As soon as he finished reading the document, he turned to Selina. “I do not despise London so much anymore,” he said, taking her hand in his. He brushed the curls from her eyes. “If I had not come here, I would not have seen you again. And now that I know this house belongs to me, I would like to live here with you. It is a short distance from your mother, who I know will miss me severely if we venture too much farther.”
Selina laughed before regarding him seriously. “I would live in a tiny cottage if it meant I could live with you. It doesn’t matter where we go.”
Edmund couldn’t help but press a kiss to her cheek. “Would you live with me even if we could not afford a cook?”
Selina clasped her hands behind his neck, glancing upward as if deeply considering his question. “That does not matter. With my fifteen thousand, I daresay we can afford a very talented cook.”
He chuckled, wrapping his arms around her waist and lifting her toes off the ground. He kissed the tip of her nose, then her lips, before setting her on the ground again. “Nonsense. I am talented enough in the kitchen,” he said.
“We shall see about that at dinner on Twelfth Night.” Selina raised one eyebrow. “Our talents will be put to the ultimate test.”
“If Mrs. Perry approves, then we shall know that keeping a cook is unnecessary.”
Selina shook her head. “Mrs. Perry will not approve of anything tomorrow with how disagreeable her mood will be when she discovers we are engaged.”
Edmund gave a solemn nod. “If only the Duke of Rye were here to heartily approve.”
“I daresay the Duke would be tempted enough by our pudding to devour it in his sleep.”
Edmund tipped his head back with a laugh before regarding her seriously. “I only hope it is free of egg shells.”
He watched her contemplative expression and the smile hovering on her lips. Her eyes hardened with determination as she looked up at him. “We shall consider the pudding a success, whether the others like it or not.”
Edmund took a deep breath and smiled. “The pudding is already a success whether the others like it or not. It brought us together.”
He had expected Selina to smile, or even kiss him, but she scowled instead. “Even if you were only pretending to like me that day?”
He took her hands in his, tracing his thumb over her knuckles. “I liked you all along. It was love that came unexpectedly.”
A slight smile tugged on her lips. “I confess I did not even like you for a time.” Edmund opened his mouth to protest, but she took a step closer, brushing his hair off his forehead with a smile. “There was something quite wrong with me then.” Her voice lowered to a whisper, her round eyes gazing into his.
He hadn’t ever been so affected by words, but he hung onto every one Selina spoke. He nearly laughed, or heartily agreed that there had indeed been something wrong with her, but instead he pulled her into his arms. She rested her head against his chest, and he held it there, running his fingers softly over her hair. Her arms wrapped around his shoulders, and she held him tight. He could hardly believe all that had occurred during his time in London. His shock over securing Selina’s heart was still more difficult to believe than the fact that this house where they stood—it was now his. Theirs. He had already begun imagining the life they could build together. The laughter and the love they would share. His heart pounded as he stepped back enough to look in Selina’s eyes.
“How much time does your mother require to plan your wedding?” Edmund asked.
Selina cast him a thoughtful look. “She will likely wish to wait until after the weather has warmed a bit. She will want my wedding to be unforgettable, and far more extravagant than the wedding Mrs. Perry planned for her daughter.”
“If only we could marry atop the river Thames.”
Selina shook her head with a laugh. “I don’t wish to take a fall in my wedding gown.”
He tugged her closer, interlocking his fingers behind her waist. “At least if we are married, you falling on top of me in front of a crowd will be far less scandalous.”
Her cheeks reddened before she burst out laughing, covering her face with both hands. “I believe you have it all wrong,” she said as she peered out from behind her fingers. “That was the moment that brought us together.”
“Indeed,” Edmund said, a fond smile stealing over his expression as he reflected on that day. “Imagine if I had not gone to the Frost Fair. I never would have seen you with Skinner.”
“You never would have stopped me.” Selina’s voice grew solemn. “I believe you were my first Christmastide miracle, Edmund.”
The sincerity in her gaze nearly made his heart stop. He stole a slow kiss from her lips before whispering close to her ear. “You were mine. You did come at the steep price of my time and effort, but I should have expected that after finding you at the Frost Fair.”
She pulled away to scowl at him, but her lips twitched into an exasperated smile instead. Before she could scold him, he took one of her hands in his and adjusted his other at her waist, guiding her into a waltz. The confusion on her brow slowly faded as he began humming the song they had danced to on Christmas. Their laughter echoed in his grandmother’s empty house—their empty house—until all traces of his humming were gone. Laughter was their new song, and there would be no final note to part them.
