Page 59 of His Duchess' Wicked List

He stopped, staring at her earnestly. “But… yes. Of course, I have. That is why I am here, begging you to marry me. I ran all the way from Grosvenor Square when I realized it.” He blinked. “I love you, Maddie. I love you fiercely, furiously, like I have never loved before. I want you… and only you. There is no one else for me in this world.”

Her heart stopped beating for a moment. She had waited for this moment. She had dreamt about it. She had never believed it would happen. She almost wanted to pinch herself to believe that it truly was real.

“I… I love you, too,” she admitted. “You are the only man that I can see. The only man that I willeversee.”

He exhaled, leaning his head on her hand. The air seemed to gather around them, like clouds in the sky, moving fast and furious, filled with momentum. Slowly, she reached out with her other hand, placing it on his head. They stayed like that for a long moment.

“I do not deserve you,” he whispered, eventually, gazing up at her. “To think I almost lost you.” He shook his head incredulously. “I thought I was cursed, Maddie. I believed that I was my father’s son and would end up breaking the heart of any woman if I submitted to love. You were the one who made me face my fears, to stop running from it. To have the courage to love. But I almost missed my chance…”

“I was always here,” she whispered back, her heart swelling with such fierce love that it was almost painful. “I was here, waiting for you.”

“Say you will marry me,” he pleaded. “Put me out of my misery. Say that you will be mine forever.”

“I will,” she breathed, feeling the sweetest joy of her life. “I am yours. I have always been yours.”

He kissed her hand fervently, before rising, gathering her in his arms. He placed his hands on her face, gazing down at her with such love that she couldn’t breathe. They were lost in eachother’s eyes. His lips descended on her own, kissing her until she was quite dizzy.

Time seemed to stand still. His lips on hers were like a benediction. A promise. A vow. The most solemn vow she would ever take. She knew, at this moment, that they were already fully committed to each other, and that a ceremony would be a mere formality.

Her scandalous list had brought them together. But it was love that would keep them together. A love so fierce and true that it could never be extinguished.

The door swung open. They both jumped, turning towards it. Augusta was standing there, looking like the cat that had just eaten the cream.

“Is it done?” she asked, smiling broadly. “Are we allowed to come in and offer our congratulations?”

They both laughed. Daniel nodded.

The next moment, everyone trooped back into the drawing room, surrounding them.

“You are a dark horse, Daniel,” the Dowager Duchess chided, yet she looked delighted. “You could have just told me that you had fond feelings for Lady Madeline, you know.”

Lady Ollerton took her youngest daughter’s hand, squeezing it tightly. “Oh, Maddie! I am delirious with pleasure, my dear child!”

“Congratulations to you both,” Lord Ollerton said, his eyes misty. “I must say, I never saw it coming, but I know a love match when I see one.”

The Dowager Duchess clapped her hands together. “So, we will not be having a double wedding, after all. But that does not change much. I am still thinking of an autumn wedding, in the chapel at Stansgate…”

The older ladies drifted away, chattering like starlings, already planning the wedding. Lord Ollerton kissed his youngest’s cheek, then shook hands with the Duke, drawing him aside.

Augusta approached Maddie, took her arm, and then led her towards the fireplace, where they could talk privately. “Be happy, little sister,” she said quietly. “I always knew you were in love with each other. It just took you both a while to figure it out yourselves.”

Maddie was so overcome that she couldn’t speak for a moment. Then, she stared at her sister.

“I am so full of joy that it does not seem quite real,” she gushed, blinking rapidly. “I wish the same joy for you that I am feeling, Sister. I want you to find your love. He is out there somewhere. I just know it.”

Augusta laughed. “Oh, Maddie, you are such a romantic!” She looked sad for a moment. “I am afraid there will be no such happy ending for me. But I am resigned to it, Sister. There are other joys in life.”

Maddie bit her lip. She wanted Augusta to find love. She wanted her sister to experience this joy. She wanted her to live her own life, fully and completely. But it was out of her hands entirely.

Augusta leaned over, kissing her cheek gently. “I wish you joy, dear sister. I know that you have everything that you ever wanted.”

The two sisters were drawn back into the group. Maddie’s head started to swim as the two matrons grew ever more frantic with their wedding preparations. They called for champagne. Many toasts were raised to the happy couple. She had to pinch herself again that it was really happening.

And then, Daniel drew her aside.

“Meet me tonight?” he whispered in her ear, smiling archly. “I will send the carriage for you again.”

Maddie felt a delicious thrill of anticipation. She turned to her intended husband. The man she loved more than anything in this world. The man who had swept her off her feet.

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