A Mother's Trust
Page 38
‘Thank you, constable. I’ll be prepared to give evidence if required. You know where to find me.’ Rogue took off his jacket and slipped it around Phoebe’s shoulders. ‘Come inside. You’re soaked to the skin.’
Her teeth were chattering with shock. The dampness seeped through her clothes to chill her skin and there was little she could do except allow him to help her up the steps into the house. She leaned on him, trying to keep her mind on anything other than the familiar scent of his body and the thrill of his touch. The young housemaid who had been in attendance the last time Phoebe was in the house bobbed a curtsey, her face puckered with concern.
‘Can I do anything, master? Is the young lady ill?’
‘She’s had a shock. A cup of tea would probably be just the thing, Lizzie. And perhaps something to eat.’
‘Yes, master. Poor lady, she looks done in.’
She hurried off to do his bidding and Rogue led Phoebe into the front parlour. ‘You’re as thin as a sparrow, Madonna,’ he said, setting her down on the sofa. ‘I could pick you up with one hand. What have you been doing to yourself?’
His face was close to hers and his eyes were warm with genuine concern. Phoebe choked back tears. It was easier to cope with her emotions when he was angry with her. His kindness would be her undoing. ‘I thought they were arresting you,’ she murmured.
He grasped her hands, chafing them gently. ‘As you can see it was all a mistake. Snape has been trying to make trouble for me for a long time, but he’s gone too far now. He won’t be bothering either of us again.’
‘I don’t understand. What could he have against you?’
Rogue sat down beside her. She could feel the warmth of his body leaching into hers, and she did not protest when he slipped his arm around her waist. ‘He was an informer. He hung around the pubs where the gangs met and then passed on information to the police, but he became greedy and tried to blackmail me. I would have none of it, and he didn’t understand that I was already working with the police and had been for many years.’
She laid her head on his shoulder. It seemed the natural thing to do. ‘So Rose was right. You really have reformed.’
His smile caressed her face like warm sunshine. ‘It had to look as though Ned and I were hard men. We did run the gang, but our main aim was genuine protection of those terrorised by the mobs, and sometimes it led to violence. I’m no knight in shining armour, Phoebe. I’ve done many things of which I’m bitterly ashamed.’
She raised her hand to touch his cheek. ‘I don’t care. I would love you even if you were the worst villain in Christendom.’
His smile faded and he turned her to face him fully. ‘Say that again, Madonna. Did I hear you right?’
His eyes were alert and filled with hope. He looked suddenly young and defenceless as he waited for her to form the words. She slid her hands around his neck, pulling his head down until their lips met in a kiss. His arms tightened around her and she was lost in his passionate embrace, but they drew apart at the sound of the maid knocking on the door and Rogue rose to his feet. ‘Enter.’ He straightened his tie, smiling ruefully down at Phoebe as Lizzie bustled into the room and set the tray on a small table in the window.
‘Will there be anything else, sir?’
‘I think I can manage from now on, thank you. I’ll ring if we need anything further.’
Lizzie shot Phoebe a shy smile as she bobbed a curtsey and left the room. Rogue ran his hand through his hair. ‘Are you all right, my love? I didn’t mean it to happen like that, but I couldn’t keep my feelings hidden for a moment longer.’ He moved swiftly to kneel at her feet, taking both her hands and kissing them. ‘I love you too, Phoebe. I think I fell in love with you right at the start, but you were always several steps ahead of me. I thought you despised me.’
‘I tried to hate you, but I couldn’t.’ Tears coursed down her cheeks, but this time they were tears of joy and not sorrow. ‘I can’t remember the exact moment when I knew that you were the only man I would ever truly love, but the gap between us seemed too great to overcome. There were so many people whose needs had to come first.’
He drew her into his arms, claiming her mouth in a kiss that she wished would last forever. When they finally drew apart he rose to his feet, smiling down at her. ‘That’s all over now, my darling. From now on it will be just you and me.’ He went to a side table and poured a tot of brandy into a glass. He pressed it into her cold hands. ‘Sip this, darling. I don’t want to lose you to pneumonia so soon after claiming you for my own.’
The fiery spirit warmed her body but his tender words set her soul aflame. ‘You really want me?’
He poured himself a drink and raised his glass in a toast. ‘I’ll never let you go again, my dearest Madonna. I’m not asking you to marry me; I’m telling you that is what we are going to do at the earliest opportunity. You don’t mind, do you?’
His laugh was infectious and she smiled happily. ‘Not at all, Roger.’
