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.
8
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 believe 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.”
Madeline wrapped an arm around Miss Farthington’s shoulders. “Then I am glad it is behind you.”
The other girl sighed. “The only problem now is...I know not what to do with myself. My mother has her plans, of course, and my brother is so disappointed in me for failing at my one and only duty of marrying well and...” She faded off. “Miss Grayson, might I ask a favor?”
“Of course!” Madeline turned slightly to face Miss Farthington. “Anything.”
“If this holiday ends the way I think it will,” Miss Farthington said with a coy smile. “I suspect there will be an opening for a headmistress at your School of Charm.”
Madeline bit her lip to hold back a squeal of excitement that was most definitely unbecoming of a lady, never mind a woman of her age. Her mind caught up with what the other woman was suggesting and her eyes widened with shock and then delight. “Would you wish for the position then?”
Miss Farthington’s gaze flickered to her mother who was watching them like a hawk. “It would not go over well, I dare say. But right at this particular moment, I would very much wish to have some amount of freedom. Some independence until I can decide where I shall go from here.” She looked to Madeline. “Do you think me crazy?”
Madeline shook her head quickly. “No, of course not. I think the school would be a wonderful place for you to do just that. And I think the school would be lucky to have you.”
Miss Farthington grinned. “Thank you, Miss Grayson.”
Madeline squeezed her shoulders. “You know that it is I who should be thanking you. Even the marquess has been referring to you as our very own Christmas guardian angel these past few days.”
They both burst out laughing at that, and Miss Farthington wiped away a tear of mirth. “Oh dear. An angel? If only my brother and mother could hear that.”
Edward approached with an indulgent smile. “I hate to interrupt, ladies, but I’ve been told they are ready for us.” He held out a hand to Madeline. “Shall we?”
As Madeline took his hand, her heart leapt with excitement as it seemed wont to do every time he was near. “Let us go for
a sleigh ride.”
While the landscape was still covered in snow, and the air even more frigid than the day she’d arrived, Madeline could not help but notice that in every other respect the day was the exact opposite.
The sun was shining, the birds were chirping, and her heart...
Well, she was not at all the same woman who’d arrived.
Her frustration and her anger felt like a distant memory, and she was so filled with contentment and peace when the marquess steered the sleigh to a turn in the road, she nearly missed the fact that this was it.
The place where they’d first met.
He brought them to a stop in what had once felt like the middle of nowhere but what she now knew was her home.
This place. This man. These lands.
This was her home.
It had only taken a carriage accident and a Christmastide miracle to find it.
“Madeline,” he said, as he helped her from her seat so they were standing precisely where they’d stood so few days ago...and yet it felt like another lifetime.
“Tomorrow is Christmas Day,” he said.
Her smile trembled with emotion as he held her hands tightly, the beloved creases near his eyes crinkling as he smiled at her.
“It seemed only fitting that I bring you here, where our journey first began,” he continued. “For I am hopeful that you will agree to begin a new journey with me. To be by my side, forever and always.”
Her heart...her heart nearly shattered with the full force of her joy. Tears streamed down her face as she went up on tiptoe, his arms coming around her.
“Will you do me the honor of being my wife?” he asked.
She nodded quickly. “Yes. Of course.”
His lips crushed hers in a kiss that seemed to seal the words. It was an unspoken promise, a precursor to the vows to come.
When he finally pulled back and held her tightly in his arms, she could only sigh and say the words that had been trying to be free for days now. Maybe from the very first moment they’d met. “I love you, Edward.”
He brushed his nose against hers. “And I love you, Madeline. And thank you...” He held one of her hands to his heart. “Thank you for giving me the best Christmas present anyone could ever ask for.”
“Hope,” she whispered.
He smiled as he leaned down for another kiss. “And true love.”
* * *
Thank you for reading! Be sure to check out Maggie Dallen’s new Bluestocking Battalion series, starting with Miss Minerva’s Militia.
Plus, get a FREE sweet regency romance novella now when you sign up for Maggie Dallen’s monthly historical romance newsletter here: http://eepurl.com/dgUNif
If you missed Addie and Tolston’s story, you can find it in The Misadventures of Miss Adelaide.
Louisa and Tumberland’s tale can be found in The Misunderstanding of Miss Louisa.
Delilah’s story can be found in The Miseducation of Miss Delilah.
And Prudence’s story can be found in The Misgivings About Miss Prudence
For more sweet regency romance, check out Maggie Dallen’s latest series, A Wallflower’s Wish.
About the Author
MAGGIE DALLEN IS a big city girl living in Montana. She writes romantic comedies in a range of genres including young adult, historical, contemporary, and fantasy. An unapologetic addict of all things romance, she loves to connect with fellow avid readers. Subscribe to her historical newsletter at http://eepurl.com/dgUNif or her contemporary newsletter at http://eepurl.com/bFEVsL
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The Mistletoe Mistake of Miss Grayson: School of Charm: Christmas Novella Page 7