Just One Kiss (33 page)

“Daphne,” he sighed again, playing for some time.  “That’s all in the past,” he said, feeling horribly guiltily for acting in such a deceitful manner, “it doesn’t do any good to bring it up now, darling.”

Daphne flinched, clearly taking everything that Edward had just said as an agreement- clearly believing what she had believed for
the entire
time that they had been apart- that he had never wanted to marry her, not even in the slightest…

“No, of course, you’re right,” she mumbled.  “We have to- to make what we can of the present and not dwell on what we’ve lost in the past,” Daphn
e nodded, apparently determined
to be philosophical about things.

Edward frowned and reached for a clean shirt.  “Well, I wouldn’t put it quite like that,” he grumbled under his breath, not meaning for his wife to hear, but of course she did.

“What do you mean?” she queried instantly, hope bursting to light in her eyes.  “Why wouldn’t you put it like that?”

“Well, because-” Edward began awkwardly, and then broke off, pausing to knot his tie.  He took so long about it that Daphne stepped forward and snatched it off him, tying it impatiently and then demanding that he continue with his explanation.  “Because-” Edward sighed heavily.  “Daphne I don’t regret our current situation,” he blurted, which made his wife jump back from him and gape.

“You
don’t?
” she gasped.  “But- but how can you not!” she cried.

“It’s… I- I don’t-” Edward stammered.  “I don’t regret the fact that you are my wife, Daff,” he rasped possessively, taking a step closer to her, to close the wide gap that had formed between them.  “I might regret how it came about, and how I behaved thereafter, but I don’t regret the fact that you belong to me,” he declared huski
ly, reaching for her and dragging
her against him.

“You can’t mean that!” Daphne whispered, her voice trembling.  “It- it isn’t possible!” she whimpered, shaking her head numbly.

Edward pressed a hand gently against either side of her face and held her still.  “Why do you say that?” he breathed, letting his eyes gaze into hers, how would it be possible for any man to resist such a treasure.

“You didn’t want me…”

“I want you now!” Edward growled fiercely, moving his hands to Daphne’s waist so that he could grip her tightly.  “I want you, Daff,” he murmured against the top of her head.

“Edward?” Daphne gasped. 
Could this be real?
  “Oh Edward,” she murmured, cuddling close to his chest, simply needing to hold him near.  “I want you too,” she whispered, guessing that he had heard her by the way that his arms suddenly locked around her waist, almost crushingly tight.

She had always wanted him, always.

Chapter 34

“Daphne,” Edward growled, refusing to release her until several minutes had elapsed and his wife had hesitantly reminded him that their presence really was required downstairs.  Edward muttered something about ordering a tray of food to be brought upstairs, but Daphne refused to stand for it.

She waited while he finished dressing however, not yet feeling confident enough in her surroundings to go down alone.  Daphne still couldn’t quite adjust to the fact that she was now the mistress of Packwood House – at least for the time being at any rate.  She truly expected Lady Margaret to pop out from one of the rooms and scream ‘usurper!’ at her.

“Whom did you want to invite to your ball, Edward?” she mused, suddenly thoughtful.  If she was going to run a country manor then she might as well start and do it properly!

Her husband shrugged, tugged on his last boot, and then made for the door.  “Whomever you think should be invited to
our
ball?”

“Edward!” Daphne sighed, slightly exasperated.  “Are you planning on helping
organize
this party at all?” she asked, tapping her foot.  Her husband just shot her his perfectly heart-melting boyish grin and shrugged again sheepishly.

“Isn’t that why I need your help, Daff?” he teased charmingly.  “To help
organize
my muddled little life?”

Daphne wanted to be angry. At the
the very least
, she wanted to be annoyed
wit
h him for spouting such rubbish,
but
his
smile was so
disarming. H
e
said that he wanted her. She
was living with him in his house
. All of her girlhood dreams seemed
so very close to coming true that she couldn’t possibly be angry with anyone- least of all the man capable of making those dreams a reality!

“Well clearly you need someone to take you in hand,” she sniffed playfully, brushing past Edward and walking out into the hall.  “So do you intend to feed your poor wife, or leave her to starve?”

Edward chuckled, and followed after Daphne, leading her downstairs where he hailed the butler, and informed him that he and Lady Coventry would be requiring a late supper to be served.  Daphne stood a little removed from the exchange between master and servant, still faintly horrified about what the elderly man must think of her!

“Dinner will be served shortly, my lady,” Edward announced with a grand, sweeping bow.  Daphne rolled her eyes, poked her tongue out childishly and marched past him again, this time wandering into the drawing room. 

Laughing, Edward followed her.  “I keep forgetting how well you know your way around Packwood,” he smiled.

Daphne glanced at him hesitantly.  It seemed an innocent enough comment though, at least, it had been innocently said, so she made little of it.  “I’m afraid I don’t know where the secret passageways are though, my lord.”

“Me either,” Edward grinned.  “We’ll have to do some searching together,” he joked, but Daphne thought that there was something rather poignant about the remark.

