The School of Charm: Books 1-5

by Maggie Dallen

  “Do not ask me to explain how or why. Up until yesterday afternoon when I came upon a beautiful young lady in a storm, I would have told you that such magic did not exist.”

  She was not breathing. She could not remember how. It was a miracle she was still standing as she wet her lips and leaned in close. “And now?”

  “Now I know it exists because nothing has ever felt more real.” One corner of his mouth hitched up. “Believe me, I know how crazy this sounds.”

  Crazy, yes. But also...undeniable.

  “Do you believe me?” His question was so urgent, his concern so very real. “I know that you have more to risk here. But I am asking you to trust me. That if you let me in, if you allow me to know you, I would move heaven and earth to keep you safe, to make sure that you are never hurt.”

  Her inhale was audible in this quiet alcove, the sounds of music and merriment of the others like music from a distant world. “I believe you,” she whispered.

  “Then what do you say? Will you give me a chance? Allow me to court you?”

  Yes! The word echoed inside her, but she kept her mouth shut. A lifetime of lowered expectations and dashed hopes could not be erased with one magical day. “I am afraid to believe that this is real,” she said slowly. Because he deserved her honesty. So did she.

  He nodded. “I can understand that.”

  They stood there in silence for countless moments, their gazes locked, their hands entwined over his heart.

  He was waiting for her. She knew that. He was patiently waiting for her to face her fears.

  The hope.

  Hope for love and a family. Hope which had become a terrifying specter, lurking at every turn.

  “I am afraid to hope,” she whispered.

  The pain and empathy in his eyes was nearly her undoing. “Trust me when I say I understand that most of all.”

  “You do?”

  He tugged her closer still, his voice so low and so soft. “I was married before, you know that, yes?”

  “Yes.”

  “It was...not a good marriage.” He breathed out slowly. “It was not a happy one. And after my wife died—God rest her soul—I promised myself that I would never try again. It seemed easier to focus on all that I had been given than hope for things I thought I would never see.”

  “Like what?” she asked.

  “Love,” he said simply. “A family of my own. Around that time Damian’s parents died and I took him in and...we were happy. I was happy having a child to take care of. Someone who needed me. Someone who loved me as I loved him.”

  She nodded slowly. “You two are very close.”

  “Yes,” he said simply. “But now he is grown and will be starting a new family of his own and I...” He cleared his throat. “Well, I know I am not a young man anymore, but it occurred to me after meeting you that I am not dead yet, either.”

  A laugh was startled out of her, easing the seriousness of the moment.

  He leaned forward. “And might I add...neither are you.”

  She smiled up at him. No, she was not dead. Nor was she so very ancient that all her best days were behind her. And now, staring up at this man with the kindest eyes she’d ever known...

  Now she thought perhaps...she feared maybe...she hoped that...

  It was possible the best of days were yet to come.

  With a deep breath, she pressed her hand against his heart and met his eyes. “Very well, Edward,” she said slowly, pushing past the fear that threatened to choke her. “I accept your challenge.”

  He grinned and she did too.

  What did it mean to let him close? To let him in?

  She wasn’t quite certain.

  But she suspected she was about to find out.

  Chapter Seven

  Sleigh rides. Edward rocked back on his heels as he took in the day’s source of entertainment, organized by his fun-loving nephew and niece-in-law.

  “Be careful, Uncle,” Damian said as he joined him on the snowy veranda overlooking the sleighs. “If your smile grows much broader we might start to doubt your mental faculties.”

  “Oh, that time has already passed,” Prudence said with a teasing wink as she joined them. “But I suppose you’ll be heartened to hear that at least you are not alone in losing your senses.”

  He grinned over at Prudence. “I always knew I liked you best.”

  She laughed as Damian pretended to be offended. He itched to ask her for more details, to hear exactly what his lovely Madeline had said or done to make Prudence think that she, too, was losing her wits during this whirlwind courtship.

  And a courtship was what it was, even if they were in the midst of a Christmastide celebration and surrounded by family and friends.

  “Ah, here they are,” Prudence called out as they were joined by the others. Their numbers had grown over the past few days as Damian’s former schoolmates came to visit, along with their wives.

  None of the young couples had children yet, and Edward had never felt more keenly the lack of youthful voices or cheerful enthusiasm.

  Perhaps one year soon there would be a child here to share this Chrismastide joy with them, he told himself as Madeline came outside along with the others, Miss Farthington at her side.

  The two had become friends over the past few days, and Miss Farthington had become his most staunch ally in his quest to court his lady.

  Despite her mother’s clear disappointment, Miss Farthington had continued to do everything in her power to ensure that he and Madeline were together as often as possible.

  For that alone, he would have believed her to be his own personal angel. But added to that fact her unceasing loyalty to Madeline... Well, he only wished he had more eligible nephews so he could officially add her to their family.

  Madeline’s gaze met his as Prudence and Damian led the way to the sleighs. As there were not enough sleighs for everyone, it was decided that the group would take turns. While some were enjoying sleigh rides, the others would make a game out of collecting holly and boughs for decorations.

