“You wouldn’t believe me if I said I felt nothing?” he whispered, his tone slightly teasing.
“Not in the slightest,” she mimicked his tone. “Look how close you are to me now, Theo. Remember the night I kissed you… you kissed me back.”
“Then let me show you what it is I feel for you.” He shifted the two of them together. His forehead slipped from hers as his lips suddenly found her own.
The kiss was all encompassing. Margaret lifted her hands up his shoulders, holding onto him as he bent her back a little, his lips parting hers so that their tongues brushed with elicit excitement. Margaret practically moaned into that kiss in surprise.
Unlike the last time, Theo was holding nothing back now. He kissed her, as if she was the very thing that was keeping him alive and breathing. She kissed him back with equal fervor and passion, so that when they did pull away from each other, theywere both breathless, leaning toward one another. His hands rested on her hips as her palms found the center of his chest.
“Before I ask you my next question,” Theodore began, a soft smile playing at his lips, “remember some things about me. I carry these scars.”
“I’ll remember.”
“I come with my mother too, unfortunately. What passes now for her will be no easy thing to endure.”
“I know.” She nodded, assuring him she understood it all.
“I can also be bloody minded, perhaps a little moody at times.”
“I think I might have seen a little bit of that,” she teased him, prompting them both to laugh softly. He slipped his hands across her back, pulling her into him again.
“But you’re right,” he murmured. “I do have a heart, and it latched itself onto you some time ago, which is why I have been pushing you aware. Perhaps I have been scared to feel anything again, because I’m scared of what pain comes from loving… and not being loved in return.”
“You never need to feel that pain again,” she whispered, drawing her hands further down her chest. It was her declaration, her own way of saying that she loved him too. It made them both smile, giddily.
“Then here is my question, Maggie. Would you… stay married to me? Please?” he whispered, only hesitating a breath as he looked her in the eye.
“Yes. I will.” She closed her arms around his neck and pulled him back down toward her for a kiss. He didn’t hesitate as he closed their lips together. In fact, he kissed her with so much fervor this time that they both nearly lost their footing, stumbling together and holding on tight, just to keep the kiss for as long as possible.
When they did pull away, Margaret felt how ridiculously she was smiling. Despite all the pain she had known that day, all the fear, she was glad to be in this moment, here with him now, for she knew him better than she thought she would ever be allowed to know him.
“Tonight,” he whispered, “stay here with me. Please? Just sleep beside me. I’ve missed you.”
Margaret held his hand tight.
“I’m not going anywhere,” she promised.
EPILOGUE
Three Months Later
“I’m not ready.”
“Of course you are.”
“I can’t do this.”
“Yes, you can.”
“Margaret!” Louisa rounded on her, though it was such a small fury that Margaret had to bite her lip in order not to laugh at her younger sister’s outrage.
Louisa looked quite stunning, her hair piled high at the back of her head and a glittering necklace at her throat that she had borrowed for her debut. The white gown she wore flattered her slim figure, even though she pulled at it repeatedly.
“I-I’ve changed my mind,” she stuttered. “I can’t have this debut after all.”
“It’s a little late for that,” Theodore said from nearby.
Margaret turned to look at him. Her husband had a rather amused smile on his face as he leaned on the wall beside the closed doors leading to their great ballroom. His hands were in his pockets, and though he was neat and well dressed, there was a little ruffle in his cravat that reminded Margaret of how they had kissed minutes before, and she had pulled at that cravat.
