Page 94 of A Picture Is Worth A Thousand Heirs

“Churl.”

Juliana stirred at the scraping sound at her window. Motionless in her bed, she held her breath. Perhaps she had dreamed it.

A sharpthudfollowed the man’s single word. “Juliana?” the man asked, the voice familiar.

Her heart rammed hard against her ribcage. She sat up in bed and tried to tamp down the fear rising in her throat. “Who’s there?”

“Juliana? Don’t be alarmed. It’s me. Victor.”

Victor?She scrambled from the bed and lit the lamp on her bedside table.

Still not certain she wasn’t dreaming, she rubbed her eyes.

“Victor, what are you doing here?” He looked a fright. What appeared to be an ivy leaf was stuck in his hair. An ugly red scrape slashed across his right cheek, and he was missing a shoe.

“I had to see you.”

“In the middle of the night? And how did you get in here?” Her gaze darted to the open window.

“I climbed up.”

He sounded extraordinarily proud.

She rushed forward to get a closer look at him. Other than the scratch, disheveled clothing, and missing footwear, he seemed no worse for wear. She plucked the leaf out of his hair. “What were you thinking? You could have been killed.”

“Nash assured me I would only break a leg. And even if I did fall to my death, it would have been worth it, because I realized I don’t want to live without you.”

She blinked.What?Victor’s two odd statements warred for attention. The weight of the second required more time to digest, so she addressed the first. “Nash? He knew?”

“It was his idea.”

Prepared to deliver a few harsh words to Lord Nash, she rushed to the window and peered down. No one remained on the terrace below. “He’s not there.”

“The churl left me as I climbed up. You would think he’d be keen to watch me fall and break my neck.”

She turned back around, right into Victor. His hands wrapped around her waist. He was impossibly close. Heat from his fingers seared through her thin nightrail. The hard planes of his chest pressing against her breasts made her dizzy.

“Steady.” His breath brushed against her upturned face as she looked deep into his eyes. Their gazes held, the moment stretching between them taut and fragile. Silence enveloped them with only their ragged breathing filling the void.

She needed to think, and she couldn’t with him so near. Giving a gentle push against his solid chest, she stepped back to give her body and her mind space. His arms slipped from her waist and dropped to his side.

“Please, Juliana.” He reached for her again, and she held up a hand. The dejected look on his face broke her heart.

“Why? Why would it be worth risking your life?”

“Because I love you.”

Her mind stuttered to a halt. “No. You think you love me because I remind you of Adalyn.”

His shoulders slumped. “I know that’s what you think, but it’s not true. Tonight, seeing Adalyn again made everything clear. Yes, it was a shock, but more than that, I realized that I loved a person who only existed in my imagination. Not the real Adalyn. I think I loved what she represented. Someone different from the society misses of theton.Independent and determined. But I didn’t really knowher.I’m ashamed to say I saw her as a way to rebel against society’s constraints, especially my mother.”

A sudden chill raced through her. “But isn’t it the same with me? Your mother doesn’t approve. And what about when you take your father’s place as viscount? Regardless of Drake’s title, I’m still a commoner.”

“I realize it looks that way, and I hate to admit, it was one of the things that attracted me to you initially. But then...then I got to know you. Learn about your own hopes and dreams. Watched your heroic rescue of Eva Somersby. How you support me in my passion for the arts. Your kindness and generosity to everyone around you, no matter their station in life. That’s the kind of woman I want by my side. I should have said something sooner. Should have been more direct. Instead, I presumed you were crying off because you didn’t love me. Do you love me, Juliana?”

“I...I do.” Tears blurred her vision. Everything in her wanted to believe their marriage could work.

He stepped closer and took her hands. “Then it’s settled. You’ll marry me?”

---