Page 178 of A Very Bellamy Christmas

He became serious again. “I am honored you have chosen me. But there is one thing I want you to understand. I may have executed heroic deeds from time to time, but I am a man who is excoriated in decent society for what he has done—”

“Only because they have been told lies about Sarah—”

“And that is something they must continue to believe,” he said firmly. “Just because she told Kathryn does not mean we are free to tell the world.”

Stacia ground her teeth but could see by his expression that there would be no talking him around the matter.

“And forget about Sarah for a moment. You cannot deny that I abducted Lady Shaftsbury with the sole intention of using her against my cousin.”

“No, I cannot deny that. And it was a cruel act. Are you ashamed of what you did to Lady Shaftsbury?”

“More than you will ever know.”

“Then let that be an end to it, Andrew. Do people not deserve a second chance? Are we not allowed to get up once we have stumbled? You wronged her, it is true, but she also credits your actions with bringing her to the marquess—the love of her life.”

“She is too kind-hearted.”

“She is kind-hearted. But she is also right.”

He took her hands in his. “You are forgetting what I did to the duke—to his first wife.”

Stacia set her hands on his broad shoulders, suddenly realizing that for all his magnificent strength and brawn he was as vulnerable as anyone else. “We talked about this once before, Andrew. Everyone else has forgiven you—all the people who matter, at least. The only one who hasn’t forgiven you is you. Please, isn’t a decade long enough to punish yourself?”

***

Andrew stared in awe at this woman who loved him and argued so strenuously in his defense. He was not as sure as she seemed to be that he deserved forgiveness, but perhaps it was time to let go of the mistakes he had made and look toward the future. Certainly, it was not fair to Stacia to dwell so much in the past.

I love him, she had shouted, defying the harpy to her face. Would he ever forget the intense wave of wonder and joy he’d felt when he heard those words?

Andrew had done nothing to deserve such bounty, but he was going to seize this opportunity with both hands.

Stacia smiled up at him, her brown eyes so warm—so trusting—that his knees were momentarily weak with terror.

She loved him.

He lightly caressed her jaw. “I am the luckiest man in England, Stacia.”

Her eyes became glassy. “Are you trying to make me blubber?”

Andrew laughed. And then suddenly recalled something and patted his chest, smiling when he felt the small bump beneath his lapel. “I almost forgot to give you your Christmas gift.”

“But I am wearing my gifts.”

He let his gaze drift over the brilliants that sparkled in her flattering new haircut and then down to the soft leather sheathing her arms. “Those were just trifles I bought in case I could not get your real gift sized in time.”

“Sized?”

He reached into his coat and brought out a small leather pouch. “This is your real gift.”

She caught her lower lip with her teeth and took the pouch.

Andrew watched her face as she fumbled with the drawstrings and then tipped the ring into her palm.

“Oh!” She gasped, her eyes wide as she gazed at the rose ring she had admired so much at the Christmas fete. After a long moment, she lifted her eyes to his. “But—this is…How did you know?”

He indulged in a bit of gloating before taking the ring and slipping it over her glove. It was a snug fit but would be perfect without the leather. “I cannot divulge my secrets.”

She stared at the delicate rose on her finger, her lashes glinting.

“Happy Christmas, my darling Stacia. The first of many to come.” He dropped a kiss on her soft lips. “I don’t deserve you—no, I don’t,” he said, talking over her when she tried to demur. “But I swear on everything sacred that I will strive to.”

She threw her arms around his neck, pulled him tightly against her small body, and then mumbled into his crushed cravat, “I didn’t get you a gift, Andrew.”

He loosened her grip and took her chin in his fingers, making her meet his gaze. “Don’t you understand you wonderful, lovely, adorable woman? You are my gift, Stacia. The best Christmas gift I have ever received.”