  Edward cared not what activity he and Madeline were tasked with first, just so long as they did it together.

  For days now, they had been enjoying one another’s company, all under the watchful eye of the group. But even with the others around, they’d managed to have private conversations, get to know one another more deeply.

  He’d learned all about her past, her relations, her friends. He’d come to understand how a lovely, gracious lady as she had been raised to believe that she could expect little from the world except for its charity. A lesson he’d devoted himself to undoing.

  This woman deserved more than the scraps others were willing to hand her. This woman with her kind heart and her sweet smile and her mischievous gaze...she deserved the world.

  “Good afternoon, Edward,” she said quietly as she reached his side.

  “My lady,” he murmured. He’d been teasing her more and more with the proposal they both knew was coming. He could hardly wait for the opportunity to ask for her hand, to make this growing intimacy between them official. To show the world the gem they had overlooked, to his good fortune.

  She blushed as he’d known she would. His heart swelled in response.

  He savored every second of this bliss as her head tipped down but her lips curved up. This anticipation was the headiest feeling he had ever known. There was so much good to come.

  And all in due time, he reminded himself.

  It was decided that the married couples would take the sleighs out first, which worked well for his plan.

  For tomorrow was Christmas Day and while he was enjoying every moment of this courtship, he could not wait another day to make her his.

  If he had his way, she would wake on Christmas morning as his bride-to-be and, if all went according to plan, she would be on his arm as his wife by the time the next season began.

  But first, there were things to discuss. Some topics they had not touched upon. Some thi
ngs that needed to be said. For his sake, he supposed.

  She had not asked him for the details of his previous marriage, but if she wished to hear that story he was prepared to tell her. It wasn’t such a dramatic tale, and one likely commonplace the world over. He would tell her about the ‘good match’ with the young lady his parents had chosen. About how he’d tried to love her. About how she’d loved another.

  Perhaps he’d tell her the recurring hell of her every miscarriage, and how her health grew frailer with each passing month when she could not conceive. She’d made it clear that her only wish was to be a mother—and she merely put up with him because he was the one who would provide a child.

  But that child never came and her health never recovered and...

  Well, it was a bitter day indeed when he’d realized that she’d grown to despise him for it all. She’d blamed him. And while it had never been true love for him...he’d tried. He’d wanted to love her. But she hadn’t wanted his love.

  As they set off in the direction Prudence had pointed out to find their decorations, Miss Farthington and her mother fell back, talking amongst themselves as he and Madeline spoke quietly, discussing everything from the history of the property to the holiday traditions she’d enjoyed with her cousin Amelia.

  “She sounds like a dear friend,” he said as they stopped beside a tree that provided a shelter of sorts from the cold breeze and gave some privacy from the others as they spoke.

  “The very best,” Madeline said, her eyes soft with affection.

  “Madeline, I—” He reached for her hands, more nervous than he expected. “I wanted to find a moment alone today because...because I wish for you to know. To understand...”

  Her brows arched high.

  He cleared his throat. “I thought I’d missed my opportunity at finding this.” He tugged her closer and her eyes grew beautifully dazed as she allowed it, her body brushing up against his as she leaned in close. “I thought I’d missed my chance at love.”

  Her lips parted on a gasp that made his heart clench with a joy so painful it hurt.

  “I was married once, you know that...”

  She nodded encouragingly.

  “But it was not a happy marriage, and I want you to know why.” He drew in a deep breath and told her everything. The whole sordid tale that he’d kept buried somewhere deep.

  Somewhere dark and cold where it had festered and tainted his view of the future, of what he might have.

  “Do not misunderstand me,” he said as she squeezed his hands, her eyes bright with unshed tears as he finished his all-too common tale of a loveless marriage and the bitterness that had come from it. “I had more than enough love in my life these past fifteen years or so with Damian at my side. I couldn’t have loved any child more, but...”

  “But you still wish for a family of your own,” she said quietly. With so much understanding.

  “I do,” he said simply. “But the thing is...what I really wanted to say was...I did not know that until I found you.”

  Her eyes widened and filled with an aching tenderness that no doubt matched his own. “I did not know that I could feel this way, that I could be open to wanting more, to feeling more...” He gave his head a shake. “I just needed you to know how indebted I am to you.”

  She choked on a laugh, her eyes brimming with unshed tears now as she squeezed his hands tightly. “Then you and I are even. For I will be forever in your debt for showing me what it is to live without fear, without constraints.”

  He arched his brows high, amusement and joy making it hard to breathe. “I did all that?”

  “You did.” She nodded, laughing softly as she did. “I’m still learning,” she said slowly. “I’m still trying to sort out how to be brave when all my life I’ve been taught to be safe.”

  He nodded in understanding. “Take all the time you need, my dear. I want you to be comfortable. I wish to make you happy.” He smiled down at her with all the love in his heart. “I wish to give you everything you’ve ever wanted and more.”

  “Well...” Her voice was breathless, and he watched with a surge of tenderness as those tears brimming her eyes spilled over. “What is a lady supposed to say to that?”