He put his glass down and taking hers from her, he set it back on the table. He raised her to her feet, holding her so close that she could feel their hearts beating in perfect rhythm. ‘No longer a rogue, my love?’
‘I’ll never call you that again. I love you with all my heart, Roger Paxman.’
‘And will you marry me, Phoebe?’
‘Yes,’ she said simply. ‘I will.’
He regarded her steadily, his expression suddenly serious. ‘Do you want a big wedding, or shall we do it quietly by special licence? I’ll do anything you ask, but I can’t wait much longer to make you my wife.’
She traced the outline of his face with her fingertips. ‘I just want you. Nothing else matters to me. We’ve waited so long, I don’t think I could bear to wait a day longer than necessary.’
He gave a whoop of pleasure, so unlike his dignified persona that they both dissolved into fits of laughter. ‘You’ve answered my question, my sweet,’ he said, holding her round the waist and twirling her round the room. ‘We’ll get the ring now before the jewellers close. I’m not letting my younger brother steal a march on me. We’ll attend their wedding next week as an old married couple. We’ll give them all the surprise of their lives.’
Their arrival at Judy’s house on the day of Rose and Ned’s wedding caused exactly the effect that Rogue had desired. Their news was met with delight and not a little consternation, but it did not take long for everyone to see how happy Phoebe was, and that Rogue was genuinely devoted to her. Rose laughed and cried at the same time, declaring that it was mean of Phoebe to steal the limelight from her on her wedding day, and then she hugged her. ‘I couldn’t be happier for you, darling,’ she said, wiping her eyes. ‘I just wish we could have danced at yours. It must have been a very quiet affair.’
Phoebe kissed her on the cheek and adjusted the lace veil on Rose’s bonnet. ‘It was exactly what we wanted. We’ve waited a long time to be together, and I really didn’t think it would happen.’
Rose glanced anxiously at her reflection in the mirror. Judy had generously allowed her to use her own bedchamber, which possessed a tall cheval mirror, and a dressing table. ‘Well, it has, and you deserve to be happy, after everything you’ve been through.’ She smoothed her silk skirts. ‘How do I look? Will Ned think I’m worth all the trouble?’
‘He’s a lucky dog,’ Phoebe said, smiling. ‘He doesn’t deserve you, but now I’m his sister-in-law I can tell him that with a clear conscience and without fear of being told to mind my own business.’
‘As if you would,’ Rose leaned over to kiss her. ‘You will be the best sister-in-law anyone could wish for, and the sweetest sister to Teddy. Madame and Gussie are dressing him in his best sailor suit. He’ll look so adorable. I wish he could come with us on our honeymoon.’
‘No you don’t,’ Phoebe said firmly. ‘He’ll be spoilt to death here with Judy and the others.’
Rose picked up her posy of spring flowers. ‘And will you and Rogue – I mean Roger; I must ge
t used to calling him that now. Will you two be going away somewhere nice?’
Phoebe smiled dreamily. ‘He’s taking me to Paris. We’re leaving first thing in the morning for Dover.’
‘That’s funny. So are we.’
Phoebe linked her hand through Rose’s arm. ‘How wonderful. We’ll have a glorious time.’
They both turned with a start as Judy burst into the room. She was dressed in the latest fashion with a confection of flowers and feathers on her head. ‘Come along, you two. The rest of the guests left ages ago for the church and the carriage is waiting to take the bride and the matron of honour.’
‘It’s all right, Judy,’ Rose said serenely. ‘I believe it’s fashionable for the bride to arrive late.’
Judy frowned. ‘Young girls these days. I don’t know what the world is coming to. I was on time for my wedding.’ She beckoned to Phoebe. ‘And your husband refuses to leave without you. He doesn’t seem to want to let you out of his sight. I’d make the most of it if I were you. It never lasts.’
Phoebe hurried Rose from the room. She paused in the doorway to pat Judy on the shoulder. ‘You don’t mean that, I know. You might pretend to be a cynic, but I know you love Marcus and he worships you.’
Judy had the grace to blush, but she shooed them out of the room. ‘Get along with you both.’
Rose was already in the hall by the time Phoebe negotiated the steep bend in the staircase. She looked down and saw that her husband was staring up at her with a look that made her heart leap for joy. He held out his hand, and his smile enveloped her like a warm embrace. Her feet barely touched the ground as she descended the stairs to walk into his arms. She had come home at last.
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Copyright © Dilly Court 2011
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