Page 14 of How to Wed a Courtesan

‘Come this way, so we won’t be seen.’ She grasped his hand and pulled him towards the trees as she scanned the area around them. ‘If someone had happened upon us before our meeting could have been easily explained. But now...’

Now their meeting would be seen as what it was—a direct defiance of her father’s wishes. And she had done that for Evander.

They disappeared into the woods, the sun overhead blotted out by the thick canopy of leaves and the scent of damp earth lingering in the cool air around them.

He reached for her, drawing her close to him. Her eyes were red-rimmed and swollen, as though she had been crying for the better part of the night.

‘Lottie, your father does not approve of our union,’ Evander said.

‘I know.’ Her eyes became glossy with welling tears. ‘But I... Evander, I can’t imagine my life without you. It’s like trying to imagine living without one’s heart beating.’

Her admission echoed deep in his own soul. She understood. She felt the same way.

‘You don’t have to be without me,’ Evander said.

She searched his face, anxiety evident in her tensed brows. ‘What do you mean?’

‘We could run away together.’

She sucked in a breath and took half a step back.

He caught her hand and gently pulled her towards him once more. ‘I will purchase Huntly Manor, as I said, and we will reside there once we return from a swift jaunt to Scotland.’

‘Scotland,’ she repeated slowly.

‘Gretna Green.’ He whispered the words as the scandal they were. Everyone knew the relaxed laws of Scotland made for swift marriages—most especially those unions with which the parents were not in agreement. ‘Comlongon Castle is nearby. We can stay there several days before returning.’

Her slender fingers twisted together, and he could see the uncertainty within her.

‘Your father loves you,’ Evander said. ‘He’ll forgive you and we’ll be here when he does—at Huntly Manor.’

‘That’s brilliant.’

A smile blossomed on her face and he knew she’d made her decision. She nodded. That was the moment he had been waiting for. He withdrew the wooden box from his pocket and knelt in the layer of leaves which crackled beneath his weight.

‘Marry me, Lottie.’

He opened the wooden box. The ring within was small, a poor declaration of the enormity of his love. But in an area such as Oxfordshire there were few esteemed jewellers to be had.

‘Say yes and we will make plans to run away tomorrow morning.’ He indicated the ring sheepishly. ‘And I will obtain a proper ring for you when we are next in London.’

She put her hands over her face and squealed with joy. ‘I love it exactly as it is.’

She plucked the gold band with its chip of a diamond from the satin lining and slid it onto her finger, admiring it before beaming up at him.

He grinned, his heart near bursting from its confines. ‘Is that a yes?’

She nodded, fresh tears welling in her eyes. ‘Yes.’

He laughed with his joy as he got to his feet and opened his arms to her. She leapt into them, knocking them both backwards. He wrapped her in his embrace as they tumbled to the soft forest floor, their mouths finding one another’s as they kissed first in joy and then in passion.

Desire took over as he gently eased them over, so he lay atop her, his forearms bracing his weight over her body as their mouths and tongues caressed and teased. His body raged with a need his fist could no longer slake.

But not until they were wed. It would be only days before they were true husband and wife. He would do this properly.

Before he could push himself off her she parted her legs beneath him, cradling him against her centre and arching up towards him so their pelvises fitted together. There was no hiding the force of his arousal with such intimate closeness. Though layers of clothing separated them, her eyes widened with surprised delight.

‘Lottie, I should go.’ He pushed away from her and got to his knees.