The pudding was brought out on a silver platter, and none of the guests seemed to mind the change of tradition having it served on Twelfth Night. It wobbled slightly as it was placed at the center of the table. Selina exchanged a glance with Edmund. He sat with his shoulders back, a slight smirk of pride on his lips as the pudding was sliced and distributed to the guests. Despite not aging as long as it was meant to, the pudding still tasted of spice and fruit and all the flavors of Christmastide.
Mrs. Perry took a minuscule bite, brows drawn together with skepticism. Her doubt relented as she took her second bite, and a sigh escaped her lips. “I must agree that this is an exemplary dessert.”
Mama glowed as she gave a deep nod, her gaze flicking in Selina’s direction, then Edmund’s. “I believe it was the love between the two who prepared it that made it so exemplary.”
Rose pressed her lips together to minimize her smile. Selina tried her best to maintain an even expression. Mama had been eager to announce Selina’s engagement for days, and she was bound to do so with no small amount of boasting.
Mrs. Perry’s eyebrows shot up; as did her daughter’s. “Love?”
Mama laughed, touching her necklace with one delicate finger. “Oh, I must have forgotten to tell you the news.”
“News?” Mrs. Perry swallowed visibly.
“Sir Edmund has proposed to my Selina, and they are to be wed very soon.” Mama took another bite of her plum pudding, closing her eyes as she savored it. “Oh, yes, this was made with a great deal of love, indeed.” When she opened her eyes, they shone with victory.
Miss Perry did not seem quite as disappointed as her mother, but rather relieved. A smile stole over her lips as she continued eating in silence. Perhaps her pursuit of Edmund had only been motivated by her mother’s expectations. Mrs. Perry’s nostrils flared, and she stabbed her pudding with her fork. “Ah, I offer my sincerest congratulations.” She offered a smile to Edmund, then Selina, before hiding her clenched teeth behind her lips. After taking another bite of the pudding, she cleared her throat. “Despite its flaws, I suppose I see how the Duke could have liked this dish.”
Mama raised her eyebrows. “Flaws?”
As the polite bickering commenced, Selina met Edmund’s gaze across the table. She could hardly do so without laughing, so she returned her attention to her plate, finishing every last crumb of the plum pudding. Edmund seemed just as surprised as she was to find that it was delicious and that there was not a single egg shell to be found.
After the ladies returned to the drawing room, Edmund, Mr. Perry, and Mr. Vaughan stayed back for their port. It would be several minutes before they joine
d the ladies. Selina bounced her foot impatiently as she waited for Edmund to return to her side. A smile already pulled on her lips at the thought of the events of dinner they had yet to discuss. Selina couldn’t remember a happier Twelfth Night, nor could she imagine a better way to spend every Christmastide than with Edmund at her side.
She had never imagined that love could be so gripping, enough to keep her toes bouncing on the rug until Edmund returned, to keep her mind spinning with a flurry of hope for the future. At first she was surprised that Edmund had stolen her heart, and she was even more surprised that she had stolen his. But love was never something to be understood; it was something to be felt and treasured, and Selina had learned it had a proclivity for surprises.
But as Edmund walked through the drawing room door, dark curls falling over his brow and a broad smile on his lips, she was not surprised at all to find that his gaze fell on her first.
Author’s Note
Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed Edmund and Selina’s love story, and that it brought a smile to your face. Along with the other four authors involved in this series, I thoroughly enjoyed researching the Frost Fair, which was a real event in history. In February of the year 1814, the Thames did freeze over, and a fair was held on the surface, just as we describe in our stories! For the sake of our Christmas theme, we fictionalized the dates the fair to fit our timeline, but the events of the fair remain the same. I hope you enjoyed learning about such an interesting event in this book, and I hope you will read the others to come in the series!
More books in the Belles of Christmas: Frost Fair series!
Book 2: All is Mary and Bright by Kasey Stockton
Book 3: Thawing the Viscount's Heart by Mindy Burbidge Strunk
Book 4: On the Second Day of Christmas by Deborah M. Hathaway
Book 5: The Christmas Foundling by Martha Keyes
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More books by Ashtyn Newbold
Larkhall Letters Series
Book 1: The Ace of Hearts
Book 2: The Captain’s Confidant
Brides of Brighton Series
A Convenient Engagement
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An Unexpected Bride
Standalone novels
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Lies and Letters
Road to Rosewood
Novellas & Anthologies
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Unexpected Love
About the Author
Ashtyn Newbold grew up with a love of stories. When she discovered chick flicks and Jane Austen books in high school, she learned she was a sucker for romantic ones. When not indulging in sweet romantic comedies and regency period novels (and cookies), she writes romantic stories of her own across several genres. Ashtyn also enjoys baking, singing, sewing, and anything that involves creativity and imagination.
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Her Silent Knight: A Christmas Regency Romance (Belles of Christmas: Frost Fair Book 1) Page 16