Page 59 of The Mistletoe Countess
“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.”
Abound in hope? Her attention riveted to the man as if he’d spoken directly from heaven, and being a cleric and all, that’s exactly what he was supposed to do. The Bible proved incredibly poetic and poignant at the most opportune times. Like now, when she needed poetic and poignant the most.
As the congregation stood for the first hymn, Grace stared down at the words. She’d not heard this hymn before.
O love that wilt not let me go,
I rest my weary soul in Thee.
Weary? She’d wrestled with weariness of spirit, but the words soothed over her fear with divine reminders. No matter where she went or how lost she felt, God’s love would never let her go.
I give Thee back the life I owe,
That in its ocean depths its flow
May richer, fuller be.
She closed her eyes, envisioning the ocean waves that propelled theAquitaniaacross an endless sea. The idea poured over her wounds. Her life, her hopes overflowed with the fathomless love of God. He cradled her dreams and her future in His care. She was never alone or lost to despair. The harmonies of voices all around swelled through her, reverberating with truth like an embrace from above.
She belonged to Him.
God had placed her here as she was, knowing exactly what Havensbrooke and Frederick needed most. She was not a victim of cir-cumstance, and she would not kowtow to the fear. As any heroine worth her own story, Grace claimed her future—Frederick, Havensbrooke, even her malevolent mother-in-law.
It was time to beginlivingthe newest chapter of her life.
Frederick’s desire for a private conversation with his wife was ceremoni-ously thwarted by his mother’s sudden need for assistance to her room. He should have known her well enough to recognize the ploy, because after taking much longer than necessary to reach her room, she turned on him as soon as the door closed.
“Did you see your wife in church? Are we to become accustomed to these fits of passion?” His lips tilted at the memory of Grace’s “fit of passion” in the church.
Angelic. Her gaze to the heavens. Her smile, glowing. The unidentifiable feeling that had percolated in his chest throughout the entire service as he gazed upon his unconventional bride pearled into recognition.
Love.
HelovedGrace.
Even if she loosened every gossiping tongue in town by swimming across a river or standing radiant during a somber service. She kept doing that. Entering his world of gray places and bringing light and…and he’d want her no other way. Heneededher no other way.
“I shouldn’t be surprised, with your history of fumbles and mistakes, that Mr. Ferguson fooled you into marrying his emotional waterworks daughter. And since you’ve no mind to control her, I’ll have to take her in hand.”
“Grace is not the problem, Mother.” Her continual guilt-laced manipulation played a dull refrain he’d outgrown. “And mistakes? My brother made as many as I did. Look at the state of our home. If he’d loved this land at all instead of being controlled by his petty interests, then Havensbrooke—”
Her slap came without warning, a weak sting, but humiliating nonetheless. “You know nothing of it. He was twice the man you are. Always had been. We would never know ofhisillegitimate child orhisdecadent lifestyles, because he had the respectability and control to house his passions with discretion. You, however, flaunted your recklessness like a badge of honor.”
“I’m not that man anymore, and whether you like it or not, Edward is gone.I’mthe future of Havensbrooke. And we have an opportunity to start over—”
“Start over withher?”She released a humorless laugh. “How could this ginger-headed trinket of yours do anything to mend the embarrassment you’ve—”
“That is enough.” Frederick walked toward the door. “I will begin seeking suitable housing for you in town—somewhere you will be close to Havensbrooke and well cared for—but I will not have you undermine my future any longer.”
“You—” Her hand reached for her throat. “You would cast me out?”
“You will always be a part of the Percy family, but you are no longer mistress of Havensbrooke, and I will not allow your toxicity to continue its assault upon me or my wife.”
His mother slipped down into her chair, black gown billowing around her, eyes wide. “How dare you speak—”
“I’ve attempted to open your heart to me. Spent years trying to make you care for me a little. You were never willing. Grace is more than willing. I will capture the happiness available to me and attempt to redeem what was lost.”
Frederick’s wife had disappeared. He searched her room, the library, his study, even had the vain hope of finding her inhisroom, to no avail. The thought that she might have run away flickered to mind, a notion he’d never consider for anyone else. But Grace? With his bumbling of her heart over the past few days, it was a distinct possibility, but he knew better now. Understood better now.
