It Could Only Be You (The Imperial Regency Series)
Page 7
"One thing you are not, Mr. Connelly, is common." She opened her eyes and grinned shyly up at him, still a bit dazed at the turn her evening had taken. The corners of his mouth curled up as he met her smile.
"Grandfather has asked me to manage some of his estates. If he had extended offering upon my arrival in England a few weeks ago I would have told him to go to Hell. But things have changed, I feel differently now. You have changed me. I'll stay because I can’t walk away from you." He nuzzled her ear, and Lily shivered with the pleasure of his lips on her skin. "Most of the properties are within a day’s drive of the village, so you could visit your father frequently, or if you prefer, he can come live with us. Though, I'd ask that he wait until a month or two after the wedding."
"Selfish," she teased.
"Very." Harry's expression was serious but his eyes sparkled in the moonlight. "I'd want my wife to myself for a bit before having to share her again with the world."
His wife. The words warmed her in a way the coat had not managed.
"I want the challenge of bringing the estates into working order and productivity. I think I’ll be good at it, and I’m eager to find out just what I can make of myself, given the chance. But I’ll need your help, Lily, and your advice. I don’t just need a wife, but a partner I can trust and count on. That could only be you."
She would be a fool to walk away from such a proclamation, and such a man. There was nothing on earth that could drag her from his arms in this moment.
Lily let out a small laugh full of joy as she made the choice to trust her heart, and his. She had always craved an adventure. Could there be a larger adventure than agreeing to live one's life with the other half of one's soul? Harry's face lit up with a reflection of the love and happiness she could feel flooding through her in a rush.
"Then, yes, I will marry you. We will make a blazing success of your estates, and all your cousins will turn green with envy." Lily wrapped her arms around him, holding on. He tucked her close and kissed the top of her hair. "We will love each other and create a beautiful family, and you will know peace again, I swear it."
"You are my peace, angel, and my greatest love. As long as I have you, I have everything," Harry murmured, holding her. They stood together in the cold, watching the stars wink out one by one as the warm fingers of dawn streaked across the horizon. The blush of the coming sunrise felt like a present, one wrapped in love and joy and hope. It was a new day.
It was Christmas.
Table of Contents
One
Two
Three
Four
Five
Six
Seven
Eight
Nine