  He chuckled as he swiped a tear from her cheek with his thumb. “You need not say anything.”

  “Good, because I had something else in mind anyway.” Her sparkling eyes danced with laughter and his heart thudded loudly in response. He let go of her hands when she tugged on them, even though he hated to let her out of his embrace.

  She stuck her hands in the deep pockets of the cloak she wore and he could not look away as she teased her lower lip with her teeth, clearly nervous, but for what reason he could not say.

  When at last she found what she was looking for, she looked up. “You, Edward, have taught me what it means to hope.”

  His heart nearly stopped working with that pronouncement. He had done that? He was so humbled by the praise he forgot how to speak.

  “More than that, you have helped me to remember who I am, or at least, who I was beneath the facade I’d learned to wear so well all these years.” She drew in a deep breath and wet her lips. “You’ve reminded me what it is to be passionate, to have feelings and to express them. And more than that, you’ve reminded me what it is to be brave.”

  “Madeline,” he breathed, moved beyond words.

  She silenced him with a shake of her head. And then there was a mischievous glint again. A gleam in her eyes that made his whole body feel light, as though he could soar. “And so,” she continued slowly. “I have decided it was time to accept your challenge.”

  He arched a brow, a laugh already brewing at her teasing tone. “Oh yes?”

  “Yes.” She took a step closer until her cloak brushed against his overcoat. “You wished for me to be myself, to embrace what I wanted and to take it. To be brave.”

  She held out the item she’d brought along with her. A sprig of mistletoe.

  That laughter escaped now as he saw what she meant to do.

  Going up high on tiptoe, she held the mistletoe above them. “You asked me what I truly want?” She smiled tremulously. “This is it.”

  He moved before she could, closing the distance between them and claiming her lips with his own. He groaned upon the contact as she melted against him, into his arms.

  The feel of her skin against his was better than any fantasy, any dream. Her lips against his were soft and lush and...perfection.

  She was perfect. Not because she was so graceful or demure or beautiful...

  No. His arms tightened about her waist as he deepened the kiss.

  She was perfect because she was Madeline.

  His Madeline.

  Chapter Eight

  She’d done it.

  Madeline was still breathless with delight and disbelief when they returned from the woods and discovered that Prudence had hot cocoa waiting, and that their turn for a sleigh ride was at hand.

  As the others warmed their hands by the fire, waiting for the sleighs to be readied again, Madeline found Miss Farthington seated on a settee with her foot elevated.

  Madeline considered the appendage with pursed lips to hide her amusement as Lady Bradford was sitting nearby. “I thought your ankle had healed.”

  Miss Farthington’s answering smile was unrepentant as she patted the seat beside. “Sit. Tell me everything. If I am to miss out on all the fun, I at least want to hear all the romantic details.”

  Madeline shook her head with a laugh as she joined her new friend. “You do not have to do this, you know.”

  Miss Farthington glanced meaningfully at her mother. “Believe me when I say that I do. Physically removing myself from the equation is the only way to ensure that you and our estimable host have any privacy.”

  Madeline tilted her head to the side. “But I thought you sat out today’s excitement because you’re coming down with an illness.”

  “Yes, but you see, my mother did not bel
ieve a few sniffles were reason enough to miss out on a sleigh ride with a marquess.”

  “I see.” Madeline eyed her friend who’d gone to such great lengths to ensure that Madeline got her happy ending even though it meant a sacrifice to her own chances for happiness. As if she could read her mind, Miss Farthington shook her head. “Oh no. Do not look at me like that.”

  “Like what?”

  Miss Farthington arched her eyes, and Madeline sighed. Drat. Her friend was right. She’d been dangerously close to pity there. And if anyone knew how awful it was to be pitied it was she.

  “You are right,” she said, patting her friend’s knee. “But I do hope you know how grateful I am. How grateful we both are.”

  Miss Farthington gave an unladylike snort of amusement. “For what? All it took was one look at the marquess on that first day for it to be ridiculously clear that he was smitten.”

  Madeline’s cheeks burned but she couldn’t hide a smile.

  “I had no desire to take away his attentions out of some sort of...pity.” Her nose crinkled with the word and Madeline could only nod in understanding.

  “Besides,” Miss Farthington said with a cheerful tone. “I am still young and beautiful—”

  Madeline laughed at her teasingly haughty tone.

  “There is a chance I will find a husband yet.”

  “Of course you will,” Madeline said quickly. And she would, of that she had no doubt. The scandal of a broken engagement would fade, in time.

  “To be completely honest,” Miss Farthington said, her eyes clouding with emotions that were so at odds with her typical cheerful demeanor. “I am not certain I am quite ready to try my hand at another romance.”

  Madeline reached for her hand. “Was your engagement so very awful then?”

  “Yes and no,” Miss Farthington said cryptically. “The real trouble is that when it ended, everyone believed I should be horrified. Distraught, at the very least.”

  “But?” Madeline prompted.

  Miss Farthington shot her a sidelong look to see her reaction. “But I was quite honestly relieved.”