Page 71 of The Precious Secret of a Loving Governess
Miss Jamison’s eyes closed in peace against his touch. She seemed moved by it and that brought him further satisfaction and certainty that he had made the right decision.
Then he slipped his hand back into hers so that both of his held each of her dainty hands.
“Miss Jamison, I believe you ought to send Lady Ingles a card of congratulations,” he grinned.
“Why is that?” she asked, sounding nearly desperate to know.
“Because she has recently been married. To Mr. Smith,” he announced, unable to keep a silly laugh from slipping out.
Reginald’s joy was palpable and he could not hold it back any longer. But seeing the shock and relief that passed over Miss Jamison’s face made every moment worth it. He knew that he had done his best to right matters. But it had taken a few days to do it and he had feared that in that time, she would be gone.
He had come so close to losing Miss Jamison that he would not allow that to happen again. Thinking back to the experiences they had shared, the ride on the horses, the books he had seen her reading, the way she looked after Marian, he could not deny what had been in his heart all along.
And it was nearly time that he shared that all with her.
“Yes, they were married in the country. Her family was not present, but it mattered not. I was the witness. Not only that, but I was the one who organised the entire wedding. So when I tell you that they are married, you may rest assured that it is the truth,” he promised.
“Truly? They are wed?” she asked, needing reassurance.
“Do you believe that I would play a sort of cruel trick on you?” he asked, challenging her with his own humour.
“I simply never anticipated it and can hardly believe that all of this has come to pass. I am happy for her. For both of them. But I am sorry that you had to suffer the loss of your betrothed,” Miss Jamison said, trying to remain as proper as she was able to given the circumstances.
Reginald admired the way she refrained from jumping at her own feelings. She was evidently making an effort to show her self-control, but also to be prim and proper on the matter.
Yet, Reginald would not have minded if she had shown the same foolish joy that he felt. It was a happiness that he could not deny, and that was something that he wished for every man and woman to feel.
“I did not simply witness the union, Miss Jamison. I arranged it all. I made certain that it took place. And it did. Society will soon know of it and the two will have to handle that on their own. But they are prepared for it. I think that they shall handle it all very well,” he told her.
Miss Jamison still seemed unable to accept it. Or perhaps she was simply still unwilling to believe that it could possibly be true.
But if the feelings she had alluded to upon their last meeting were still true, he thought that she would be quite overjoyed at what he was telling her. It was only her patience which seemed to be keeping her at bay.
“But why did you do all of this?” she asked.
He paused for a moment and chose his words carefully, echoing what she had said to him not so long ago.
“You must know why. You must know how I feel about you,” he answered.
And with that all having been said, he waited.
Chapter 33
Victoria felt her heart still. Scarcely allowing herself to believe that this was true, she waited for a further explanation. Although she heard the words that had been said to her, it was as though they were spoken from afar and to another person. The Earl could hardly have meant what she thought he had meant.
Observant and disbelieving, were those not her two most apparent qualities? Could she not hold to them in equal measure?
Could Lady Ingles and Mr. Smith really have been married? And what was all this nonsense about him having been there and having arranged it? It seemed like utter foolishness and Victoria waited for the Earl to laugh and tell her it was all a ruse. Perhaps he and Lady Ingles had been the two to wed. Or perhaps it was an untruth so that he might yell at her for the lies she had told.
Until then, Victoria had managed to keep her emotions unreadable, to remain flat in every respect. It had not been easy. The challenge was nearly unbearable, but she had been strong.
Here it was, in the middle of the night. She was tired and she was surprised. But she had determined not to show him how she felt, not to give way to her feelings. She had expected him to call her down only to beg her not to leave but to remain as Marian’s governess. Anything more would have been sheer nonsense and she knew it. So whatever the reason was that he was claiming such an event to have occurred, she simply would not accept it until the proof was before her.
And for all of those things, Victoria knew that she would be able to control herself and refrain from showing her emotion and sharing how she truly felt about these matters. If she accepted his words as truth, there would be no option for her to keep herself from bursting with joy.
But this was something entirely different. This was a fact that could change everything if she allowed it to. If she burst with that joy, if she believed it to be fact, her very future might change forever. And that was a thought that she was quite unwilling to accept.
It was simply an impossibility. The Earl arranging for his betrothed to marry another man, one whom she loved, seemed a foolish impossibility to hope for. Did he think Victoria gullible enough to believe this? Did he deem her simple and foolish?
