“You ought to think about marriage yourself,” Victor said to Tom. “You and Nell could make a go of it, unless I’m much mistaken.”
Melody and everyone gasped at Victor’s careless words. Nell’s eyes watered and she managed a rusty little laugh. “I don’t think we’ll suit. Besides, I’ve just accepted a teaching position in Cornwall.”
Tom, who’d had less sleep than any of them, slammed his fist against the stone hearth. “I would if I could, damn it. But I’m already married.”
Melody caught her breath and Nell crumpled into Miss Dorothy’s arms.
“What the hell, Tom?” Melody stood, hands on her hips. “When? Who?”
“In university,” he said with a shrug. “It’s a long story, but it’s binding.” With that, he stalked out of the room.
Melody and Victor shared a look, him letting her know it was all right to leave. Melody and Dorothy escorted Nell, dry-eyed but looking shell-shocked, from the room.
“I’m so sorry, Nell,” Melody said when they’d reached Nell’s room.
Nell sank down on the bed. “I knew it. I knew there was something, some irrevocable barrier.” She squeezed Melody’s hand. “I’ll survive. Don’t let this overshadow your own happiness. I’m so glad you and Victor have found one another.”
“He’s the man of my dreams—literally. The dragons, the vague presence I knew I had to protect—the dreams all make sense now. And it all comes back to Victor. I love him, Nell. Is that wrong?”
“No.” Nell hugged her tightly. “It’s wonderful. You deserve it, Mel. I wish you all the happiness in the world.”
“But you deserve it too.” Tears gathered in Melody’s eyes. “I want you to be happy, darling.” It felt so wrong to be celebrating amidst her friend’s sadness.
“I will be.” Nell gave Melody one last hug and moved away. “Maybe this is just what I needed to take my future into my own hands. I’m going to teach music, Mel. To blind children. I’m really quite excited about it.”
“You’ll be wonderful.” Melody had no doubts about that.
“And I’ll open my mind to other men,” Nell promised. “A fellow teacher, perhaps. I’m not going to spend my life on the shelf, I promise.”
“Good.”
A knock came on the door and Victor poked his head in. “An airship is arriving.”
Melody left Nell to wash her face and took Victor’s arm. “Ready to meet my father?”
Victor laughed. “As long as he isn’t likely to kill me.”
They collected Emma and waited out on the lawn as the Order airship landed. Melody’s parents tumbled out, along with Kendall and Wink. They all took the news of Melody’s engagement with good cheer, Fergus MacKay clapping Victor on the shoulder and offering him a cigar. The two men walked away, leaving Melody and Wink, along with two crewmen, to secure the airship and load the prisoners, including the doctor and his sister.
“So he’s the one?” Wink leaned on a bulkhead, her long red hair flowing in the breeze. For once, though, Melody didn’t feel plain by comparison. She peeked over at Victor, who barely spared the other woman a glance. “You’re going to move out here to the middle of nowhere?”
“It’s just an hour or so by airship to London,” Melody reminded her friend. “And yes, he’s the one. I never thought I’d feel like this, Wink. I can barely breathe with excitement.”
“I’m so glad.” Wink grinned.
“And he’s fine with my work. He promised to build me an airfield. So we’ll be able to visit often.”
“Well, then that’s good too.”
Late that evening, Melody and Victor found themselves alone on the deck of the airship, returning to London. Emma was finally asleep, looking forward to meeting Wink and Nell’s little sisters and seeing the big city. Tom had vanished. Nell kept to her cabin.
“Still determined to make me wait?” Victor nibbled on Melody’s earlobe.
“No.” She arched into him. “Not for anything but the wedding. We’ll just have to be discreet for a few weeks.”
“Your father is liable to kill me if he finds out.” He traced the shell of her ear with his tongue.
“Ask him sometime why Geneva was a six-month baby.” She moaned and caught his hand. “I love you, Victor. I never thought I’d find someone like you.”
“I love you too.” He kissed her tenderly then looked out at the moon hanging low in the sky. “I never thought I’d be glad to be ashore, but with you, I am. Black Heath was never really home before, but now it will be. Because of you.”
“Because of us,” she said, leaning into his side. “Because of love.”
* * * * *
Nineteenth-century fantasy, romance and science
fiction collide! Check out some of the other titles in the Gaslight Chronicles series—available now!
Cards & Caravans
Book five of The Gaslight Chronicles
Belinda Danvers isn’t a witch. But that won’t stop them burning her at the stake...
Connor MacKay can tell at a glance that Belinda’s magickal powers are minimal at best. She can’t be guilty of murdering village children. There’s something suspicious about her arrest and lightning-quick sentence. Unfortunately, telling anyone how he knows would mean revealing his own powers. He’s been sent by the Order of the Round Table to help and he can’t just let her die.
Ashes & Alchemy
A Gaslight Chronicles novella
London, 1860
Police inspector Sebastian Brown served Queen and country in India before returning to England to investigate supernatural crimes alongside the Order of the Round Table. If his wifeless, childless life feels a little empty sometimes, that’s not too great a price to pay in the name of duty.
Connect with us for info on our new releases,
access to exclusive offers and much more!
Visit CarinaPress.com
We like you—why not like us on Facebook:
Facebook.com/CarinaPress
Follow us on Twitter: Twitter.com/CarinaPress
About the Author
Cindy Spencer Pape firmly believes in happily-ever-after and brings that to her writing. An award-winning author of 16 novels and more than 30 shorter works, Cindy lives in southeast Michigan with her husband, two sons and a houseful of pets. When not hard at work writing she can be found dressing up for steampunk parties and Renaissance fairs, or with her nose buried in a book.
Where no great story goes untold.
The variety you want to read, the stories authors have always wanted to write.
With new releases every week, your next great read is just a download away!
Keep in touch with Carina Press:
Read our blog: www.CarinaPress.com/blog
Follow us on Twitter: www.twitter.com/CarinaPress
Become a fan on Facebook: www.facebook.com/CarinaPress
ISBN-13: 9781426898372
DRAGONS & DIRIGIBLES
Copyright © 2014 by Cindy Spencer Pape
Edited by Melissa Johnson
All rights reserved. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of publisher, Harlequin Enterprises Limited, 225 Duncan Mill Road, Don Mills, Ontario, Canada M3B 3K9.
All characters in this book have no existence outside the imagination of the author and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names. They are not even distantly inspired by any individual known or unknown to the author, and all incidents are pure invention.
This edition published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.
® and ™ are trademarks of the publisher. Trademarks indicated
with ® are registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office, the Canadian Intellectual Property Office and in other countries.
www.CarinaPress.com
Dragons & Dirigibles Page 16