Dinner was a delicious, if simple, affair.  Daphne assumed that a more elaborate meal would have been presented if the kitchen staff had been given time to prepare.  However, she still made a mental note to speak to the cook and the housekeeper early the next morning, to lay out menus for the coming week, assuming that this was an acceptable role for her to take within the household.

“I should ride over to Dunnely once we’re finished,” Edward sighed. 

Daphne looked up from her plate sharply.  “My lord?”

“Your mother is still unaware of the rather more permanent nature of your visit, Daphne,” Edward pointed out.  “She has to be told.”

“I’ll come with you!” Daphne blurted.  She wasn’t sure why the thought of her mother and husband being alone together terrified her so much, but
it
definitely, did!

“That’s not necessary,” Edward frowned. 

For a moment Daphne thought that his reluctance stemmed from the fear that if he let her go back to Dunnely then she might not come home with him, but such a thought was ridiculous… wasn’t it?

“But Edward-”

“I will be quicker on my own, Daff,” Edward said mildly.  Daphne opened her mouth to argue, but was interrupted by the entrance of Eldridge, the butler.

“A visitor to see you, my lord,” he announced.

Daphne watched curiously as her husband frowned in the butler’s direction.  “At this time of the night? Who on earth is it, Eldridge?” he demanded, getting to his feet.

“Mrs.
Hargreaves
I believe, my lord.”

Daphne blanched at the mention of her mother’s name.  Such a wave of panic washed over her that for a moment she didn’t even notice Edward walking out of the dining room to go and greet his guest.

“Wait!” Daphne called, when she
did
notice him leaving.  “I’m coming too!” she cried, jumping up from her seat.

Edward stopped, and cast her an amused glance.  “Well, come along then,” he grinned, waiting for her in the doorway.

Daphne couldn’t help herself, she slipped her hand into his when she reached Edward’s side.  Her mother always made Daphne feel like such a- a child.  “What do you think she wants?” she whispered.  Edward shot her a bemused glance.

“I would have thought
that
was obvious,” he muttered.

Daphne didn’t happen to agree.  Given his posture and grim expression, Edward clearly assumed that her mother was there to cause trouble, maybe even to rip her from his clutches- but Daphne knew better.  Her mother might not have wanted her daughter’s marriage to happen- or at least, not in the circumstances in which it had taken place, but now, what she wanted more than anything else, was for the past to be forgotten, for her family to regain its respectability.  She thought that would happen, if only Daphne and Edward behaved like at normal married couple. 

Daphne’s mother might very well barricade her inside Packwood with the Earl if she thought it would help!  Hence her daughter’s apprehension as to what she had planned…

“Edward, wait!” said Daphne, tugging on his arm to try and make him stop.  “Maybe you should let me go and speak to my mother alone?” she implored.  Her husband simply cocked a curious eyebrow and continued walking towards the drawing room, where Eldridge had left Mrs.
Hargreaves
.

“I can handle your mother, Daphne,” he said confidently.  “If she means to cause trouble then I-”

“I don’t think that’s what she means to do,” Daphne mumbled nervously.  “At least, not in the way that you mean,” she added, biting her lip anxiously.  Edward frowned again, and continued to shoot her puzzled glances until they reached the drawing room, where his mother-in-law was waiting for them.

“Lord Coventry!” Mrs.
Hargreaves
exclaimed, when Edward and his wife entered the chamber.  Daphne scowled, unable to understand why her mother needed to sound so surprised about finding Edward in his own house.

“Mrs.
Hargreaves
,” Edward nodded politely.  “Please forgive me if I caused you any concern about your daughter.  Daphne, as you can see, is quite safe and well.”  He glanced in his wife’s direction.  “It was however terribly ill-mannered of me to neglect to inform you of our new plans.”

“Your new plans, my lord?” Mrs.
Hargreaves
echoed him, but she sounded faintly hopeful.

“Daphne has decided to stay here with me at Packwood,” Edward said smoothly.  Daphne watched him out of the corner of her eye.  His face looked hard and his stance was resolute.  He clearly expected his mother-in-law to object.  Daphne knew better, and so she wasn’t at all surprised by her mother’s barely contained squeal of joy.

“Oh thank heavens!” Mrs.
Hargreaves
cried, clapping her hands together.  “The two of you have come to your senses!  Thank goodness!” she beamed.

“I might only be here for a little while!” Daphne blurted.  If her mother got it into her head that everything was all right then there would be no going back… both Mrs.
Hargreaves
and Edward scowled at Daphne for making this interjection however.  “Edward just wanted some help with a ball that he plans to throw,” she mumbled weakly, although this did very little to appease either her mother or her husband.

“Nonsense!” Mrs.
Hargreaves
boomed.  “I’m sure the Earl doesn’t mean to use you as his hostess and then turf you out again?” she glared at Edward, almost daring him to disagree with her.

“Of course I don’t!” Edward snarled, but then he took a deep breath.  “However, nor do I mean to keep Daphne as a prisoner here,” he grumbled, sounding as though he would actually very much like to do just that.  “If she wishes to leave then she is free to do so at any time.”

“Rubbish!” Mrs.
Hargreaves
sniffed again.  “You would be quite within your rights-”