes shot him daggers which he completely ignored. Lucas continued speaking as he led her through the intricate steps of the dance. “It’s hard to remember my frightened little kitten. I suppose I no longer need to worry because all I see now is the lioness I knew you had within you.”
Lucy looked up at him, her violet-blue eyes locking onto his. She stumbled a bit but his hand at her waist steadied her easily. “You’ve captured every man’s heart tonight—including mine.”
Her gorgeous eyes widened and her lips parted but nothing came out as she stumbled again. Lucas accepted the blame as it was his duty to lead her, to make the dance flow as effortlessly as water and yet he’d failed. Louisa’s words had given him hope, but Lucy’s continued silence was threatening to shatter him and told him the truth. As the beautiful melody ended, he saw Charles striding toward them. Never in his life had he felt such a crushing weight as he lifted her hand to his lips and kissed her palm. “I hope you find every happiness, Lucille.” About to release her, he shook his head. “No… that’s not true. I wish you the joy you’ve given me from the first moment I saw you teetering on that ladder.”
About to release her hand, her question stopped him.
* * *
“Do you think Cleo is proud?”she asked, attempting to bring the smile back to his face that she’d seen less and less often as the night wore on. She watched as the heat she’d seen in his eyes when he’d spoken of his heart was replaced by sadness and wished she hadn’t spoken. Even though his hand tightened around hers, she felt him moving away. He hadn’t answered her question and his eyes had moved to look over her head.
“Lucas,” she said, her heart pounding in her chest. He looked so distant and it frightened her. He closed his eyes briefly at the sound of his name coming from her lips and when they opened, the smile he gave her looked forced. His free hand lifted and he stroked a finger down her cheek, the touch soft and yet felt as if he were the very essence of the fire she felt beginning to burn beneath her flesh.
“Yes, little one, Cleo is very proud of you tonight. You have nothing to fret over and nothing to fear. I’m just sorry that… I only wish I…” he paused as she felt another touch, this one from Charles who had laid his hand on her shoulder.
“What?” Lucy asked, sensations swirling through her as Lucas stepped away and offered her a small bow and another smile.
“This is your night, princess and it has been an honor,” Lucas said, and with a final look at the joined hands, finally released her.
Before she could speak, Lucy was turned and pulled into Charles’ arms as he bent to kiss her lips for the first time. His lips pressed hard against her own and when he released her, she gasped for air, her mind spinning. She wasn’t aware of the room crowded with people watching the drama of the evening draw to a close. She wasn’t aware that Edward and Louisa stood only a few feet away. She wasn’t aware that Pastor Reed stood watching, his disapproval coloring his face. She didn’t see the soft smile of Lady Eddinberg as she stood next to her husband, his arm holding her to his side. She didn’t notice Eleanor Summers standing across the room, as she chaperoned her young students. All she felt was the burn on her cheek where a fingertip had been and the ghostly presence of her former professor’s lips against her mouth as her hand lifted and a finger touched her lips. She saw Lucas standing alone even as Charles beamed and reached for her again.
Suddenly as if a veil had been lifted from her eyes, Lucy’s mind cleared and her smile was breathtaking to observe as it lit her entire face. Every person in the room watched and smiled remembering the first time they had known they were in love. Not a person moved as Lucy stepped forward, her arms lifting to wrap themselves around the man who had captured her heart. As she drew his head down and kissed him, she understood what her sister had meant. She knew she had found her true self as well as her soul mate. The depth of her emotions was revealed as the lips beneath hers branded her with his claim. Every fiber of her body now burned with the desire for this man, this one man to teach her the passions that had been ignited deep within her soul.
Edward began to clap his hands in approval as every guest witnessed a real fairy-tale coming to life. The room was soon filled with the sound of dozens of people clapping as they smiled and chuckled. Safely tucked into the loving arms of her husband, Louisa smiled as she heard the clock chime the magical hour of midnight. Her twin was not only the belle of the ball, she had outdone Cinderella—she had two men desperately in love with her. She looked into her husband’s face and saw his smile reflected hers. They both watched as Lucille Rose Furniss stepped forward to claim her Prince Charming.
Chapter 1
Lucy's world consisted of only this one thing. His lips claimed hers as they seared into her soul, marking her as his for the rest of their lives. His hands cupped her face gently, his forehead touching hers, his voice for her ears only when he released her mouth.
“You are mine, kitten, now and forever.”
“Yes, I am yours,” Lucy managed to whisper, her heart pounding with the knowledge that her choice had been true. Softly, his lips descended onto hers again. It was far more than a kiss; it was a promise to share a lifetime together as he pulled her into his arms, encircling her as he released her mouth and lifted his face. Her heart filled beyond what she’d ever dreamed possible, she raised a hand to touch a fingertip to the wetness on his cheek, his movements mirroring her own as they traced the evidence of the tears shed between them. Tears she knew to be of the joy he’d wished her only moments before.
When he titled his head, his lip lifting in a grin that had her heart skip a beat even as it pounded so hard she wondered if he could hear it, she realized the sound wasn’t coming from within her, but was surrounding her. Lucas gave a silent nod and she turned her head to see Edward standing with her sister who was beaming with happiness that reflected Lucy’s own as she clapped, joining dozens of others in a show of celebration for the couple who’d become the center of attention in the middle of the ball room floor.
“Oh…” Lucy said, feeling her cheeks heat. Darting a glance toward the open French doors behind them, she was startled to hear Lucas’ chuckle.
