“You came for me,” Josie said. “I can’t believe you came for me.” She glided down the stairs, and Stephen saw the tears shimmer in her eyes.
“I couldn’t stay away.” He began to move closer, but a footman stepped between him.
“Lord Westman, I demand that you leave this house at once,” Josie’s mother ordered. “At once.”
But Josie kept moving forward, and Westman couldn’t take his eyes off her. “God,” he breathed. “You are so beautiful.”
She shook her head. “Pretty words, and I don’t deserve them. I am so sorry. I should never have run away. I was a coward. I was afraid.”
“You? Afraid?”
“Yes, I—”
Her mother caught her by the arm as she reached the bottom of the stairs. “Get back upstairs this instant, young lady. You are not to speak to this man ever again. You are not—”
“Oh, for God’s sake, Mavis,” Mr. Hale said, pulling his wife aside. “You never know when to quit.”
Stephen didn’t think Mavis Hale was used to her husband—to anyone—contradicting her, and her mouth dropped open in shock. “But, Mr. Hale. Lord Crutchkins.”
“Can go to an early grave, for all I care.” Josie’s father began to pull her away, motioning the footman between Stephen and Josie away as well. “We will not win this one, Mrs. Hale. Your daughter has always made up her own mind. It looks like she’s set it on Lord Westman.”
Mrs. Hale looked from her daughter to her husband. “But he’s the enemy. Your father and his grandfather”—she shook her head—“Lord Westman is not welcome here. He is—”
“Our new son-in-law.”
Josie’s father had his wife almost all the way through the door of the dining room before he turned back to Stephen. “You are our new son-in-law, aren’t you, sir?”
Stephen pulled out the special license. “Give me an hour, sir.”
The dining room door closed, and Josie and Stephen were left alone. She was staring at the paper. “You procured a special license.”
He put it back in his pocket. “I couldn’t bear to wait. I had to have you. I wanted you to be mine. In every way.”
She stared at him. “If you’re saying this out of obligation again, then you can walk back out the door. I’m not the girl you ruined all those years ago. You don’t have to save me.”
“I know that now. Hell, Josie, you might have to save me. I’m about to make a fool of myself. I’ve never said this before.”
He reached forward, took her hand, and knelt before her. “I love you. I have loved you for weeks, but I’ve been too much of a coward to tell you.” He shook his head when she tried to interrupt. “No, you see, I am the coward. Not you. I know you don’t love me. I know I’m not the man you want or imagined yourself with, but, Josie, I’m the man you should be with.”
“Oh, Stephen.” The tears were falling in large drops down her cheeks and onto her light, muslin dress as she knelt beside him, clutching his hand.
“I can make you love me, Josie, and I’ll try to be the man you want. I won’t be arrogant or overprotective.”
She reached forward and put a hand on his lips. “Shh. You sound like me.”
He frowned, confusion sweeping through him.
“While you were unconscious on the beach, I made all these promises to you. That I would never say a cross word to you, that I would never talk about treasure or adventure or climb out another window.”
He laughed.
She nodded and smiled. “I know. All these promises that we’ll change, when really I don’t want you to change at all.” She leaned close to whisper. “I like that you protect me. I like that you worry about me. Stephen, I love you exactly as you are.”
His heart stopped. It sputtered and died, and he didn’t even mind. He’d never imagined a few words from a woman could make him so happy, but Josie’s words had sunk into his heart and warmed his soul. This was all he needed. He could die a happy man now.
He swept her into his arms and stared into her dark green eyes. “I love you too, Josie.” He pulled her flush against him. “God, I love you.”
Her arms went about him, hard and unyielding. “I knew you did. Somehow I knew, but I was so scared that I was wrong about what I’d felt”—she pulled back—“when we were together. At other times you said—but then I said—”
