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Her eyes widened in shock and disbelief. Again, she thought she misheard him. "Youwantto go?" she had to repeat his own question back to him, because it sounded so utterly incredulous.
"I wantusto go," he corrected her. "Together."
Her eyes refused to leave his. She tried to read him, but she was unable to figure out why he was saying this. "But... those people told those terrible lies about you, about your parents."
"I have given them too much control over my life," he finally said what laid on his heart. "Their words do not define me. I am who I am, not who they claim I am. And with you here, I've realized something. I want to move on with my life, little by little. I still have to find out what happened to my parents, just like you need to find out the mystery behind your mother's death, but that doesn't mean that we must keep living in the past, bound by the chains of other people's opinions about us."
Finally, she understood him. Her heart glowed with the strength of his words. She could not imagine how difficult it must have been for him to say this. This was why she appreciated it all the more.
"Are you certain?" she asked tenderly. "Everyone will be there."
By everyone she meant all those people who told numerous lies. They would be smiling to their faces, but as always, they would continue to gossip behind their backs and weave more lies, because they had nothing better to do with their lives.
He walked over to her and took her by the hand. "Youwill be there. That is all I care about."
Immediately upon hearing those words, she felt her cheeks blossom into a poppy red hue, but this did not make her self-conscious at all. She wanted him to know the effect his words were starting to have on her. In fact, everything about him had an effect on her, and she would not be able to hide this fact even if she tried to.
"So, we are going then?" she chuckled a little nervously.
"You can count on it," he smiled. "Only... I'm afraid there is one problem."
Leah immediately clouded up. "What problem?"
"We have to find you the most beautiful gown in all of London."
The moment he said that, she burst into a boisterous chuckle, expecting an actual problem, and now being faced with something so silly. A gown would be the least of their troubles.
"Don't worry," she beamed. "I know just the place."
CHAPTER15
"Youdoknow that everyone is staring at us?" Edward heard Leah say, as they stood facing each other, in the middle of the ballroom, waiting for the music to commence. Her hand rested softly in his, while his other hand fluttered against the small of her lower back.
"Let them," he shrugged, with a mischievous gleam in his eyes.
Of course, everyone was looking at them. To be more precise, everyone was looking ather.Leah was wearing a most wonderful gown, adorned with dainty little roses around the hem and the sleeves, which were of a slightly darker shade of pink than the rest of her gown. Her hair was done simply, in a graceful chignon, and around her neck, there was a single row of pearls, tightly clinging to her. She looked like a heavenly being that had descended down to grace these mere mortals with her presence for only one night, after which she would need to return.
He could not take his eyes off of her. He refused to. And she was here with him. No one else. That thought made him proud. It made him confident. It gave him the necessary strength not only to endure those gazes which he pretended not to notice, but to ignore them completely. He was here with his wife, having the time of his life. That was what he promised her, and he intended to keep that promise.
"You look stunning," he could not keep these words to himself. They immediately made her blush, giving her the appearance of a morning rose.
"Thank you," she beamed.
Upon those words, the music started, and she relinquished all control of her body to him, allowing him to lead. Having her so close, and giving herself to him, aroused him more than he ever thought a single dance was possible to do. No woman ever had such an effect on him, and the more time he spent with her, the more attracted and attached he was becoming. It was simply something he could not control any longer.
"You dance wonderfully," she returned the compliment, as he swayed her to the rhythm perfectly.
"My mother taught me," he said, after he waited for her to turn around, then return to him, as the steps required. He hated even a single second that her face was turned away from him.
"She must have been a marvelous teacher," she smiled.
"Or perhaps I am just a good student," he replied with boyish mischief.
Leah could not resist laughing at his words. "Rather confident, are we not, Your Grace?"
He loved it when she used those words in such a way as to tease him. In fact, he loved it when she teased him in any way she could think of, but this one did something to him. It tickled his mind in a manner that was rather inappropriate for a ball. He had to think of nuns and wet kittens in the rain to soothe the aching throb in his trousers. These thoughts helped very little, because her lips were so kissable. It took all of his conscious effort not to take her into his arms and shower her face with kisses.
"I know what my strengths are," he winked at her mischievously, as they continued to swirl to the rhythm.
