Page 74 of A Well-Trained Lady

We nodded our agreement and set off for the bend in the coastline.

It didn’t take long before we arrived where the shore jutted inward, and we found a small cove where a rising slope eventually became a cliff face at the far end.

“How lovely.” Miss Whitmore latched her arm with Sarah. “And look, a small footpath. Should we explore a little further on?” Sarah nodded her agreement, and the two made haste toward an unidentifiable path without so much as a glance behind them.

Reluctant to follow them through the unwieldy terrain, I glanced back at Augustus, who appeared unconcerned in keeping up. “Are you coming?”

He shook his head, the mischievous glint in his eyes stilling me. “They won’t be away long. Come, let us talk.”

The two of them disappeared from view on the other side of an incline, both moving much too swiftly. My lips parted, and I looked back to Augustus. “You planned this?”

He lifted his hands, his palms facing me, as though to demonstrate his innocence. “Candace was the instigator. And when she sets her mind on something, she’s a difficult one to refuse, especially when it entails a moment alone with you.”

My heart raced in my chest so swiftly I could not keep my thoughts focused on why Miss Whitmore would organize such a ruse.

Augustus extended a hand, and I glanced down at it but did not move. “I don’t trust myself,” I said, surprised by my own admission.

He did not lower his hand. “Perhaps you should.”

I drew in a steadying breath. “No. Everything my heart is telling me contradicts what I know to be true—the very thing I have sought to obtain these last many years.” And the very thing I had sought to avoid. Love.

“Could it not be possible that your heart is aware of something your mind is not?”

With every quickened beat, hope pulsed through me. Was he right? I hardly knew. But before I could stop myself, I took hold of his hand.

He pulled me closer, the heat of his body causing a shiver to move through me. I did not move away.

“Are you cold?” he asked, placing his warm hands on my arms, the gentle caress of his fingers moving along my skin.

I shook my head, unable to voice that it was his nearness that caused the trembling. I knew precisely what he meant to say to me, what I would say in return if I could not convince myself to be stronger. The thought was terrifying and yet exhilarating.

His hands settled on my waist, making my breath catch. “Bella.” His voice was soft and near. “I cannot allow you to leave Fairhaven without declaring my feelings.” He paused, releasing a shaky breath. “I love you, Bella. I always have.”

Always.

His words stirred something deep within me, and I was reminded of Ruth’s song. Love is a rose heart buried deep. Though all barren from above, still alive it e’er will keep. My love for Augustus had never died, just as his love for me had not, but it had simply laid dormant those eight years, weathered and broken from no fault of our own. Yet now the roots were stronger and eager to grow into something beautiful. And I yearned for it to grow again. I would give anything for it to flourish.

The realization made me want to laugh and cry all at once, but no sound came. Instead, I lifted my hands to rest upon his chest. His shirt was still damp, and the pace of his racing heart was in rhythm with my own. I could scarcely draw a breath knowing what would follow, but then I tipped my chin upward, closing the space between our lips until they were only a moment apart from touching.

His eyes shifted between mine, the air heavy between us. He lifted one of his hands and brought it to my neck, his thumb caressing my jaw. The uncertainty that had filled me only minutes before melted from the warmth of his body pressed against mine. I leaned in closer still, until we shared our very breath. “You never stopped loving me?” I whispered.

His forehead came to mine. “Never.”

My chest was now lifting and falling in quick bursts, my breath attempting to keep up with my racing heart. “I never stopped loving you either.” How strange the words felt to speak, as though the desire of my entire life had finally been spoken aloud.

The strength of his hand on my waist intensified, the pressure pulling me forward and upward, where the softness of his lips engulfed mine. His kiss was precisely as I had remembered it, as I had recalled it time and time again throughout the years, yet somehow it was also superior, bursting with new emotion. Hurt. Longing. And a tender, abiding love. In that moment I realized how much I had needed him. Every fiber of my soul confirmed it as my hands lifted, wrapping around his neck. Despite our closeness, I managed to pull him closer still, no longer able to resist my yearning.

Our kiss deepened and slowed before Augustus reluctantly pulled his lips just out of reach. “Will you marry me?”

My heart swelled until it nearly burst within me, and I realized that this is what a proposal was supposed to feel like—an unwavering eagerness mixed with love and desire. All my reservations and the countless uncertainties seemed to dissolve with the realization that I could not live without Augustus. There wasn’t anything I wouldn’t give up to be with him. “Yes. I will marry you.”

He took a step back, quirking his head to the side. “Are you in earnest?”

“Must I say it again?”

A smile touched his stunned expression. “If you would.”

I took a step toward him, closing the space between us. “I will marry you, Augustus Brundage.”