Her Lovestruck Lord: 2 (Wicked Husbands)
Page 22
She realized that in the flurry of their lovemaking, she’d forgotten to tell him. It struck her that he hadn’t required it of her, that he had simply been willing to love her without her loving him in return. The selfish lord she’d married had somehow become a selfless husband. The words she’d withheld from him rose past the lump of happy tears in her throat.
“I love you,” she said into the sated silence that had fallen between them.
He raised his head to look down at her, cupping her face with a hand. “You do?”
The unadulterated hope in his voice was enough to make her inner dam burst. The tears broke free, slipping down her cheeks as she smiled up at him. “I do.”
“Then why the bloody hell are you crying, my darling?” he demanded in typical, blustery Simon fashion.
She laughed then, marveling at the wonderful way life had of working out for the best when she’d least expected it. “Because you’ve made me a very happy woman,” she said.
“And you’ve made me the happiest man in all of England,” he told her, dropping another swift kiss on her mouth before rolling to his side and holding her tightly against him.
Sated and overwhelmed with love and joy, Maggie snuggled back against him, folding her arms over his. His heart thrummed deep and steady against her back, his cock nestled against her derriere. This, she thought to herself, was surely heaven.
The rumble of his voice startled her. “Maggie?”
She looked down at his possessive embrace over her bare midriff, finally feeling free from all the ghosts of their pasts. “Yes?”
“Do you think you would mind terribly saying it just one more time?”
She grinned. Yes, her blustery marquis had been tamed indeed. “I love you.”
“By God,” he murmured, an answering smile in his tone. “I don’t think I’ll ever grow tired of hearing that. I love you, my wild and wonderful American. And if you ever leave me again, I’ll bloody well chase you down and tie you to my bed.”
Maggie turned in his arms, giving him another long kiss. “I’ll hold you to that promise, my lord. For if you ever leave me again, I shall do exactly the same.”
He threw back his head and laughed as she’d never heard him laugh before. “I wouldn’t expect anything different, my love.”
Epilogue
“Darling.”
With a sigh, Maggie looked up from the poem she’d been attempting to write. Ten of the fifteen lines she’d penned thus far had been summarily scratched off. Some days, poetry came easily to her. Most days, she needed to scrabble and claw for it.
Simon sauntered into the library in his riding clothes, looking debonair and sinfully handsome at the same time. Her heart gave a great pang of love. Each day that had passed between them in the months since he’d come to her at Nell’s had only brought them closer together, making their love even stronger. She didn’t think she could ever grow tired of seeing his gorgeous head lying on the pillow each morning.
“How was your morning ride?” she asked, grateful for the interruption. She’d been writing a great deal of poetry recently, her love for the art renewed along with her happiness. She hoped to publish another volume one day soon, and Simon had been wonderfully encouraging to her.
“Most invigorating, but I do wish you’d joined me.” He strode across the room, eating up the distance between them in no time.
He caught her hands in his and pulled her to her feet. These days, she appreciated the help, given the relative roundness of her stomach. “You know I can’t properly ride in my condition.”
Simon pulled her close for a hungry kiss before winking down at her. “As long as you continue to ride me, I shan’t complain.”
She tried to suppress a smile at his wicked words but couldn’t maintain a properly staid façade. “You’re a devil of a man,” she said without heat, “speaking to me so.”
“You like when I’m wicked,” he returned with ease. “I can tell by the way your eyes turn that lovely shade of dark violet, and the way you try to frown at me but really cannot stop smiling.”
He knew her too well. She inclined her head, conceding the point. “Very well. I suppose I’m a book too easily read.”
His hands tightened on her waist, or what remained of it given the ever-growing babe inside her. “Not easily read, my love. It is simply that I know all the best parts by heart.”
She leaned into him for another kiss, thinking that her dratted poem could certainly wait. Why ever had she decided to pen something about love, anyway? Each time she attempted to write about the man she loved, she either ended up turning into a quivering blob of sobs or throwing the entire thing away. She supposed that sometimes, the most wondrous aspects of life could never be properly written.
“You’re frowning,” he said, dropping another peck on her waiting lips before straightening again. He reached into his jacket and extracted a letter, handing it to her. “Perhaps this shall make you smile again.”
Her curiosity piqued, Maggie took the letter from his hands and scanned its contents. Shock made her nearly drop it from her numb fingers. It couldn’t be. How could he have done this without her knowing? “What have you done, Simon?”
He grinned at her. “I sent away some of your poems to Livingston Press. I felt it’s bloody well time for the world to once again see your work.”
He was ever surprising her, this husband of hers. She hadn’t even known he’d had such a scheme in mind. He’d never said a word. The glowing language of the letter returned to her, buoying her flagging spirits. “And they want to publish a full volume?” She’d never dreamed of such a possibility. After all, it had been too long since she’d published a word, and even then, it had only been because of her father’s influence.
“The publisher says he would be thrilled to print another M.E. Desmond book. Indeed, he considers it quite a rare find, for as you know, the mysterious Desmond has only written but the one volume.” That penetrating gaze of his was trained upon her, gauging her reaction. “Are you happy?”
She threw her arms about him, laughing when her ungainly stomach wouldn’t allow her to embrace him as she wanted. “Happy? I’m utterly thrilled. I can’t believe you did this for me.”
He caught her up in a nearly crushing embrace. “Much as I’d like to, I can’t very well keep you all to myself, now can I?”
How she loved him. If she wasn’t careful, she’d turn into a watering pot all over him. Heaven knew she’d done it a great deal since becoming with child. “Thank you, Simon.”
“It is I who must thank you,” he said against her ear.
“What must you thank me for?” she asked, puzzled.
He drew back to gaze lovingly down at her. His hands went to her belly, hidden cleverly in the layers of her skirts. “For loving me in spite of myself. For giving me the family I’ve always wanted. Finding a publisher for your poetry is the least I can do after all you’ve done for me, Maggie. You’ve made me whole again.”
“No,” she said softly, putting her hands over his as their baby gave a kick. She thought of all she’d left behind in New York and just how much she’d gained in England. She never could have imagined just how complete she’d feel in Simon’s arms. “We’ve made each other whole again.”
As he took her back into his embrace for another passionate kiss, she knew instinctively that the best was yet to come.
About Scarlett Scott
Scarlett Scott has loved romance novels ever since she was eleven and swiped her older sister’s books to read by flashlight in her closet. Her mother caught her, but she remained undeterred. A self-described promiscuous writer, she dabbles in all sorts of genres but loves erotic romance best. She lives with her hero and their adorable but occasionally evil puppy and spends too much time lurking on her blog.
Scarlett welcomes comments from readers. You can find her website and email addresses on her author bio page at www.ellorascave.com.
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Also by Scarlett Scott
A Mad Passion
Captain Grey’s Lady
Her Errant Earl
Lady Clarissa’s Seduction
Love’s Second Chance 1: Reprieve
Love’s Second Chance 2: Perfect Persuasion
Love’s Second Chance 3: Win My Love
She Likes Him Bad
Wicked Dirty
Print Books by Scarlett Scott
A Mad Passion
Pirate’s Past anthology
Love’s Second Chance 1: Reprieve
Ellora’s Cave Publishing
www.ellorascave.com
Her Lovestruck Lord
ISBN 9781419903618
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Her Lovestruck Lord Copyright © 2013 Scarlett Scott
Edited by Grace Bradley
Cover design by Kelly Martin
Cover photography by Artem Furman,Maridav,dutourdumonde -/fotolia.com
Electronic book publication November 2013
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Table of Contents
Blurb
Title
Dedication
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Epilogue
About Scarlett Scott